Callen Expands Leadership With Ex-W+K and Publicis Talent After Bumper Year

Austin-based independent agency Callen has appointed Jess Monsey as its first-ever chief opportunity officer and named Mike Davidson head of production. The leadership expansion comes after the creative shop, which doubled in size between 2023 and 2024, reported a 12% revenue increase in the first quarter of 2025. Since the start of the year, it has also added five new clients to its books, including Vera Bradley, Nutpods, and Long Drink. Monsey, a former Wieden+Kennedy president and managing director, and 72andSunny managing director, returns to the advertising industry after a two-year hiatus spent developing The Paladins League, a library of over 500 tabletop games like Dungeons & Dragons. She brings a wealth of experience from her previous roles where her work for brands such as Old Spice earned her Cannes Grand Prix awards and a Grand Effie. In her newly created role at Callen, she will identify growth opportunities for the agency’s roster of clients, including Disney+, Supercell, and Olipop. She will also lead proactive business outreach initiatives. Davidson, meanwhile, brings over 20 years of production expertise to Callen, most recently serving as executive vp and managing director of brand production at PXP, Publicis Groupe’s global content and production network. Throughout his career, he’s led creative campaigns for brands like Nike, Coca-Cola, and Old Spice, earning Cannes Lions and The One Show accolades. Davidson’s experience also includes senior roles at Media.Monks and Wieden+Kennedy, where he worked closely with Callen’s Craig Allen and David Hughes. In his new role, Davidson will oversee all production activities across the agency’s portfolio. A bumper year ahead The new hires will help sustain momentum and drive further expansion for the agency, which now employs 25. Founder and chief creative officer Craig Allen attributes much of Callen's success to the agency’s collaborative culture. "Our full-time employees often start in a freelance role to ensure that we’re a good fit for each other both socially and professionally, like a test drive without all the awkward negotiating at the end," he told ADWEEK. "We like to keep a healthy balance between work and fun and create an environment that people want to be a part of, so we’ve been lucky that the people we really want here also very much want to be a part of what we’re building." Monsey told ADWEEK the role drew her back to advertising because of the opportunity to collaborate with a bold, creative team. "I get lit up working with creative people who lead with imagination and a deep desire to take extraordinary creative leaps that people never saw coming," Monsey said. "Craig is the epitome of that, and together with Mike, the three of us have a track record of work that I'm insanely proud of.” David Hughes, president at Callen, shared his thoughts on the new chief opportunity officer remit: "Since I have known Jess, no one has unlocked more opportunities where others might not have seen it," Hughes said. "Leading all things ‘opportunity’ for Callen—with existing or new partners—only made sense as her officially-official title." Hughes said Davidson's ability to push boundaries in production, and "execute at the highest level of craft, and foster innovative thinking," made him the perfect fit for the team. Davidson views production as a "vital component" to the agency's wider strategy: "Woven into our process throughout, we work more efficiently in moving from ideas to making, more strategic utilization of our client budgets and driving growth through successful delivery and performance of our creative output," he said.

Leadership & Talent

Callen Expands Leadership With Ex-W+K and Publicis Talent After Bumper Year

Jess Monsey joins as chief opportunity officer, while Mike Davidson takes on head of production role

Audrey Kemp

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications