Roger Halligan
Beate Halligan
Kari Brownsberger
Noelle Kull
Lisa Menzel
Derek Serafin
Anna Tarkov
Tim Ward
Mateo Zapata

Roger Halligan
Founder and CEO

Roger has more than 30 years experience in developing highly successful marketing communications programs for a variety of clients in various industries.

Prior to founding the firm in 1984, Roger was the Director of Advertising and Public Relations for A.B. Dick Co. in the office automation industry. In that capacity, he had responsibility for creating and implementing integrated business-to-business marketing communications programs worldwide.

Roger joined the company from Ruder Finn, where he headed up account teams for such clients as ITT Corporation, Skil Corporation, American Motors Company, A.B. Dick Company, Rexnord, and the Automotive Service Council.

Prior to that Roger headed up account teams at N.W. Ayer Worldwide Advertising where his clients included Motorola, Deere & Co., Sherwin Williams, Citicorp, Holiday Inns, Bell & Howell, and the Illinois State Lottery.

He began his career with Montgomery Wards, where he was responsible for corporate communications.

Roger holds a journalism degree from Northern Illinois University and has won several awards for his work on behalf of various clients. He serves on the board of the International Advertising Association and frequently speaks to and publishes articles for industry groups worldwide on maximizing marketing communications. If Roger had spare time, he would enjoy golf, hiking, reading and international travel.

Beate Halligan
President

Beate joined H+A International in 1993 to create and lead the firm's international division.  Strong marketing and management skills together with a bi-cultural background uniquely qualified her to expand H+A's MarCom activities worldwide.  

Beate started her career at the international headquarters of global agency Foote, Cone & Belding (FCB) in Chicago, where she helped coordinate the operations of satellite offices in 14 countries.  From there she moved on to specialize in association management at Smith, Bucklin & Associates (SBA), the world's largest association management company, where she headed up several trade associations.  Hired as a 'change manager' and one of only a handful of women leaders in the industry, she perfected her management and MarCom skills as the CEO of the Power Transmission Distributors Association prior to joining H+A International.

Today she oversees a group of global corporate and trade show clients in several countries.  Beate enjoys different cultures and moves easily on the global stage. 

Born and educated in Germany, she majored in Business Administration at Goethe University in Frankfurt.  Her interests include global travel, hiking and the 'greening' of the environment. 



Kari Brownsberger
Assistant Account Executive

A recent graduate of Loyola University, Kari comes to H+A International with a double major in English and Journalism.  During her time at H+A International, Kari has garnered placements for clients in top print, broadcast and digital media outlets.  Her strong journalism background is supported by roles as News Editor at Loyola's award-winning newspaper The Phoenix and Medical Watch Intern at WGN-TV Chicago.  While at Loyola, Kari was involved in numerous academic organizations, including the university's Honors Program, National Society of Collegiate Scholars and the Society of Professional Journalists.  Always hungry for new experiences, Kari spent her last semester of college in Beijing, China.  A past marathoner, in her free time Kari enjoys running, biking and reading.

Noelle Kull
Account Supervisor

Powered by Starbucks, and motivated by an insatiable need to deliver superior campaign results for clients, Noelle manages both consumer and B2B campaigns reaching more than 30 countries around the world.

An alumna of Loyola University Chicago, Noelle joined H+A International in 2004 and has lent her account management skills to a wide variety of corporate, trade show and not-for-profit clients including: BEKA, Zevro, Microplane Personal Care, Cristel cookware, the International Home + Housewares Show and the International Housewares Association, the Fabtech/AWS Welding Show, Satellite 2005/2006 and the International Advertising Association.

Noelle has led account teams to garner millions of trade and consumer media impressions around the world across broadcast, print and online mediums, and consistently delivers more than five times ROI to the clients she serves.

A 10-year veteran of Corporate America, Noelle comes to H+A International from GE Capital where she spearheaded internal communication efforts by launching an internal newsletter, Risk Management Quarterly and served as Editor for 12 contributing writers.

Lisa Menzel
Finance/Office Manager 

Since the age of 3, Lisa Menzel has been enamored with the Loop, Chicago's downtown district, or "the place of big calculators," as she described it back then.  So when her friend wanted to go off to Hollywood after graduation, toting Lisa's stories with the intent to make films, it was agreed upon that Lisa could not part with her home city.  Menzel has been writing for Lumino Magazine in Chicago for six years.  However, a much more attractive challenge awaited her: finite math used to maximize the potential of artisitic undertakings.  This idea urged her toward a career that combined art and accounting.

