The people at Touch

Allison started as an intern at Touch between her junior and senior year of college at Claremont McKenna. She is now a leader in the Touch operations practice and specializes in project management and executive communications. She has led the project management teams on many client initiatives, including building and managing detailed project management SharePoint sites. Clients consistently describe Allison as highly organized, persistent, and relentlessly resourceful.

Amy has more than 5 years of experience spanning event marketing, communications, and advertising, with an emphasis on digital and event marketing. Clients have included EMC, Forum Nokia, Cleantech and Grundfos. Amy is also a photographer and loves capturing unique moments of her life and her travels with her Nikon D90.

Anssi works as a copywriter and strategist at Touch. He is known as a very composed person that stays calm even when under immense pressure. But those who know Anssi better, know that he really doesn’t remain cool always – at least not when it comes to football!

Barry has been a producer at Touch since 1999. His background is as varied as his work experience which includes 30 years of directing and producing television (including projects for MTV’s Real World, HBO, and Disney), major motion pictures, and corporate films and events. Barry is active in the classic car/hot rod community.

Brad plays many roles at Touch. Creative Director one day. Executive Producer the next. One thing is consistent with Brad, however, is his limitless capacity for developing amazing creative ideas. That and his tenacity around commuting from Port Townsend to Seattle every day.

Brent is at the helm of our Los Angeles office working closely with a large network of entertainment and event professionals. While supporting Touch in a variety of event related roles, he also serves as VP of Development for our newly formed television and film production company entitled, Dialogue Pictures.

In addition to coaching lacrosse, Chris has over 15 years of experience in business strategy, marketing strategy, and channel management, and he manages the Touch strategy practice. He previously worked for Microsoft on global alliances and corporate strategy, was on the leadership team at Deloitte Consulting, and is an adjunct professor at Seattle University.

Claire has worked for over 12 years looking after major clients across multiple disciplines. She is passionate about the detail and making every Touch project a pleasure for our clients. Outside Touch, Claire’s interests include reflexology – so keep your shoes on in meetings!

Dan joined Touch in November 2008 as a Senior Consultant. He has worked as a senior consultant on multiple projects across different groups at Microsoft, and has done extensive work in developing and launching partner channel strategies. Originally from Wyoming, he lives in Seattle with his wife and dog and likes Seattle sports teams, brunch, and PowerPoint, but not potatoes, pharmaceutical commercials, or rain.

With more than 20 years’ experience in the advertising and live events industry, working with a diverse range of clients and dealing with budgets of all sizes for projects all around the world, Denise is in full command of the purse strings at Touch London. She enjoys spending her free time with her husband and two children and she is passionate about sailing (fair weather only of course), archery, keep-fit and cooking her own weird and wonderful dishes. Watch out, Denise plans to write a recipe book one day!

An activist in the campaign for clarity, Ed has worked with clients including Apple, Hewlett-Packard, O2 and Lloyds TSB. At Touch, his work includes projects for Starbucks, Microsoft, Nokia and Boeing. Outside work, Ed can be found with his head in a book, or supporting Middlesex County Cricket Club – usually with his head in his hands.

Erja has been part of the Touch Helsinki finance and administration team for 15 years and has extensive administration experience from the AV production and forestry industries. Erja is a true sports fan — a fanatic supporter of the Helsinki ice hockey team, HIFK, one of the leading teams in the Finnish champions league.

Greg leads creative direction at Touch in Seattle and is responsible for all things design. With over 20 years in brand identity, fine art, and design, he has a thirst and finesse for extracting what matters and creatively amplifying until compelling. Client experience includes leading teams for brands like Starbucks, VM Ware, Nordstrom, Microsoft, and Freescale. A passion for 20th Century modernism and a hefty new-wave vinyl collection fuel his efforts.

Hanna Boyle is a leader in Touch’s operations practice who specializes in change management, project management and marketing strategy. Hanna has exceptional skills in communication planning, stakeholder alignment, executive briefing and information analysis, and has managed major technology rollouts, sales excellence operations, and product launches.

Hannu is a creative account leader with experience ranging from music video production to consumer campaigns. Hannu leads photo shoots, film production, animation, launch events, and consumer advertising campaigns. When not working, you’ll find him in the kitchen, socializing with friends, and following design, fashion, arts and culture.

Jeff is a leader in our operations practice, specializing in project management. He re- joined Touch in November of 2011 after consulting on Microsoft projects in 2009. He brings to Touch over 10 years of deliverable oriented project management experience. Jeff has a proven track record of successfully delivering projects on-time for clients, including Microsoft, AT&T and T-Mobile. Jeff is an avid poker player and hopes to one day contend in the world series of poker.

