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Speaker & innovation expert

Hamish Taylor

Transform business performance with Hamish Taylor, speaker and innovation expert. Hamish works with global organisations to challenge conventional thinking, drive customer focus and implement cross-sector innovation, delivering insights for major companies and governments worldwide.

Trusted by Pfizer

Hamish Taylor
Hamish Taylor

Hamish Taylor

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Typical fee range

£6–10k

This is an estimated fee range for local in-person events. Location and format affect the final fee.

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Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Starting from

£6–10k

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loading@getapeptalk.com

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+44 203 835 2929

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Hamish Taylor's biography

At a glance

  • Former CEO of Eurostar and Sainsbury's Bank
  • Head of Brand Management at British Airways
  • Expert in customer-led transformations and innovation strategies

Hamish Taylor, an award-winning CEO and inspirational speaker, has had a distinguished career spanning several major companies. He began at Procter and Gamble, moved to consultancy firm Price Waterhouse, and then joined British Airways.


He later became CEO of Eurostar, The Channel Tunnel railway, and subsequently CEO of Sainsbury’s Bank. Throughout his career, Hamish has driven significant business growth by challenging conventional practices.


His innovative approach has made him a sought-after advisor for organisations worldwide across various industries. The Inspired Leaders Network dubbed him “Masterthief” for his ability to transfer ideas between sectors effectively. Hamish’s keynotes are known for their engaging and thought-provoking content, combining real-life stories with practical advice. He regularly appears in broadcast media and advises some of the world’s largest companies and governments on innovation, customer focus, and leadership.

Hamish's showreel and videos

Topics, sessions and talks

Understanding Your Customer

Hamish Taylor emphasizes the need to change how we understand our customers, whether they are internal or external. By shifting our perspective, we can uncover new insights and avoid repetitive solutions. Drawing from real cases in his background, Hamish will illustrate concepts like soft insights, the customer’s customer, the ability to share, blank sheet thinking, and focusing on the individual. Attendees will learn how these approaches have led to new understandings for his many clients.

The Customer Promise Model

Hamish Taylor's customer promise model emphasizes that customers buy benefits, not just products or services. This approach, developed in consumer goods and applied by Hamish at BA, Eurostar, Sainsbury's, and various service industries, redefines the value offered to customers. By focusing on customer benefits, businesses can achieve significant breakthroughs in innovation and ensure the customer is at the heart of all activities. Attendees will learn how to implement this model to enhance customer value and drive major improvements in their organizations.

How To Harness Cross-Innovation

Hamish Taylor emphasizes the importance of seeking breakthroughs by looking beyond one's current environment. As an outsider in various industries, he has witnessed firsthand the benefits of introducing fresh perspectives, such as yacht designers creating airplane beds and Disney improving airport queuing. Hamish will demonstrate how this approach can be applied to leadership, processes, and emotions. He draws lessons from diverse fields, including business, sports, the arts, and education. Attendees will learn how to harness innovative thinking from various sources to drive success in their own organizations.

Transforming Your Customer Engagement

Hamish Taylor emphasizes that engaging with both internal and external customers goes beyond mere communication. Drawing lessons from the advertising world, he highlights the importance of ambition and actionable models from companies like BA. Hamish will share how leadership for genuine engagement demands a radically different approach. Attendees will learn innovative strategies to transform their customer engagement practices.

Why we recommend booking Hamish

Book Hamish Taylor for his dynamic, thought-provoking keynotes that blend real-world success stories with practical tools. His unique insights, drawn from leading major companies, will inspire your team to challenge norms and drive significant growth. Perfect for innovation, customer focus, and leadership development.

Check Hamish's availability

Trusted by Pfizer

Testimonials

An excellent, thought provoking speaker with a brilliant topic; even though he was talking about a different industry, the messages were still relevant.

Deloitte

Hamish helped us to start to think of our customers in a different way and to look outside our own industry. I had high hopes and expectations for the session and I am delighted to say Hamish exceeded them! In particular, I valued the way Hamish was spot on the briefing, adapted his presentation to make it even more relevant to us and was fully engaged for the whole time he was with us

Pfizer

Featured Projects

Hamish Taylor - Competitive CX podcast cover

frequently asked questions

Something we've not covered here?

How do I book Hamish Taylor for my next event?

Email hamish.taylor@getapeptalk.com or call PepTalk on +44 20 3835 2929 (UK) or +1 737 888 5112 (US), and one of our speaker agents will contact you within hours to confirm Hamish's availability and fees. If you can, please include your budget upfront – it helps us fast-track your request. It’s also helpful to know the date, format (virtual or in-person), location, and a bit about your audience.

What is Hamish Taylor's speaking style like?

Hamish Taylor draws on case studies from his executive roles at British Airways, Eurostar, and Sainsbury's Bank to illustrate customer-focused frameworks, including a customer promise model that reframes value around benefits rather than products or services.

What topics does Hamish Taylor specialise in?

Hamish Taylor's sessions cover customer understanding, the customer promise model, and cross-sector innovation. He served as CEO of both Eurostar and Sainsbury's Bank, having previously held senior roles at British Airways, Procter and Gamble, and Price Waterhouse.

Does PepTalk charge a booking fee?

No. PepTalk adds no booking fee, so you pay the speaker's fee and nothing beyond it. The service, from shortlist through to contracts and event-day logistics, is included. For repeat or multi-event bookings, PepTalk can agree preferential rates with your procurement team.

What happens after I send a brief?

Share your event date, audience, format, objectives and budget, and PepTalk sends a hand-picked shortlist within 24 hours. Each suggestion comes with a profile, a fee and a recommendation on the strongest fit. Once you choose, PepTalk handles contracts, travel and logistics through to event day.

What does the typical fee range mean?

The typical fee range is the speaker's standard in-person fee in their home market, shown in their local currency. It moves with format, location, date and session length: virtual sessions and shorter slots usually cost less, while international travel and peak dates cost more. Send your brief to PepTalk and the team will confirm the exact fee in your currency.

Have all the speakers on the website worked with PepTalk before?

Not all of them, and it makes no difference to your booking. PepTalk's network of 15,000+ speakers covers talent the team works with directly alongside speakers represented by agents and agencies worldwide. PepTalk approaches the speaker, negotiates the fee and handles contracting either way.

How far in advance should I book a speaker?

Three to six months ahead is comfortable for most events, and 12 months is better for large conferences, peak-season dates or one specific in-demand speaker. Shorter timelines are workable, and PepTalk regularly fills last-minute and replacement bookings within days. Availability is the constraint, so get in touch as soon as you have a date.