YOUR FOR-HIRE, ALL-FIRE, BAND OF BRAND NAVIGATORS.

YOUR FOR-HIRE, ALL-FIRE, BAND OF BRAND NAVIGATORS.

OUR TEAM

BOB BARRIE

Partner / Executive Creative Director

An industry icon who specializes in crafting campaigns that chart new territories—and springing them to life with simplicity and vision.

Our inspiration man and co-founder, Bob’s roots lie in the advertising lore that was Fallon, and has created famous campaigns for brands like TIME, Porsche, Jim Beam, Best Buy, Wagner, Hertz and Nikon, just to name a few. His work has been some of the most awarded in the industry – including over 40 One Show Pencils. Bob’s “red border” campaign for TIME was named “Print Campaign of the Decade” by The One Club. At Rise and Shine and Partners, Bob stays true to his passion and craft by being a true partner for clients and a hands-on ignitor for his creative teams.

AMBER BENSON

Partner / Director of Media & Comms Strategy

A curious mind that combines media, strategy and brand marketing experience to help drive stronger connections between people and brands

Amber is passionate about breaking down the barriers between creative and media to ensure content and experiences are creating the most value for clients. She helps brands embrace new ways to drive greater relevancy and stronger business results. Prior to Rise and Shine, Amber held leadership roles at R/GA and Essence Global, where she oversaw annual planning, strategy and campaign orchestration during years of unprecedented growth. She also experienced industry disruption as a marketer at General Mills, honed her strategy acumen with roles at Naked Communications (NBC Universal), Carmichael Lynch (Subaru, Jack Link’s, US Bank) and Fallon. Amber believes that comms planning, media and creative is most breakthrough, effective and fun when it’s tightly woven together.

NATASHA CARLSON

Project Manager / Associate Producer

A detail-oriented project driver who keeps an upbeat personality and a velvet hammer to ensure everyone's feeling good and delivering work on-time and on-budget
Natasha believes the best way to approach project management and production is with an open mind, a positive attitude and laser-like attention to the details. That’s how she gets things done. She’s got that rare gift of having both creative and problem-solving chops, while still being able to rock a spreadsheet. In addition to project management, Natasha brings video and post production experience to her teams, which makes her the ideal go-to person for anything production-related.
BEN ENGEN

Associate Art Director

A next-gen, triple-threat talent who skillfully blends strategy, copy and visuals into compelling creative content.

That’s right. As a Content Creative, Ben combines three jobs into one. He finds joy in bringing ideas to life through strategy, copywriting and design. It’s a smarter way to create more turnkey, high-quality content to feed today’s modern marketing ecosystems. Ben believes the best content has to cut through highly-cluttered channels, stop the scroll, earn attention, and create action. Easy, right?

MATT BURGESS

Partner / Chief Creative Officer

Believer in the power of creativity to drive change and that great writing can be an unfair business advantage…for you.

A copywriter by trade, Matt helps clients find durable, dynamic brand voices and deliver them to market in consistently original ways. While channel agnostic, Matt is an absolutist for scroll-stopping quality. In the past few years, his work has collected awards from the One Show, Campaign Magazine (Digital AOY), Clios, Webbys Anthem and Graphis International for clients like Honda Powersports, Webex and UNC Chapel Hill. A creative rarity, Burgess is not an agency hopper. Instead, he has learned from a who’s who of incredible mentors. Most recently, the wonderful people of WongDoody, where he worked for the past six years. Prior to that, as a part of the incredible agency that was OLSON.

MOUSSA MAIGA

Brand Integration & Strategy Supervisor

A passionate, digital-first marketer who believes in the collective power of data, creativity and people to drive results.
Moussa sees opportunities where others see challenges. He believes the best marketing solutions are driven by listening, understanding and building trusting relationships to realize what’s possible. Moussa started his career in digital marketing, where he honed his skills in research, IMC planning, search, display and optimization. Before joining RSP, Moussa worked in digital marketing, territory management and recruitment for the University of Minnesota.
ISHAN DUMRA

Partner / Director, Strategy & Insights

A next-generation brand strategist with the passion and curiosity to uncover fresh, actionable insights.

