Chris Locke

Chris Locke is a seasoned executive and entrepreneurial leader, currently holding several significant roles:

Chief Executive Officer at Aspire

Chris Locke has been the Chief Executive Officer at Aspire since July 2020. At Aspire, he works with product leaders in enterprise-sized organizations to build business-critical capabilities, equipping their teams with the skills, tools, and mindset necessary to develop new products and business models that help them outpace their competition and redefine their industry.14

Previous Roles

Before joining Aspire, Chris held various leadership positions:

• CEO UK & Europe and CEO Corporate Transformation at Rainmaking: He worked at Rainmaking from 2018 to 2022, focusing on corporate transformation, innovation, and developing new business models and capabilities.1
• Managing Director and General Manager at Trinity College London and Pearson: He held roles such as General Manager UK and Ireland at Trinity College London and several directorial positions at Pearson, where he was involved in product lifecycle strategy, innovation, and training, as well as leading business development and large-scale transformation projects.1

Founding and Consultancy Work

Chris is also the founder of Start Up Republic, which focuses on fostering student entrepreneurship and enterprise. Additionally, he founded Caribou Digital, a consultancy that builds ethical and sustainable emerging market digital economies, with clients including the MasterCard Foundation, DFID, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.23

Recent Appointment

As of June 2024, Chris Locke has been appointed as the Executive Vice President and Managing Director of the Internet Society Foundation. In this role, he oversees the strategic vision and provides programmatic, financial, and operational leadership to support initiatives that strengthen the Internet's function and reach, aligning with the Internet Society’s vision of an Internet for everyone.23

Educational Background

Chris Locke has an educational background from the University of Pennsylvania.1

Expertise

Chris Locke is known for his expertise in strategic development, innovation, business growth, and organizational transformation. He advocates for product leaders to adopt a venture capitalist mindset to drive growth through data-backed decisions and a portfolio approach to product prioritization.4