Karen Kaplan

Karen Kaplan is chairman and CEO of Hill Holliday.She has consistently epitomized what makes Hill Holliday great — energy, optimism, passion, smarts, and loyalty– not to mention a healthy dose of scrappiness. That’s how she went from being the receptionist in 1982 to being named chairman and CEO. A driving force behind Hill Holliday’s growth to more than $1 billion in annual billings, she’s been recognized by Business Insider and Advertising Age as one of the most influential women in advertising. Kaplan’s leadership has helped build an impressive list of premier clients including Bank of America, Cadillac, Capella University, Celgene, Chili’s, Dunkin’ Donuts, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Johnson & Johnson, John Hancock, LG Home Appliances USA, Liberty Mutual, Major League Baseball, Merrell, Merrill Lynch, Novartis, Olympic Paints and Stains, (RED), Smucker’s, Supercuts, TJX and Verizon Wireless. She serves on the boards of directors for numerous civic and professional organizations, and is a member of the Clinton Global Initiative, an action–‐oriented community of the most effective CEOs, heads of state, Nobel Prize winners and non–‐governmental leaders in the world. Kaplan is also a trustee of Fidelity Investments Strategic Advisers Funds and a director of Vera Bradley. @hillholliday