With more than a decade of experience crafting smart research, insights, briefs and actionable journey maps for his clients, Ishan combines his strong brand pedigree with a digital-first mindset to help bring progressive campaigns to life. He consistently strives to bring innovative strategies and creative solutions to his clients that engage people and deliver impact. Ishan views businesses and brands holistically and aims to create simplicity from the complex. With a background in both consumer and B2B marketing through cultivated experiences at agencies in San Francisco, New York, Chicago and Minneapolis, Ishan has a wide range of category experience, including: CPG, healthcare, food and beverage, financial services, technology and not-for-profit.

ANGELA IAZZETTA

Partner / Director of Brand Integration

A literal beacon of brand stewardship, bright enough to show clients how their entire teams can feel at home with even the biggest of brand evolutions.

With more than 15 years of advertising, marketing, consulting and political campaign experience, Angela brings a unique blend of insights, strategy and action-oriented solutions to the table. She cultivates strong and productive client relationships with her positive energy, collaborative spirit and oversight of cross-functional agency teams. The results are powerful ideas, smart campaigns and innovative go-to-market strategies. With a background in both B2C and B2B marketing, she has a wide range of category experience, including: retail, healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, food and not-for-profit. Prior to Rise and Shine and Partners, Angela was an account supervisor at Augeo Marketing and a strategic marketing manager for PIMCO in New York (formerly Allianz Global Investors).

MITCH KOCH

Brand Integration Director

A proven cross-functional leader with more than a decade of experience across the advertising and PR spectrum.

Leaning on his strengths as a perceptive listener, relator and deliberative decision maker, Mitch has led integrated campaigns and content development efforts for big-name brands like The Coca-Cola Company, Heineken and Land O’Lakes, while spanning several categories including food and beverage, health and wellness, agriculture, home improvement and commercial architecture. A wordsmith at heart, Mitch loves a creative messaging challenge and the search for a tighter, more compelling way to tell a story.

PHILIP KELLEY

Brand Integration Director

A passionate marketing professional who believes in the power of storytelling to connect brands with their communities.

With experience on both the agency and client-side, Philip brings an impressive mix of strategic thinking, creativity and business acumen to the table. He’s a passionate leader who forges strong and collaborative partnerships to drive positive outcomes. Over the course of his career, he’s helped CPG, higher education, healthcare and nonprofit organizations achieve their brand and business goals, including UnitedHealth Group, the University of Minnesota, Regis Corp and CenturyLink.

ANDY GRACA

ACD / Writer

From big ideas to clear, informative content, he finds the right words to bring brands to life.

As a conceptual thinker and creative writer, Andy has helped shape ideas and craft stories for some of the country’s most iconic brands. He draws inspiration from everyday life, observes how people interact with brands and welcomes collaboration. That’s how he ensures every last word is authentic, empathetic, and engaging. Prior to RSP, Andy spent time at Colle+McVoy, Carmichael Lynch, Doner and Fallon where he worked on 3M, Aquanet (explains his luxurious hair), CHS, Subaru, Target, Cat’s Pride, H&R Block, Steak ’n Shake and Ooma.

NICOLE CUSTER

Art Director / Designer

A pixel-potent perfectionist who prides herself on branded visions that both shine like diamonds and speak like megaphones.

Throughout the last 4 years at Rise and Shine and Partners, Nicole has worked to create visual designs that inspire, inform, and captivate consumers through print and digital. From concept to design to production, she has worked on a wide range of clients like Land O’Lakes, Thrivent, Element, Hertz, M Health, University of Minnesota, Sunset Marquis, and Andersen Windows & Doors. Prior to her time at Rise and Shine and Partners, Nicole worked at Crispin Porter + Bogusky. While there, her client list included Infiniti, PayPal, Jose Cuervo, Dominos, Hotels.com, Fruit of the Loom, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, and new business.

CASSANDRA FENELON

Brand Integration Supervisor

A tenacious go-getter who always treats new people like old friends and never loses sight of the big picture.

Cassandra is an energetic, collaborative, client-focused pro with a proven track record of cultivating long-lasting relationships, developing innovative campaigns and driving sustainable growth. With over 15 years of experience in community engagement, partnership development, and integrated marketing, she is known as a resourceful, trusted and strategic connector and passionate advocate. Before joining Rise and Shine, Cassandra worked at Twin Cities PBS (TPT), one of the preeminent PBS affiliate stations in the country.

