Outfront Names Huw Griffiths Chief Data Officer in Leadership Overhaul
2026-08-11 · via invidis
Outfront Media has named Huw Griffiths, a former IPG and Omnicom executive, as its chief data officer, according to the company. The appointment is part of a broader round of leadership changes spanning data, marketing, communications and talent at the US out-of-home advertising company.
Griffiths will lead Outfront's data, audience, analytics and measurement work, reporting to Head of Digital Strategy Jeff Hackett. He will also oversee the company's Research & Insights team, Outfront says.
For an OOH operator competing for ad budgets against digital and social platforms, measurement is the recurring pain point. Brands and agencies buying programmatic or digital-first campaigns expect audience data comparable to what they get online. Putting an agency-side data specialist in charge of that function signals where Outfront thinks it needs to catch up.
Griffiths's background is on the buy side rather than the media-owner side. He started in market research, helped build the advanced analytics practice at Omnicom's OMD, then moved to IPG, where he was chief product officer at UM overseeing global research, data, tools and analytics, and later chief product strategist at Kinesso. Most recently he ran his own consulting practice. That agency pedigree suggests Outfront wants someone who understands how media buyers actually evaluate data, not just someone who can build internal dashboards.
Other appointments
Alongside Griffiths, Outfront named Paul Valente senior vice president of talent acquisition and Caitlin Kelly vice president of communications. Kelly founded the communications technology platform EZ Newswire and previously spent six years at MediaLink, rising to vice president, international.
Salim Holder joins in a newly created role, vice president of multicultural growth and partnerships, focused on building relationships with cultural communities and organizations.
Two internal promotions round out the announcement. Liz Rave, who already runs Outfront's centralized content team, becomes senior vice president of marketing, continuing to lead marketing and brand initiatives. Michael Perrotta, who joined the company in 2014 to set up its internal audit function, is now senior vice president of internal audit.
The release frames the changes against Outfront's push to position its inventory as "IRL media," a term the company is using to argue for the value of physical, real-world advertising against digital channels. For screen operators and DOOH networks watching how the largest OOH players talk about data and measurement, the hire is a signal that audience analytics, not just panel count, is becoming the competitive battleground. The announcement does not say when Griffiths starts or what specific measurement products, if any, will follow from the new structure.
The announcement in full
Reproduced from invidis for reference. Digital Signage Magazine did not write the text below.
Former IPG and Omnicom executive Huw Griffiths will lead Outfront’s audience, analytics and measurement activities as Chief Data Officer. The OoH company also announced three other appointments and two senior promotions.
Outfront has named former IPG and Omnicom executive Huw Griffiths chief data officer as part of a broader series of leadership appointments spanning data, marketing, communications and talent.
Griffiths will lead the US OoH company’s data, audience, analytics and measurement capabilities, reporting to Head of Digital Strategy Jeff Hackett. He will also oversee Outfront’s Research & Insights team.
The appointment puts an experienced agency-side data executive at the center of Outfront’s efforts to demonstrate the value of physical-world advertising to brands and agencies.
Griffiths began his career in market research before helping build the advanced analytics practice at Omnicom’s OMD. He later served as chief product officer at IPG’s UM, overseeing global research, data, tools and analytics, and subsequently became chief product strategist at IPG’s Kinesso. Most recently, he ran his own consulting practice.
Outfront also named Paul Valente senior vice president of talent acquisition and Caitlin Kelly vice president of communications.
Kelly previously founded communications technology platform EZ Newswire and spent six years at MediaLink, where she rose to vice president, international.
Salim Holder joins as vice president of multicultural growth and partnerships, a newly created position focused on developing partnerships with cultural communities and organizations.
The company also promoted Liz Rave to senior vice president of marketing. Rave, who already oversees Outfront’s centralized content team, will continue leading marketing and brand initiatives.
Michael Perrotta, who joined Outfront in 2014 to establish its internal audit department, has been promoted to senior vice president of internal audit.
The personnel changes come as Outfront increasingly positions its inventory as “IRL media,” while investing in the data and measurement capabilities needed to demonstrate how audiences exposed to that media behave and respond.