Independent agency The Escape Pod has promoted Celia Jones to CEO. Jones will be charged with stewarding The Escape Pod’s next phase of growth, elevating its integrated capabilities, identifying new revenue streams, and attracting top talent to build on the agency’s culture of creativity and independence. Jones will report to Norm Bilow, co-founder and managing director of The Escape Pod Group, which also encompasses digital agency ORA Interactive, experiential agency OutCold, Gravity Well editorial, and creative staffing service GoShortlist.com.

Jones joined The Escape Pod as brand director in May 2017. The agency has achieved significant year-over-year growth and several new business wins during her tenure. She has also been instrumental in deepening The Escape Pod’s digital and social offering, and driving end-to-end integration across its advertising, experiential and digital capabilities.

“Both clients and employees are hungry for an alternative,” said Jones. “What we stand for as an agency is an escape—from ineffective advertising that fails to stand out, and from the waste, layers and politics of the bigger shops. Our leadership team brings gravitas, with proven success at the world’s largest agencies. Our young talent is full of ideas and hungry to make their mark. Our digital and experiential partners are experts at what they do, but also incredibly collaborative, which makes our work that much better. Most importantly, we are all united in the belief that we can create innovative, inspiring work for clients, which is why we all got into this business in the first place.” 

Prior to The Escape Pod, Celia held leadership positions at several Chicago agencies. As group brand director at Havas Chicago, she positioned the agency as a creative force and culture catalyst. Before that, she served as global marketing director at Critical Mass, helping transform the company from a niche digital player into a leading global experience design agency focused on the customer. She also served as director of content and lead copywriter at Designkitchen. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Notre Dame and a Juris Doctor from Loyola University School of Law.