ReThink Creating is a placeholder I have been considering for a growing number of interests and topics. I will post occasionally and may even delve into creating a web location for a more organized collection of thoughts. Stay tuned!

Since 2015 I have been working as part of the Cella team of consultants, focusing on bringing in-depth expertise for optimization of in-house creative operations to Fortune 500 companies. A key area is process improvement to drive speed and efficiencies using six sigma principles. Additionally I focus on creative technologies such as digital asset management (DAM) systems and project management tools evaluation, selection and implementation planning. I provide management advice, operations support and professional development opportunities to the in-house communications and creative departments. I help to optimize these departments for efficiency and effectiveness, generally driving change and improvement through: * Strategic Planning * Process Improvement * Organizational Design * Financial and Business Management * Technology Selection and Implementation * Personnel DevelopmentComplementing the Cella consulting activities are Training, Resources and Tools made up of:'Beyond the Creative' - seminars on best practices, innovative ideas and practical how-to advice for effective business management of your creative operation.'CreativeExecs Roundtables' - are quarterly gatherings of creative leaders discussing common challenges and solution approaches.'CreativeExecs Blog' - presents weekly posts addressing challenges creative leaders face.'PartnerPulse' - industry-standard solution for administering annual client satisfaction surveys. The results of this survey provide valuable insights, as well as a source of validation and direction to in-house creative leaders.To learn more about how you might partner with Cella as an organization, contact me at m.pierce@cellainc.com.

Creative Operations | Brand Strategy Consulting in CPG and Manufacturing Industries, Creative Agencies, or Marketing Services Operations. I provide extensive domain experience in brand strategy, design management and integrated marketing communications. Much of my recent experience has been in the Consumer Packaged Goods industry, but also have worked in the IT Software Marketing and a number of Manufacturing industries with both consumer and B2B focus. My experience includes Agency Account Director roles, as well as working on the corporate side managing Agency relationships. My most recent experience has been in leading in-house agency resources as shared services within a Global Marketing Services Operations function. This role provided creative services to the North American offices as well as another 8 International regions - structured to build brand communication and visual consistency across markets.

Reported to Global Marketing Operations Director as Functional Manager leading In-House Creative Services within Marketing Shared Services Operations, providing executional design services for Integrated Marketing, Shopper Marketing, Packaging, and Digital Marketing needs. As Sr. Manager led strategic initiative for upgrading enterprise Digital Asset Management system to meet growing business needs and global reach.MARKETING SHARED SERVICES LEADERSHIP• Delivered design cost savings of over $1 million annually through strategic development and scaling of global in-house creative services, meeting Agile Marketing needs for US and key international markets.• Led development of new product visualization capabilities, reducing costs by 60% and delivery time improved by 66%. Provided on-demand digital marketing resources for brand websites and eCommerce.DIGITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP• Led enterprise upgrade of legacy DAM system that supported multiple integrations and APIs for key businesses and marketing activities. Resulted in improved UX, higher adoption rates and new functionality. • Led Discovery process for new enterprise solutions through evaluating emerging digital asset management (DAM) technologies, to support growing business needs and global regions access, drive high compliance with Agency generated assets and deliver significant hard and soft ROI savings.

Creative strategist / lead for $2.5 billion Cereal Division brand portfolio. Responsible for strategic visual branding for campaigns & promotions, integrated marketing, new products packaging – working with external Agencies. Core member of Strategy & Innovation brand expansion initiatives.BRAND STRATEGIST | CREATIVE LEADERSHIP• Built in-house creative services based in India, responsible for delivering integrated marketing and shopper marketing design services across all US Divisions. Generated $500M in productivity savings.• Led external Agency relationship management, established vendor objectives, and performance appraisal principles that linked to contract compliance and remuneration.DESIGN PROCESS INNOVATION• Advanced a package design strategy grounded in consumer driven insight, for a new product formatting process for the Club Store channels, resulting in 15% more product per pallet, which improved store stocking capacity while reducing transport costs and warehousing. • Led strategic brand design for the addition of 3 flankers to the $1 billion Cheerios brand portfolio. This resulted in delivering a significant share point gain as a direct result of these product launches.• Conducted design research and developed guidelines for Universal Design Principles with a focus on packaging design to improve product user experience for Boomer generation consumers. Received executive leadership endorsement and led training with key functional groups to operationalize workflows.• Led development of Intellectual Property guidelines for packaging design, which strengthened the defensibility of new packaging executions for General Mills’ brands.• Core team member of Innovation Speed Team and participated in a number of iSquad (Disruptive Innovation think tank) project initiatives.

Brand Design functional leadership for $3.2 billion Snacks / Meals Divisions. Held design strategy role with Strategy & Innovation groups employing design thinking principles on early new product development, in-market testing initiatives and speed to market process improvements. TIME-TO-MARKET STRATEGIES• Developed a new speed-to-test in-market process for packaging, reducing timelines by 40%. • Negotiated and established an external Agency Scope of Work model to incentivize Agencies based on project success, while providing increased creative engagement and shared risk. • Directed and established new in-line promotional graphics design process in partnership with Product R&D to adopt new food printing technology, which reduced product packaging materials costs by over $1 million, while improving design quality, time-to-market, and inventory control.• Core team member of Innovation Speed Team and participated in multiple iSquad (Disruptive Innovation think tank) project initiatives.MANAGEMENT LEADERSHIP• Led internal Staffing Senate, facilitating over 50 employee rotations for career path development. • Lead role with the CPG Packaging Design, involving active industry benchmarking identify best practices. Results delivered actionable new practices and knowledge in Design which were incorporated functional operations.STRATEGIC BRAND DESIGN IN NEW PRODUCT INNOVATION AND SHOPPER MARKETING• Led successful packaging design of new-to-category Fiber One bars, generating $65 million revenue in first year after launch. • Led development of ‘Packaging Design Principles of Shelf Presence’ with Consumer Insights team. Adopted as a proprietary key metrics tool in consumer packaging research.• Created and implemented billboard packaging design strategy for the Club Store channel, which increased product sell-in success, and was adopted as a best practice across the CPG industry.

Managed architectural and environmental graphics projects up to $2 million, working with internal cross-disciplinary teams and clients to maintain project continuity, schedules and budgets.Project experience included: Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport wayfinding signage system, General Mills campus expansion signage and environmental graphics, Surmodics offices planning.

In this leadership role I directed and managed the Creative Services and Events departments, providing creative design for integrated marketing and communications of new product launches and services, to meet objectives for both US and International markets in over 40 countries.