In 2005, when lenders were noticing large loan defaults, Menzel worked as a financial forensic for Argent Mortgage.  However, it was soon nationally realized that five years without this type of information had proven disastrous for the mortgage industry.  Many companies were closing, but Menzel found opportunities as a mortgage auditor for Harris Bank and as accounts payable office manager for Geary Electric.  Unfortunately her commute was very long once she relocated to the area near Midway Airport so her search continued.

H+A International was a dream prospect: a creative company, dedicated to innovatively promoting their clients.  Finally Lisa's quest for the unusual melding of creativity and numbers was satisfied.

In her spare time, Lisa enjoys developing novels and screenplays, submitting stories to magazines, writing music, learning new technologies and meeting with music groups on the rise through a project, known as Soundneedle Productions, which brings venues and artists together.



Derek Serafin
Assistant Account Executive

A graduate of Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois, Derek Serafin joined the H+A team in 2006 with a degree in Print Journalism and minors in Marketing and Multimedia.  With H+A, he uses his knowledge to the fullest while working closely with major industrial clients including ITT, Bell & Gossett, McDonnell & Miller, and Flowtronex as well as trade shows including AHR EXPO, CMM International, Chem Show, as well as with the annual Dance Chicago festival.

Currently enrolled in the graduate program at Roosevelt University, Derek hopes to obtain his masters degree in Print Journalism with a concentration in Public Releations.  In the little down time he has, Derek finds time to write freelance reviews for Static Multimedia and fit as many concets as he can into his weekly schedule.



Anna Tarkov
Intern

Prior to joining H+A International in 2008, Anna worked in a variety of fields such as not-for-profit, engineering, and merchandising/wholesale.  Recently finding her true calling in the public relations/communications field, Anna completed a public affairs internship with Jasculca/Terman and Associates before coming on board at H+A International.  Having discovered her passion for communicating a message to an audience, Anna greatly enjoys leveraging that ability to advance any client's goals and objectives.  She also brings to the table solid writing skills and the ability to think strategically.  Finally, as a consummate multi-tasker, Anna believes that the 5 words that describe her best are "I'm on top of it."

Before entering the workforce, Anna excelled as a student leader on her campus at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) where she earned a BA in Political Science.  Today, Anna continues to serve on the Governing Board of an organization she led as a student and works primarily on improving the organization's communications, marketing and outreach efforts.

In her time away from work, Anna enjoys keeping up with PR/Communications industry trends, politics/current affairs, business, reading on a wide array of topics, volunteering, traveling, enjoying Chicago dining and entertainment, spending time with family and friends and overall living life to the fullest.



Tim Ward
Account Supervisor

Tim Ward has nearly 20 years of experience as a strategic thinker and communicator in multiple consumer and business-to-business industries.  He is driven by his passion for communication and marketing, determination to find answers, reach goals and a continued pursuit of bigger challenges.  He has a take action attitude to say the least.

Tim uses his strategic approaches in communications, marketing, technology and crisis management to serve a diverse client base including manufacturing, chemical, energy, packaging, government, entertainment and not-for-profit organizations.

Tim joined H+A International in 2006 and currently provides his superior leadership to major industrial companies such as ITT, Bell & Gossett, Flowtronex and McDonnell & Miller while also leading the communications charge for clients such as trade shows CMM, AHR Expo, CHEM SHOW and the world's largest dance festival, Dance Chicago.  Tim's dedication to his clients is evident in his overseeing of their communications programs, which include media relations, corporate relations, marketing, promotions, community outreach, critical issues and reputation management.

Tim's college and professional career started when he dedicated 8 years to Uncle Sam in the service of the country with the US Army (including a free three-month Mediterranean Vacation in the shape of Desert Storm in 1991) and 5 years at his alma mater, Kansas State University (Go Cats!), ending with a dual degree in Journalism and Political Science.  Tim's previous career endeavors, much like his life, have been full of new challenges and life-altering opportunity.  Some include a newspaper in Kansas, an advertising agency in Kansas, a Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and 3 Convention & Visitor Bureaus located in Minnesota, North Carolina and Florida.

Tim enjoys many activities outside the office, most of which involve cooking, traveling or learning ways to improve his "Q" score.



Mateo Zapata
Intern

Before starting at H+A International in 2008, Mateo completed a yearlong internship with Weber-Shandwick at their multicultural public relations branch, the Axis Agency.  He has also completed an internship with the Medill Colllege of Journalism at Northwestern University where he wrote, edited and produced news stories for Northwestern News.  Mateo has also gained public relations skills within the Latino community while serving as Committee President for the 2007 Annual Fiesta Del Sol College Fair in Pilsen and he also worked as a translator/host for the Gala Events at Chicago's Latino Film Festivals.  Mateo is currently pursuing a Bachelor's Degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) in Communications and Latin American Studies.

© H+A International, Inc. 2006