GENERAL PARTNER
Ross Martin is CEO of Blackbird, a marketing and business innovation agency that uses consumer intelligence, strategy, and breakthrough creative to solve problems, create opportunities, and propel growth for industry leaders and the challengers out to disrupt them.
He is the former Executive Vice President of Marketing Strategy and Engagement for Viacom, the worldwide media and entertainment company, where he oversaw marketing strategy, consumer intelligence, data science, creative innovation, internal agency, and business development teams. Previously, Martin founded and ran Scratch, Viacom’s creative strategy and consulting division.
Martin joined Viacom in 2004 as the first Head of Programming for MTV's Emmy and Peabody Award winning college network, mtvU and later served as Senior Vice President of MTV 360 Production and Development. Prior to MTV, Martin ran production company Plant Film, served as VP of Film & Television for internet startup Nerve.com, and was a development executive for Spike Lee's 40 Acres and A Mule Filmworks.
Martin is a member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and the National Board of Directors of the American Advertising Federation, and the advisory boards of St. Jude Children’s Hospital and the Yale University Center for Customer Insights. Recent honors and recognitions include Fast Company's “100 Most Creative People In Business,” an Advertising Age “Media Maven” distinction, Fortune Magazine’s "40 Under 40" top business leaders and AdWeek’s “50 Most Indispensable Executives in Advertising.” In 2014, he was inducted into the Advertising Hall of Achievement.