Email ballots will be sent to all Active members in good standing.

2027 CANDIDATE PROFILES

INCUMBENTS:

Ashley Brunner

Incumbent Detroit Advertising Association

I’ve built my career around client leadership, account management, and helping drive business

success.  My Experience has spanned mid-sized to large agencies. I am known for delivering

exceptional client services and seeking out new opportunities for my clients. My knowledge extends

through a vast knowledge of the multichannel media and marketing strategies, fostering innovative

partnerships and driving agency revenue growth.

I have been with UM over nine years. Today,as EVP and Managing Director, I lead the North

American team for Enterprise Mobility and have been proud to serve on the DAA Board for the past

three years. I live in Wixom, Michigan, with my husband and three children, who keep life busy and

fun. When I’m not working, I enjoy coaching youth cheerleading, attending my kids’ many sporting

events, traveling, swimming, boating, and golfing.

I am running for another term with DAA so I can continue to support our various charitable

contributions and provide first class events to our members.

Troy Van Vooren

Incumbent Detroit Advertising Association

Troy Van Vooren has been in the Detroit advertising market for 12 years, after years on the agency

and sales side in other markets. His first post in-market was with the former Turner Broadcasting,

while he has spent the last seven with DISH Media. He is currently serving on the DAA board,

originally elected in 2023. Outside of work, Troy lives in Rochester Hills with his wife, Sara, and their

two boys, Owen and Oscar.

Troy is not one to sit on the sidelines. Since joining the board, Troy has regularly raised his hand at

the DAA Golf Outings, volunteering to set up carts with swag, running sponsored contests, and

checking people in at the door. His most rewarding parts of being on the board is having a voice in

the direction of the DAA, as well as welcoming members to the events, often putting faces with

names for the first time.

He'd like to keep doing exactly that: showing up, pitching in, and helping the DAA stay the kind of

community where people collaborate and stay connected.

NEW CANDIDATES:

Kevin Conlon

Kevin Conlon has been in the industry since 2008, beginning at Campbell-Ewald.  Over the course of

his career, he has worked to drive innovation and adoption of new media beginning with social media,

migrating into Emerging Media and mobile. He is known for his strategic insights and capabilities in

this marketplace. Kevin was part of the team at GTB and Ford in developing their gaming strategy.

He has also been on teams that have been the recipient of industry awards for their work. Kevin has

been in programmatic media since 2017.  He is currently an Associate Director of Programmatic at

Publicis Connect, leading all programmatic initiatives for Zales.

 

An avid golfer, Kevin has been a consistent presence at the DAA events since 2011. He is running

for the Board to expand his participation and is excited about the opportunity to give back to the

advertising community that has provided him the opportunity to network amongst other industry

professionals.

 

Raj Gill

I am a Detroit-based advertising and media executive with over 20 years of experience spanning

agencies, media, technology, and data. Throughout my career, I have built and led high-performing

teams, developed go-to-market strategies, and helped brands navigate the evolving media

landscape.

My roots in the Detroit advertising community run deep. I spent several years on the agency side

working with Ford Motor Company and General Motors, and I have remained closely connected to

Detroit’s automotive, agency, media, and marketing communities throughout my time on the sales

side. Experience on both the agency and media/technology sides gives me a unique perspective on

the relationships and people that make our community special.

In serving the DAA, I hope to create more opportunities for mentorship, increase membership, and

bring people together. I love our Detroit advertising community and am deeply grateful for those who

came before us, paved the way, and mentored me. I believe it is time for me to give back.

I would be honored to help the DAA continue its tradition of excellence—strengthening our

community, supporting charitable causes, and fostering the lifelong relationships that define this

organization.

 

Ed Grijalva

My name is Ed Grijalva, and I’m interested in serving on the board of the Detroit Advertising

Association as an opportunity to give back to an advertising community that has already given so

much to me throughout my career.

 

I’m eager to contribute wherever I can, whether that means helping plan events, setting budgets,

coordinating with vendors, or simply setting up tables on event day. Over the years I’ve enjoyed all

the golf events the DAA puts on and would welcome the opportunity to learn more about everything

that goes into them, while offering a fresh perspective on how we can continue to make them

successful. I also see serving on the board as an opportunity to become more involved in Detroit’s

advertising community, build meaningful relationships, and expand my network within the industry

locally.

 

I graduated from Oakland University in 2020 and began my advertising career at Publicis (Starcom) in

2021 as a Programmatic Analyst on the Novartis account. Less than a year later, I transitioned to the

Samsung account, where I’ve continued to grow, eventually earning the title of Associate Director of

Programmatic in March 2026. Samsung is one of Publicis’ largest accounts and when I first joined the

Samsung team, only three team members supporting the account were based locally, with the

majority located across other major hubs. Over the years I’ve been a strong advocate for the talent

we have here in Detroit, and today our local Samsung team has grown to 12 people which is a lot for

a non-automotive account here locally at the agency. I’m incredibly proud of the team we’ve built and

want to continue championing the strength of Detroit’s advertising community. Serving on the DAA

board feels like a natural extension of that commitment.

Rachel Hazy

Rachel has spent more than 20 years working at the intersection of media, data, and technology,

supporting automotive clients and customers. She began her career at BBDO, where she worked on

the Jeep account and was mentored by some of the automotive industry’s most respected leaders.

She later expanded into digital and mobile media, holding client-facing sales and partnership roles at

technology and startup companies including Millennial Media (AOL), BrightRoll (Yahoo), and

TubeMogul (Adobe). Over the past eight years, Rachel has deepened her expertise in data and

technology through Adobe enterprise software integrations and consulting in support of the General

Motors account.

Most recently, she has spent the past 18 months leading in-house Audience Strategy efforts within

MediaONE at General Motors. Rachel is passionate about bringing thought leadership to her teams,

improving people and processes, and building efficient operating models. She is excited to scale her

expertise across the growing MediaONE organization.

Outside of work, Rachel enjoys spending time with her husband, Andy, their three teenage

sons—Alex, Jake, and Drew—and their chocolate Labrador, Tucker! Her favorite pastimes include,

training for 1/2 marathons, family ski trips out West in the winter and relaxing summer weekends in

northern Michigan.

Jordan Hernandez

Throughout my seven-year career, I have gained meaningful experience across agency teams and

industry verticals. Beginning my career in Tier 3 automotive at Shift Digital before transitioning into the

agency world, working at leading agencies including Publicis and now WPP Media. Along the way, I

have had the opportunity to support major brands such as Samsung, TD Ameritrade, Discover, and

EA Sports. These experiences have helped me build to strong foundation in account management,

analytics, and digital media strategy.

I have progressed from hands-on campaign execution and client support to leading full-funnel

biddable media initiatives across search, social and programmatic, giving me a broad perspective on

the evolving advertising landscape and the collaboration needed across agencies, advertisers, and

media partners to drive success.

I am excited for the opportunity to serve on the DAA Board and give back to the advertising

community that has contributed so much to my professional growth. Having built my career in the

Detroit area, I value the relationships, knowledge sharing, and the networking opportunities that make

this community so special. I believe the strength of our industry comes from bringing people together,

sharing ideas, and creating opportunities for professionals at every stage of their careers to learn and

grow. I plan to bring a collaborative mindset, introduce fresh perspectives, and bring a passion for

building connections into helping the DAA strengthen industry relationships, engage its members, and

support the next generation of advertising professionals.