People

Cecil brings a wealth of experience in the higher education, consulting, and nonprofit sectors to the helm of MOM's Research & Branding division. As the Chief Enrollment Officer at the University of South Dakota, he increased enrollment by 10.6 percent in two years, developed state-of-the-art scholarship matrices and enrollment forecasting models, implemented new reporting structures, and headed USD's sub-committee on fund raising and financial impact. Prior to USD, Cecil's career included positions at Daemen, Canisius, and D'Youville colleges. During his tenure as Director of Admissions at Daemen, Cecil pioneered a theory now known as "The 24-hour Admissions Office" that resulted in an 11.5 percent increase in enrollment over a two-year period.

In addition to his campus positions, Cecil has served as Executive Vice President at the higher education marketing firm Carnegie Communications and as Chief Operating Officer at Embark Corporation in San Francisco, where he oversaw the campus CRM division and re-launched the student advocacy website Embark.com.

The visionary behind the lens; this is Joe. Our Chief Creative Director and videographer, he is invigorated by a personal motto to always “ad a twist” for the user. He’s a theater arts guy at heart with a passion for bringing distinction to projects. His signature creative style is the differential our clients enjoy. The Fortune 500’s, higher education, and the sports world’s best have him in multiple continents yearly. His creativity and experiences span the industry and the globe.

Well-read and well-travelled. If Joe’s not reading a book on architecture or quantum physics, then he’s probably spending time with his wife in Vancouver. Be nice and he might treat you to some airline mileage.

Email: joe.wittkofski@momlistens.com

Guido is, and has always been, the ‘concept guy.’ A trait that led him to team up with Joe Wittkofski in 1982 and found what started out as a boutique communications consultancy. His commitment to servicing the client with ideas that work has defined our success. Clients like collaborating with him and enjoy his uncommon ability to strategize and solve complex communications challenges.

In addition to helping with planning and providing insight as our Senior Strategist, he is the Consulting Brand Director for the Penn State Football Team and is a member of the Penn State Marketing committee. And if you can’t find him it means he’s enjoying family time, hiding out on a beach, or both.

Email: guido@momlistens.com

Contributing to the firm for more than seventeen years (and with twenty-and-counting Emmy Awards to show for it), Michael is a multi-faceted producer and director with extensive success in branding, product launches, live events, recruiting initiatives and capital campaigns. His vision and insight continue to endear him to both clients and colleagues alike. Sometimes we're convinced that Michael's blood runs "blue." It's probably because he, along with colleague Frick Weber, directs twenty-five television shows a year for Penn State, including "The Penn State Football Story" and "The Penn State Basketball Story." (And did we mention he graduated from Penn State?)

Bitten by more than a bug for sports, during Michael's off-time his is currently co- producing a documentary directed by Academy Award winner Alex Gibney on life as an ice hockey enforcer (the idea was formulated after Michael spent a year playing minor-league hockey). Go Mike!

Email: m.messner@momlistens.com

A deeply experienced writer and brand strategist, Kristen specializes in developing high-impact brand platforms and marketing communications that are strategic, aspirational, and compelling. An independent consultant for the past two years, Kristen was previously the Creative Director at Carnegie Communications, where she developed or directed strategic recruitment and branding campaigns for close to 50 institutions.

Her work for Alfred University, the Albert Einstein School of Medicine, INCAE Business School, Niagara University, and the University of South Dakota has won awards from Higher Education Marketing Report. Prior to that, Kristen was a Senior Editor at Child magazine in New York and the Executive Editor of Currents magazine at the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) in Washington, D.C. During her tenure at Currents, the magazine won the prestigious Golden Lamp Award from the Association of Educational Publishers and a Silver Inkwell Award for Excellence from the International Association of Business Communicators.

Nathan is our digital da Vinci; he is both artist and engineer. He ensures that all the work we create for our clients is nothing short of visually spectacular. From guiding our digital work flow and directing quality control to recommending the best solution to meet a unique editing challenge—the end result is a targeted audience experience that consistently exceeds our client's expectations.

He has an unquenchable desire to investigate the latest technology. Sometimes we even understand what he is talking about. When not immersed in research, he can be found lifting and throwing heavy weights around, jumping over anything, playing soccer or spending time with his family.

Email: nathan.wadding@momlistens.com

With a long-standing client list that wraps around the block, Diane's reputation precedes her. Known for grace under pressure and always putting the customer first, our client’s have been trusting Diane to bring projects to successful completion on-time and on- budget since 1994. Recognized nationally for excellence in communication through video and multimedia tools, we count on Diane’s ability to deliver solutions that make a lasting impression and drive demand, and so can you.

When away from the office, Diane enjoys all things Disney and spending time with her hubby and two little girls. Oh, and training to run marathons. Power to our super-mom!

Email: diane.rankin@momlistens.com

Natalie adds a fresh perspective to our sales team. She brings with her a diversity of communications experiences, ranging in a little bit of everything— from television production and marketing to customer service and event planning. A penchant for details, she knows that sweating the small stuff is not only how you build brands and turn ideas into real solutions; it’s how you build trusted relationships.

When she’s not helping our newest clients realize they’ve found the trusted partner they’ve been looking for, you can find her taking in the latest box-office hit on the big screen or planning her next travel adventure.

Email: natalie@momlistens.com

With a career that has spanned the campus, consulting, and technology development sides of higher education, Chris brings both a breadth and depth of industry knowledge to his role at MOM R&B. As the Director of Corporate Strategy at Embark Corporation in San Francisco, Chris oversaw product development of the company's next generation of web-based admissions software and conducted a large-scale environmental scan and in-depth competitive analysis to inform the company's strategic planning efforts. After Embark, he was Account Executive at the higher education marketing firm Carnegie Communications where he helped develop cutting edge strategies on how to identify and reach stealth prospects and applicants.

Chris also brings years of campus experience at Daemen College in New York, where he started as an Admissions Counselor and worked his way up to Assistant Director of Admissions and then Assistant Director of Enrollment Research. Despite a declining student population, he was able to increase transfer student enrollment by more than 10% during his first year as Assistant Director of Admissions.