Unbridled wit and gumption only begins to capture the energy Jennifer brings to each and every project. Her devotion to client relationships and ensuring that expectations are met empower Touch to deliver on our strategic and creative promise. When not hurdling tall buildings, you can find her cuddling up to a bowl of granola.

Jenny is responsibilities for managing office processes and systems in our Redmond office, providing engagement support, and assisting with business development and operations. She has recently worked on client engagements with Microsoft and Juniper Networks. She drives a yellow mini cooper which is a pretty accurate reflection of her sunny, unflappable disposition.

With more than 30 years working in the event production, management and broadcast television industries, Jim’s breadth of experience is unparalleled. He’s led the design and planning teams for Microsoft corporate product launches, large scale global conferences, and television broadcasts for the NFL, and the Olympic Games. You’re going to like Jim.

For over 26 years, Joel has edited and produced hundreds of projects for broadcast television, commercials, corporate image, and entertainment clients. Joel’s focus on creating exceptional visual experiences has established him as a leader in the video industry resulting in many enduring client relationships. And yes, he’s a drummer.

Johanna is a versatile marketing communications expert with more than 10 years of experience in advertising agency management, marketing and market research across a wide range of global consumer and B2B brands. She is an inspiring team leader, visionary planner and one of three marathon runners at Touch.

John is consistently amazed by the creativity of the team at Touch. He started his career in 1988 with Saatchi Group and has worked with many global brands – all around the world. When he is not leading the team in London, you’ll find him up a mountain or canoeing a river.

Originally a Londoner, Joseph settled in Helsinki three years ago. Joseph loves creative challenges, campaign concept planning, and visual identity development — and especially enjoys sinking his teeth into fresh delicacies such as strategic ad campaigns, human-centered design, or a lovely Finnish cinnamon pulla.

With more than 5 years of marketing communication project experience for a range of B2B brands, and 1 year of FMCG market research experience, Joya thinks the most amazing thing about her job is the opportunity to work with such diversely talented people on such a wonderful range of project types. Besides work, she fancies cooking and is learning to make hand-made Chinese noodles.

Kaitlin helps keep the Seattle office humming and will likely be the first person you meet or speak to when you visit us, or when you call. Kaitlin helps manage business operations in Seattle and supports global corporate marketing initiatives for Touch.

Kate brings over 8 years of project management experience from e-commerce, real estate, and technology industries. She also has creative experience in graphic, web, and interior design. In addition to her project management and design skills, she brings the ability to establish strong relationships with clients through her enthusiasm, flexibility, assertiveness and the desire to encourage others to work cooperatively to adhere to the project lifecycle.

Keri is one of the many people at Touch who you will come to trust implicitly. Keri is the perfect blend of strategic partner and incredibly detail oriented project manager. Her passion for running well organized projects is rivaled only by her passion for seasonal cookie baking competitions.

Kirsten brings nearly 20 years of experience from the entertainment, creative services, events and catering worlds. Kirsten has an intuitive approach to managing very large and complex projects while excelling at creatively thinking through the big picture. Her impeccable attention to detail and style are personified through her impressive collection of shoes and handbags.

Klyf has over 15 years’ experience working in design. After graduating from Leeds he got straight on his bike and travelled the world, making friends freelancing for some renowned design agencies. Whether planning immersive environments, designing for print or web, art directing video or photo shoots, Klyf takes it all in his stride. Happy with a pen and a pencil – even happier looking at life over a pair of handlebars, he is a compulsive doodler and ambassador of the road. (Don’t try and overtake him though.)

Linda is the “Superwoman” of our Beijing office — managing all financial planning, taxation planning, as well as daily office financial operations. Linda is conscientious and extremely detail-oriented, and balances her responsibilities at Touch with plenty of horse riding, lure fishing, and billiards.

Luke is a leader in our operations and strategy practice. He brings valuable insight and expertise in the areas of data analysis and business intelligence and is practiced in translating complex business or technical concepts into digestible messaging. Luke has managed successful projects for Microsoft, Flow International, and Juniper Networks. Luke has jumped out of a perfectly good plane and would do it again given the chance.

Margaret Rasmussen is a leader in our project management practice where she helps define the project management methods, tools and training used throughout the firm. Margaret builds the SharePoint infrastructure for many of our clients and her work has helped ensure the success of over 40 engagements. Margaret sings and plays a Yamaha Les Paul guitar in a local Seattle band.

An early pioneering communication professional after the Chinese Reform 30 years ago, Margaret has extensive professional experience and expertise on the client side as well as at international advertising agencies. Her strengths lay in the IT, telecom, automobile industries and in her work for dozens of manufacturing companies. Margaret is clearly a force to be reckoned with at table tennis.

