"Susan makes things happen. So many projects flounder because of poor execution, and Susan is the kind of dedicated professional who sees things through to very successful outcomes."

Tony Wessling
Managing Principal
CHROMIUM

"Susan and I worked together for the past 5 years on many institutional projects including annual reports, giving campaign collateral, legacy giving promotions, and special events. The projects were often multi-faceted including print, video, photo shoots and appeared in many mediums. Susan worked with me and my team from initial creative concept, and managed her team of designers, photographers, etc. to bring all of our projects to fruition on time and within budget. She and her team handled any outside vendor as well. The projects have always come out better than I could even imagine. I recommend her highly."

Amy Kaminer  
Senior Development Officer
Jewish Community Center of San Francisco

"Susan was a great addition to the JCCSF marketing team and added a high level of professionalism and experience. I worked closely with Susan and her team on a number of projects; she took the time to understand my vision for the different programs and guided the process of identifying target markets and creating collateral and marketing plans to reach those targets and meet participation goals. I would welcome the opportunity to work with Susan again."

Wendy Bear
Deputy Director, Finance and Operations,
Children's Council of San Francisco

"Susan is a sharp, highly experienced brand consultant. She's terrific at bringing a client from an amorphous brand identity to concrete, strong branding. She's also a great communicator, always making sure everyone understands what's needed to get a project done. She works very very hard and is completely reliable in all aspects: promises given are always kept."

Diana Howard
Independent designer and artist

"I’ve worked with Susan on three projects for the JCCSF and, before that, on many branding and writing projects for Kirshenbaum Communications and on a large pro-bono web project for River of Words. Susan is that rare project leader who truly understands the creative side of the equation: she communicates clearly. keeps track of complex schedules and budgets, and injects humor and insight into every phase of the job."

Nancy Friedman
Chief Wordworker
Wordworking

“Susan's work here at the JCCSF has been extraordinary, and has touched every corner of the building and every aspect of how we represent our brand. From digital displays to MUNI ads to our print collateral and our online annual report - across campaigns as varied as A&I's "Culture Vultures," 3200 Stories' "Bold and Untold," the relaunch of the café as Community Table, the Olive Tree Society legacy giving campaign, and hundreds of other eye-catching and effective campaigns over the last seven years – Susan has helped the JCCSF elevate the visibility and perception of its brand and has built a strong and talented creative team.”

Nathaniel Bergson-Michelson
Director of Strategic Marketing and Communications
Jewish Community Center of San Francisco

“I know it was a long process getting there, but the new ECE (Early Childhood Education) brochure is just stunning! It speaks so well to our program philosophy – I know the ECE staff is over the moon about it. Well done.”

Todd Braman
Chief Operating Officer
Jewish Community Center of San Francisco

"I have known and worked with Susan for over 20 years. It has been fabulous to see her creativity and vision in action as she worked with many different types of companies in their marketing and development. Her love of photography and art can be seen in her work and is what makes her extremely successful."

Susie Debenham
Spot Graphics

“Her abilities to organize and oversee the many projects we completed together over the years has always impressed me. She knows how to get the job done in a professional manner and has an instinct for perfection that is refreshing. She also has a fashion & color sense that is quite simply remarkable!" 

Scott Wall
Photographer

"Susan is a fantastic creative director. She is constantly bringing new talent and ideas to the table, which keep her clients on the cutting edge. She is also able to manage an entire creative department with ease, all while motivating her staff, creating meaningful and outstanding work. I would highly recommend her for any project." 

Sasha Gulish
Photographer

"Susan is simply phenomenal. Creative, organized, visionary, and thoughtful. She works with intention and integrity while inspiring and encouraging others to shine with her leadership and astute feedback. She's the type of leader who acts as the glue and not the glitter – bringing people in, highlighting the abilities of her team, and being a strong, rooted individual who can teach and bring out the best in her team." 

Stephanie Reisfeld
Jewish Community Center of San Francisco Staff Client

"I have known Susan for some 16 years and have printed many pieces that had her expert touch on them. Susan has a solid understanding of design and of transferring this to printed products. I have witnessed Susan at a number of press checks and always demonstrated a calm and very precise direction while being courteous and friendly to our staff. Susan is great to work with and clear in all of her communications and gets the job done without the Fuss!" 

Frits Kouwenhoven
Managing Partner 
Hemlock Printing

"Susan is a smart, savvy marketing whiz and content producer with top-notch management skills. She has great instincts for how to best communicate with an audience, and a discerning eye for both written content and design. She's also an interesting person and a joy to work with." 

Kim Olson
Writer

"FIRST AND FOREMOST: 
Susan and I have worked together in numerous capacities on lots of projects spanning many years. I've hired her. She's hired me. We've partnered up. 

THAT SAID: 
Each time we achieved superior results: got new business, satisfied demanding clients, won awards, earned lots of money. 

I HIRED HER: 
To help execute hugely complex, time-sensitive creative projects. Without guidance or prompting, she saw what needed to be done and who needed to do it, then made sure it happened. She managed timelines and traffic, monitored budgets, maintained quality control. It all bubbled up to me clearly and simply. She rocked it.

SHE HIRED ME: 
And was a terrific creative director and manager. Her projects always got done on time and on budget. She paid promptly and as agreed. And, of course, the work was excellent. 

WE WORKED TOGETHER: 
See all of the above. 

DO I RECOMMEND HER? 
Damned straight." 

Service Category: Creative Consultant/Project Manager
Year first hired: 2000 (hired more than once)
Top Qualities: Great Results, Personable, Creative”

Richard Levitt 
Writer, Brand Strategist