Heartbeat Announces 6 VP Promotions, Recognizes Exceptional Staff Accomplishments

Heartbeat Announces 6 VP Promotions, Recognizes Exceptional Staff Accomplishments

NEW YORK, NY—September 8, 2020—Award-winning healthcare marketing agency Heartbeat today announced the promotions of 6 exemplary members of its senior staff to vice-presidential-and-above leadership positions. The promotions span 5 different agency disciplines, and the agency is proud to note that 4 of the 6 promotions went to women, further exemplifying Heartbeat’s industry-leading charge for diversity and inclusion.

“Creative, hardworking, passionate, skilled, smart, courageous. All of these words apply to this crew of leaders. But as important as any of those traits are, this is equally so: they are, at heart, good people. And that makes all the difference,” said President & Executive Creative Director James Talerico. “We’re amazed and grateful that they’ve decided to share their talent, challenge the status quo, and conjure a truly diverse community with us at Heartbeat.”

Heartbeat’s recent promotions include:

Jillian Anderson, Group Creative Director

Jillian Anderson caps off 16 years of outstanding art and creative direction with a promotion from Creative Director to Group Creative Director.

Over the past 7 years at Heartbeat, Jillian has become known for her holistic approach to creative direction on some of the agency’s highest-profile, most-critically-acclaimed accounts, covering diverse therapeutic areas ranging from women’s health and medical devices to rare diseases and neurology. She draws on her wealth of experience in concept development and production across both traditional and digital channels to produce highly effective, visually stunning multi-channel campaigns.

Michelle Edwards, VP, Human Resources

With 23 years of experience in business operations and 11 years leading Heartbeat’s Human Resources and Operations departments, Michelle Edwards has been promoted from Director, Human Resources to Vice President, Human Resources.

Michelle’s creative approach to operations has been recognized throughout Heartbeat’s parent organization, Publicis Groupe, and her efforts in fostering Heartbeat’s wholly unique, people-first culture have drawn industry-wide acclaim, including the company’s recent Med Ad News Diversity & Inclusion Champion award and 3 straight “Best Place to Work” awards. An expert at attracting the most talented, challenge-hungry folks in the business, her ability to cultivate a welcoming work environment has been a key driver behind Heartbeat’s industry-leading employee satisfaction and retention rates.

David Brennan, VP, Group Account Director

Driven by a deep understanding of business objectives, customer insights, and the evolving advertising landscape, David Brennan has tirelessly stewarded brands and built lasting client relationships throughout his decorated Heartbeat tenure. In recognition of his work, he has been promoted from Group Account Director to Vice President, Group Account Director.

David has spent nearly 2 decades working in client service and account management, including 13 years in health and wellness, and 6 years leading some of Heartbeat’s most successful brand engagements. During that time, he has developed expertise in a wide range of therapeutic areas, including immunology, virology, oncology, and gastroenterology, to name a few. His team is currently up for a major award for their work developing a groundbreaking IVA system for one of Heartbeat’s highest-profile clients.

Nancy Salerno, VP, Content Services

Two decades of editorial excellence with deep expertise in health writing and editing have helped earn Nancy Salerno’s promotion from Editorial Director to Vice President, Content Services, overseeing both the Editorial and Regulatory teams.

During Nancy’s 4 years at Heartbeat, she has served as an invaluable partner to the agency’s creative teams, consistently advising them on how to arrive at the right message, every time, no matter the brand or complexity of challenges faced. Respected by her teams and her peers alike, she was recognized by fellow Heartbeaters as one of the agency’s “Most Inspiring Women,” and her editorial talents have had a tremendous impact on Heartbeat’s growth as a creative powerhouse.

Tiffany Marsh, VP, Group Account Director

Building on a career supporting clients through groundbreaking campaigns and significant brand launches, Tiffany Marsh was promoted to Vice President, Group Account Director. She previously served as Group Account Director.

Tiffany brings 12 years of healthcare and client service experience to her new role, as well as broad therapeutic expertise spanning a multitude of areas, such as oncology, hematology, immunology, and neurology. Tiffany’s commitment to providing inventive, thoughtful, and often unexpected solutions to brand challenges has made her an essential part of Heartbeat’s Client Service team.

David Sakadelis, SVP, Technology

As the head of Heartbeat’s Technology department, David Sakadelis employs a hands-on approach and technical prowess to transform strategic creative ideas into rich interactive experiences, all while holding the agency’s digital execution work to the highest possible standard. He marks his 8th year at Heartbeat with a promotion from Vice President, Head of Technology, to Senior Vice President, Technology.

David has more than 2 decades of experience at the forefront of transformational thinking and technological innovation. Establishing himself as one of the industry’s primary champions of incorporating new tech into the healthcare ecosystem, he was honored as a member of the 2019 PM360 Magazine ELITE 100, and his contributions to Heartbeat’s most tech-heavy campaigns have consistently garnered widespread industry award recognition.

About Heartbeat

Heartbeat is a full-service agency for healthcare Challenger Brands. Challengers are playing a high-stakes game—they must battle behemoth market leaders, upend ingrained treatment habits, or transform a “me-too” product into “yes-please.”

The agency is known for serving up distinctive strategies and differentiating approaches, ensuring clients’ market positions are uniquely owned. Heartbeat designs their organization around a 100% integration model, housing media, strategy, med comms, creative, technology, and even point of care/population health under the same roof for the tightest, most integrated campaigns possible. They price work based on outcomes, not outputs. Their innovative model delivers not only alignment, but powerful orchestration, greater efficiency, and maximum impact for every dollar spent—all the necessary elements for Challengers to triumph.

That’s the philosophy, here’s the creds: 250+ employees between NYC & LA; 6 agency leaders with decades of tenure; a pile of awards from the likes of the Mannys, MM&M Awards, OMMAs, and Clios; an industry-leading commitment to diversity and inclusion (with a Med Ad News D&I Champion nod to match); and a President who dared to be quoted as follows, “We celebrate people who stand up and say, ‘You know what? This is dumb.’” Damn straight.

 

For more information about Heartbeat, please email [email protected]