Private counsel for CMOs
Chief marketers operate in a state of perpetual friction, stuck between impatient boards, a lot of legacy baggage, and agencies that prioritize output over outcomes. I bridge those gaps.I help remove blockers, to find and share the signal in the noise, protect margins, manage risk, and secure C-suite buy-in.
Trusted to solve the impossible by
Your brand is strong
But its marketing isn’t working as well as you’d like. The problem might be your tactics but, more often, the real signal is trapped in layers of bureaucracy, a ton of personal opinions, legacy agencies, and a spider’s web of stakeholders.Strong brand. Weak impact. That could mean you structure is broken, your story isn’t solid, and your creative briefs aren’t good. I can help.
I know what to listen for
I bring 20 years of experience across world class advertising, marketing strategy and social media to medium to large enterprises and PE portcos.From the CAA mailroom in LA, to creating campaigns and leading creatives at world class creative agencies like BBH and Wieden+Kennedy in London, I've spent my career finding the signal in the noise, and helping everyone else see it too.
Experience in advertising, comms, and culture at
Find it. Tell it. Sell it.
CMOs don’t come to me for frameworks, blueprints, or “growth hacks.” They call me because they’re not getting the best from their agencies, and they know me as an experienced strategic and creative expert that knows how to find the real story they’re trying to tell. And how to sell that story through, internally and externally.I also help my clients optimize budgets, manage their agencies, and sell strategies and concepts up and down their orgs.
The signal sprint
If you’re not sure how best I can help, here's where most of my projects start: my core assignment is a 6 to 8 week engagement where CMOs give me the objective, the timeline, and all the materials they already have.I talk to in house and external SMEs, dive into your market research, internal strategy decks, and more, to find the signal, and use that to help you create the narrative and materials that will secure C suite buy in and budget for what you want to do. That is my signature sprint.
About me
Part therapist, part fixer, part creative director, part strategist. I spent 12 years at the world’s most celebrated ad agencies, developing campaigns for some of the world’s best known brands, and then 8 running my own small agency that worked with publicly traded giants in consumer tech, B2B technology + managed services, DTC ecommerce, and fintech.In my spare time, I built and currently manage a popular newsletter covering travel, tech, culture + business, and am COO for a food and lifestyle influencer with 350K followers. Oh, and I'm an exited media founder too.
Let’s talk shop
I work with medium and large enterprises (from PE portcos to publicly traded companies), across a wide range of sectors, and am currently booked through June 2026. Connect with me on LinkedIn, subscribe to my newsletter, or send me a message here.
© Jon Kallus, 2026. All rights reserved.
© Jon Kallus, 2026. All rights reserved.