ASHLEY BARANOWSKI

Brand Integration Associate Director

A client-focused team player who brings curiosity, smart thinking and good energy to every conversation.
With more than a decade of B2B and consumer marketing experience, Ashley brings a unique blend of branding, engagement, e-commerce and production knowledge to Rise and Shine and Partners. Her focus on client service, strategic collaboration and attention to detail build strong relationships and deliver results. Prior to joining RSP, Ashley led the Account Management team at BIG. Over the years, she’s worked with world-class brands, including Cargill, Andersen Windows, Best Buy, Microsoft, and Polaris.
MENG YANG

Digital & Social Strategy Supervisor

An enthusiastic digital strategist who brings brands to life with data, research, creativity and empathy.
Meng’s marketing origins are in social media where he created content, campaigns, and interactive events in the hospitality industry. Since then, he’s leveraged his curiosity and entrepreneurial spirit to sharpen his skills across the digital marketing landscape — including media planning, digital and social strategy, SEO, and data analysis. Throughout his career, Meng has created, developed, and executed digital strategies for start-ups and Fortune 100 companies.
AMY McDEVITT

Executive Assistant / Office Manager

An agency veteran who thrives on building and fostering a positive work culture.
In her hybrid role, Amy helps the agency be its best every day. She works closely with the executive team to oversee schedules and special projects, and manages the office to ensure that everyone has what they need to be successful. Amy knows there’s no such thing as a “typical day,” so her professional, solutions-oriented approach fuels our optimistic and energetic agency culture. She believes that having a good day is a choice. Amy’s professional pedigree includes serving in similar roles at Haberman, Olson (ICF Next) and Fallon.
KIM SCHMITT

Accounting Supervisor

A transparent financial partner who creates trusting, long-standing relationships with clients.
Kim is more than just good with numbers. She’s good with people. Since 1994, Kim has built strong client partnerships by combining her buttoned-up accounting practices with natural client service skills. Her collaborative and transparent process helps keep agency and client business running smoothly and  moving forward. Over the course of her career, Kim has managed client accounting for Andersen Windows & Doors, BMW, Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, Hertz, M Health and Thrivent.
JANIE WALDRON

Partner / Director of Project Management

A sage of efficiency and workflow, with a motherlode of experience shepherding campaigns, and clients, to success.

Janie puts her two decades’ experience to work helping clients see that getting to standout creativity and innovative thinking can be smooth, collaborative and rewarding. She has been the Director of Project Management at Rise and Shine and Partners since 2007. Prior to that, she ran project management for Fallon-Intersect and Olson. She has developed and implemented agency systems to ensure efficiency and clear communication both within the agency, and between the agency and client. Her experience includes major initiatives for United Airlines, Dell, Hertz, BMW, Land O’Lakes and Andersen, just to name a few of the brands who have known the pleasure of her calm and collaborative approach.

KEVIN DiLORENZO

President / CEO

An upper-echelon business mind who thrives on guiding clients to the mountaintop with integrity and commitment.

Kevin has helped light the way forward for some of the world’s most intriguing brands, including Andersen Windows and Doors, Wagner, BMW, McDonald’s, Target, Capital One, Northwestern Mutual and UnitedHealth Group. Over the years, his landscape savvy and multichannel acumen has earned him multiple Effie awards for effectiveness. Prior to Rise and Shine and Partners, Kevin was CEO at Olson and built the agency to become one of the top 10 full-service independent agencies in North America. He also worked at Carmichael Lynch Spong and Fallon, where the core of his multichannel instincts and client service passions were formed.

MARK ADDICKS

Advisory Board Member

A globally renowned brand builder and marketer who brings a powerful pedigree of Fortune 500 and entrepreneurial experience to every conversation.

Recognized as a Top Marketer and Top Power Broker by Ad Age, the former General Mills CMO earned a reputation for bringing a powerful mix of entrepreneurial DNA and innovative spirit to everything he touches. He’s been invited to guest lecture at some of the nation’s leading business schools, including Harvard, Tuck and the University of Chicago. At Rise and Shine, Mark shares his passion, insight and expertise with our teams and clients.

BUSINESS INQUIRIES
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President / CEO
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