Helping brands take back the Internet since 2010

James Avery is the founder and CEO of Kevel. Prior to Kevel, he co-founded TekPub, a platform that delivered high-quality screencasts for developers. Over the past 20 years, James has built multiple startups, written code across tech stacks, and authored books for O’Reilly, Wrox, and Microsoft Press. He is also an investor and advisor to multiple startups and serves on the board of MuukTest.

Jaclyn Nix is Kevel’s Chief Operating Officer, bringing over 18 years of experience in retail media and ad tech. She has led the operational scaling of 40+ retail media businesses, including the 2020 acquisition of the Mi9 Retail Media Network (formerly MyWebGrocer) by CitrusAd, establishing the US footprint.  One year later, CitrusAd was acquired by Epsilon.  Since then, she served as EVP, Brand Sales at Epsilon Retail Media (formerly CitrusAd), where she led sales teams across various retail verticals and drove impactful strategies leveraging first-party data. Jaclyn is passionate about operational excellence, cross-functional alignment, and delivering measurable value to customers.

Tim Ewald is Kevel’s CTO, and has spent the last 30 years building distributed software systems to solve problems in a wide range of domains, including image analysis, content management, video processing, databases, and ad tech. He brings his experience as an engineer, architect, and engineering manager to Kevel, where he is responsible for the entire cloud platform. Tim is an author and conference speaker, who holds a Bachelor's in Computer Science from Hampshire College. Outside of the office, he builds furniture using hand tools.

Tom Shanahan brings 20+ years of expertise in financial strategy and operational leadership across retail media, ad tech, and large-scale organizations. Prior to joining Kevel, Tom served as VP, Global Head of Finance at CitrusAd, where he drove financial strategy and operational initiatives during transformative growth, including CitrusAd's acquisition by Epsilon. Earlier in his career, Tom held finance leadership roles at Epsilon, Sears Holdings Corporation, and GMX Real Estate Group. His background combines advanced financial modeling, strategic planning, and operational precision. Tom is passionate about aligning financial excellence with long-term strategy and supporting cross-functional teams in achieving objectives.

Mike Kohn leads the People and HR function at Kevel. Mike’s foundational experience as an HR Business Partner and as a human capital consultant at Deloitte launched him into his roles as a People executive and leadership coach at various scaling organizations. As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, Mike is passionate about building healthy, inclusive cultures where people can bring their whole selves to thrive. Beyond work, he spends time at spin classes, running, playing board games, hiking, and watching musical theater.

John Chaplin brings extensive experience in product management, retail media, and digital innovation. Based in Adelaide, Australia, he began his career in product design and engineering before co-founding award-winning agency Fusion, developing deep expertise in digital strategy, digital transformation and user experience. He later served as Chief Product Officer at CitrusAd, shaping a revolutionary retail media platform, before leading product as SVP at Epsilon Retail Media. Across these roles, he built a reputation for delivering personalised, scalable product experiences for retailers and advertisers. As Chief Product Officer at Kevel, John brings a customer-first approach and a passion for building great products that redefine the retail media landscape.

Dylan Hulser is Kevel’s Vice President of Retail Media, bringing over nine years of experience on the company’s commercial team. His journey at Kevel has spanned roles across Sales, Solutions, and Customer Success, including the creation of the Solutions Architecture team. Today, Dylan leads Kevel’s retail media charge, connecting brands and retailers with consumers through innovative ad serving solutions. He holds a degree in Integrated Marketing Communications from Ithaca College and began his career in digital media buying for Procter & Gamble brands at MediaVest (now Spark). Dylan later joined Reddit where he played a key role in advertising strategy, operations, and monetization. Outside of work, Dylan enjoys exploring new restaurants, traveling, and spending quality time with his family.

Leslie Pierce-Connor has spent her career bootstrapping legal functions at startups, helping to build out the first-ever legal department at multiple growth-stage companies. She brings intensely practical experience in both legal operations and legal practice to the organization, with an emphasis on developing scalable, repeatable processes. Leslie also provides legal consulting services to charitable organizations. When not working, Leslie is an outdoor enthusiast, a calligrapher, a foodie, and a mom to both a two year old son and a six year old labrador retriever.

Sandy Grason has spent her career building lean, agile, high-performing teams. Prior to joining Kevel, Sandy was the Senior Director of Software Development at Charter Communications where she was responsible for the strategic direction and management of the backend video software development. Sandy is a former CEO, business strategist, consultant, published author, serial entrepreneur & mentor, lover of chocolate, movies, skiing & shoes (not necessarily in that order).

