Hamish McLennan

Hamish McLennan (born 13 June 1966) is an Australian businessman, who chairs several large listed companies on the Australian stock exchange. McLennan is Chairman of REA Group, a multibillion-dollar global digital advertising real estate company operated by News Corporation. McLennan is the Deputy Chairman of Magellan Financial Group, a globally focused equity fund with $104 billion worth of investments under management. McLennan is the Chairman of Here, There & Everywhere (HT&E), the parent company of #1 rated FM radio group Australian Radio Network (ARN). He is a director at Claim Central Consolidated, a global claims solutions business that provides services, proprietary technology and data insights to make managing claims easier.

McLennan was previously Executive Vice President, Office of the Chairman, News Corporation. Prior to this, he was Chairman of Young & Rubicam (Y&R), the largest division of Y&R Brands, owned by WPP, the world's largest marketing and advertising services group. Former corporate roles also include Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of free-to-air television network Ten Network Holdings. McLennan is a candidate for the Rugby Australia board, according to The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian. On May 15, 2020, McLennan was confirmed as chairman of Rugby Australia.

McLennan began his career in Sydney, working for Australia's largest advertising firm George Patterson Bates, training in every area of the agency before pursuing a career in Account Management. In 1994, he moved to Bates Hong Kong as the International Client Services Director. He relocated to the agency's Sydney office before being appointed (at age 32) as the Managing Director of George Patterson Bates Melbourne, and in 1999 he was named National Managing Director.

Three years later, in 2002, he moved to Young & Rubicam as Chairman and CEO of Young & Rubicam Australia/New Zealand. The agency embarked on a cost-cutting and new business drive that saw it lead all agencies for two consecutive years in terms of new business revenue conversion. At the same time, the agency claimed a number of Cannes Grand Prix awards and built a market-leading digital practice upon their new client Telstra - Australia's largest telecommunications carrier. He then led the acquisition of his former agency to form George Patterson Y&R, the marketing communications group. In 2006, WPP's founder Martin Sorrell appointed him Chairman and CEO of Young & Rubicam globally. Under his leadership, the firm won global clients like LG, Bacardi, Dell, Goldman Sachs and Virgin Atlantic.

For more than a year, McLennan worked with News Corporation Executive Chairman Rupert Murdoch as Executive Vice President, Office of the Chairman, News Corporation. In March 2013, McLennan was appointed as CEO and Managing Director of Ten Network Holdings, replacing James Warburton. McLennan reshaped the audience strategy and revitalized the network's fortunes in a short period of time by implementing new sports and reality TV programming. In 2015, McLennan stepped down from Ten Network Holdings as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman ahead of a corporate transaction. In 2018, McLennan acquired a number of data and digital businesses at REA Group as part of a strategy to accelerate revenue growth. In 2019, Hamish McLennan was named Chairman of HT&E, operator of ARN, Australia's leading radio network. Its brands include the KIIS Network, Pure Gold Network, iHeartRadio, and The Edge96 In June 2019, Hamish McLennan was named Deputy Chairman of Magellan Asset Management - a leading investment management firm in Australia with $104 billion under management.

McLennan was a Board member of the United Negro College Fund, an American philanthropic organization that funds scholarships for black students. He also serves on the board of the Advertising Council, an American non-profit organization that creates and promotes public service announcements.

In 2007, McLennan invited former U.S. Vice President Al Gore to the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity to rally the industry in the fight against climate change. That same year, Y&R helped Gore build awareness of climate change through the Live Earth Concerts that took place on 7 continents on 7 July 2007.

In 2019, McLennan joined the Garvan Institute of Medical Research Fundraising Board. Garvan has over 600 researchers focussed on biomedical and genomics research. It is one of only three organizations in the world able to sequence the human genome.

McLennan has been a participant at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he has served on panels, ranging from the future of the automotive industry to innovation. He also participated in the Davos Reverse Mentoring Programme, designed to increase the visibility of female employees in media companies.

Since 2007, McLennan has curated seminars at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity featuring speakers such as Rupert Murdoch, Peter Chernin, Roger Daltrey, and Harvey Goldsmith.

Hamish McLennan was born on 13 June 1966, in Sydney, Australia. He is married to Lucinda. They have a son and a daughter.