As chief creative officer of Deutsch LA, Karen Costello leads the creative output and vision for the agency. As one of Deutsch LA’s first creative hires in 1997, she was instrumental in helping grow the agency from 13 people to over 400 in its first few years. She rejoined the agency in September 2020.

With nearly three decades of experience, Costello has launched iconic brands, created award-winning campaigns, and has touched just about every category in marketing—from cars to fashion to music and everything in between. She is also the brainchild behind the history-making Target commercial during the 2016 Grammy Awards featuring a live performance by Gwen Stefani.

Prior to her role as CCO of Deutsch LA, Costello led The Martin Agency’s creative department; her tenure marking the agency’s first-ever female CCO. Under her leadership, she helped drive double-digit business growth, while continuing to earn creative awards and implement progressive agency policies.

Costello has always considered herself a dreamer and an optimist. She believes in using creativity to make brands, the industry, and the world better. She’s an advocate who champions people above all and is passionate about creating and fostering equitable and humane work environments. She is the recipient of numerous industry awards, and repeatedly appears on top creative lists, including Ad Age’s “Women to Watch,” Adweek’s “Trailblazers,” Refinery29’s “Matriarchy Power List” and No. 3 on Business Insider’s “Most Creative Women in Advertising.”

But her most fulfilling challenge? Being a parent to two teenagers. And although her husband might not share her love for sans serif fonts and color palettes, he does share her love for survival shows, good wine and backcountry adventure.

Jan Jacobs believes that as creators we must protect the power of a brand at all costs. Through deep collaboration with client partners there is a powerful opportunity to create long-term brand platforms that transform organizations.

In 2007, Jacobs formed Johannes Leonardo in partnership with fellow creative Leo Premutico. The independent agency was founded out of the belief that brands had to fundamentally change their relationships with consumers, and to inspire courageous acts that lead to true advertising effectiveness.

Over the course of his 25+ year career in advertising, Jacobs’ ideas have helped transform some of the world’s most iconic and influential companies. The agency’s “Drive Bigger” platform for Volkswagen is helping to lead a turnaround for the world’s largest automaker. MassMutual’s “Live Mutual" platform is helping to modernize the 165-year-old insurance company into a category leader. Their repositioning of adidas Originals into challengers of the status quo with their “Strikethrough” campaign has contributed to an unprecedented turnaround for the company and was awarded multiple effectiveness and creative awards, including the 2017 Entertainment for Music Grand Prix.

Johannes Leonardo has also repeatedly been called upon by the world’s leading technology companies: Amazon and Google. The agency helped to move their advertising towards a more modern form of storytelling for the latter, resulting in the mobile Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions Festival for their Google Re:Brief campaign.

Most recently, the agency was named Adweek’s Breaththrough Agency of the Year in 2019 and ranked No. 3 on Ad Age’s Agency A-List in 2020.

Jacobs fervently believes it’s the job of the agency to instill courage in their clients. And doing so requires deep collaboration, valued partnership, and listening.

Jacobs’ work has been recognized at every major international award show including the One Show, D&AD, Effies, the Clios and Cannes Lions. He previously held a jury chair of the South African award show, The Loeries, and twice has been featured on Ad Age Creativity’s 50 Most Influential People list. Finally, Jacobs’ and Premutico’s Tide “Talking Stain” commercial was nominated as one of the top twenty Super Bowl ads of all time.

In the early days of his career, Jacobs was closely involved with the advertising industry in South Africa, starting at Y&R Cape Town followed by stints at Ogilvy and later at TBWA Hunt Lascaris. During this time his work contributed to the latter two agencies, becoming Ad Age’s International Agency of the year. He won four Loerie Grands Prix in his last three years in SA, and the country’s first Gold Cyber Lion at Cannes. Jacobs was lured overseas to Bozell New York in 2011, where he oversaw the 9/11 New York Times print campaign. At Bozell, he twice won the Newspaper Association’s award for the best press advertising in America, as well as third place for Agency of the Year at Cannes. Jacobs lives in Manhattan with his wife Amber and three kids ages 15, 13 and 10. When he is not helping his agency create great work, he’s most likely off surfing.

Kash Sree is currently an executive creative director at The Community, helping to spearhead the community’s creative vision for Verizon. With over 30 years in advertising, Sree is known for his distinct and unique POV, informed by his global sensibilities. He strives to help brands enrich people’s lives.

Born in Singapore, raised in England and having held prestigious creative posts at agencies in London, Singapore, India, Sydney, Australia, Portland, Chicago and New York, Sree is the true embodiment of a citizen of the world.

Before joining the community, Sree most recently served as executive creative director for Gyro in New York. Additionally, Sree has worked at Wieden+Kennedy, Pereira & O’Dell, JWT, and BBH New York, where he successfully created and executed the global repositioning of the Vaseline brand. He is a member of The One Club and D&AD. His work has been honored with a Grand Prix Cannes Film Festival award, an Outstanding Commercial Emmy, several Cannes Lions and multiple D&AD and One Show Pencil awards.