Terri & Sandy Names John Gibson Partner and First-Ever Chief Strategy Officer

Veteran strategist joins growing leadership team to capitalize on the agency’s momentum

Independent advertising agency Terri & Sandy has appointed John Gibson as Partner and first-ever Chief Strategy Officer. Formerly Head of Strategy for the Martin Agency, Gibson will expand Terri & Sandy’s strategic capabilities across brand platform development, communications planning, cultural intelligence, and data-driven insights. He will also lead the advancement of the agency’s proprietary AI platform, Athena, as Terri & Sandy deepens its investment in AI technology as a catalyst for more powerful creative ideas.

Gibson’s appointment comes during a period of momentum and renewal for the independent agency. Within the past year, Terri & Sandy was named Ad Age’s Independent Agency of the Year, and strengthened its leadership ranks with the appointment of Amy Ferguson as Partner and Chief Creative Officer, Tina Lam as its first Head of Production, and Dylan Prill as Head of Growth. Together with agency veterans Lauren Rubenstein, Head of Client Services, and Group Creative Director Todd Condie, this constitutes the strongest leadership team in Terri & Sandy’s 15-year history.

“I’ve known John for years, and he’s someone who truly understands the role strategy plays in not only building strong client partnerships, but in pushing our thinking in a way that gets to great creative,” said Ferguson. “He’s incredibly smart, calm under pressure, and just a genuinely awesome human which is a requirement for our agency. He is a game changing leader that will play a huge part in defining our next chapter.”

Gibson brings more than two decades of experience helping brands sharpen their truth and act on it with conviction. Along the way, he has built a reputation for work that is both commercially grounded and creatively expansive, including Oreo’s “Wonderfilled,” AT&T’s “Rethink Possible,” and Mountain Dew’s “As Good as the Original,” along with other notable work for Google, Michelin, Hilton, Royal Caribbean and UPS.

He has held strategy leadership roles at the likes of BBDO, TBWA\Chiat\Day New York, GSD&M, and two stints at The Martin Agency. During his Martin tenure, Gibson nearly doubled the size of the strategy team, expanded the agency’s communications planning capabilities, and established in-house analytics and research practice, Impact Intel.

“For me, strategy is only as good as the action it inspires. Helping clients move with confidence and creatives leap with clarity, that’s the job,” said Gibson. At Terri & Sandy, I was drawn to that same bias for action, leaders who care deeply about the work, the relationships, and know what it takes to make both continually stronger. And linking back up with Amy–an all time favorite–is an opportunity I wasn’t going to miss.”

Gibson will work across Terri & Sandy’s full client roster, which includes: Freshpet, Revlon, Princess Cruises, Mars’ Kevin’s Natural Foods, Welch’s Sparkling, and My/Mochi.

Source: Terri & Sandy

  Amy Ferguson, John Gibson, Terri & Sandy