About
We build personal brands for leaders whose work deserves to be seen, understood, and remembered.
The Practice
About McKnight Brand Group
McKnight Brand Group is a strategic personal branding and executive presence agency for accomplished leaders, founders, civic figures, experts, and culture-shapers. We help clients clarify their message, elevate their presence, and build the brand assets they need to create greater visibility, credibility, influence, and opportunity.
Founder
Meet David McKnight
David McKnight is the founder of McKnight Brand Group, an image consultant, executive coach, personal branding strategist, and author of The Zen of Executive Presence. His work sits at the intersection of image, executive presence, personal brand strategy, communication, and leadership influence.
Before founding McKnight Brand Group, David spent two decades in corporate leadership and management consulting. He served as Senior Vice President at Citi and a Senior Executive at AIG, where he led teams and drove results inside two of the world's largest financial institutions. His consulting background spans engagements with Deloitte, Accenture, and PwC, work that sharpened his ability to diagnose organizational and leadership challenges, communicate with executives, and deliver results inside high-stakes environments.
That corporate pedigree informs everything David does for clients. He does not approach personal branding as a cosmetic exercise. He approaches it the way a management consultant approaches a business problem, with rigor, a clear framework, and a focus on outcomes.
David is a certified image consultant through the Association of Image Consultants International (AICI), a credentialed professional coach through the International Coaching Federation (ICF), and holds the Executive Leadership Image Management Professional (ELIMP) designation. He is also the author of The Zen of Executive Presence, a practical guide for leaders who want to use image and presence as a strategic lever for career advancement.
His client work spans executives, founders, and senior professionals, as well as attorneys, civic leaders, and culture-shapers who are preparing for their next level of visibility and influence. He is a member of the Miami MoCAAD Leadership Council and co-founder of the Leadership Elevation Alliance.
Based in New York City and Miami, David partners with a select number of clients each season through McKnight Brand Group's advisory engagements, workshops, and speaking programs.
Philosophy
Brand is not performance. It is alignment.
Your personal brand should not be a manufactured version of who you are. It should be a clearer, stronger, and more intentional expression of your expertise, values, presence, and ambition.
At McKnight Brand Group, we believe your brand should help people understand your value faster, trust your authority sooner, and connect your name with the opportunities you are ready to attract.
Credentials
Credibility highlights
- Author of The Zen of Executive Presence
- Executive coach and image consultant
- Corporate leadership and transformation experience
- Personal branding and image strategy expertise
- Advisor to executives, professionals, and entrepreneurs
- Speaker and workshop facilitator
In Their Words
Outcomes clients attribute to the work.
I worked with David for more than a year and I have to tell you he is the best of the best. One month into our coaching, he helped me update my website and complete a polished photo shoot. Two months in, he encouraged me to write a book — ten months later I had published my first.
While working with David I gained greater self-esteem and realized I can accomplish anything I set my mind to — including building the pricing model framework that allowed me to attract clients. I would not have done that prior to working with him.
David honed in on my strengths and gave me tools for my soft-skill toolkit — phrases to gain executive buy-in, reframing strategies, breathing techniques. In six sessions I became a better listener, manager, teammate, and employee. An all-around better version of me.
Credentials & Affiliations
