• by Susan Kuchinskas , September 9, 2008

Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Pixel

Jeff Marshall is known to take any bet. Maybe that's why he's betting on Pixel, Starcom MediaVest Group's boutique agency/skunk works. As senior vice president and managing director, he's charged with spreading the Starcom IP model to the rest of Publicis.

Jen Schreiber, Pixel cofounder and vice president, new business director, has worked with Marshall for nine years. "There's a reason for that," she says. "In the workplace, he's totally mature and makes rational decisions, but there's always a little risk in it. He knows when to draw the line on risk, but also when to push it."

That risky business pays off. Marshall grew the agency's relationship with ESPN and helped Pixel get its creative foot in the door. The NBA Front Row game and Web site for espn got fans involved in the regular NBA lineup of games.

Marshall helped found Starcom IP as Rishad Tobaccowala's right-hand man. He worked with blue-chip clients and helped grow the company to 65 employees in three years. Before joining Pixel, Marshall led expeditions into the digital frontier for Starcom USA, cocreating the agency's Video Investment Group in 2004 and SMG Search in 2006.

At Pixel, his team of "content and experience creators" takes clients like PetSmart, Walgreens, ESPN and LEGO into second- and third-screen media, and even into the dangerous waters of social media.