EXPERIENCE
SVP, GROUP STRATEGY DIRECTOR
Leo Chicago / New York / August 2023 – Present
Strategic lead on Bank of America’s Brand, Legacy Sports, Employees, Communities, and Better Money Habits work streams
Partner closely with internal creative teams, account leadership, and senior clients to develop business-driving and award-winning creative strategies
Reframed BofA as a bank that understands the hopes and dreams of everyday Americans, contributing to work that drove significant increases in brand favorability
Flipped sports sponsorship on its head by giving Boston Marathon charity runners BofA’s media to supercharge their fundraising efforts, leading to record givingDemonstrated the golfers of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur use rivalry not as a threat but as a source of empowerment, boosting awareness of BofA’s sponsorship and fan engagement
Created the Strategy Superpowers School to teach junior and mid-level Strategists the skills needed to be more effective in their jobs
Manage and mentor a team of Brand, Communications, and Experience Strategists
LEAD STRATEGIST
Goodby Silverstein and Partners / San Francisco / January 2017 – July 2023
Clients: BMW, Xfinity, Golden State Warriors, new business
Poked fun at the luxury auto competition to lift BMW holiday year-end sales
Shocked people into realizing how much wireless data they were wasting on YouTube for Xfinity Mobile, contributing to double digit search volume
Developed a creative strategy playbook for Xfinity’s Amy Poehler campaign to drive record engagement and action
Led positioning and ticket strategy workshops for the Golden State Warriors and Chase Center
FREELANCE
Brand / Digital Strategist / June 2016 – December 2016
Agencies: BBDO (HP), Sylvain Labs (Google)
Proved CAD designers are a small but mighty group of professionals who shape the world for HP
Helped Google understand the medical implant and nascent biohacking space to inform strategic investments
SENIOR BRAND STRATEGIST
Pereira & O’Dell / San Francisco / March 2015 – May 2016
Clients: Bear Naked Granola, Samsung SmartThings, new business
Led pitch strategy for Bear Naked granola win by proving bears have a lot in common with Millennials when it comes to snacking
Repositioned Samsung’s Internet of Things company to make smart technology feel more human
BRAND STRATEGIST
Cramer-Krasselt / Chicago / June 2012 – February 2015
Clients: Porsche, Heinz, Edward Jones, new business
Led Millennial and Gen X audience research for Porsche, informing positioning and sales success of first CUV launch
Crafted various brand positionings, brand architectures, cultural analyses, and audience deep dives
JUNIOR STRATEGIST
David&Goliath / Los Angeles / October 2010 – May 2012
Clients: Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s, KIA Motors, CA Lottery, new business
Unearthed a QSR coffee category insight to re-launch Hardee’s coffee platform and reverse dismal sales
Provided consumer insights, industry trends and competitive analysis to clients and internal stakeholders
TOOLS
QUALITATIVE / Ethnography, focus group design and moderation
QUANTITATIVE / MRI-Simmons, Ace Metrix, tracking studies, survey design and analysis
EDUCATION
HYPER ISLAND / Executive Master Class, New York
MIAMI AD SCHOOL / Account Planning Bootcamp, Minneapolis
WILLIAMS COLLEGE / BA Art History and English, Williamstown
AWARDS AND HONORS
BANK OF AMERICA “THE HUMAN SPONSORSHIP” / 1x Clio Sports Gold, 3x Clio Sports Silver, 1x Clio Sports Bronze, 3x Cannes Shortlists, 1x Effie Finalist
JAY CHIAT AWARDS / Guest speaker
XFINITY “DATA IN DOLLARS” / Webby Awards Winner, YouTube Works Grand Prix, 2x Silver Cannes Lions, 1x Bronze Cannes Lion, 2x Cannes Shortlists
GOODBY SILVERSTEIN AND PARTNERS / Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies 2021, AdAge Agency A-List 2019-21