Having recently launched and led Cella’s award-winning creative studio at Fresenius Medical Care, Mike enjoys helping companies of various sizes and industries elevate creative output through a focus on process, people and technology. Mike began his career as a graphic designer, gaining more than 20 years of experience across marketing, creative operations and strategy. He understands the challenges that creatives face, speaks their language and inspires them to do great work. Mike’s thoughtful approach to leadership and client support helped his career grow to manage teams, processes and operations. Mike sees the big picture and enjoys finding common ground among stakeholders from diverse backgrounds and opinions. He’s a strong communicator and comfortable in conversations with everyone from the C-suite to production.

As Senior Vice President at Aquent Studios, he advises Fortune 100 companies on growth, analytics and agentic AI. He draws on experience as CMO at Deloitte, where he helped shape the firm’s AI market strategy and influenced more than $1 billion in new business opportunities and, at Dubai World, where he built a global digital marketplace connecting hundreds of thousands of businesses across Asia and the Middle East. A consistent thread through his work is using technology to build human connection at scale. He brings that perspective to leadership forums and company events, helping organizations move beyond AI experimentation toward measurable business value.

After years as an elementary school teacher, Lucas turned his passion for teaching into a career creating educational content online, building a community of more than 400,000 creators across social media. His practical, no-fluff approach to content strategy has led to partnerships with brands including Adobe and Instagram, and his work has been featured at conference across North America. Whether he’s breaking down social media strategy, exploring the future of AI-powered creativity or hosting conversations on his podcast Creator Juice, Lucas is passionate about making creative tools feel approachable and helping people turn ideas into content with confidence.

Sponsored by Adobe.

His work centres on igniting cultural relevance, brand affinity and fan connection by bringing the sport to life for a new era of fans.

Previously, Roman served as the WNBA’s first Creative Director where he orchestrated its creative evolution and helped usher in a new era for the league — spearheading creative across advertising, design, brand marketing, storytelling, television and immersive experiences. His work included launching the league’s rebrand, the WNBA’s first short film We Are The W and the acclaimed “More Than Game” campaign in 2023. His work has been recognized by Ad Age, Adweek, The Business of Fashion, Communication Arts, the Clios, Ebony, Muse, MTV News, the Webby Awards, among others.

Prior to joining the WNBA, Roman held creative leadership roles at Rolling Stone, Philadelphia magazine and Condé Nast. He hails from the country roads of West Virginia, where he received a BFA (West Virginia University).

He’s worked across corporate, government and agency environments, leading branding initiatives for clients including Warner Brothers, DC Comics, the RCMP and the Royal Canadian Mint. He helped build the Farm Boy brand from the ground up, contributing to its $800 million sale. Rob has taught at multiple colleges, mentored hundreds of creatives and spoken at events like DesignThinkers and CreativeMornings. He is the author of three books on creative practice: The Frankenstein Condition, Stop Looking for Zebras and his latest, Stop Looking for Zebras and Do the Work!.