Bob Pearson

"One of the pioneers of social media marketing, Bob Pearson is globally recognized as a marketing visionary who is driving “pragmatic disruption” in the new world of what is now called Social Commerce.

Bob is Vice Chair and Chief of Innovation Officer for W2O Group, an independent network of digital communications and marketing companies known for their creation of algorithms and ability to evolve current models and create unique advantage for their clients worldwide.

He is an author, frequent speaker, and blogger on digital marketing, as well as an instructor for the Syracuse Center for Social Commerce and the US State Department’s Marketing College. Bob’s thoughts about our constantly changing world can be found on W2O’s blog, which includes the “Millennials Unplugged” series, which he writes with his 21-year-old daughter and other millennials at W2O. He has written two books(Pre-Commerce and Storytizing) based on key learnings from the firm’s work with innovative companies and individuals. Bob is currently working on his next book, Countering Hate, which he is co-authoring with Haroon K. Ullah (March 2018).

Prior to W2O Group, Bob worked as VP of Communities and Conversations at Dell to develop the Fortune 500’s first global social media function — an industry-leading approach to the use of social media, as highlighted in the best seller, GroundSwell. Before Dell, Bob was Head of Global Corporate Communications and Head of Global Pharma Communications at Novartis Pharmaceuticals in Basel, Switzerland, where he served on the Pharma Executive Committee, and he served as Vice President, Media and Public Affairs, for Rhone-Poulenc Rorer (now Sanofi).

Bob serves as an advisor and investor in many capacities. Highlights include serving as an original member of the P&G digital advisory board, being appointed by the Governor of Texas to serve as Chair and Vice Chair of the Emerging Technology Fund for the State of Texas (more than $400MM invested), serving on the boards of The Advertising Research Foundation and MedicAlert Foundation, and acting as an advisor for the University of Texas Center for Global Business and the VETTED Foundation, a new organization focused on helping veterans of war continue their education, network for jobs, and start new companies.

Bob resides in Austin, Texas."

[Programming descriptions are generated by participants and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SXSW.]