Doug Flynn was appointed chief executive of newspaper publisher Davies Brothers in 1987. The company was acquired by News Corporation in 1989. Mr Flynn then held chief executive positions with Aegis Group and Rentokil Initial in London, before returning to Australia in 2008.
In July 2012, Mr Flynn was chair of Konekt, the largest private sector provider of workplace health and risk management solutions. Mr Flynn is a former director of Qin Jia Yuan Media Services, the leading private television company in China. Mr Flynn held the position of non-executive director of Seven West Media, after joining the board of West Australian Newspapers in 2008 and continuing as a director of SWM from its formation in 2010, before resigning in 2014.