Andrew McManamon brings over 20 years of experience across media planning, agency, broadcast, and advertising technology. He began his career as a media planner before moving into agency account management, building a strong foundation in commercial strategy and media buying. He later transitioned into ad tech, working at Specific Media (later Viant) and WideOrbit, giving him a unique perspective across both the buy and sell side of the advertising landscape.Since joining Kevel seven years ago as the company’s first hire in Europe, Andrew has been instrumental in building and expanding Kevel’s international presence. Today, he leads global sales efforts, partnering with commerce media companies to build and scale high-performing retail media businesses.

Joe brings over 20 years of experience across retail, commerce media, strategy, and merchandising. He began his career in IT at John Deere, moved into investment management at Aegon, and then joined H-E-B in price optimization and merchandising. At Revionics, he led presales, consulting, and sales, helping retailers modernize pricing strategies. He later served as VP of North America Sales & Partnerships at Criteo, partnering with retailers and brands to drive commerce media growth. Today, he leads North American Sales at Kevel, helping retail media organizations build scalable, high-performing media businesses. Outside of work, Joe is an avid traveler, having visited 63 countries and counting, with a passion for new cultures, great food, and meaningful connections.

Martin Jensen is the VP of Partnerships at Kevel and the founder of Nexta, an AI-driven ad platform acquired by Kevel in 2025. Since founding Nexta in 2017, he has consistently focused on helping media companies, marketplaces, and retailers drive revenue growth. At Nexta, Jensen championed a strategic partnership model, working with publishers and marketplaces around the world to create tailored omnichannel advertising solutions with proven impact. Before his time at Nexta, Jensen built up his expertise in programmatic advertising at Adform. Today at Kevel, he draws on his extensive experience and passion for innovation to lead partnership efforts that help brands build transformative ad solutions and achieve sustainable long-term growth.

Matt Newcomb is Kevel’s Managing Director of KRX and brings extensive experience in retail media, digital advertising, and go-to-market strategy. Based in London, England, he has built a career spanning ad tech and digital commerce, holding senior roles including CEO of Inskin Media and Regional Director at Azerion, in addition to helping build Zitcha's EMEA business from the ground up. Across his career, Matt has developed a strong track record of scaling international operations, leading through M&A transitions, and driving commercial growth for the businesses he's led while also becoming a recognized voice in the retail media and ad tech space.

Paulo has been building products for the digital marketing and advertising industry for over 18 years. After completing his BSc in Computing from London Met, he started his career developing products at companies such as Acxiom and Wunderloop – Europe’s first behavioral targeting technology. Paulo later founded ShiftForward, where he launched products such as the Private CDP and the Ad Forecaster and served as CEO, completing its exit to Velocidi in 2018 and later to Kevel in 2022. Paulo also helps tech startups as a board advisor and as a mentor in the Founders Founders community which he helped create in Porto, Portugal.

Kate Gadzinski is the VP of Revenue Operations at Kevel, bringing over a decade of experience in tech and a unique background at the intersection of enablement and operations -- two functions she believes are most powerful when aligned. She began her career as an Executive Assistant to multiple senior leaders, including CEO -- an experience she describes as her “on-the-job MBA.” Since then, Kate has built a reputation for tackling business challenges through data-driven strategy, smart process design, and a focus on performance enablement. Outside the office, Kate loves to bake and experiment with new recipes. She’s an avid fan of Claire Saffitz’s creations and is always looking for her next kitchen project.

Jeremy Halbout has over a decade of experience in client services, account management, and customer success within ad tech and marketing technology. Based in New York, he spent the majority of his career growing alongside Velocidi, rising from Account Executive to Vice President of Customer Success and Partnerships before Velocidi's acquisition by Kevel in 2022. Across his career, Jeremy has developed a strong track record of building durable client partnerships and scaling customer success operations through periods of significant company growth and integration.

Claire Hansen has an extensive experience in customer success, account management, and client relationship strategy across health tech, hospitality, and legal services. Based in Miami, Florida, she has built her career around helping clients get the most value from complex platforms, holding roles including Customer Success Team Lead at Vacasa and Senior Account Manager at Kinsa before joining Kevel in 2021. At Kevel, she has grown from Senior Enterprise Customer Success Manager into a team leadership role, developing a strong track record of building high-touch client relationships and supporting customer success teams across the Americas. Notably, Claire holds a Master's degree in Clinical Psychotherapy, a background she draws on to bring empathy and insight to how she supports both her clients and her team.

Benjamin Thompson brings extensive experience in growth strategy, e-commerce, and digital transformation. Based in Sydney, Australia, he has built a career spanning retail, fashion, and digital commerce, holding senior roles including GM of Digital Growth & Commercial Strategy at Endeavour Group and VP of Marketing at Zalando. Across these positions, he developed a strong track record of unlocking new revenue streams, scaling go-to-market operations, and driving commercial impact. A member of the Groceryshop USA Advisory Board and a keynote speaker, Ben is recognised as a thought leader in the retail and commerce space. Notably, he speaks nine languages, reflecting the truly global perspective he brings to his role at Kevel.