Illuminate by Cella
September 16 - 17, 2025
Philadelphia, PA – The Franklin Institute
Register Today
lluminate by Cella is coming soon! Get ready for the signature event of the year where digital, marketing and creative leaders come together for can’t-miss strategy, connection and insight.
Marketing and creative teams have to innovate for efficiency and effectiveness, and AI can be a significant key to unlock the possibilities. At Illuminate, we’ll remove the mystery around AI and focus on its potential to extend your resources. Discover how it can power your strategy, enabling efficiency at every point on the compass, and unleash unbridled innovation.
Event highlights:
- Keynote speaker Jeremy Utley, innovation expert; practical AI specialist; Stanford Adjunct Professor; host of "Beyond the Prompt: How to Use AI in Your Company;" bestselling author of Ideaflow: The Only Business Metric That Matters
- Interactive workshops about using AI for organizational efficiency and innovation
- Private trolley tour of historic Philadelphia with a stop at the famous “Rocky” steps and statue at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
- Dynamic talks featuring creative, marketing and digital experts
- Roundtable peer discussions and brainstorming for solving key challenges
The fine print:
Early bird pricing is available now for a limited time!
- $899 – Early bird pricing (ends August 1!)
- $1199 – Regular pricing begins August 2
Lodging:
The Logan Philadelphia, Curio Collection by Hilton
One Logan Square
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Book with special Illuminate rate until August 26.
One Logan Square
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Book with special Illuminate rate until August 26.
Tickets are limited for this highly popular event and spaces will go fast, so reserve your spot today! We can’t wait to see you in Philadelphia.
Keynote: Jeremy Utley
Jeremy Utley is a go-to expert for actionable insights on AI and creativity. A distinguished Stanford professor and bestselling author, he has taught over a million students and advised Fortune 500 CEOs on harnessing AI to unlock innovation. As co-author of Ideaflow: The Only Business Metric That Matters and host of the top 1% podcast Beyond the Prompt: How to Use AI in Your Company, Jeremy bridges cutting-edge research and practical applications to deliver real business impact. Known for his engaging and entertaining style, Jeremy inspires audiences worldwide to rethink AI as a transformative thought partner, unlocking new levels of creativity and collaboration.
Nickole Brown
Nickole Brown has two decades of creative operations, production and marketing experience to share. She is passionate about bringing clarity to creative spaces and focuses on utilizing voice of customer, data and mechanisms to tell the true story of a creative organization. Nickole’s skills include being an effective leader and partner who enjoys collaborating to uncover the unique process improvement opportunities, success metrics and team structure that will capture an organizations potential.
Sue Wolski
Cella consultant Sue Wolski is an innovative and accomplished Creative Services Marketing Executive. She has built and developed best-in-class creative services teams and processes in both agency and in-house corporate environments. Sue uses both her creative expertise and business acumen to develop organizations focused on supporting sales and business growth while delivering a quality creative product and advancing the ability of her team. She has extensive experience in helping organizations deliver operational excellence through strategic planning, process improvement, organization design, financial and business management, technology implementation, change planning and leadership, and personnel development.
Mary Baum
With 15 years of experience in marketing, Mary Baum is a seasoned expert in digital marketing strategies. As the Director of Digital Marketing, she excels in SEO, content marketing, social media strategy, PPC, and analytics. Her strategic vision and data-driven approach have driven successful campaigns for startups and established enterprises alike, helping them enhance their online presence and achieve business goals. Mary's commitment to continuous learning ensures she stays ahead in the ever-evolving digital landscape.
Angela Conway
Cella Inc. consultant Angela Conway brings more than two decades of versatile creative, marketing and operations experience to the table. Angela’s key strengths begin with her reputation as a reliable and resourceful “go to” person. She is a dynamic and collaborative leader, and her exceptional interpersonal skills led her to impactful partnerships with key stakeholders. She places great effort into cultivating superior client relationships, and mentoring team members on their work and developing themin their careers. Angela is widely known as a highly organized and efficiency-focused business planning professional with a knack for identifying and streamlining roles and processes, implementing and reporting metrics strategy, driving cost savings and creating overall sustainable solutions for an organization.
Kate Roberts
Kate Roberts, Director, Strategic Accounts & Managed Services at Cella, has over 25 years of creative operations, marketing and leadership experience. She previously ran an in-house agency for a global Fortune 500 financial services firm where she guided the international expansion of her team, across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Poland, India and Malaysia. Kate takes a client-centric approach in her responsibilities and values diverse insights, open discussion, and collaboration – and believes leaders need to foster an environment for success.
This year at Illuminate, we’re going all in on AI, but not in the way you might think. After all, AI is a tool – one among many – with multiple applications to creative and operational goals. How do we apply AI as a driver for efficiency, productivity and innovation to achieve a comprehensive strategy?
Starting with approaches that directly contribute to business impact, our sessions answer that question.
General Sessions:
- Sailing Without Wind: Harnessing Constraints to Prioritize for Impact
- Discovering AI's Full Potential: Closing the Gap between Curiosity, Complexity and Total Integration
- Use Your Superpowers for Good: Unleashing the AI Capabilities of Generative AI
- Synthetic Creativity: How Creative Roles Are Evolving and Why Upskilling Is the Answer
- Creating a Culture of Continuous Improvement
Breakout Sessions:
- The Doctor Is In: Problem Solving for Chronic Marketing and Creative Team Challenges
- Optimal Organizational Design: Roundtable Discussion
- Cultivating Consumer Trust: Balancing Personalization with Privacy Concerns
- Multishoring Models: A Flexible Talent Structure that Scales with You
