Andy Coulson Keynote Speaker

Andy Coulson is Former Editor of News of the World, Former Director of Communications, Downing Street, and an expert speaker on communications, crisis management and reputation. Throughout his career Andy has been, as he puts it, poacher, gamekeeper and game – experiencing crisis from every angle.

He worked with David Cameron in Opposition and was a lead strategist in the 2010 General Election, helping his boss become Prime Minister after 13 years of Labour government. In Downing Street Andy built and managed the coalition communications team and directly advised the Prime Minister and Cabinet on all crisis issues. In his memoir David Cameron said: “Andy [had] transformed my relationship with the media and translated the theory of modern, compassionate conservatism into something tangible and sexy.”

Andy resigned in 2011 saying: “When the spokesman needs a spokesman, it’s time to move on.”  He then spent the next five years dealing with the fall-out of the News of the World hacking scandal, facing three high profile legal cases. He won two but lost one and spent just under five months in prison, including two months in high security HMP Belmarsh.

Since then, Andy has rebuilt his life, putting all his experience to work as the founder of a successful strategic advisory firm, Coulson Partners, advising global CEOs, entrepreneurs and philanthropists.

He hosts the popular podcast Crisis What Crisis? Created in the midst of the first lockdown, Andy interviews the survivors of all manner of crises, personal and professional and finds value in listening to the stories of the unravelled.  

As a speaker, Andy draws from his careers in journalism, politics and business to offer a clear view on how to cope when the tough times come. He believes crisis can help us find a life of greater productivity and meaning.  As he puts it: “That’s the great prize of surviving crisis, whatever its cause. That it’s not just about getting your old life back … it’s a chance to discover a life that was better than it was before.”

Speaking Topics:

• CRISIS WHAT CRISIS?
  As someone who created, managed and lived crisis, Andy has a unique perspective to offer. From the practical to the more philosophical, Andy will share the lessons learned from his own experiences at the highest levels of newspapers and politics … and in prison. He offers a visceral view on personal crisis, as well as useful tips on how to survive and thrive, at a time when crisis has become the new normal.

• REPUTATION WITH PURPOSE
  Few people can talk to the importance and fragility of reputation in the modern world as authoritatively as Andy Coulson. As the editor of Britain’s then biggest selling newspaper, adviser to a Prime Minister and having been at the centre of his own high-profile scandal, Andy is uniquely placed. His experiences – good and bad – have helped him create a distinctive formula for reputational management. “It’s never been easier to be famous,” Andy says “But it’s never been harder to build and secure a reputation. The key is to define your purpose, build the right reputation to drive it and then put it to work.”  Andy outlines  his rule book for reputation fit for purpose in 2021.

• CUT THROUGH COMMUNICATIONS
  As the editor of a national newspaper, No10 communications director and now a strategic adviser to business leaders, Andy will give his view on what makes great and effective communications. In an increasingly noisy world, Andy gives his view on what it takes to cut-through and be heard. Deploying anecdotes and analysis from 30years of working closely with some of the great communicators, he sets out his formula for truly memorable messaging.