An internationally renowned marketing thought leader, teacher, and practitioner, Don Neal brings Madison Avenue to Main Street. He has spent a career dedicated to the art and science of persuasion. From strategic communications, branding, advertising, and live branded media, he delivers aggressive and progressive marketing solutions to global brands such Mercedes Benz, Marriott, and Microsoft. In his work, Neal is relentless in achieving message relevance, media precision, and accountability for results.

An adjunct professor of marketing at Georgetown University, he works with graduate students to design practical marketing programs for the nation’s top trade associations, the regions best non-profits, and Fortune 500 corporations. Neal currently serves as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Leading Authorities Inc., the nation’s most progressive event design firm and lecture agency. At Leading Authorities he leads companies and associations to re-imagine their events from the ground up, turning traditional meetings into experiential, live-branded media.

Neal is the former managing director and chief marketing officer of the consumer and commercial practice at Marsh & McLennan, was president of Echelon Marketing Group, served leadership roles at Omnicom’s Rapp Collins Worldwide office in New York, led Focalpoint Marketing Inc. as the CEO , and cofounded the Hallmark Cards Loyalty Group.

Neal has served on the faculty of the American Marketing Association, the Bloch School of Business, the Direct Marketing Association, and the National Center for Database Marketing. He is an internationally recognized speaker. He serves on the board of The Catalogue for Philanthropy.