Our Team

Background

Prior to co-founding Active, Mr. Elkin’s career in the media industry began at Kaiser Broadcast, which, under his direction as Senior Vice President of Sales, became Field Communications and then Katz Media Group, the largest media representation firm in the United States. Mr. Elkin has been awarded the Entrepreneur of the Year Award by Ernst & Young, and has received the Averill Harriman International Trade Award and the British American Business Inc. (BABi) Award in recognition of Active’s global accomplishments. In 2019, Mr. Elkin was recognized by the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame with a Lifetime Achievement Award. He served as President of the Corporate Barter Council for the International Reciprocal Trade Association and has been on their board of directors for the past ten years. Mr. Elkin has made community involvement a priority. Active Cares, a charitable activity created in 1997, has provided contributions to close to 700 nonprofits. In 2005, he received the Medal of Honor from Good Samaritan Hospital for this work and in 2006 the company acquired the naming rights for the Active International Cardiovascular Institute, the new cardiovascular surgical center, at Good Samaritan Hospital. A native of New York, Alan received his B.A. degree from Brooklyn College.

Background

Prior to co-founding Active, Mr. Wagner’s career in the media industry began at Kaiser Broadcast, as Eastern Sales Manager, which became Field Communications and then Katz Media Group, the largest media representation firm in the United States. He is widely regarded as an expert in Business Development and Sales. Additionally, in 2008, he was inducted into the International Reciprocal Trade Association (IRTA) Hall of Fame, and is the former President of the Corporate Barter Council. He has also made community involvement a priority. Through the company’s Active Cares program, contributions have been made to nearly 700 nonprofits since 1997.

Background

Bill was previously Senior Vice President, Advertising and Affiliate Sales for Comcast Networks and Senior Vice President at Liberty Media, spending more than 10 years at both companies.

Earlier in his career Bill played competitive tennis, competing at the U.S. Open and playing on the ATP Tennis Tour. After a sports-related injury, he transitioned to the business world, becoming Vice President of Sales and sponsorships for the ATP Tour.

Background

Prior to joining Active International, he held positions at Television Sales and Marketing Services Ltd, Channel Four Television Corporation and ITV Digital.

Background

Melissa has a thorough understanding of how to deliver integrated approaches across disciplines. What’s more, she has a proven ability to deliver on client needs.

Prior to that, she was Executive Vice President, Channel Investments at Havas Media.

Background

Prior to joining Active in 2016, Jay served in executive and HR positions at RJR Nabisco and ITT, and for more than 20 years as CEO of BeamPines Inc., a global Talent Management Consultancy, where he still serves as Non-Executive Chairman.

He graduated from Lafayette College with degrees in History and Education and has continued training in labor relations, diversity, finance, compensation and incentive design. Jay is a certified Master Coach and faculty member of the US educational division of Middlesex University’s graduate program in Professional Development. He is also Director and founding Partner of G2Collective Inc.

Background

Judy was Executive Vice President at Univision Communications in NY where she and her team grew revenue from $100M to $1B in ten years.

She restructured and helped build the network sales division; designed pricing, planning and sales systems, developed sales strategy and managed a staff of 80 across the US. Judy also held executive roles as EVP at 20th Television and EstrellaTV. Most recently, Judy was Chief Growth Officer at Trade X Partners, NY. From the beginning of her career, Judy worked with various forms of barter/trade both on the vendor and agency side which is why she is excited about moving to Active International.

Judy lives in Merrick, Long Island with her husband, Jerry, twins, Maddie and Ryan, and daughter, Kate.

When not at Active, you can find Judy wearing her trademarked and patented, Pandora’s Chest, a small pouch that clips on an undergarment and stores a cell phone, money, keys, etc. Both Judy and Jerry coach their children in sports. Judy coaches both Maddie’s and Kate’s basketball teams. Jerry is on the board of the Merrick/Bellmore Little League girls softball and boys baseball program.

Background

Driving both the budget and forecasting execution for the US team, while aligning strategy with budget planning, gives Liz insight into the scope of the entire US operation. Enabling collaboration and continual communication with the other leaders within the organization, she drives both effectiveness and efficiencies within all aspects of the operation.

Liz joined Active in 1992 as a media assistant and has advanced into positions with growing responsibility, including Media Coordinator, Buyer, Account Director, Systems & Operations Manager, and Associate Director of Media Operations. Most recently, she was Senior Vice President, Director of Media Operations. She received a B.A. with a specialty in international business from St. Thomas Aquinas College.

Background

George’s team handles some of Active’s largest clients, including Reckitt Benckiser, Keurig Dr Pepper, Long John Silvers, Staples, Firehouse Subs and Georgia Pacific. The client teams are responsible for client retention and client growth, and expansion into new fulfillment areas. George is an avid skier and golfer. He also loves to travel.

