JOHN READ

ReadDillon - John ReadFounder-Director
ReadDillon UK

John has 23 years experience of corporate communications, political affairs and running major international campaigns. He has specialised in national and international campaigning; corporate social responsibility; crisis and issues management and media relations.

His career has spanned senior positions in both in-house and consultancy environments.

During his time in consultancy - working for Hill & Knowlton and Burson Marsteller in London - he advised senior level clients at De Beers, British Airways, The Football Association, HSBC, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, the Abu Dhabi Government, Sky News, Tesco and the Rugby Football Union. He has also lived and worked in South Africa, and has a detailed knowledge of many of the issues on the African continent. John has also worked extensively in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

John was Director of Corporate Affairs for one of Britain’s Top 6 universities, the University of Warwick, for five years and, subsequently, Director of Corporate Communications for the England cricket team from 2000-2004. He has managed national and international campaigns covering a diverse range of issues including:

  • A three year political campaign on behalf of the four major sports in Britain football, cricket, rugby union and tennis. This was seeking Mandatory Rate Relief for Britain’s 110,000 community amateur sports clubs. In 2003, the campaign was won, and The Treasury brought in fiscal concessions worth £14m a year to local sports clubs;
  • A two year ‘anti-synthetic diamond’ international campaign in 14 
countries for De Beers, the world’s largest diamond producer;
  • An international election campaign for HRH Princess Haya of Jordan, who was standing for the position of President of the FEI, the world governing body of equestrianism. She was elected to this post in May 2006;
  • A campaign on behalf of the major food retailers in Britain to persuade the government to make ‘Sunday trading’ legal – this was eventually won;
  • A two year media and political campaign in 19 European countries 
working for the Iraqi National Congress, the UN-backed Opposition to Saddam Hussein. The campaign highlighted the atrocities being committed by the Saddam regime, and urged temporary members of the UN Security Council to vote to maintain the oil embargo against Iraq.