LEADERSHIP

JIM GARAVENTI CO-FOUNDER / EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR

At a Glance
As co-founder and creative director at Mechanica, Jim gets to do exactly what he’d hoped for when he helped launch the company: work closely with clients to craft meaningful brand positions, and help create interactions of all types to make those brands—and what they stand for—more relevant in people’s lives.

Past Work
Over his 25+ year career, spanning behemoth NYC agencies to creative boutiques, Jim’s work has won national and international awards. His campaigns have appeared in industry publications, a textbook or two, and even on the walls of a fictitious ad exec played by Mel Gibson in a movie few people remember. Prior to working with a full spectrum of clients at Mechanica, Jim worked on brands including L.L.Bean, Four Seasons Hotels, General Motors, Swiss Army Brands, XM Satellite Radio, The Speedvision Channel (now Velocity), Fortune Magazine, Nextel, EMC, MFA/Boston and many more both big and small.

What makes Jim, Jim
If Jim isn’t at the office or with his family, then odds are you’ll find him on a tennis court, a bike, or in the garage tending to the many needs of an old car.

BECKY MORGAN OPERATIONS & FINANCE DIRECTOR

At a Glance
Becky handles all things operations & financial.  Her title doesn’t cover the HR and IT roles she plays but we like to think a title doesn’t have to say it all.

Past Work
Becky came to us from a CPA firm in Portsmouth, NH where she spent a decade working with 40+ clients in all industries.  Prior to that she was a Finance Manager at Sprint PCS for several years and the Controller at North Atlantic in Portland, ME, a city she loves.

What makes Becky, Becky
She’s one of the most outgoing introverts you’ll ever meet.  Equally as comfortable dancing at a concert as quietly reading a book, what she loves best is being with her two daughters (both Penn State alum) and Mechanica family, especially if it involves travel.

TED NELSON CO-FOUNDER / CEO & Strategy Director

At a Glance
Ted is in charge of strategic oversight and building a next generation agency that helps clients thrive in today’s restless markets. As a very hands-on strategy director and CEO, he currently leads the strategy work for Raytheon-backed cybersecurity firm Forcepoint and Allways Health Partners, while staying involved with all of Mechanica’s clients at key strategic junctures in their businesses.

Past Work
Past work at Mechanica includes Saucony, Sea Cuisine, Sprinklr, and Ticketmaster. Prior to Mechanica, Ted spent eight years as the Managing Partner, Brand Strategy Director at Mullen where he built an award-winning brand strategy and customer insights group, which contributed to the brand development and customer acquisition and retention strategies of brands as varied as General Motors, Oracle, Dell, SAP, Disney, Sony, Coca-Cola, Nextel, and Monster.com.

What makes Ted, Ted
If Ted isn’t at the office or with his family, then odds are you’ll find him on a bike, a run, a swim, or at a tasty restaurant refueling with good food and live music.

JOANNA KLISIEWICZ SENIOR BRAND DIRECTOR

At a Glance
As brand manager at Mechanica, Joanna works closely with members of the client and internal teams to identify opportunities and strategies to further the client’s agenda. She then ensures those opportunities move through flawless execution, are optimized as appropriate, and produce marketplace impact.

Past Work
Joanna has spent over a decade working across a broad spectrum of clients, industries, and marketing disciplines. Prior to joining Mechanica, Joanna led the food and beverage vertical at Match Marketing Group in Boston, where she helped international food brand Charles & Alice break into U.S. marketing with national, regional, and retailer specific strategies, including the development of a U.S. brand voice, a consumer launch campaign, retailer sales materials, and social presence.

What makes Joanna, Joanna
Joanna loves nature, inside and out. When she’s not working in her garden, you can find her merging creative energy with precision and attention to detail in floral design.

WADE DEVERS DESIGN DIRECTOR

At a Glance

As a design director, Wade uses his lifelong love of design and decades of strategically driven brand building to help clients communicate their ideas more effectively. In his own words, “I’m not someone who just makes things look good. I am first and foremost a creative problem solver.”

Past Work

Wade’s passion for design began as a young boy, when he was captivated by the stickers and decals on race cars. This fascination with branding marks, logos, colors, and go-fast stripes led him to design school. After graduating, Wade talked his way into an advertising agency, where he would combine his enduring interest in design with strategically driven ideas, working closely with iconic brands producing award-winning work that spanned everything from custom typography for Jack Daniel’s, to Super Bowl ads for Jeep and others. After nearly three decades as a creative practitioner and leader, Wade took on the challenge of building an in-house creative team for a little-known Boston startup called SimpliSafe, a home security company, where he helped grow brand awareness to transform the category disruptor into a category leader.

What makes Wade, Wade

Wade is the father of 4 young adults who along with his wife, Mary benefit from Wade’s other passion: cooking.  And as a habitual designer if Wade has time between preparing meals, he is likely designing or illustrating something for someone somewhere-mostly for friends and probably related to race cars.

RYAN LEE SENIOR BRAND DIRECTOR

At a Glance
Ryan spearheads all strategic and executional components of account engagements, through to implementation and in market impact. He spends a healthy portion of his time gaining insight and understanding of the client’s business, crafting strategies, and creating strong, trusting relationships with his clients and members of his teams.

Past Work
Ryan joined Mechanica coming from well-respected area agencies, CTP Boston and Kelliher Samets Volk, working on high profile brands such as Microsoft, Webster Bank, Eastern Bank, and the Boston Red Sox. Since joining Mechanica, Ryan has successfully launched new positions, identities, campaigns, and everything in between as the Brand Director for both B2B and B2C accounts. Ryan’s current and past clients cover a wide range of sizes and industries from Metro Credit Union to Beyond Trust to Gulden Draak.

What makes Ryan, Ryan
When Ryan isn’t at the office you can find him on the beach, slopes, course, or trails around New England with his wife and kids.

BILL GOFF BRAND STRATEGY & EXPERIENCE DIRECTOR

At a Glance
At Mechanica, Bill takes a consumer-centric approach to building stand-alone experiences, as well as more holistic cross-touchpoint experiences that map key personas across their journey and engagement with a brand. He translates discovery-based insights, UX best practices, and experience trends into executions that bring people and brands together whenever, wherever, and however they engage.

Past Work
Bill’s career began at Modem Media where he functioned as a digital producer and an information architect. He then honed his focus on user experience at Mullen and, prior to Mechanica, Bill functioned as the VP/Group director of Experience Strategy and design at Digitas.

What makes Bill, Bill
Bill enjoys camping and skiing with his family, fly-fishing for stripers and trout, and cooking anything in cast iron. Most recently, Bill has been learning how to make igloos.

LIBBY DELANA CO-FOUNDER / CREATIVE DIRECTOR EMERITUS

At a Glance
As co-founder, creative director and part unicorn, Libby champions brand growth. She believes no idea is too big and has a steady pulse on trends, which she uses to elevate concepts to their premium potential.

Past Work
Libby’s work has won many industry awards and has been featured in publications such as PRINT Design Annual, Graphic Design & Logo, Fast Company, Communication Arts. She has also been profiled by BBC for a series called, “The Chain,” where leading figures name the woman who’s inspired their success.

What makes Libby, Libby
Libby is the mom of two tall boys, an impatient knitter, a national champion rower, and advocate of 3 Percent Conference, BlinkNow, and Period. Her superpower—that wherever she goes she finds a parking space. Right. In. Front.