Ian Griffiths (businessman)

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Ian Ward Griffiths (born 1966) is a British businessman. He is a non-executive director of BBC Commercial and a Senior Adviser to Bain Capital.

Between 2020 and 2022 he was the CFO and deputy CEO of Kantar Group, a global data analytics and brand consulting company. During this time, he led the restructuring of the business following its acquisition from WPP plc by Bain Capital.

Early life[edit]

Ian Ward Griffiths was born in September 1966.[1] After being brought up and educated in North Wales, he gained a master's degree from Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.[2] He is a qualified accountant.[2]

Career[edit]

Griffiths worked for the accountants Ernst & Young for six years, before joining the magazines, radio and business media group Emap (Now Ascential) in 1994, and was group finance director from 2005 to 2008.[1][2] He left the group in 2008 following the sale of the business to a combination of the Bauer family and Apax/GMG.[3][2]

ITV[edit]

In 2008, Griffiths joined ITV plc as finance director.[4][3]

Griffiths spent 10 years at ITV during a period of significant transformation. During this time ITV’s market capitalisation peaked in excess of £10 billion. Working alongside Adam Crozier and Archie Norman, Griffiths helped build the international Studios business to complement the UK Commercial Broadcast business, creating an integrated content business less reliant on UK advertising revenue.[5]

He was the COO, CFO, and interim CEO of the media company ITV plc from May 2017 to December 2018, following Adam Crozier's departure after seven years as CEO.[4][6][7][8]

Upon the appointment of Carolyn McCall as Group CEO in January 2018,[9] Griffiths transitioned operations to a new leadership team before leaving the business in March 2019.[10]

Kantar Group[edit]

Griffiths joined Kantar in January 2020,[11] following its acquisition by Bain Capital in December 2019. He was additionally appointed Deputy CEO in June of that year.[12]

In December 2022, it was announced that Griffiths would join the board of BBC Commercial Limited.[13] He was a non-executive director of DS Smith plc from 2014 to 2018.

Awards[edit]

In 2013, he won FTSE 100 FD of the Year.[14]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Daniel Farey-Jones. "ITV appoints Ian Griffiths as finance director". Campaignlive.co.uk. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d Ian Griffiths. "Ian Griffiths, Itv PLC: Profile & Biography". Bloomberg. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  3. ^ a b Mark Sweney. "Emap veteran Ian Griffiths joins ITV | Media". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  4. ^ a b Julia Kollewe (1 January 1970). "ITV chief executive Adam Crozier steps down after seven years | Media". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  5. ^ ITV plc (31 December 2018). "ITV annual report 2018" (PDF).
  6. ^ Cox, Josie. "ITV chief executive Adam Crozier to stand down after seven years". The Independent. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  7. ^ Sam Dean. "ITV boss Adam Crozier to leave the broadcaster after seven years". The Telegraph. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  8. ^ "ITV share price dips as boss Adam Crozier steps down | City A.M". City A.M. 7 October 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  9. ^ "Carolyn McCall to become ITV chief executive". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  10. ^ McDonald, Andrew (27 June 2018). "ITV finance director to step down after 10 years". Digital TV Europe.
  11. ^ "Kantar appoints Ian Griffiths as Chief Financial Officer". www.kantar.com.
  12. ^ "Kantar appoints Ian Griffiths to Deputy CEO role". www.kantar.com.
  13. ^ "BBC Board appointments point to commercial future". Broadband TV News. 9 December 2022.
  14. ^ "ITV's Ian Griffiths is rated best at finance director awards | London Evening Standard". Evening Standard. 10 May 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2017.