The delicate yet emphatic click of her keyboard ensures that Mary is not only a catalyst for getting things done but a powerhouse in producing compelling stories. When not devouring historical non-fiction or clocking the miles on foot, you’ll find her diligence in the details proving that quality and “how” something is done truly matters.

Early-bird, Meri, is the cheerful person that will most likely pick up the phone if you call the Helsinki office in the morning. Meri is an experienced and effective organizer of all possible challenges, who has a background in fashion and sales and is as passionate about her work as she is for playing golf and snowboarding.

Mike leads marketing and business development at Touch. He’s a brand and digital marketing strategist with an uncanny ability to help clients articulate what they need and to match those needs to Touch solutions — while keeping a keen eye on the big picture. As of 2011 Mike is a member of the Touch global surf team. He’s also Canadian, and proudly reflects the affability of his countrymen.

Paul joined the London team two years ago, with 25 years’ experience of bringing brands to life. He has worked on messaging and brand campaigns for a wide range of multinational companies and gained different cultural perspectives with several years in Dubai and as a consultant to Boeing in Seattle. This provided him with new insights into the client side of the working process.

Randy is a leader in the executive communications practice at Touch with over 20 years experience. He has written communications and speeches for dozens of executives at clients including Microsoft, Novell, Nokia and Juniper Networks. Randy is Rick’s brother and he is one of our two former professional soccer players.

Ray is Managing Principal and founder of Touch Business Consulting. He leads our executive communications and execution excellence practices and is responsible for developing and delivering offerings that drive organizational impact and business attainment. Prior to Touch, Ray was a member of the global M&A leadership team at Deloitte Consulting where he led multi-billion dollar mergers and business integrations. Ray also worked at IBM developing engineering systems and processes for IBM customers.

Richard manages our operations and high-tech channels practice. He has worked with Microsoft and other clients leading groups with partner and channel management responsibilities, market development, and customer satisfaction planning. His unique insight into operational strategy development and execution reliably delivers on field, partner, and customer business objectives. Richard edits the Channel Guru – a blog dedicated to channel strategy and innovation.

Richard was a co-founder of Touch with Jim Angelo in 2006. Based in London, he has had a long and successful career building solutions for corporations that match strategic needs to compelling communication.

Rick transitioned to consulting in 2007 from technical design and engineering in the aerospace industry and project management in the telecommunications industry. As a result, Rick is incredibly process-driven with a keen eye for detail and impeccable organizational and project management skills. Rick is Randy’s brother and is one of our few (known) Harley enthusiasts.

Rob Schmaus brings a dynamic set of skills to the Touch team.  An educational background in PR and Marketing Strategy and work experience in project management, web marketing and promotional campaigns help him to manage projects with a wide scope. Rob past projects for clients such as Microsoft, Windermere, Fisher Communications, and the Seattle Mariners organization have shown his talent for leading numerous vendors and collaborators to a successful project execution.

Sakari is a planning-minded account leader with a passion for content, a background in journalism, and a long history in events. Sakari thrives on cultural and contextual challenges. He used to split his time between publishing a ski magazine, producing content for the Finnish National Broadcasting company, producing events, and managing the construction of a surf camp in Eastern Indonesia.

Stephen graduated from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in 2003. At Touch, he creates campaigns for clients including Nokia, Starbucks and ABB.

With more than 15 years of organizational systems, operations and change management experience, Steve is a Senior Manager in our practice. He has led business critical strategic initiatives, working with executive leadership teams and C-level executives for Flow International, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Microsoft, Dell, Juniper Networks, Premera Blue Cross and JP Morgan Chase. Steve is an avid soccer fan.

Todd joined Touch in 2007 and is Director of Operations, responsible for all office operations, IT, and staffing. He has served as a consultant on engagements with Microsoft and Nokia. While Todd has completed one marathon and climbed a live volcano — both experiences of a lifetime — he doesn’t care to attempt either again.

Tom is a leader in the Touch strategy and communications practice, specializing in executive messaging and channel and marketing strategy. Tom has worked on projects for Novell, Microsoft, Starbucks and Juniper Networks and has managed multiple complex operational rollouts for many of our clients. Tom is a graduate of the University of San Diego Law School.

Tracy has more than 3 years of experience managing and providing strategy and solutions for clients such as Nokia, Grundfos, GM, and Boeing. Tracy leads projects with great attention to detail, a strong spirit of customer service, and communication skills that help drive to deeper communications and translation clarity. Tracy is an avid reader, moviegoer, and traveller.