# Grant Toups

> Grant Toups is the Los Angeles-based global CEO of Hotwire Global, where he leads Hotwire and ROI·DNA after two decades spent joining communications, technology, data and organizational change. His career runs from first employee and eventual president of PulsePoint Group, through the integration that created ICF Next, to first global CTO of Hill & Knowlton and global digital and intelligence chief at Burson. At Hotwire, his stated project is to make a midsize global agency quick enough for the AI era without surrendering judgment, craft or human connection.

- **Role:** Global Chief Executive Officer at Hotwire Global
- **Organizations:** Hotwire Global, ROI·DNA, Burson, Hill & Knowlton, ICF Next, PulsePoint Group, USC Center for Public Relations, Arthur W. Page Society, PageUp
- **From:** Thibodaux, Louisiana, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Bachelor of Science in Management, Finance and Business Law, Tulane University, Master of Arts in Strategic Public Relations, University of Southern California
- **Known for:** Joined PulsePoint Group as its first employee and later became managing partner and president., Helped form ICF Next by integrating nearly a dozen independent businesses under one global brand., Served as Hill & Knowlton’s first Global Chief Technology Officer and built centers of excellence across seven cities.

## Career timeline

- **2006-2021** — Spent a 15-year period across PulsePoint Group and its successor environment, joining PulsePoint as its first employee, building its Organizational Optimization and Transformation practice, becoming managing partner and president, and later holding executive roles at ICF Next.
- **2019** — Helped conceptualize and launch ICF Next, which brought nearly a dozen businesses together under one global agency brand; later led major business units and served as chief client officer.
- **2021** — Named Hill & Knowlton’s first Global Chief Technology Officer and joined its global leadership council.
- **2023** — Led Hill & Knowlton’s expanded Intelligence + Technology unit, including more than 50 data and technology leaders across its network.
- **2024** — Became Burson’s Global Chief Digital & Intelligence Officer, directing digital, social, paid, performance and intelligence capabilities across more than 40 countries.
- **2025** — Announced as the next Global CEO of Hotwire Global, succeeding Heather Kernahan.
- **2026** — Began leading Hotwire and ROI·DNA in January; on his eighth day, helped launch research on agentic organizations at Davos.
- **2026** — Outlined Hotwire’s positioning as a midsize global challenger with in-house technology, an earned-media heritage and an ambition to help organizations communicate in an AI-shaped market.

## Achievements

- Joined PulsePoint Group as its first employee and later became managing partner and president.
- Helped form ICF Next by integrating nearly a dozen independent businesses under one global brand.
- Served as Hill & Knowlton’s first Global Chief Technology Officer and built centers of excellence across seven cities.
- Led Burson digital and intelligence professionals across more than 40 countries.
- Named to PRWeek’s Dashboard 25 in 2021 for influence in communications technology.
- Associated with Burson’s AI-powered intelligence and measurement platform The Fount, which received the 2024 AMEC Grand Prix for best use of new technology in communications measurement.
- Founding member of PageUp and a longtime contributor to Arthur W. Page Society programs, including convening a Future Leaders Experience session on the technological future of communications.

## Latest updates

- **2026-08** — Appeared on The PR Week podcast and described a ‘golden age’ for midsize agencies that can combine global delivery and proprietary technology with agility.
- **2026-07** — Reflected on Cannes Lions discussions about meaningful measurement, the renewed value of authenticity and the strategic importance of face-to-face relationships.
- **2026-06** — Discussed how AI systems process executive profiles and influence who is surfaced, cited and discovered online.
- **2026-05** — Published ‘What Athens Taught Me About Agency,’ arguing that agentic AI is an organizational and leadership question as much as a technology question.
- **2026-01** — Started as Hotwire Global CEO and, during his first weeks, led discussion of agentic organizations at Davos.

## Links

- Website: https://www.hotwireglobal.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gtoups

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/grant-toups
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-24