The Ad Podcast

Ellis Verdi is a prominent American advertising and marketing executive best known as the Founder and President of DeVito/Verdi, an independent, award-winning agency based in New York City. Professional Career & DeVito/Verdi Early Career: Verdi spent the first half of his career on the "client side," holding positions at PepsiCo (managing Mountain Dew and diet brands), American Home...

Chris Heller is the CRO of PLACE and is a veteran real estate executive and strategist, widely recognized as one of the most influential leaders in the industry. He served as the President of OJO (formerly OJO Labs), where he shapes partner strategies and bridges the gap between technology and real-world real estate professionals. Professional Career & Leadership Keller Williams Realty, LLC Re...

Jason Haddad, a senior media executive and advertising professional. He is with Two by Four (often stylized as twoxfour), a highly awarded independent advertising and marketing agency with offices in Chicago and Chattanooga. Professional Background Two by Four (twoxfour): Jason serves in a leadership capacity on the agency's media team. The agency, founded in 1998, focuses on brand evolution a...

Samuel Donner is a digital storyteller, entrepreneur, and podcast producer known for his high-production interviews and viral social media content. He has carved out a niche by blending deep-dive entrepreneurship stories with fast-paced comedy and lifestyle content. Donner is the creator and host of Finding Founders , a podcast that uses immersive sound design and narrative storytelling to explore...

Andrew Gall Executive Creative Director / Head of Strategy Andrew is a creative strategist and writer known for blending business results with "emotional resonance." Role: He co-leads the creative department at Copacino Fujikado, where he focuses on "Human-Centric" marketing—the idea that even B2B buyers should be treated as emotional humans rather than clinical logic-processin...

Asha Shivaji is a prominent marketing executive and entrepreneur known for her work in "responsible AI" and brand inclusivity. She is the CEO and Co-Founder of the SeeMe Index , a platform launched in 2023 to provide objective, data-driven measurement of inclusivity in advertising. SeeMe Index: Along with co-founder Jason R. Klein, Shivaji developed a proprietary AI tool that benchmarks...

Lisa Rosenberg – Global President of Consumer Brands A major leader in the public relations and marketing world, she is the Global President of Consumer Brands at Allison Worldwide (formerly Allison+Partners). Expertise: She is known for "social-first" marketing and brand storytelling. She gained significant industry fame for leading viral campaigns, including the "Cronut" and...

Jordyn Curley is an accomplished animation producer, entrepreneur, and creative leader based in Provo, Utah (with ties to Portland, Maine earlier in her career). She serves as COO and Lead Producer for Tuttle Twins TV (an animated series on the Angel Studios platform, which has won multiple awards including Silver for Online Series: Education/Discovery, Bronze for Animation, and Silver for Comedy)...

Bianca Guimaraes is a Founding Partner and Executive Creative Director at Mischief @ No Fixed Address, an award-winning independent agency based in New York. She is widely recognized as a "maverick" in the advertising industry for creating provocative, culturally impactful campaigns that push boundaries. Professional Background Career Trajectory: Originally from São Paulo, she began her...

Noah Sanborn Friedman is a New York-based entrepreneur, investor, and venture capitalist, best known for his leadership in the beverage alcohol industry and for building high-level professional communities. He's also the founder of OuterSignal. Top Shelf Ventures: He is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Top Shelf Ventures , a venture capital and private equity fund that specializes in the...

Geoffrey Goldberg – Co-Founder & CCO of Movers+Shakers This Geoffrey Goldberg is a major figure in the "social-first" marketing world, specifically known for his expertise in viral content and TikTok. Role: He is the Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Movers+Shakers , an agency that became famous for creating the most viral campaign in TikTok history (the #eyeslipsface challeng...

Jeremy Heilpern is an Atlanta-based advertising executive and the Founder and CEO of Ammunition, a full-service independent agency established in 2017. He is known for building high-growth, "full-funnel" agencies that integrate creativity with data-driven technology. Professional Career & Ammunition Early Start: An advertising prodigy, Heilpern founded his first digital agency at age...

Charlie Tetrick is a prominent figure in the Kansas City advertising and business community, currently serving as the CEO of WTA (formerly Walz Tetrick Advertising). Professional Career Agency Leadership: In 1993, his firm, Tetrick Marketing Design, merged with Travis Walz to form Walz Tetrick Advertising. At age 27, Charlie took full ownership of the agency in 1994 following the death of his ment...

