Holden Bale

Global Chief Strategy Officer Merkle

Holden Bale leads strategy for Merkle, dentsu’s global transformation consultancy.

He has partnered with businesses including Ulta Beauty, McDonald’s, Arrow Electronics, Enterprise Mobility, Spotify, Nordstrom, Starbucks, Bain Capital, Target, and Nestle on some of their most ambitious initiatives – from new business models and digital business transformation to innovation in experience, CRM and loyalty, and commerce.

Prior to Merkle, Holden directed the omnichannel retail group at Accenture Strategy; was a management consultant at Kurt Salmon, a boutique consultancy focused on retail, CPG, healthcare, and M&A; led the global commerce division of IPG design firms Huge and Elephant; and was the principal strategist for ThoughtWorks, an agile transformation and engineering firm, leading their consumer practices in the Americas. He regularly contributes to publications including Forbes, Fast Company, Business of Fashion, Adweek, and Modern Retail, and sits on the Advisory Board of the global Buy Nothing movement, founded in 2013 with the mission to build community through the circular economy.

At Merkle, Holden leads 16,000+ talented global professionals across strategy and operations consulting; design; technology development and implementation; engagement, CRM, and loyalty; market research and insights; and data engineering, data management, and advanced analytics.

Recognized as global leaders in Digital Experience by Gartner and IDC; in Digital Commerce, Loyalty, Marketing Services, and Content Supply Chain by Everest Group; and in Data Strategy and Customer Engagement by Forrester, every year Merkle partners with the world’s leading brands to drive over $35B in revenue through customer experiences and platforms, deliver over 25,000+ CRM and promotional campaigns, optimize 150,000+ media campaigns with advanced analytics, manage loyalty programs comprising 650M+ active members, and optimize $20B+ in global commerce sales with digital shelf and merchandising analytics, competitive intelligence, and business management services.

A Webby award winner for experience innovation and a Cannes Lion winner for Creative Commerce, Merkle are the #1 global Salesforce agency partner, the #1 global Google Analytics partner, a global platinum Adobe partner, and a founding Figma partner for digital design.