About Us
Our agency team of writers, developers, designers and amplifiers raise the voice of client brands every day and move the mountains in their way.
We are curious. We are creative. We are courageous.
Meet our Leadership Team
Kathy McCuskey
Chief Executive Officer
Celebrated as one of the 10 most admired CEOs by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, Kathy has helmed the Yamamoto ship since 2011. Her extensive client experience spans CPG, financial services, healthcare, retail and essentially everything else.
Seth Rockers
Chief Financial Officer
A banking background, a marketing mind and a farming work ethic combine to make Seth’s approach to finance and operations uniquely well-suited to the agency experience. He now acts as CFO for multiple agencies in the MDC family.
Jon Trettel
Chief Digital Officer
Jon is a champion of purpose-built digital strategies that create transformational results. Driven to deliver meaningful outcomes, his leadership and vision afford a sustainable digital presence for stakeholders and their organizations.
Chris Rahill
Chief Strategy Officer
Chris has a talent for taking complex marketing problems and breaking them down into concise solutions. So much so that we created a department just for him: Insights and Innovation, which has grown into the strategic heart and soul of Yamamoto.
Andy Ross
Director of Client Experience and Growth
Andy is a strong, seasoned, strategic leader who brings a collaborative approach to relationships. Through his passion and expertise, he delivers transformative results to clients that increase brand performance and elevate the client experience.
Maddy Bell
VP, Agency Growth
Maddy joined Yamamoto in 2023 to spearhead new business efforts, bringing 13 years of agency experience in various marketing areas. She is passionate about building bespoke teams and solutions for each partner, focusing on developing client relationships across the Stagwell network.
Thako Harris
Director of Resourcing and Operations
Thako leads the agency’s project management and production operations department. For him, every day begins on the ground floor, with the finish line at the top. It's his vision — be it timing, accuracy, consistency or relationship-building — that sets him a part.
Matt Morano
Managing Director, Chicago
Matt runs Yamamoto’s Chicago office, bringing nearly 30 years of experience leading agency teams on brands like Home Depot, McDonald’s and Coca-Cola. His passion is building deep, meaningful partnerships with clients, centered around growth.
Shawn Pals
Executive Creative Director
Shawn is a creative leader, mentor and inspiration to his creative teams. He’s a thoughtful creative director with design roots, leading all major brand work at Yamamoto. Shawn has been the creative heart and soul of our body of work at Yamamoto. Everyone appreciates Shawn’s collaborative nature and immense talent. He’s highly driven to find smart, creative solutions that solve real business problems.
David Weaver
Senior Director of Cultural Instigation
David is an agency veteran, strategic planner, self-experimenter, longtime TEDster, and according to many...“a darn nice guy.” He has 30 years experience directing strategy for some of the most respected and innovative companies in the world, leading the creation of award-winning campaigns. He has spoken on the TED mainstage and multiple TEDx events. He is the founder of Outsiderism, a coaching practice to increase peoples’ ability to make creative thinking a daily HABIT — increasing your imagination and making it a conscious part of your approach to daily life.
Dave Morrisette
Managing Director of Digital Experience
Dave is our account leader and business connector, delivering value to our clients via innovative digital experiences and interactive. He sets the pace for executing business plans, holding our team accountable for daily work, ongoing innovation and optimization, and results reporting. His career has spanned digital technology firms, traditional ad agencies, and client-side marketing.