Elle McCarthy

VP of Brand and GM Merchandising, The Ford Motor

Elle McCarthy is the VP of Brand and GM Merchandising for The Ford Motor Company where she is responsible for ushering in the next era of The Ford brand. Previously, Elle led Brand at PayPal and Electronic Arts, after many years leading strategy in UK and US agencies, including BBDO, BBH and Karmarama for clients including FedEx, Virgin Media, Sky and The BBC.

Today Elle lives in California, far from London where she grew up. Her first job was in a punk stall in Camden Market. Since then, she has become a marketing leader specializing in equitable brand-building, where her ‘punk’ attitude makes a different kind of impact. Elle has dedicated much of her work to taking action to drive change - from creating #MeToo campaign ‘Women Cannes’, to her keynote talk ‘Choose Your Words’ given at the 3% Conference. 

Elle was recently inducted into the AAF Hall of Achievement in recognition of her contribution to the marketing field overall.
She has also received many awards for her strategic and creative work including 40 Under 40, Woman of Tomorrow Finalist, Cannes Lions, IPA Effectiveness, Effie, D&AD, and Golden Arrows. 


Since the reversal of Roe v Wade, I’ve shed many tears watching the horror, sadness, and processing happening amongst my
VP, Brand at Electronic Arts, Elle McCarthy, on pregnancy, internalised guilt, speaking up as a leader and breaking societal norms.
Last week one of my colleagues asked a group of predominantly white leaders how comfortable they felt talking about race
There’s a ninety nine cent store in the East Village, part-concealed by scaffolding that neither seems to be connected to

So here are my watch outs for male allies this International Women’s Day

Advertising has created false aspirations, widened the gender gap and compromised both peoples’ health and their happiness.