Hi, I’m Susan.

I’m a creative leader who likes big ideas, clear direction, and actually getting things across the finish line. Revolutionary, right? I know.

My work has taken me from producing digital content and documentaries for PBS to collaborating with brands and organizations like Mayo Clinic, the Cargill Foundation, and Renewal by Andersen, and now to building and leading a marketing and creative function from the ground up. For an earthwork construction company, no less—an industry I knew absolutely nothing about when I first walked through the door.

But that’s kind of the point.

I’ve found that I do some of my best work when there’s something to build or learn. Not that I can’t work from someone else’s foundation—I promise I know how to inherit a project—but give me a team to develop, a brand to shape, a campaign to launch, or a slightly terrifying project that has everyone questioning, “Do you think we can pull this off?”

I’ll find a way to make it happen. And I’ll give it everything I’ve got. That’s what motivates me.

I believe good creative leadership is equal parts vision and execution: have an idea, know where you’re going, and give people what they need to do the work. Sometimes that means stepping back and trusting them to run with it. Other times, it means jumping in and figuring it out together. Either way, I want the people around me to feel trusted, supported, and proud of what we create.

And while I do love when creative work is neat and “pretty,” the work also needs to have purpose—a goal. It should connect with an audience, strengthen a brand, solve a problem, raise money, shift a perception—or, at the very least, make someone stop scrolling for five seconds.

Oh, and I’ve also picked up a few awards along the way, including two regional Emmys, a Telly, and a Webby. Pretty cool, if you ask me, but I’m slightly biased. (: