Kevin Warren, president and CEO of the Chicago Bears, will be the closing keynote speaker at PRWeek’s PRDecoded: Navigating Uncertainty conference in two weeks’ time.
Warren was named president and CEO of the Bears in January 2023, formally assuming the role in April of that year. He is responsible for all business operations and football operations, while also overseeing the team’s transformative stadium development project.
In conversation with PRWeek editorial director Steve Barrett, Warren will talk about the opportunities and challenges of running a beloved and storied NFL franchise; communicating and marketing around a new head coach and young, talented squad; the impending move from Soldier Field to a new stadium in Arlington Heights; the unique appeal and business potential of sports in an increasingly febrile and divided world; and improving diversity in sports organizations.
The first Black president and CEO in Bears history and the first hired from outside the organization, Warren succeeded Ted Phillips, who had served in the same capacity since February 1999. He is the fifth president in Bears history, following George S. Halas, George “Mugs” Halas, Jr., Michael McCaskey and Phillips.
A veteran of 24 years in the NFL, Warren joined the Bears after nearly four years as commissioner of the Big Ten Conference, the sixth in its 127-year history.
The first Black leader to serve as commissioner of any Power Five conference, Warren guided the Big Ten through an expansion to 16 schools beginning in 2024 and negotiating a media rights deal that will generate over $7 billion during a seven-year period.
Warren substantially increased talent of color represented in Big Ten Conference office staff, introduced the first basketball media day that featured men’s and women’s teams equally, created the Big Ten Equality Coalition, a nonpartisan group to combat racism, and developed a mental health and wellness cabinet.
Warren was honored at the 2025 NFL Women’s Forum with the second-annual Buddy Teevens Forward Progress Award, presented to an individual who champions and advocates for the inclusion of women in football.
Prior to his time at Big Ten, Warren was COO of the Minnesota Vikings from 2015-19, overseeing all business operations of the franchise where he spent a decade-and-a-half in a variety of senior leadership capacities.
Warren played a critical role in all business, financial, legal and operational aspects related to the U.S. Bank Stadium, which hosted Super Bowl LII. The Bears plan to officially bid to host a Super Bowl by 2031.
Prior to the Vikings, he represented the club’s current ownership group, led by the Wilf Family, in its purchase of the team in 2005. In September 2013, Warren was named a member of the NFL Committee on Workplace Diversity. Since joining the Bears, Warren has served as a member of the NFL’s Diversity Committee.
Prior to Minnesota, Warren was VP of player programs and football legal counsel for the St. Louis Rams from 1997-99, contributing to a franchise that secured a World Championship with a victory in Super Bowl XXXIV. He was VP of football administration with the Rams in 2000 and SVP of business operations and general counsel for the Detroit Lions from 2001-03.
Warren joins other PRDecoded keynote speakers including Bespoke Beauty Brands CEO Stacey Tank, MonoSol CEO Christian Herrmanns, and a conversation between the world’s two most powerful PR agency executives, Richard Edelman and Omnicom PR Group CEO Chris Foster.
Other speakers and panelists include Feeding America chief marketing and communications officer Monica Lopez Gonzalez, PepsiCo’s Stephen Kehoe, Culligan International’s Eileen Ziesemer, McDonald’s Adam Hamilton, Reddit’s Adam Collins, General Motors’ Jessica Wang, FleishmanHillard CEO J.J. Carter and BBDO Worldwide chairman Andrew Robertson.
Sign up here to get your ticket and ensure you don’t miss the important conversation with Kevin Warren and the other stellar sessions at PRDecoded: Navigating Uncertainty.
