Claude Silver

Claude Silver is the world’s first Chief Heart Officer, a pioneering role she helped shape at VaynerX to foster a culture of empathy, belonging and emotional intelligence across a global workforce. With over two decades of experience in advertising and brand strategy, she is now recognised for redefining the future of leadership by placing people at the heart of organisational success. Claude’s career spans senior roles at major agencies including JWT London and Publicis, where she worked with Fortune 50 brands. But it was her deep interest in human behaviour, team dynamics and emotional wellbeing that drove her to reimagine how businesses can grow through human connection. At VaynerMedia, she helped guide the company’s expansion from 400 to 2,000 employees worldwide, while shaping a workplace culture centred on trust and emotional awareness. Her leadership philosophy is rooted in the idea of emotional optimism — the belief that acknowledging and working through complex feelings enables teams and individuals to thrive. Drawing on her training in transpersonal and positive psychology, as well as her background as an Outward Bound instructor and business owner, Claude supports people to find clarity, purpose and confidence in both their personal and professional journeys. She has received accolades such as Adweek’s Changing the Game Award and Campaign US’s Female Frontier Award, and her insights have been featured in leading publications including the New York Times, Forbes and the Wall Street Journal. Claude’s work continues to inspire a new generation of leaders to prioritise authenticity, empathy and courage — helping organisations not only perform better, but feel better from the inside out.