Christian J. Ward is the Executive Vice President and Chief Data Officer at Yext focused on the expanding applications of knowledge graphs and data asset optimisation. His focus is to help Yext clients identify, value and structure their knowledge graphs to maximise their data value. Ward is the co-author of the Amazon top release Data Leverage: Unlocking the Surprising Growth Potential of Data Partnerships and has developed and executed hundreds of data partnerships around the world, from small entrepreneurial firms to the world’s largest data companies. Ward has served as Chief Data Officer of SourceMedia, Chief Data Officer of Infogroup and Global Head of Content Innovation at Thomson Reuters, among other roles. He has been quoted in publications like the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fortune, GeoMarketing, StreetFight and Search Engine Journal and he speaks frequently on data strategy, partnerships and the future influence of data.

Steve began his career at ABC Television before joining HBO, where his work as a producer earned him industry recognition with four Emmy Award nominations and two Emmy Awards. He has served as a juror and speaker at multiple industry events, including Cannes Lions, SXSW, Spikes Asia, Festival of Media and Dubai Lynx. Steve was most recently the president of Localize.city, and prior to that he drove growth and led business for R/GA and Twitter across 20 countries throughout APAC and MENA.