ASPECTUS - Key Persons
Alastair has been instrumental in the development of Aspectus into one of the world's fastest-growing independent marketing and communications agencies. He leads our teams across America, Europe, and Asia, and has worked with companies of all sizes - from disruptive start-ups to global players. He is ultimately responsible for client delivery across the group and ensuring that Aspectus attracts and retains some of the most talented people in our industry.
Alexa leads our North American team and business, and serves as a member of the executive board. She has deep experience in financial services communications, and has created strategies and programs for many of Fortune 500 companies throughout her career. Alexa has also worked as a broadcast and print journalist. She holds an AB from Harvard College and an M.S. from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Co - Head of Digital Marketing
Anna leads the digital marketing team and provides strategic counsel to clients. Her goal is to make sure that they get the right tactics and a multi-channel approach to achieve their goals and a return on investment. She is proud that Aspectus's digital marketing campaigns consistently outperform industry benchmarks and attributes this to our unique combination of sector specialization and in-house digital expertise.
Job Titles:
- Senior Account Director, Deputy Head of Financial Services
Having implemented communications programs for corporate, B2B and consumer-focused businesses in the US and the UK, Annabel's experience of financial services and her work with flagship brands is particularly impressive. With enviable knowledge of the financial services sector as a whole, Annabel also specializes in wealth management, investing and banking - helping businesses in these areas achieve their goals.
Annie has more than ten years of experience as a consultant, as a corporate communications and public affairs lead and in high-stakes political campaigning. Her clients have included some of the biggest names on the Fortune 500 in the US and in Singapore - where she led corporate communications across eight countries in the region. Annie holds a BS in Political Science and minor in Communications from the University of California, Davis.
Astor is the ultimate multi-tasker. He is our go-to for technology expertise, particularly in the interconnected world of telecoms, cloud computing and networking, and has the ability to turn that into exceptional marketing and communications strategies for clients. He is also a master of media relations, regularly securing top-tier coverage for clients, as well as developing original, creative content for more proactive campaigns.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Co - Head of Energy and Industrials
Astrid's career has seen her work with a range of energy and industrial clients, including major global players in the energy space, blue-chip consultancies to the sector, and SMEs in emerging fields. She is incredibly well-versed in the sector and adds real insight and knowledge to the multi-channel campaigns she coordinates for clients. With substantial experience of running campaigns across the Americas, EMEA and APAC, Astrid delivers maximum business impact every time.
Bill Penn - Chairman, Founder
Bill is the founder of Aspectus and provides strategic advice, training and consultancy at the highest level. A former journalist, Bill has spent more than 30 years in communications working with organisations all over the world. He is an accomplished speaker, meeting facilitator and has written several books on brand strategy and media.
Job Titles:
- Senior Account Director, Content and Strategy Director
Chris's work supports clients across our energy, industrial and financial services practices. He plays a pivotal role in our brand and intelligence services as well as our ESG teams. He excels at strategy and turning complex subject matter into compelling, story-driven content. He has a knack for getting under the skin of businesses and translating that understanding into insightful messaging, positioning and other strategic initiatives that regularly exceed client expectations.
Cliff has blended a unique knowledge of emerging technologies and communications theory to develop and execute successful B2B PR campaigns for U.S. and international brands. Cliff is a cum laude graduate of the State University of New York at New Paltz.
Dan leads the creative strategy at Aspectus, and plays major role in shaping and delivering our brand, intelligence and strategy services. He is responsible for cultivating our creative culture and making sure that all our ideas are distinctive, relevant and meticulously aligned with our clients' business strategy. Dan has worked on a range of blue-chip clients, and built his career working with ambitious brands focused on fostering innovation.
Job Titles:
- Senior Account Director, Head of Design and UX
Ed is dedicated to delivering memorable, strategic and creative work that prompts emotional responses and effective results. He has an extraordinary wealth of experience across all aspects of branding and design, and now leads our team of in-house digital designers - encouraging and enabling them to do their best work for our clients.
Job Titles:
- Chief Client Strategy Officer
Ellie leads our brand, intelligence and strategy services, with overall responsibility for revenue growth, profitability and quality of work. She is our focal point for client service, making sure satisfaction levels remain consistently high without stressing out our teams. Ellie started out as an Aspectus client and has had a wide variety of roles since then - so she can turn her hand to pretty much anything, supporting teams on project planning, development and delivery as needed.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Head of Financial Services and ESG Lead
Emilie delivers exceptional client satisfaction across the board, by building strategic relationships with clients and their stakeholders. She provides strategic communications counsel and ensures that every campaign and every project count. Her work is characterized by smart business thinking, a keen eye for a story and absolute commitment to the success of her clients. She now leads a motivated and ambitious team with some of the highest retention rates in our industry.
Job Titles:
- Vice President
- Enterprise Technology PR Specialist
Erica is an enterprise technology PR specialist with over a decade of experience and a proven track record of leading, managing and executing successful communications programs. She is widely regarded for her work with both industry leaders and disruptors in many business sectors - identifying her client's unique value proposition, expertly packaging it, and framing it to resonate with key journalists. Erica received her BA from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania.
Hattie provides senior counsel to our technology clients and is responsible for developing and managing their marketing and communications programs to address immediate needs and long-term requirements. She is a natural problem-solver and creative thinker, which makes her very successful when it comes to keeping her team happy, ensuring client satisfaction, and persuading new prospects to sign up with Aspectus.
Jamee supports her clients with combined strategies of media relations, digital marketing and content development. She helps companies of all sizes achieve coverage and growth at a global level - thanks to her strategic, integrated, multi-channel approach. Jamee has worked with a diverse portfolio of clients, from start-ups to global players, to elevate their voices and strategically position them within their desired marketplace.