Background

After two years in media, learning about corporate trade and advertising, Lana moved into the Finance department and became an ACCA-qualified accountant. She became head of finance in the UK in 2011. In 2013 the UK office introduced the position of Financial Planning & Analysis, which was given to Lana to develop. In order to further her understanding and development of the role, she studied for an MBA at the Edinburgh Business School, which she completed in December 2015 (with distinction). In May 2016, Lana was given responsibility of Strategic Planning for Active’s International division.

Background

At Active, Bob started as a Senior Market Specialist in 1993, led our Media Trading team and the Local Media group before rising to his current responsibilities. Prior to coming to Active, Bob was with Ogilvy & Mather, New York and completed their Media Training Program.

Bob has been on the Board of Directors for the IRTS (International Radio and Television Society) for ten years and supports their summer fellows program. He is also a member of the Knights of Columbus, a past CYO basketball coach for many years and an advocate of the Don Bosco Prep 2019 Wellness Center.

Bob lives in Blauvelt, New York with his wife Maureen and three children

Background

Bethany started at Active in 2009 and has worked across Client and Sales, ultimately overseeing partnerships with Agencies today. Prior to Active she worked for 18 years at various ad agencies, from boutique shops, to WPP and Omnicom.

Background

Before joining Active in 1993, Gary was Chief Accounting Officer at In-Store Advertising, Inc. He began his career at KPMG, advancing to Senior Manager of Audit Services.

Gary is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, the New York State Society of CPAs and FEI. He is a Certified Global Management Accountant. His MBA from New York University followed graduation with highest honors from Northeastern University with a BS in Business Administration.

On a volunteer basis, Gary spent fifteen years as a National Trustee and Treasurer of the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America, worked with the Central Park Conservancy and was a scout leader for ten years, during which 30 youths became Eagle scouts.

Gary and his wife, Tina, are avid travelers and adventurers. Recently, Gary has successfully climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu and dove in the Galapagos Islands.

Background

Dayna joined the company in 1996. She earned her L.L.M. in International Business Law, with merit, from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Dayna received her law degree from New York Law School and a B.A. from the University of Buffalo. She is licensed in NY and NJ; and is a member of the American Bar Association and the New York Bar Association.

Background

Prior to joining Active in 1994, Liz was an M&A and Securities Law associate at Orloff, Lowenbach in NJ and before that at PA-based Dechert LLP. She’s a member of the NJ, NY and PA bars and graduated from Villanova University Law School in 1988 with a JD, cum laude, and from Georgetown University, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, with a BSFS, magna cum laude. Liz participates in a variety of charitable endeavors and is on the Advisory Board for Animal Alliance of New Jersey.

Background

Dominic has more than 40 years’ experience in the travel industry and has served as a member of the Leisure Travel Advisory Boards for both Starwood Hotels and Wyndham Hotels. He’s been a frequent panelist at many conferences sponsored by travel-related companies.

Background

Her expertise ranges from consumer and digital through social and experiential—and across a wide range of clients including Ford Motor Company, Chiquita and AT&T. Prior to joining Active, Catherine worked at Media Edge, JWT Detroit, Sawtooth Group, MVBMS and Y&R.

Catherine cites her biggest accomplishment as mother to her four children. Family time and community involvement shapes her time outside the office. Catherine teaches catechism at church and supports the Pearl River Fire Department where her husband is a volunteer firefighter. She holds an M.B.A. from the University of Michigan.

Background

Jahid is a strong marketing professional with a Bachelor of Science (BS) focused in Business Administration and Management from the State University of New York- Oswego.

Prior to that he was Chief Revenue Officer at InsideHook, where he was responsible for revenues associated with digital media, branded content, white label creative work, affiliate partnerships, event marketing and non-traditional sources. He was responsible to identify and create strategic partnerships with like-minded brands to accelerate revenues and brand awareness.

Jahid was also Vice President at A&E Networks. He oversaw cross-platform revenue generation for A&E, History and Viceland. He successfully led a team of account executives with a total billing of almost $500MM.

He was also an account executive at A&E Television.

Background

Dennis leads the investment, acquisitions and trading activities, creating media products that deliver value and opportunity to Active’s clients and partners.

Dennis brings a quarter century of experience in advertising sales management, network general management, business development, and P&L operating responsibility with both cable television and digital businesses.

Prior to joining Active in 2010, he was President, Sales and Marketing for Channel M, the producer of customized in-store TV networks. In that role, he was responsible for expanding existing networks, adding new retailers, overseeing the sales of all media assets and advertising opportunities, as well as all marketing efforts for Channel M.

Before that, Dennis was Executive Vice President, Business Development at Turner Broadcasting, where was responsible for all domestic new business activity. Prior to that, he was Executive Vice President and General Manager of the TBS Superstation, where he oversaw all day-to-day operations of the network, including programming and marketing.

