Professional Experience
Edelman Executive Creative Director - Jan 2020 to present
Joined Edelman to work with an old friend, Judy John. I work in special ops, a combination of demanding clients, new business, corporate and public affairs, and filling in as interim CCO.
Client List: FedEx, Pepsi, PayPal, MediaTek, Unilever, Schwab
VMLY&R Integrated Group Creative Director - Sept. 2018 to present
I joined VMLY&R to provide senior leadership for the 2020 Census, which needed guidance over multiple agencies and platforms across multiple years.
Client List: Dell, Xerox, 2020 Census.
CCO & Founder, Louder Communications - Sept. 2016 to Sept 2018
Naive enough to start Louder; part agency, part consultancy, and part product incubator. It combined the business solving capabilities of a consultancy with the creativity to create solutions, stories, and digital products. We published two patents and two trademarks and launched “People First,” HR software for reporting and resolving harassment.
Client List: LG, Cox Communications, McGraw Hill, Ansell, The Audubon Society
Products in Development: People First (HR software), Global 911 (GPS based Emergency Response)
Global Chief Creative & Strategy Officer, Naked Communications - Sept. 2014 to Sept. 2016
I combined the creative and strategy departments into a single discipline—leading offices in New York, London, and Sydney. Accomplishments included winning eBay in London, LG in New York, and starting a luxury division, NAKED Lux.
Client List: Virgin Atlantic, Pedigree, LG, Absolut Elyx, Mount Gay Rum, Danone, Wilshire Farms, eBay
Co-Chief Creative Officer -Managing Partner, kbs+ - 2008 to August 2014
Won business and awards. Our efforts culminated by being named a top 10 standout shop on Advertising Age A list in 2012 and top 10 agency to watch on Advertising Age's agency list in 2013. During my tenure, we grew the agency to over $85M in gross revenue with over 350 employees.
Client List: BMW domestic and global, Vanguard Mutual Funds, HomeGoods, Goldman Sachs, Adopt Us Kids (Ad Council), Puma, John Frieda, Boars Head, Harman Kardon, Simmons Beautyrest, Wendys, Mohegan Sun, Starz, and Wyndham Hotels.
Creative Director, Founding Partner, Berlin Cameron - 1995 to 2007
I joined Andy Berlin as a Senior Writer. In 1997 I became a founding member of Berlin Cameron. The agency expanded rapidly. In 2004, we were recognized by Advertising Age as “Agency of the Year.” Later that year, we sold the agency the following year to WPP.
Client list: Samsung, Volkswagen, Coke, The Washington Post, Diet Sprite, Fresca, Mello Yello, Dasani Water, Coca-Cola Light, Georgia Coffee (Japan), Coke, Reebok, Tidy Cat -Cat Litter, Bankers Trust, Nikon Sunglasses, The National Basketball Association, New York Life, Zyrtec (Pfizer) and Safeway Grocery Stores
Writer, Wieden and Kennedy Philadelphia - 1993 to 1995
Changed everything I knew about advertising.
Client list: Subaru, The Philadelphia Inquirer, ESPN, and Kink FM Radio
Writer, Chiat/Day Toronto & New York - 1988 to 1992
Client list: Nissan, American Express, Dell, Reebok, New York Life
Education
The University of Windsor, 1984, BA in Communications.
St. Clair College, 1986, Advertising.
Professional Recognition
I have been blessed with acknowledgments in every major award show. Also the best unofficial award I received was from Don Graham, the owner/publisher of the Washington Post, who offered me a position as a reporter after working on a campaign.
Some of the highlights are as follows:
Gold Adweek Project Issac Award for Jay Z Gold Retail Window.
Yellow D&AD yellow pencil for a Bill Murray NBA campaign
Webby for BMW window into the future
Webby for BMW “Eli – build a boys dream”
Silver Cube from the Art Directors Club for BMWs Window into the Future
Silver One Show Pencil for BMWs Window into the Future
Silver One Show Pencil for Interactive Social Media for BMWs Eli
Silver Cannes Lion for VW
Communication Arts for ESPN College World Series
Communication Arts Tidy Cats
Andy for Reebok Woman Mans World
A Gold Bell from the Ad Council for Adopt Us Kids
Effies for Mello Yello, Tidy Cats, and Coke
Bronze One Show Pencil for the Nissan Mica.
My work has also been featured in the New York Times, Fast Company and Wired.