Helen Rhodes Featured in Campaign A List
Helen Rhodes, Chief Creative Officer at Grey London, has been featured in Campaign’s A List—the prestigious online directory celebrating adland’s leading talent, in association with headline partner Barclays and talent partner TheZoo.London.
As part of Campaign’s round-up of standout responses from this year’s A Listers, Rhodes shares a mix of revealing, thoughtful and sharply funny takes, from how she’d sum up 2025, to her view on the future of advertising, to the leadership principles that guide her and her advice for anyone navigating career change.
Below is Helen’s Q&A, as featured in Campaign A List:
Describe your 2025 in three words.
Tough. Weird. Wonderful.
Finish the sentence: The future of advertising is…
…what you make of it.
Name the last podcast you listened to.
The Rest is History. My fondness for this audio masterpiece is the reason why my “Spotify age” was 75.
What’s your favourite pitching outfit?
What Sean Connery wore in the film Zardoz.
Are you bored of being asked questions about AI?
Not yet.
What advice would you give to a newly redundant adlander?
Fear not. Better things are on the horizon. Turn this change into an advantage and achieve great things.
What time do you go to bed?
I would love to say that I adhere to a strict “sleep positive” schedule, making sure I’m in bed by 10pm to align with natural circadian rhythms for optimal cell repair, but it’s closer to midnight most of the time.
Faithful or Traitor?
Faithful. Or am I?!
What industry development/issue surprised you the most last year?
When that ad exec discovered he could hear women’s thoughts, he initially exploited the ability to undermine his female boss, but eventually the experience forced him to confront his own sexism and become a better human being. Oh no, my bad, that’s the plot of What Women Want, starring Mel Gibson.
Finish the sentence: The one thing that has shaped my leadership style is…
…being a friend first and a boss second. Probably an entertainer third.
What will make the biggest difference to how your team works in 2026?
Free biscuits. Great for when that 3pm dip hits. Bad for the early onset of diabetes.
How best can future industry leaders safeguard their careers?
Don’t ever chase the money. Chase the opportunities, and the money will follow. Best advice Tony Cullingham ever gave me. Well, that and make sure you have fun in this industry. The moment it stops being fun, you need to do one of two things: you either change your attitude or change your job.
Campaign A List offers a snapshot of the people shaping the industry—what motivates them, what they’re watching, and how they’re thinking about what comes next. Rhodes’ answers capture that spirit perfectly: honest about the challenges, optimistic about the opportunities, and grounded in a people-first approach to leadership.