Before joining Turner, Dennis was a Captain in the United States Air Force, serving as a navigator and bombardier in the B-52 Stratofortress. He also served as a physical education instructor and soccer coach at the United States Air Force Academy.

Background

Kevin spent the years 2010 to 2015 as Executive Vice President of Sales and Client Services, creating innovative corporate trade solutions tailored to help customers achieve greater benefit from their trading programs.

In 2015, Kevin became Active’s Chief Risk Officer, where his responsibilities broadened to include developing programs designed to drive increased value for vendor partners as well. As a result of his finance background, Kevin understands the financial needs of corporations and is able to structure programs to meet those needs. In his free time, Kevin enjoys spending time outdoors with his family traveling, boating and fishing.

Prior to Active, Kevin was a Sr. Financial Analyst at Ciba-Geigy Corp. (currently Novartis), Accounting Manager at Fuji Photo Film, Staff Accountant at BTR and Internal Auditor at Chemexec Relocation Systems, Inc.

Background

He has long touted the effectiveness of online advertising and continues to round out his knowledge with a deep understanding of search. Rob strong believes that digital is a key driver of brand growth and results.

Background

Diahanna has worked on both the sales and client management roles during her time at Active and currently manages a team across numerous portfolios of business. During her leisure time Diahanna enjoys spending time with her teenage kids skiing, biking and enjoying their sporting activities as well as a hot yoga enthusiast and adventure travel seeker.

Background

Alan’s development of media capacity trading programs, using trade credits as partial payment for media, allows for marketplace parity and revolutionized corporate trade. Alan Brown graduated from SUNY New Paltz with a B.A. in English.

Background

She brings buying, activation and account management skills to the relationships she’s created within the media community. Combined with her expertise in the entertainment category and experience with accounts such as GP and Callaway, she continues to create trading programs that are relevant and beneficial to Active’s clients and media partners.

Background

He works with the senior management of new business development, new business sales and client retention to determine the risk profile of all deals and makes recommendations on how to create better deal structures, which minimize risk and maximize returns.

Jeff also manages Active’s real estate department, where he is responsible for closing all real estate opportunities. This includes the identification, structuring and execution of Active International’s fee simple and leasehold real estate acquisition and disposition activities worldwide.

Jeff also led the New Business Development team, tasked with prospecting potential opportunities and bringing new business into Active.

Prior to joining Active in 2005, Jeff was Vice President of Acquisitions for UrbanAmerica, LLC and Vice President at First Evergreen LLC both real estate investment firms, where he was responsible for the identification, valuation and origination of real estate transactions.

His education includes a BA in Economics from Rutgers University and an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business.

Background

Tom leads a team of DR experts in the execution of both hybrid and traditional lead generation-based DR media. His background in performance marketing has allowed Active to offer clients a best-in-class product for Direct Response Corporate Trade. Before joining Active in 2010, Tom was Media Director for Halogen Response Media, the DR buying unit of Starcom/Mediavest Worldwide, where he was responsible for DRTV efforts in financial, healthcare, travel and telecom sectors. Prior to that he worked at ID Media where he managed DRTV efforts for Verizon’s consumer products, American Express, HBO and the University of Phoenix. Having spent much of his career in Direct Response, Tom has extensive experience developing effective media buying strategies to achieve client goals.

Background

Bob spent 25 years in the ad agency world prior to joining the company in 2009. After graduating from Bucknell University, he took his first job at Deutsch with dreams of being a copywriter but was drawn into client management. Bob spent 14 years at Grey, working on a variety of businesses, culminating in four years at the helm of the 3M account. He left Grey to run client management at Dentsu from 2006-2008. Bob lives in Oldwick, NJ with his wife Jackie and twin daughters Grace and Emma. He runs half-marathons with his daughters when his body permits.

Background

In 2011, Shawn was promoted to VP, Assoc. Director of Local and ultimately named SVP, Agency Alliance. Previously, he worked at Zenith Media Services and prior to that, Darcy Masius Benton & Bowles.

Shawn grew up on Long Island, NY and received a Bachelor of Arts at State University of New York-Geneseo as a communications major. The married father of two resides in Bergen County, NJ. He enjoys reading, movies, traveling and barbecuing. A very lucky Yankees fan, Shawn was in attendance for two perfect games, Mariano Rivera’s final game and the game in which Aaron Judge broke the all-time rookie home run record. He is a frequent blood donor and volunteers each year at People to People, Rockland County’s largest food pantry.

Background

With a background in local planning and buying, Melissa’s clients have included brands in consumer-packaged goods, pharmaceuticals, and restaurants. She holds a BS in Business Administration from the Gabelli School of Business of Fordham University, and lives in Pearl River with her husband and their daughter.