Harris Diamond serves as CEO of the Constituency Management Group (CMG) of the Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE: IPG). The group includes companies in the areas of public relations, public affairs, sports and entertainment marketing, corporate/brand identity and experiential marketing. CMG companies include among others, DeVries Public Relations, FutureBrand, GolinHarris, Jack Morton Worldwide, MWW Group, Octagon, Rogers & Cowan and Weber Shandwick. They provide services on six continents in more than 60 major cities and have approximately 5,000 employees.
Harris is also chief executive officer of Weber Shandwick, the world's leading public relations firm. As part of this role, Harris provides high-level strategic communications counsel to an array of clients. Under his direction, the firm has received numerous industry honors and accolades for its work including being named an “Agency of the Decade” by Advertising Age, the 2009 “Global Agency of the Year” by The Holmes Report, “International Consultancy of the Year” by PRWeek UK and a recipient of the gold medal for PRWeek UK’s 2009 “Global Agency Report Card.”
Harris is regarded as one of the industry’s leading experts in corporate and industry positioning as evidenced by being named “PR Agency Executive of the Decade” by The Holmes Report in 2010, ranked #1 on PRWeek’s 2009 Power List, inducted into the PR News Hall of Fame in 2008, and receiving the 2008 SABRE Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Public Relations. His broad expertise has been chronicled in top-tier business media including The New York Times, Washington Times, BusinessWeek, FOX Business and in business and communications books, Alpha Dogs and SandBox. In addition to being recognized for his distinguished leadership and stewardship, he has been cited as one of the “100 most influential PR people in the 20th century” by PRWeek.
Harris speaks regularly on leadership and reputation around the world. He is a member of the board of directors of the Business for Diplomatic Action, a not-for-profit group focused on how businesses can work together to enhance America’s image abroad, and serves as the vice chairman of the Ronald McDonald House of New York. Harris is also on the board of councilors of the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and is a past chairman of the Council of Public Relations Firms, the U.S. trade association for public relations agencies. In addition, he sat on the Board of Directors of several public companies.
Earlier in his career, Harris served as a political campaign consultant, working on U.S. gubernatorial and senatorial campaigns, and advising foreign governments and political parties. He has held senior positions in the public sector. Harris holds both MBA and JD degrees, and is a member of the New York State Bar.