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United States Mark Penn has built a distinguished career as a businessman, pollster, political strategist, and author, leveraging data-driven insights to guide political campaigns and shape marketing strategies for major corporations.
In 2021, Penn spearheaded the combination of digital services leader The Stagwell Group, and global creative network MDC Partners creating Stagwell Inc, a top marketing group. He is the President and Managing Partner of The Stagwell Group, a private equity fund that invests in marketing services companies and reinvents the traditional advertising model.
Penn was formerly chief strategy officer of Microsoft Corporation, where he led strategic and special projects and later served as Executive Vice President for Advertising and Strategy, pioneering campaigns like 'Honestly' and 'Empowering Us All'.
Penn was formerly chief executive officer of Burson-Marsteller.
Together with Douglas Schoen, Penn was co-founder of the polling firm PSB Research, whose clients included President Bill Clinton, British prime minister Tony Blair, and Bill Gates.
Marcoms challenger Stagwell invested in Real Clear Holdings LLC, the publisher of RCP Poll Averages and news publication RealClearPolitics.
In February 2022, Penn announced the formation of the Stagwell Marketing Cloud. Stagwell Marketing Cloud is a suite of AI-powered SaaS solutions that powers brands' in-house marketing with speed, efficiency, and scale.
The Roper Center at Cornell University houses the 'Mark Penn Collection/Polling the 21st Century' containing the polling data and research from Penn's career.
In October 2015, Stagwell Group struck a deal worth up to $75 million to buy SKDKnickerbocker, a strategic communications firm.
In January 2017, the Stagwell Group acquired the Harris Poll from Nielsen Holdings and renamed it Harris Insights & Analytics.
Penn's Stagwell Group has also acquired National Research Group.
Penn's Stagwell Group has acquired Code and Theory, a digital creative firm.
Penn's Stagwell Group has acquired ForwardPMX, a media agency.
Penn's Stagwell Group has acquired Targeted Victory, a marketing communications company.
Stagwell companies, under Penn's leadership, include GALE.
Stagwell companies, under Penn's leadership, include Anomaly.
Stagwell companies, under Penn's leadership, include Doner.
Stagwell companies, under Penn's leadership, include Assembly.
Stagwell companies, under Penn's leadership, include 72 and Sunny.
Penn, alongside Victor Ganzi, Josh Harris, James Tisch, and Thomas Peterffy, contributed $50 million to an investment fund in The Messenger, a news website that launched in May 2023.
As of September 2025, the Department of Health and Human Services is preparing to issue a no-bid contract to the polling firm HarrisX, which is part of Stagwell, a marketing company led by Penn. The poll will seek to "understand Americans' perspectives around vaccines and drivers of trust in making vaccine decisions."
Mark J. Penn was born on January 15, 1954, in New York City and raised in Riverdale, Bronx. His initial foray into polling began at 13, when he conducted a survey at Horace Mann School, from which he graduated in 1972. Penn continued his education at Harvard University, majoring in political science and contributing extensively to The Harvard Crimson. During his time at Harvard, he co-founded Penn & Schoen, which later became PSB Research, in his dorm room with Douglas Schoen. Penn graduated from Harvard in 1976 and later earned a Juris Doctor from Columbia University. His innovative approach to polling, including creating an “overnight poll” system during Ed Koch’s 1977 mayoral campaign, demonstrated his early impact on political strategy.
Penn’s influence extended to global politics, advising leaders such as Venezuelan President Luis Herrera Campins in 1978 and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin in 1981, helping them achieve electoral victories through strategic polling. In the corporate sector, Penn played a crucial role in developing market research methodologies for companies like AT&T in 1993, which resulted in a successful advertising campaign. His long-standing advisory role with Bill Gates and Microsoft, starting in the mid-1990s, included crafting public relations strategies during the company’s antitrust litigation, leading to a significant improvement in Microsoft’s public image.
A pivotal period in Penn’s career was his six-year tenure as President Bill Clinton’s pollster, beginning in 1994. He was instrumental in guiding Clinton’s administration to a more centrist approach and was a key strategist in the 1996 reelection campaign, famously identifying and targeting the “soccer mom” demographic. After leaving Microsoft in 2015 as Chief Strategy Officer, Penn founded The Stagwell Group, a private equity firm investing in marketing services, which he later merged with MDC Partners in 2021 to form Stagwell Inc. This venture aimed to create a digitally-focused advertising holding group, emphasizing a fully integrated solution across various marketing services.
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