Kirk McDonald
Chief Executive Officer
Kirk McDonald is a proven, purpose-driven leader who is recognized for his ability to inspire teams of all sizes to embrace change, drive business transformation and growth.
He is the CEO of Sundial Media & Technology Group (SMTG), a vertically integrated media, technology and experiential company that includes consumer brands Essence Ventures: ESSENCE including Girls United and Naturally Curly; AFROPUNK; ESSENCE Festival of Culture®; and R29: Refinery29 including Beautycon; Somos and Unbothered.
Kirk serves as a director on the boards of Elanco (NYSE: ELAN), and Ziff Davis (NASDAQ: ZD). He's also a member of the prestigious Executive Leadership Council and a founding member of the Black Executive CMO Alliance. In addition, he serves on the boards of directors of several industry organizations, including Co-Chair of the Ad Council.
From 2020 through 2023, Kirk was CEO of GroupM North America where he led and aligned the purpose of ~6,500 individuals to drive client media performance and growth. GroupM NA managed ~22% market share in the world’s largest region, growing consistently for three consecutive years. During that time, he also created and launched the Media Inclusion Initiative to support and grow diverse media companies and creators. His passion for developing the next generation of talent led to the launch of GroupM University, NA and GroupM Launch Pad programs to bridge career gaps for applicants from non-traditional backgrounds and education pathways.
Prior to joining GroupM, Kirk was the Chief Business Officer Warner Media, a division of AT&T, after holding the role of Chief Marketing Officer at Xandr, where he spearheaded the business development and launch of the award-winning Xandr brand, within AT&T.
Kirk has been recognized throughout his career for his pioneering leadership. He was named to Ebony Magazine’s Power 100 List, Empower’s Top 100 Executives List for 2022 and 2023, as an honoree at the 2022 Black Men Xcel Summit, and on the Adweek 50 List of Vital Leaders in Tech, Media & Marketing. The launch of the Xandr brand under his leadership won the 2019 award for Best Brand Launch in the Drum Marketing Awards. His expertise and commentary on key technology trends and the future of digital media have been published in leading industry and trade publications including The Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post, Beet.TV, AdExchanger, Adweek, The Drum, and many more.
He is the CEO of Sundial Media & Technology Group (SMTG), a vertically integrated media, technology and experiential company that includes consumer brands Essence Ventures: ESSENCE including Girls United and Naturally Curly; AFROPUNK; ESSENCE Festival of Culture®; and R29: Refinery29 including Beautycon; Somos and Unbothered.
Kirk serves as a director on the boards of Elanco (NYSE: ELAN), and Ziff Davis (NASDAQ: ZD). He's also a member of the prestigious Executive Leadership Council and a founding member of the Black Executive CMO Alliance. In addition, he serves on the boards of directors of several industry organizations, including Co-Chair of the Ad Council.
From 2020 through 2023, Kirk was CEO of GroupM North America where he led and aligned the purpose of ~6,500 individuals to drive client media performance and growth. GroupM NA managed ~22% market share in the world’s largest region, growing consistently for three consecutive years. During that time, he also created and launched the Media Inclusion Initiative to support and grow diverse media companies and creators. His passion for developing the next generation of talent led to the launch of GroupM University, NA and GroupM Launch Pad programs to bridge career gaps for applicants from non-traditional backgrounds and education pathways.
Prior to joining GroupM, Kirk was the Chief Business Officer Warner Media, a division of AT&T, after holding the role of Chief Marketing Officer at Xandr, where he spearheaded the business development and launch of the award-winning Xandr brand, within AT&T.
Kirk has been recognized throughout his career for his pioneering leadership. He was named to Ebony Magazine’s Power 100 List, Empower’s Top 100 Executives List for 2022 and 2023, as an honoree at the 2022 Black Men Xcel Summit, and on the Adweek 50 List of Vital Leaders in Tech, Media & Marketing. The launch of the Xandr brand under his leadership won the 2019 award for Best Brand Launch in the Drum Marketing Awards. His expertise and commentary on key technology trends and the future of digital media have been published in leading industry and trade publications including The Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post, Beet.TV, AdExchanger, Adweek, The Drum, and many more.