Stephan Shakespeare
Encyclopedia
Stephan Shakespeare is the founder
and Chief Executive Officer
(CEO) of the high-profile British
Internet-based market research and opinion polls company YouGov
http://yougov.com. He also owns the websites ConservativeHome
http://www.conservativehome.com and the non-partisan PoliticsHome http://www.politicshome.com, which he launched in April 2008 after closing down his
Internet
television channel 18 Doughty Street
.
Stephan was born 1957 in Mönchengladbach
where his German father, a journalist, was German Press Liaison Officer of Headquarters British Army of the Rhine
. When he was five years old the family moved to the UK where he was
educated at Christ's Hospital
near Horsham
, West Sussex. After graduating from Oxford he took a one-year teaching course in Kingston upon Thames
, during which time he was a member of the Socialist Workers Student Society. He became a teacher and was a headmaster in Los Angeles
, California
in the 1980s. When he married, he exchanged his surname for his wife’s.
After returning home to the UK
from the US
, he became involved in politics, first as a political commentator and then as Jeffrey Archer’s spokesman during and after his failed London mayoral campaign. He was also a Conservative Party
pollster.
In the 1997 general election, Shakespeare was the Conservative
candidate for Colchester
. During the campaign Margaret Thatcher
, against whom he had demonstrated as a student 17 years earlier, came to Colchester to support his attempt to win the seat for the Conservatives, but he came a close second to the Liberal Democrat Bob Russell.
. YouGov’s first claim to fame was that it predicted Labour’s ten-point general election victory in 2001 within one percentage point. After expanding its business to the Middle East (acquiring the Dubai based qualitative agency Siraj) & to the United States by a major investment in the California-based opinion polling company Polimetrix in 2006, YouGov acquired a German and a Scandinavian market research organisation in 2007.
After a spell as joint CEO with co-founder Zahawi, Shakespeare took the title Chief Innovations Officer until he became sole CEO in May 2010 when Zahawi resigned from the board to stand for election to the House of Commons.
Owning about 11 per cent of Yougov, Shakespeare is the company's biggest shareholder. In July 2008 The Guardian
listed him among the top 100 media personalities of the UK, calling him "the pollster with the uncanny ability of getting it right".http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/jul/14/mediatop100200878
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
and Chief Executive Officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
(CEO) of the high-profile British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Internet-based market research and opinion polls company YouGov
YouGov
YouGov, formerly known as PollingPoint in the United States, is an international internet-based market research firm launched in the UK in May 2000 by Stephan Shakespeare, now Chief Executive Officer, and Nadhim Zahawi...
http://yougov.com. He also owns the websites ConservativeHome
ConservativeHome
Conservative Home is a British political website started by Tim Montgomerie prior to the 2005 United Kingdom general election campaign, that aims to represent UK grassroots Conservative opinion.-Editors:...
http://www.conservativehome.com and the non-partisan PoliticsHome http://www.politicshome.com, which he launched in April 2008 after closing down his
Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
television channel 18 Doughty Street
18 Doughty Street
18 Doughty Street was a British political internet-based broadcaster that hosted a webcast as its chief product. It began broadcasting at 18:55 on 10 October 2006, from its studio at 18 Doughty Street in the Bloomsbury area of London, and ceased broadcasting at 23:00 on Thursday 8 November 2007...
.
Stephan was born 1957 in Mönchengladbach
Mönchengladbach
Mönchengladbach , formerly known as Münchengladbach, is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located west of the Rhine half way between Düsseldorf and the Dutch border....
where his German father, a journalist, was German Press Liaison Officer of Headquarters British Army of the Rhine
British Army of the Rhine
There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine . Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War, and the other after the Second World War.-1919–1929:...
. When he was five years old the family moved to the UK where he was
educated at Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital is an English coeducational independent day and boarding school with Royal Charter located in the Sussex countryside just south of Horsham in Horsham District, West Sussex, England...
near Horsham
Horsham
Horsham is a market town with a population of 55,657 on the upper reaches of the River Arun in the centre of the Weald, West Sussex, in the historic County of Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester...
, West Sussex. After graduating from Oxford he took a one-year teaching course in Kingston upon Thames
Kingston upon Thames
Kingston upon Thames is the principal settlement of the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in southwest London. It was the ancient market town where Saxon kings were crowned and is now a suburb situated south west of Charing Cross. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the...
, during which time he was a member of the Socialist Workers Student Society. He became a teacher and was a headmaster in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in the 1980s. When he married, he exchanged his surname for his wife’s.
After returning home to the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
from the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, he became involved in politics, first as a political commentator and then as Jeffrey Archer’s spokesman during and after his failed London mayoral campaign. He was also a Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
pollster.
In the 1997 general election, Shakespeare was the Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
candidate for Colchester
Colchester (UK Parliament constituency)
Colchester is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-History:...
. During the campaign Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
, against whom he had demonstrated as a student 17 years earlier, came to Colchester to support his attempt to win the seat for the Conservatives, but he came a close second to the Liberal Democrat Bob Russell.
YouGov
In 2000, Shakespeare founded the YouGov web site with Nadhim ZahawiNadhim Zahawi
Nadhim Zahawi is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Stratford-on-Avon since 2010, after the retirement of previous MP John Maples....
. YouGov’s first claim to fame was that it predicted Labour’s ten-point general election victory in 2001 within one percentage point. After expanding its business to the Middle East (acquiring the Dubai based qualitative agency Siraj) & to the United States by a major investment in the California-based opinion polling company Polimetrix in 2006, YouGov acquired a German and a Scandinavian market research organisation in 2007.
After a spell as joint CEO with co-founder Zahawi, Shakespeare took the title Chief Innovations Officer until he became sole CEO in May 2010 when Zahawi resigned from the board to stand for election to the House of Commons.
Owning about 11 per cent of Yougov, Shakespeare is the company's biggest shareholder. In July 2008 The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
listed him among the top 100 media personalities of the UK, calling him "the pollster with the uncanny ability of getting it right".http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/jul/14/mediatop100200878
External links
- YouGov homepage
- / ConservativeHome homepage
- PoliticsHome homepage