People

Tim Condon, CEO, Executive Creative Director

Tim Condon

CEO, Executive Creative Director

Agency co-founder Tim Condon brings strategic, creative and entrepreneurial vision to SCC, constantly pushing SCC team members and client partners to "think again." To our clients' benefit, Tim is never satisfied -- always in relentless pursuit of unconventional thinking that produces sky-high results. In his nearly 30 years experience, including 20 years at SCC, Tim has been involved with the launch or revitalization of more than 50 consumer brands. His senior-level strategic insight and high creative standards bring a fresh, compelling relevance to the work coming out of SCC.
 
Tim's career started at Bozell Worldwide in strategic planning and management on a wide range of CPG brands before becoming a creative with equally stellar results. His CPG brand experience includes Alberto-Culver, SC Johnson, ConAgra, Unilever, Hormel and General Mills among many others; retail brands include Domino's Pizza, Popeye's Fried Chicken, Bertucci's Restaurants, Naked Fish Restaurants, and Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery; and luxury brands Paterno Wines and Maxum Boats, to name a few.
 
Along with being one of the many musical influences at SCC (avid guitar player and rock & roll enthusiast), Tim sits on the board of the AAAA Chicago Council after serving as Chairman of that organization for five years. He earned his degree in Film Production at the University of Iowa and lives with his family in Elmhurst, Illinois.

 
David Selby, President

David Selby

President

Agency President David Selby brings 30 years of marketing, advertising and brand experience on both the client and agency side. Equally important is the passionate leadership and unwavering vision he brings to our people and clients on a daily basis. David is a staunch believer that great brands do remarkable things that cause people to lean into them -- a belief that soars in perfect harmony with the SCC mantra of "think again."

David has been the Chief Marketing Officer of two companies: Sears, Roebuck & Company and Potbelly Sandwich Works. He spent the first 18 years of his career at Leo Burnett, where he managed clients including McDonald's, Walt Disney and Miller Brewing.  Most recently, David was an Executive Director and Co-Leader of the Marketing Officers Practice for the global executive search firm Russell Reynolds Associates.  But what we really like about David is his love of rock 'n' roll. A drummer and singer for most of his life, he'd be on tour with any band that would have him were it not for his marketing passion (and the occasional need to keep his wife Laura and three kids in the lifestyle to which they have become accustomed).

David holds an MBA in Marketing and Finance from The Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and a BA in English Literature from Amherst College. He lives with his family in Glenview, Illinois, where he pounds the skins for anyone who will listen - and even if they won't.

 
Mark Schafer, COO, Executive Creative Director

Mark Schafer

COO, Executive Creative Director

Agency Partner and Co-Founder Mark Schafer not only provides senior leadership on several SCC accounts, he also rises to the challenging task of keeping this hard-charging, status-quo-busting agency running with speed and grace. More importantly, Mark's 29+ years of classic CPG, B2B and retail marketing experience brings a well-rounded, rock-solid perspective to SCC clients and people alike.

Prior to starting SCC with college roommate Tim Condon, Mark began his career at Mandebach & Simms, working on P&G brands and Citicorp Diner's Club. Mark later headed west, to San Francisco, where he worked on Nestle and Weyerhaeuser, earning numerous creative awards before making his way back to Chicago to start SCC.

In his 20 years leading SCC, he has been involved in a wide variety of brands and product categories, including General Mills, e-commerce pioneer ShopLocal.com, the Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery chain and luxury brands such as Maxum Boats and Paterno Wines.

Mark is a fine artist and enjoys golfing and kayaking as well as painting. He is a University of Iowa graduate and lives in Glenview, Illinois with his family - when he's not brandishing a beer and a paint brush at his quaint lake home in the beautiful Wisconsin countryside.
 
Gail Carter, Managing Partner, Director of Client Services

Gail Carter

Managing Partner, Director of Client Services

As a Managing Partner and Director of Client Service at SCC, Gail brings structure, discipline and deep insight to the planning process. She is one of the industry's most respected minds in food and wine marketing, with a keen eye for great creative and untapped opportunities. In her more than 25 years experience, 15 years at SCC, Gail has been involved with a wide variety of brands and categories, including B2B, consumer packaged goods and retail.

Gail's career started out on the creative side, then later moved to account management, where she found her true calling. She soon rose to Senior Vice President, Management Supervisor at Ketchum before finally embracing her entrepreneurial passion and, in true "think again" spirit, joined Mark and Tim in 1994. Gail's brand experience includes Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio, National Cattlemen's Beef Association, Solo Cup Company, Equal Sweetener and General Mills, among many others.

