LEAD, the Advertising Industry’s Annual Summit, Returns for 2024

The Advertising Association, the IPA and ISBA will hold their annual industry summit on February 8, 2024, at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in London.

LEAD, known as the place where advertising meets politics, will feature an exclusive keynote from The Rt Hon Lucy Frazer KC MP, secretary of state for culture, media and sport. Other confirmed speakers include Phil Smith, director general, ISBA; Laurence Green, director of effectiveness, IPA; Kate McCann, political editor, Times Radio and Kate Waters, director of client strategy and planning, ITV. The full speaker line up will be announced shortly.

The key theme for LEAD 2024 will be responsible growth: advertising’s trusted, inclusive and sustainable role in helping the UK economy return to prosperity. Hosted by journalist and broadcaster Samira Ahmed, the summit will bring together leaders from across the political, business and advertising spheres.

LEAD will be held as a full day event, featuring a cutting edge, content-driven agenda as well as offering outstanding opportunities to network with 400 senior-level professionals from across the combined memberships of the AA, IPA and ISBA.

Phil Smith, director general, ISBA, said, “The themes of responsible growth, trust and sustainability are key issues for ISBA members. LEAD is a great opportunity for the whole industry to come together to discuss and share initiatives that address these important topics. It’s great to be working again with the AA and the IPA to deliver a packed agenda.”

Paul Bainsfair, director general, IPA, said, “2024 promises to be a year of uncertainly and change with a much talked about election looming, and continuing economic pressures, the likes of which we have not seen for 70 years. So, as a co-organiser of LEAD, we will be looking to deliver clarity and leadership thinking as never before, as well as a heads up of what a new administration might bring. In representing ad agencies, our role will be to ensure we demonstrate the vital connection between creativity with commercial return. We will also be talking about the leadership challenges of doing business under the new social licence challenges around climate and inclusivity. It is a conference not to miss if you want to be on top of your game.”

Stephen Woodford, CEO, Advertising Association said, “We are excited about the return of LEAD in 2024. The summit will be a great opportunity to reflect on what advertising can do to best help the UK economy return to good health in a responsible and sustainable way. It will be a must-attend event to hear from policymakers and some of the industry's biggest thinkers ahead of the much-anticipated election season.”

LEAD – first established in 2012 – has seen industry and media figures take to the stage including Dame Carolyn McCall, Evan Davis, Syl Saller, Steve Richards and Nicola Mendelsohn, along with many Government Ministers, including DCMS Secretaries of State.

A full programme for the event will be published in the coming weeks.

Tickets are now on sale with discounts available to AA, IPA and ISBA members. For more information, please visit the website here.