Hasan Ramusevic, one of the longest running review consultants in the industry, is being joined by industry veteran Chris Shumaker on his journey "to optimize harmony and amplify value" in agency-client relationships.
Shumaker has joined Hasan + Co., which has been running agency reviews since 2001, as a partner, rebranding the shop to Hasan + Shumaker. Over the years, the consultancy has worked with the likes of Lowe’s Companies, Mini USA, John Deere, SherwinWilliams, E-Trade, NBA, TD Ameritrade, Michelin and more.
Shumaker, most recently the CMO of The Martin Agency, has spent most of his career on the agency side, having previously served as the marketing chief at Grey Worldwide, Publicis and FCB. He also spent six years on the client front as the marketing communications leader for small appliance company Hamilton Beach.
Together, the rebranded firm will operate out of Richmond, VA; Raleigh, NC and New York City, with Ramusevic mostly be operating from New York.
"I’ve spent my entire career sitting at the intersection where agencies and marketers meet, and while there’s always been tension, the marketer-agency ecosystem has never been as turbulent as it is today. Our mission is to optimize harmony and amplify value in these partnerships," said Ramusevic.
He added that the consultancy focuses on a "people over process" approach in which it customizes its process for each marketer to help them find the best agency solution.
"Those clients who are open to being open in the review process, are the very clients who reap the most value out of our consulting," said Ramusevic, "and they’re the marketers who tend to have the most prolific and lasting agency partnerships."
Recently, the consultancy worked with Navy Federal Credit Union on its agency search, which Pam Piligian, the company’s SVP of marketing and communications lauded as a fantastic process.
"Before joining Navy Federal, I spent a lot of years on the agency side and had countless interactions with Hasan, and I always admired his candor and the clarity in his briefings," she said. "We always knew where we stood and what we needed to deliver in order to be successful. When it came time to conduct my own agency search, I entrusted Hasan and Chris to deliver on a big solution, and I couldn’t be more excited about our new agency partnership and the future of our business."