• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, August 1, 2016

Strategic advisory firm MediaLink has tapped agency veteran Lena Petersen to be the firm’s first Chief Brand Officer. She’ll remain based in Chicago, where the firm established an office in 2014 and will report to company founder and CEO Michael Kassan. 

Petersen will be responsible for developing and amplifying MediaLink’s brand marketing activities, including the content tracks it creates at industry conferences such as Cannes, CES and dmexco. 

The firm said Petersen would augment existing franchises and develop new platforms at leading global conferences and events. 

Petersen will also be responsible for agency relations, including sponsorship opportunities, event development and branding and art direction for all programs and franchises. 

The addition of Petersen, the firm said, will allow Dee Salomon, MediaLink’s CMO, to concentrate on the strategic marketing needs of its client roster. 

Petersen joins MediaLink from Publicis Media, formerly Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG), where she was most recently EVP of Products and Partnerships, creating the agency’s programs and other activities at Cannes, CES and other industry gatherings. 

Petersen joined SMG in 2000 from Leo Burnett to help launch Starcom as a stand-alone media agency. At Burnett, she was responsible for marketing communications efforts for the global network and its executives.  Prior to joining Burnett, she worked in state government as Assistant Press Secretary for the Office of the Speaker and Illinois House Minority Leader. 

“Lena is particularly adept at producing disruptive platforms and approaches that differentiate companies in crowded operating environments,” stated  Kassan. 

Separately the company has hired Macy’s veteran Jennifer Kasper to work with the advisory firm’s retail clients. Kasper, who is New York-based, is tasked with exploring how mobile and innovation at point-of-sale has influenced retailers’ go-to-market strategies and customer journey mapping.