As companies and agencies across the nation struggle with retention, Mower, one of the country’s top independent marketing, advertising, and public relations agencies, announced the promotion of four new vice presidents and 18 additional employee promotions.
“We’re thrilled to promote so many of our fierce friends to new positions,” said Stephanie Crockett, Mower’s president and chief operating officer. “As Mower continues to grow, it’s important to acknowledge team members’ contributions, hard work, and dedication to our agency’s clients. Their support has not gone unrecognized, and we are looking forward to seeing what they will accomplish in their new roles.”
These employees will continue to lead and provide support to Mower clientele across the country and to colleagues in various U.S. cities, including New York City, Chicago, Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Cincinnati, and Buffalo, Rochester, Albany, and Syracuse, N.Y.
Bruce Wodka
Vice President, Director of Information Services
Bruce Wodka has been with Mower for almost 20 years, starting his career at Dellas Graphics in electronic prepress. In a time where computers were in their infancy and most companies lacked IT support, anyone who was drawn to solving computer-related problems was recruited to this new area of the business. In doing so, Bruce realized his true passion and returned to school to study IT. After spending a few years working network support at AppliedTheory, Bruce came to Mower with an abundance of experience in Mac and PC operating systems. Bruce has led the IT department for more than four years and was heavily involved in several mergers and acquisitions that Mower has made during his tenure. In addition, Bruce has done a tremendous job keeping the agency up to date with the latest technology while ensuring all devices are safe and secure.
Kristin Gray
Vice President, Director of Project Management
Kristin Gray joined Mower as an Assistant Account Executive in 2004 after completing her undergraduate degree and MBA from Le Moyne College. A few years into Kristin’s tenure at Mower, the Project Management Department was established and Kristin joined with great enthusiasm. Over the last 15 years, Kristin has grown into a successful manager, spearheading complex projects and campaigns across the agency. Studying user experience models and user-centered design, Kristin partners with Mower’s developers and designers to drive strategy for websites and digital projects across various client accounts. Kristin has dedicated time and effort to grow as an efficient leader and oversees the entire project management team efforts, which included Mower’s migration to Hive and the development of Mower’s collaborative agency framework.
Margie Freer
Vice President, Human Resources
Margie has risen from a part-time, subcontract recruiter to full-time manager, then to director, and now to Vice President, Human Resources. Throughout her tenure, Margie has risen to every challenge, from recruiting and retention, to providing day-to-day counsel to employees, senior leadership, and the core executive team. Margie excels when it comes to strong business acumen and remaining bipartisan in important company discussions, as well as maintaining a good sense of humor, even during challenging times. She is fluent in many HR disciplines, including PFL, FMLA, EEO-1, WEC, AAP and DE&I – all critical foundations in supporting Mower’s agency success.
Mary Jane Miranda
Vice President, Director of Accounting
Since joining Mower in 2014, Mary Jane has been with the agency for more than 30 years, beginning as an accounting intern while attending Canisius College for her bachelor’s degree in accounting. Leading the accounting department since 2019, Mary Jane oversees the department activities while reviewing client and vendor contracts. With the large volume of legal and contract matters in hand, Mary Jane also supervises a paralegal. As a strong leader, Mary Jane dedicates time to mentoring her team, sharing her vast knowledge of all facets of the accounting department, as well as her strong understanding of how departments coexist and support the agency’s overarching goals.
Additional Promotions:
Alana Gonzales — Digital Content Strategist
Alison Boghosian — Account Executive, PR
Dan Lux — Associate Media Director
Emily Walsh — Senior Project Manager
Jenna Bush– Account Executive, PR
Jill Doyon — Senior Production Manager
Kanica Phok — Social Strategist, Performance Marketing
Kara Sanchez — Director, Project Management
Katie Lisiecki — Management Supervisor
Kevin Tripodi — SVP, Group Creative Director
Matt Craver — Associate Creative Director
Melina Jorizzo — Search Strategist, Performance Marketing
Mia Tremiti — Project Supervisor
Michael Baron — SVP, Group Creative Director
Miranda John — Project Supervisor
Muyinat Taiwo — Project Supervisor
Rachel Neumann — Project Manager
Steven Wheeler — Associate Creative Director
About Mower
Mower is a digitally integrated independent marketing, advertising and public relations agency with professional staff in New York City, Chicago, Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Cincinnati, and Buffalo, Rochester, Albany and Syracuse, N.Y. Mower delivers strategic insights and counsel, digital solutions, smart creative and award-winning results to clients in a wide range of industries and service sectors. It has earned top industry accolades from Clio, Cannes, and ANA B2 awards and is the only full-service agency ranked in Ad Age, B2B Marketing, PRWeek and Chief Marketer. Mower is part of two global agency networks—thenetworkone and IPREX—as well as the 4A’s.