Jens Stoelken - founder - Ceremony Botanical Brews & co founder of The Many Jens Stoelken is the founder of Ceremony Botanical Brewing, a recently launched independent beverage brand based in Austin, Texas. Professional Background & Inspiration Heritage: Stoelken grew up in Germany, where he developed a deep appreciation for the cultural significance and heritage of beer. Japan Influence:...

Todd Irwin is a brand strategy veteran with over 30 years of experience who currently serves as the Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Fazer, a New York-based brand strategy and creative agency. He is widely recognized for pioneering the De-Positioning methodology, a strategy designed to turn a competitor's strengths into liabilities. Professional Background Industry Expertise: He has led l...

Travis McEwan is an entrepreneur and marketing strategist who serves as the CEO of 1 At Bat Media , a digital marketing agency specialized in high-growth strategies for modern brands. Under McEwan’s leadership, 1 At Bat Media focuses on performance marketing, customer acquisition, and the integration of emerging technologies into brand strategy. AI & Personalization: He is recognized in the in...

Jitesh Vaswani is a prominent breathwork teacher, transformational speaker, and marketing executive known for bridging corporate leadership with holistic wellness. Wellness & Meditation: He is a senior faculty member with the Art of Living Foundation , where he teaches SKY Breath Meditation. He is a frequent speaker on mindfulness and intuition, having delivered a TEDx talk ("Use Your Bre...

Sebastian Margaglio is the Senior Manager of Brand & Marketing for Long Weekend , a sustainable food and lifestyle brand operating under the Sumitomo Corporation of Americas (SCOA). Margaglio is a central figure in the launch and scaling of Long Weekend , which focuses on high-quality, plant-based products designed for modern, busy lifestyles. He is specifically noted for: Market Launch: Trans...

Simon Bruyn is a marketing and growth leader at SIGNIFICANT, where he focuses on helping brands scale through performance marketing, creative strategy, and modern digital channels. With a background spanning paid media, growth strategy, and brand building, he’s worked across a range of consumer and B2B clients to drive measurable business results. Known for his data-driven approach and sharp under...

R. Ethan Braden is a global marketing and brand executive, currently serving as Chief Marketing & Communications Officer at Texas A&M University. He oversees the university’s brand, marketing, communications, and digital strategy—helping position one of the largest institutions in the U.S. on a global stage. Prior to Texas A&M, Braden held senior leadership roles at Eli Lilly and Compa...

Alexander Hejazi is an entrepreneur and startup founder with a background in finance and technology. He is the founder and CEO of startups including Ballbox and Placement , companies focused on retail technology, smart kiosks, and innovative product distribution models. Hejazi began his career in finance, working with organizations such as Wells Fargo, NetSuite, and a boutique investment bank in D...

Dave Gulas is an American entrepreneur, logistics executive, and podcast host. He is the co-founder and president of EZDC 3PL , a third-party logistics company that provides warehousing, fulfillment, and transportation services for e-commerce and manufacturing brands. Before entering the logistics industry, Gulas spent more than 20 years in medical and pharmaceutical sales , where he developed a s...

Preeti Nadgar is a prominent media and communications strategy executive in the advertising industry. As of mid-2025, she serves as Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) for the United States at Starcom (a Publicis Media agency), marking her third tenure with the company—she first joined in 2004, returned in 2012 (rising to VP level), and rejoined after time away at other agencies. Prior to this, she was C...

Kyle Fleming (the one associated with Taha Kava) is a co-founder of Taha Kava, a Hawaii-based beverage brand specializing in sparkling kava drinks (e.g., flavors like Pineapple and Lilikoʻi/Passionfruit). Taha is a non-alcoholic, low-calorie "Polynesian social tonic" featuring noble Tongan kava (typically 500–800mg per can), positioned as a relaxing, social alternative with no sugar and...

Marc Sampogna is a seasoned entrepreneur, branding expert, and marketing leader with over 15–20 years of experience in the advertising, branding, and agency world. Born and raised in New York, he comes from a family background tied to advertising (his father and grandfather were involved in the field). He founded Canopy Brand Group (a branding and creative agency focused on strategy, design, innov...