A self-confessed "foodie", Gail currently sits on the Board for the American Institute of Wine and Food, a non-profit organization founded in 1981 by Julia Child and Robert Mondavi. She's also on the Board of the Womens' Foodservice Forum and involved in many other restaurant industry organizations. Gail is a graduate of Western Illinois University and did her graduate work at Webster University. Also a closet car enthusiast, you might spot Gail blazing her Porsche 911 back-and-forth from muscle car shows to her home in Park Ridge, Illinois, where she lives with her husband and his Ford Taurus.
 
Jim Stadler, Managing Partner, Consumer Brands

Jim Stadler

Managing Partner, Consumer Brands

Jim Stadler's more than 20 plus years of experience on both the agency and client side give him a unique ability to understand the entire scope of a client's business.

Prior to joining SCC, Stadler was Senior Vice President, Group Management Director at DDB Worldwide, working on a number of big brands including Home Depot, Midas, McDonald's, Whirlpool, Emerson and Cardinal Health, among many others.

While at DDB, Stadler led the charge to develop integrated marketing practices and developed and managed the DDB B2B Group, which was awarded B2B agency of the year in 2003.

Prior to DDB, Stadler was on the client side at Kimberly Clark before joining McDonald's Corporation, where he ran integrated marketing programs for several of McDonald's most important U.S. regions and also ran their global retail licensing business working to develop products for Mattel, Hasbro, Wal*Mart, NASCAR, Otto Versand and United Airlines, among others.
 
Mike Grossman, Managing Partner, SCC|Grossman Public Relations

Mike Grossman

Managing Partner, SCC|Grossman Public Relations

Mike Grossman is the Managing Partner of SCC|Grossman, our PR unit. But to call him a "PR" executive is to ignore the forward-thinking, genre-busting, mold-breaking team he's inspired to redefine the role of PR in today's ever-changing landscape. Combine that "think again" spirit with his classic PR experience at industry giants Leo Burnett, MS&L, Edelman and Burson-Marsteller, and you can begin to see exactly why we, and especially our clients, count on SCC|Grossman as a vital part of the marketing mix.

Mike's long list of blue-chip client experience includes the U.S. Army, Sony, General Motors, Coca Cola, Motorola, General Mills, Ralston Purina, Maytag, Arthur Anderson, Kraft General Foods and Baxter Travenol.

He joined SCC in 2006 after building Leo Burnett Public Relations from a start-up into an elite, fast-growth, award-winning corporate marketing PR practice.  He later helped merge that unit into MS&L and became Manning's Chief Integration Officer. Prior to Burnett, Mike held senior account management positions at Edelman Worldwide, Burson-Marsteller and Porter/Novelli.

His ongoing professional training includes crisis and issues management at the University of Southern California; integrated marketing at Northwestern University; and marketing and business management at the University of Chicago. He received his undergraduate degree from Illinois State University -- and appreciates an NHL forecheck just as much as the forecheck SCC|Grossman has been delivering to the notion of "traditional PR."

 
Bernie Pitzel, Executive Creative Director

Bernie Pitzel

Executive Creative Director

As Executive Creative Director at SCC, Bernie's job is to make sure our work connects on an emotional level with consumers. It's a skill he knows well.  Over the years, Bernie has created some of advertising's most successful campaigns, including the classic "Be Like Mike" for Gatorade, named by ESPN as one of the 25 best sports commercials ever.

Bernie's storied career includes work on brands like McDonald's, Quaker, Long John Silver's, Suave Shampoo and countless others before co-founding his own Chicago-based agency, Romani Brothers. While at Romani, Bernie created award-winning work for brands like ATA and Car-X until 2008, when SCC acquired the highly respected independent shop. One of our smarter moves, we think.

Bernie's long hair and penchant for Tommy Bahama shirts has lulled many a clean cut golfer into a false sense of security on the course.

It doesn't last long.
 
Suzanne Martineau, Partner, Creative Director

Suzanne Martineau

Partner, Creative Director

Suzanne brings Mensa-level intelligence to her duties as a Senior SCC Creative Director. During her 11-year tenure at Schafer Condon Carter, she has produced award-winning creative on a wide range of accounts including Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio, Solo Cup Company, Bayliner and Maxum Boats, Equal Sweetener and General Mills. In addition to her creative contributions, Suzanne is intimately involved in Strategic Planning on a number of businesses, including BUNN Coffee Brewers and Land O'Lakes.

Prior to joining SCC, Suzanne received a Ph.D. in Political Science from Vanderbilt University -  superb training for a life dedicated to the art of persuasion. Beginning her advertising career in western Canada, Suzanne served as copywriter at two integrated marketing and advertising agencies and worked with a range of clients including British Columbia Honda Dealers, Rodek Amplifiers, ABC Family Restaurants, and the Kinsmen Foundation.

Suzanne lives with her husband and two dogs in the always exciting Uptown neighborhood of Chicago.