From Acquisition to Scalable Growth

CONTEXT

Boston-based Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmopulos established a strategic foothold in the industry's largest, most competitive market through the acquisition of NYC-based Altschiller & Company. That investment dramatically raised the stakes for the New York office. Growth mattered. Execution quality mattered. Credibility within the larger enterprise mattered. The mandate was not simply to win business, but to build the capacity and operating discipline to sustain growth and compete against larger, established agencies in New York.

WHY ME

The pace and demands of the New York office called for someone who could combine strategic thinking, analytical rigor, client-facing judgment, and hands-on execution from day one. I was comfortable synthesizing competing inputs, clarifying priorities, and advancing work across clients, account management, creative teams, and third-party vendors. My background rooted in marketing, formal industry training, and consulting was a strong fit for an environment that required immediate traction.

MY ROLE

I initially managed existing clients while prospecting for new business as a freelance consultant. Following multiple wins, I moved on-staff and progressed through roles of increasing scope - Media Planning Supervisor, Associate Media Director, and ultimately Vice President, Associate Media Director. As the office scaled, my remit broadened to include new business on-boarding, client leadership, team hiring and development, and cross-functional coordination.

Solutions

Built team capacity to drive and sustain expansion - hiring, coaching, and navigating staffing challenges while maintaining output and morale. Proactively expanded the use of research, market intelligence, and targeting analysis to inform client and internal decision-making. Strengthened operating practices, co-developed internal training programs, and implemented a streamlined data-intake system later adopted department-wide. Net: growth opportunities converted into repeatable performance.

OUTCOMES

Grew existing clients while contributing to new-business wins, including Minolta, Priceline, and Dun & Bradstreet. Outcomes: Minolta's redefined targeting strategy meaningfully improved ROI; Omnipoint Wireless scaled from 4 markets / $14M to 14 markets / $50M; Priceline launched its first fully integrated, multi-channel campaign; and Dun & Bradstreet grew from approximately $2M to $29M over two years. Internally, the department-wide data-intake system improved workflow efficiency by ~30%. Net effect: stronger client outcomes, stronger internal capability, and greater capacity to absorb growth during the period that culminated in HHCC's acquisition by Interpublic Group.

PROFESSIONAL GROWTH

My development from functional leader to broader business operator accelerated, while my ability to lead, develop, and manage people grew substantially. I learned to build teams, coach talent, address performance and interpersonal challenges directly, retain strong contributors, and sustain delivery quality through staffing gaps and change. It helped shape the fundamental tenets of how I approach my work: pairing insight-driven strategy with operational rigor and steady judgment to deliver measurable results in demanding environments.