Ric Hayes has been promoted to the role of Chief Strategy Officer at media and marketing group, Brave Bison.
Hayes has been the Group Strategy Director of its SocialChain operation for the last 3 years and will now join the company’s executive leadership team, taking charge of a “newly centralised strategy function” across Brave Bison, SocialChain and Engage Digital Partners.
The hybrid role across Manchester and London will see him lead a team including Brave Bison Performance’s Director of Strategy Brenda Imeson and SocialChain’s Strategy and Innovation Director Gareth Harrison.
He’ll also work alongside the wider group, including the founder of the MiniMBA, Professor Mark Ritson, and MTM’s Richard Ellis to build “new solutions that encompass consultancy, training and execution.”
“In today’s rapidly changing landscape, strategic support must move beyond boardroom presentations and become embedded in how brands operate, staying close to customers and effectiveness drivers while harnessing new insight sources, new ways of working and better decision-making to capitalise on complexity,” he said.
“As clients grapple with the shift from broadcast-led to networked marketing, I’m incredibly excited to lead Brave Bison’s brilliant strategy team in the development of new solutions that keep our clients ahead in an evolving market.
“With partners like MTM and Mark Ritson in our corner, and AI tools like AudienceGPT in our arsenal, we’ve got everything we need to capitalise on what’s coming next.”
Hayes has held senior roles across the region’s agency scene, including more than a decade at McCann Manchester, also dentsu and Carat UK, before joining Brave Bison in 2023.
While Group Strategy Director for SocialChain, he led the development of SharkNinja’s global social strategy and oversaw the deployment of sport and influencer partnership activation across EMEA.
“Ric’s new role reflects the critical role strategy plays across every part of our business, and his ability to combine deep audience insight with commercial impact makes him an invaluable new addition to our executive team,” said Executive Chairman Oli Green.
“As we continue to grow Brave Bison’s consultancy and AI-powered planning capabilities, Ric will play a central role in shaping how we deliver measurable outcomes for our clients—at speed, and at scale.”
