Mark Laity is a widely respected expert in Strategic Communications (StratCom) and a pioneering leader in the field — earning him the nickname ‘Mr. StratCom’ within NATO. 

His career spans over four decades across media and information sectors, first as a BBC journalist and later in senior leadership roles at NATO. He retired in 2020 as the inaugural Director of the SHAPE Communications Division and currently serves as Senior Director of the StratCom Academy. Between 2007 and 2017, Mark was the Chief of Strategic Communications at SHAPE, NATO’s strategic military headquarters. This role followed several deployments to Afghanistan, for which he was awarded NATO’s Meritorious Service Medal. Previously, he served as SHAPE’s first civilian Chief of Public Affairs and joined NATO in 2000 as a Special Adviser to Secretary General Lord Robertson. 

Before entering international defense, he spent 22 years in journalism — including 11 years as the BBC’s Defence Correspondent, reporting from frontlines in the Balkans and other major conflicts of the 1990s. 

An alumnus of the University of York, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in 2020 for his contributions to conflict journalism and StratCom. He is also an Honorary Fellow at the British Army’s Centre for Army Leadership.