People

Fred Haberman is a lot of things: co-founder and CEO of this agency, a pioneering social entrepreneur, agent for change in the good-food movement and co-founder of two organic food startups, Urban Organics and Freak Flag Organics.

Haberman—both the agency and the individual—has helped bring organic food into the mainstream, spurring the growth of brands like Annie’s, Organic Valley and Earthbound Farm, and supporting the work of the Organic Trade Association, National Cooperative Grocers Association and the McKnight Foundation’s programs to increase food security for people in developing countries.

As a co-founder of Freak Flag Organics, Fred is inspiring home cooks to be bold and curious with a growing line of condiments that make it easier (and extra delicious) to get creative in the kitchen.

Fred also founded the U.S. Pond Hockey Championships and helped lead the way for companies to start and sustain employer-sponsored gardens.

In 1994, Sarah and her husband Fred set up shop in their two-bedroom home in Minneapolis. Twenty-some years later, she’s still the heart and soul of the agency, the person who makes the most unexpected connections—among people, ideas and places. Sarah led Haberman’s work on behalf of the Bancroft Arnesen Expedition, launched Volvo’s Your Concept Car (the first car designed by women only) and promoted the works of modern thought leaders. While she does most of her work behind the scenes these days, Sarah guides our agency’s efforts in professional growth and culture.

Brian’s our president and one of Haberman’s original storytellers. During his 17-year-tenure, he’s guided the agency’s evolution from a small shop into a full-service agency. While the business of leadership—mentoring staff, making things happen for clients, overseeing financials and operations—occupies most of his time, Brian is happy to lend his talents to our client teams. An expert at marrying mission, message and media, he has shaped some of the most memorable campaigns to come out of our agency in the last two decades.

What do creative directors and cult leaders have in common? Charisma. Jeff Berg’s got it. It’s a mix of passion, personality and vision—all of which are the keys to his leadership style. Jeff, who has led creative teams for Nickelodeon and Target, makes sure that Haberman is a place where creativity is rewarded. Where people take risks. Where people can be vulnerable—and challenged. While he may have a big personality, Jeff knows how to listen. He’s open to feedback, criticism, ideas—anything that will make us better storytellers. As long as it’s not boring. Jeff’s been called a lot of things, but boring ain’t one of ‘em.

Julia’s a media guru, responsible for analyzing data, getting creative and dreaming up innovative strategies to make sure marketing campaigns reach the right target audience in the most effective way possible. She has to think critically about the intersection of a client’s needs, goals and the right media vehicles—and then all those choices affect what the creative team will produce. It’s a tall order. Good thing she loves the work, especially guiding clients through the bewildering array of opportunities in the digital landscape.

An expert in media relations, thought leadership and influencer relations, Anne oversees strategic campaigns that raise awareness for Haberman’s clients. In the last 10 years, she’s seen an awful lot change in the media landscape—and she’s stayed right on top of the changes, adapting to the rise of influencers while nurturing relationships with traditional, editorial voices. While she spends a lot of time on higher-order strategy these days, there’s still nothing more thrilling for this PR pro than getting a big hit for her client.

How many designers, in the same conversation, can cite as influences on their work the grid systems of Josef Muller Brockmann and the poster art of Emory Davis, Minister of Culture for the Black Panther Party in the late 1960s. Aaron DeYoe can and then slide in an appreciation for the Amsterdam studio Experimental Jetset and the photography of Henri Cartier-Bresson. From a wide range of interests and influences comes an approach perfectly suited for taking a whole systems approach to branding, campaign development, publication design and more. Aaron is also an adjunct faculty member at the Minneapolis College of Art & Design.

Get In Touch: sunny@modernstorytellers.com

The way Sunny sees it, her job is to seek out and strengthen brands making a difference in the world. In her role as partnership developer, Sunny helps both sides zero in on the business opportunity, nurture the working relationship and begin to bring new ideas to life. She has worked for agencies big and small (and on the client side), all of which has given her a valuable understanding of the full range of marketing—from production to detailed communications planning, day-to-day account work to high-level strategic planning.

Take a person who’s good with numbers. Not just good—really good, she just finished that Sudoku you’re still working on. Add to that a unique super power of remembering what she sees—not just numbers but how words are spelled and how things are arranged spatially. Toss in effortless people skills. That’s Stacy, resident zen master of curbing chaos and fine-tuning everyday complexities. She’s a big fan of Haberman’s entrepreneurial spirit and goes over and above to find new paths forward. And when she’s not at work? Oh, she’s probably outdoors running around with her kids, spiking volleyballs or listening to music. As always, taking it all in.

Gary is probably the most useful person in our agency. He pays the bills, signs our checks and cleans the kitchen even when he’s not on cleaning duty. Formally speaking, he oversees the entire accounting operations of our company (financial reports, records, controls, budgets, risk mitigation, compliance, etc.). While his focus is often on the day-to-day aspects of our finances, he’s always looking for opportunities to keep the agency growing well into the future.

