Kirk Vallis is Google’s Head of Creativity Development and a leading authority on creative thinking in business. He equips leaders and teams with practical tools and behavioural strategies to drive innovation, problem-solving, and lasting cultural change.
Kirk Vallis is a globally respected creativity leader and Google’s Head of Creativity Development. A speaker, coach, and behavioural change advisor, he helps individuals and organisations harness creative thinking to solve problems, innovate boldly, and lead change with confidence.
Since joining Google in 2012, Kirk has been instrumental in developing the organisation’s global creative capability. He built and leads Google’s Magic Academy, a programme dedicated to embedding creativity as a core skill across the business. His work focuses on empowering Googlers with the techniques and behaviours that consistently lead to fresh thinking, innovation, and meaningful impact.
Outside of Google, Kirk partners with non-competing global brands including Adidas, EY, Mastercard, and Intuit to help embed creativity into their daily operations and strategic transformation. He also designs and delivers modules for elite sport programmes such as England Rugby and the English Football Association’s UEFA Pro Licence and Technical Director programme.
Kirk’s broader influence includes mentoring Nobel Prize-winning scientists with The Hope Fund for Cancer Research, supporting Team GB athletes, and running workshops at Stanford and Wharton business schools. His previous career in commercial media saw leadership roles at Sky and Global Radio, and a pivotal transition into innovation consulting with ?What If! Innovation, where he led cultural and capability transformation programmes.
Kirk delivers energising, thought-provoking keynotes and masterclasses with clarity, humour, and practical relevance. He excels in helping senior leaders and teams identify the behaviours, mindsets, and environments needed to unlock creative thinking, at speed and scale.
Audiences appreciate his accessible, non-theoretical style and leave with actionable tools to foster innovation, drive cultural change, and create conditions where every individual’s ideas can thrive. Whether leading a fireside chat, interactive session, or keynote, Kirk demystifies creativity and shows how to apply it in even…
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