Rick Song
President
Brand Innovators Strategy Group
Rick is an accomplished business leader in advertising and has worked in digital, media and tech for over 25 years. He’s served on the Ad Club Board since 2013 and as Board Chair from 2021-2023. Rick is also the first recipient of the Club’s "Volunteer of the Year” Award. A results-driven, strategic operator and renowned connector, Rick’s had proven success participating in two exits and building companies, from start-ups to multi-billion dollar enterprises. He's managed teams up to 200+ with vertical experience ranging from video, branded content and social, to programmatic, measurement and experiential.
Rick is currently the President of the Brand Innovators Strategy Group, whose team helps clients make meaningful connections to the largest community of Fortune 500 brands. Prior, he was the GM of Digital Client Solutions at Nielsen, where he led consistent double-digit revenue growth, which contributed to Nielsen's $16B sale to a private equity consortium in October 2022. Throughout his career, Rick has held commercial leadership posts at leading companies including Yahoo!, Microsoft, iHeartMedia and Rocket Fuel.
An active industry advocate and volunteer, Rick joined the board of Harmony Program in 2021, a non-profit which provides music education to NYC's underserved communities. He is a former President of 212 NYC, a four-time IAB MIXX Awards Juror and a founding member of the Digital Content Newfronts. For seven years, he was Benefit Chair for non-profit Young Audiences NY, which delivers performing arts programs to NYC public schools. Rick is a native New Yorker and a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University.