Zach says his job as a designer is to surprise and delight, something he’s been doing 
for more than a decade. He got his start at one of Minneapolis’ biggest agencies, then moved on to lead the creative teams at American Public Media and the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, both to teach and manage the school’s design studio. At Haberman he lends his talent and experience—in brand design, illustration, art direction, typography, the list goes on.

Amy’s all about brand-building. For the last 20 years, she’s been spurring the growth of brands in retail (e.g., Target) and food and beverage (e.g., Coca-Cola and Crystal Farms). At Haberman, she takes that understanding of how the biggest names in the business have developed and applies it to coming-of-age companies on the cusp of major growth. As an account director, she takes the time to understand—really understand—the challenges facing our clients so that she can offer solutions that will work in the real world.

No matter where her career has taken her—from art buyer to English teacher to recruiter—Vanessa has always been focused on building relationships. She’s connected. She loves people. And she’s genuinely curious about them, which is how she thrives in her role at Haberman. In leading the search for storytellers who share our values, she’s helping us grow while preserving our culture. Vanessa understands how creatives operate because she’s one herself: she has an MFA in writing and nurtures a lifelong passion for photography and visual arts.

Give this modern storyteller the choice of spending more on a great meal or a new pair of shoes, and it’s no contest. Taste buds win every time. A self-described “food motivated person,” Emma fits in perfectly with the Haberman tribe, contributing in all aspects of Engagement from PR to content strategy and writing. She claims she needs a hobby, but if that’s the case, what do you call her passions for reading (favorite books include Sputnik Sweetheart and 100 Years of Solitude), movies (loves In Bruges) and music (big on the Bee Gees and Bob Dylan)? This free thinker brings her all to everything.

She always knows the current moon phase, obsesses on Polish food, played and coaches girls hockey, and savors Salinger short stories. Clearly, Maggie Pendleton has stories to tell. That’s what led her to Haberman, the chance to work with other storytellers and build the brands of mission-driven clients. In fact, the art of working together well is a special area of interest for Maggie who wrote her senior thesis at Providence College on self-narratives and their impact on team success. For someone who loves the makings of a good story, Maggie is right at home at Haberman.

Jesse Ross shares leadership duties with our creative director Jeff Berg and we like to say he’s the Spock to Jeff’s Kirk. In reality, Jesse’s somewhere in between—equal parts logic and imagination—and that balanced perspective helps him guide our clients in finding ways to engage more consumers, both online and in real life. Whether he’s architecting websites, programming apps or concepting ideas for digital campaigns, he’s all about creating dynamic, integrated experiences for people and the brands they love.

Lindsay Schwartz has a lifelong obsession with wanting to understand the psychology behind why we do what we do. That led to many years of work in human-centered, research-based design and now modern storytelling at Haberman. In her words, “If you’re not solving for the end-user, you’re not solving.” And that’s exactly what she’s doing as a graphic designer, illustrator and web UX flow master. In her view, designers have the potential to do harm or good in the world, and there’s no ambiguity with Lindsay. She’s doing good.

Without Tuttle, we’d never get anything done. He manages every single aspect of our agency’s IT environment, from network security to system upgrades to hardware, software and the day-to-day computer glitches that keep us from being our most productive selves. His helpfulness extends to the management of our facilities in ways both formal and informal (e.g., he’s our foremost picture hanger and desk assembler). No bio of John Tuttle is complete without a mention of his contributions to the good cheer of the office. The guy makes us laugh.

With two continents and more than two decades of experience in marketing communications, there’s not a lot that Jo Watson hasn’t seen. But when something new does emerge, she’s the first to consider the possibilities. Why? Because for Jo, modern storytelling comes down to connecting with people in meaningful ways. She welcomes change to make those connections even stronger, and she enjoys the dynamic energy of working with purpose-driven brands. Outside the office, Jo is probably listening to a podcast or planning an upcoming trip with her family.

Kim is an expert in the art and science of digital storytelling. In her 11 years at Haberman, she has shaped engagement strategies for clients in diverse fields—from cars to beer to health care. It helps that she has a well-rounded background in all aspects of integrated campaigns, including brand and identity development, earned media, paid media, digital advertising, retail and shopper marking, and social media. Kim has also helped startups transform from humble challengers to market leaders by defining their brand and telling their new story consistently, memorably and meaningfully.

A Haberman storyteller for more than 15 years, Jon leads our operations and project management teams. He’s one of the brainiest people in the office, sought after for his editorial ruthlessness, spreadsheet expertise and seemingly effortless grasp of all kinds of complex subjects. With a background in science and technology, Jon has a special interest in health care innovation and helps pioneering clients in this space reach more consumers on the path to better health.