Columbia, MD, October 18, 2022

Merkle Strengthens Americas Leadership With New Appointments

Merkle, dentsu's leading technology-enabled, data-driven customer experience management (CXM) company, announces four new appointments to its Americas leadership team across human resources, growth, marketing, and client leadership: Marlena Edwards, chief people officer; Amanda Moore, chief growth officer; Tim Perlstein, chief marketing officer; and Anne-Marie Schaffer, chief client officer.

Marlena Edwards will focus on designing talent programs that drive employee experience and achieve business growth. Edwards previously led the HR function at dentsu MKTG where she was responsible for the Talent Acquisition, Business Partnership, Learning & Development, and Health and Wellness programs. With 16 years in agency HR leadership roles at organizations like HLK and HUGE, Edwards developed and drove a talent vision that amplified business impact and led the organization through rapid growth and change.

Amanda Moore is a five-year Merkle veteran who most recently served as senior vice president, growth officer. Moore has consistently driven growth across the Merkle business through digital and data transformation. Prior to Merkle, Moore served on the executive team at iCrossing, focusing on new business and organic growth. There, she provided leadership and developed best practices for origination, solutioning, storytelling, commercial development, contracting, and on-boarding. As CGO, Moore will lead the Americas growth team and be responsible for the development and execution of the growth strategy and value creation for our clients.

Tim Perlstein joined Merkle in March 2021 as SVP, experience and commerce, helping to build upon the company’s global practice and establish it as a leading provider of commerce solutions. As Americas CMO, Perlstein will be focused on developing and implementing new marketing strategies and continuing to elevate the Merkle brand as a world class leader in customer experience. Prior to Merkle, Perlstein served as CEO of United in Gaming, Inc., a social platform for amateur esports competition, and previously held the interim CMO role of Skills Matter, the leading global community and continuous learning platform for software engineers. He has held various senior-level roles with Knight Ridder, Fullscreen, Razorfish, and Yahoo! throughout his career.

Anne-Marie Schaffer is an accomplished marketing executive with more than 25 years of experience building brands using a 360-degree approach to marketing across digital, CRM, mobile, promotional, and traditional marketing channels. She began her five-year tenure at Merkle as the EVP, GM for the Travel/Media & Entertainment vertical and held other leadership roles within the company. Prior to Merkle, Schaffer served as president of PHD west coast offices, driving the strategy and leading communications planning, media buying, marketing sciences, traffic, and human resources teams. Schaffer has also held key roles at Ignited, MEC, Team One Advertising, and RPA. As chief client officer, she will oversee Merkle’s Client Leadership Group, a community of client service professionals, focused on delivering outcomes for Merkle’s world-class roster of clients in the Americas.

“We are excited to announce the addition of Marlena, Amanda, Tim, and Anne-Marie to our Americas executive team,” said Pete Stein, president, Merkle Americas. “Their vast experience, deep expertise, and stellar reputations further strengthen our highly motivated leadership team. The team will be focused on streamlining our business processes, developing our skilled and diverse talent base, building momentum through continuity, and amplifying the Merkle brand in the marketplace.”