New business. Sales. Growth. Katy's mission is to give us the best possible chance to grow the way we want to grow and ensure that Aspectus remains the agency we want it to be: successful, people-driven and focused on business success. With plenty of experience on the communications front line, Katy knows how to deliver commercially successful campaigns, revenue-generating ideas and measurable, data-driven results.
Laura Iley - Chief Commercial Officer
Laura grew up in Aberdeen's oil and gas sector, established our Aberdeen office, expanded our energy practice and now leads our commercial strategy linking people, purpose and performance. But she's not just about the numbers. Laura works with our teams to solve strategic and day-to-day commercial challenges - and also to ensure that our growth strategy is always centered on our people and creating opportunities for cross-sector, multi-channel and international collaboration.
As a former journalist covering the energy beat, Louise has both a wealth of knowledge and an exceptional eye for a story. She has worked with organizations of all kinds, increasing brand awareness for large consultancies, generating leads for niche sector specialists, and running international campaigns around the energy transition. She has also helped promote innovative new technologies and worked with the UK government on the launch of new energy infrastructure.
Heading up our Singapore office, Louise delivers innovative and high-quality communications and digital marketing strategies for clients throughout the region - while supporting and motivating her team of ambitious professionals. Throughout her career at Aspectus, Louise has empowered client growth in America, Asia and Europe - one of the reasons she was named as PR Week's 30 Under 30 in 2020.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Head of Integrated Communications
Lucinda is responsible for ensuring clients receive maximum amplification and market-beating conversion rates from their digital activity. She has worked with a variety of global players and has been instrumental in turning many smaller businesses into niche market-leaders. Clients appreciate her thoughtfulness and thoroughness as well as her multi-channel approach to communications that adds value to their business.
Job Titles:
- Senior Account Director, Senior Development Lead
Marko leads the web development team at Aspectus. He is a full-stack developer with experience across all key CMS platforms. Thanks to his work with UK government clients, including the Home Office, Marko has an in-depth understanding of web-related security requirements - which he achieves without compromising website performance. He holds a postgraduate diploma in Information Security and Digital Forensics, and has completed APM and PRINCE2 project management courses.
From our offices in Aberdeen, Megain leads our team of energy experts with skill, insight and a vast amount of experience. She has led marketing and communications programs for companies throughout the energy value chain, regularly contributes her expertise to our ESG Communications teams, and provides counsel for energy companies of all sizes. She is responsible for overseeing and expanding our energy and industrials portfolio and making sure we secure genuine engagement for clients internationally.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Head of North America
- Global Vice President, Head of Coaching and Development
As Deputy Head of North America, Megan played a major role in supporting our US clients and growing our North American operations. Today, she is focused driving business growth through the development of our people and our global teams. Megan is an ICF-certified coach and a Master NLP Practitioner, and focuses on training, coaching and upskilling our talented workforce in everything from strategic skills, to confidence building and business development.
With years working in house and in agencies under her belt, Mel is a master of marketing strategy. She has in-depth knowledge of all marketing channels including strategy, content, PR, SEO and paid media. What's more, she has real skill is in bringing all these channels together to produce big impacts for clients and to help then achieve their goals.
A former journalist, Michael's first love is technology and he has transformed Aspectus into one of the most sought-after agencies in the tech sector. Michael brings the same passion to his role as COO, which puts him in charge of our marketing, HR, training and recruitment. He is responsible for making sure we remain one of the best companies to work for - and he is particularly proud of our award-winning Aspectus Life Benefits and Support package.
Job Titles:
- Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer
With a strong marketing and entrepreneurial background, Phillipa's role is all about generating future growth initiatives and developing our strategic vision. Philippa built our digital and design practice from scratch and is now responsible for growing and expanding our offerings and implementing new technologies and processes - all with her eye firmly on development opportunities for our people and creating ‘why didn't we think of that' services for clients.
Job Titles:
- Senior Account Director, Digital Acquisition Lead
Sean has extensive experience of devising and implementing digital acquisition strategies for a range of businesses from blue chips to start-ups. He now leads the team that is responsible for tracking on all the websites and campaigns we develop for clients. He is Google certified, and works with complex architectures, emerging technologies and the latest marketing tools to ensure all our client websites are fully accessible and optimized for search.
Job Titles:
- Director, Co - Head of Digital Marketing
Shelley has supported the growth of the digital marketing practice at Aspectus and is responsible for the ensuring clients receive maximum value from their investment in marketing. She has led international marketing strategies for a wide range of clients in energy, financial and industrial sectors. Clients appreciate her thoughtfulness, diligence and flexibility, as well as her unwavering focus on securing the best outcomes for their business.
Job Titles:
- Head of Technology
- Senior Director
As head of our technology practice, Sofie absolutely has her eye on the latest developments in the sector. She is adept at turning features and functions into interesting and engaging business stories that feed our award-winning marketing and communications work. She and her team regularly contribute their tech expertise to colleagues and clients in other sectors. Sofie is responsible for growing the tech team and making sure that client satisfaction remains exceptionally high.
Job Titles:
- Head of Our Capital Markets
- Senior Director, Head of Capital Markets
Tim is the highly respected head of our Capital Markets division, responsible for its strategic direction and ambitious team. Throughout his career, Tim has cemented a strong reputation for creating standout campaigns for market infrastructure firms. His clients include software and service providers who supply a range of solutions to banks, brokers and asset managers trading the global financial markets. Tim is also responsible for our media training in the UK.