Elise Yacobellis Vice President and Business Manager elise@lighthousestrategicgroup.com Elise's career began 13 years ago at Young & Rubicam, New York. There, in addition to providing the AT&T Worldwide Group with cutting edge presentations, Elise developed many of the sales presentations for the prestigious NY agency developing the presentation format and design for the entire agency in the process. After five years with Y&R, Elise was asked to relocate to Virginia to work with the former Worldwide Director of the AT&T account in his new role as President of the Washington office of Arnold Communications (now Arnold Worldwide). As Creative Services Manager, Elise managed the presentation, traffic and production function of the Interactive and Direct Response Group and gained valuable experience in presentations, online media, print design, and production. In 1997, Elise was promoted to Group Director, and contributed to business growth and development by providing presentation services to the agency's clients, including Mobil, SAP, Chevy Chase Bank and Sallie Mae. In May of 1998, Arnold Communication's Interactive Group became part of a larger entity now known as Circle.com. Promoted to Vice President, Business Manager, her responsibilities included managing the transition from agency department to stand alone company. This included managing the facilities build out and technology infrastructure, equipment purchases, and operations including human resources and finance. After the transition was complete, Elise continued to manage the HR and Finance portions of business operations, including development of financial policies and procedures. Additionally, Elise worked with the Managing Director and General Manager to identify sales goals, profit margins, and growth targets. Elise facilitated contract negotiations, and facilitated the integration of two local offices into a single, full-service Internet marketing and development company. As Circle.com grew and the need for strong leadership in the creative, production and information architecture areas became evident, Elise was asked to take on the responsibilities of Vice President of Creative Services. There she formalized Circle.com creative processes and helped facilitate creation and delivery of Information Architecture as a new service offering. Elise developed processes and procedures that would allow Circle.com to provide technology-driven business solutions across the globe. In May of 2001 Elise joined many of her former colleagues to form Lighthouse Strategic Group where she provides operations oversight, including many aspects of customer relationship management, and serves as the program manager on many client engagements. Elise is currently a member of DC Web Women and has devoted time to fundraising for the United Way. Back to Top