[CHICAGO, IL – March 18, 2026] – Havas Chicago has appointed Lou Amodeo as SVP, Head of Growth, to spearhead its new business development and accelerate the agency’s already unprecedented growth, which includes 30% organic growth and 80% conversion of new business in the last 18 months. He succeeds Christyn Lovelace, who served one year in the position before joining Eastport Holdings.
Reporting to President Kat Ott, Amodeo joins forces with Chief Creative Officer Frank Dattalo and Chief Strategy Officer Chase Cornett, both of whom also joined Havas Chicago in the past 18 months. The new leadership team has seen much success in helping clients like Stanley Steemer, Wayfair, Citi Bank, and Bel Brands reposition themselves for cultural relevance and growth. Together they crafted the agency’s “High-Low” model—“Think like a brand and act like an influencer”—blending strategic depth with creator agility for culturally relevant work.
“Lou’s experience operating as both a hunter and a closer across global categories makes him the perfect fit to accelerate Havas Chicago’s next phase of growth,” said Kat Ott, President, Havas Chicago. “We loved his background as a modern marketer who has a passion for creative – it gives him the perfect lens to drive new business from our positioning to Do the Undeniable in our work with clients.”
Most recently, Amodeo served as VP of Growth at DEPT®, where he helped drive more than $45M in new business revenue and played a key role in unifying the organization as more than ten agencies integrated into the global company. He led pitch teams to multiple high‑profile wins — including FIFA, Meta, Five Below, Snapchat, and Yelp — and strengthened DEPT®’s relationships with the search consultant community, which contributed to his team’s success of more than $100M in consultant‑sourced pipeline during his tenure. Known for bringing new tools and thinking into the process, he also spearheaded AI adoption across growth operations, with his department ultimately ranking first in AI fluency and usage across DEPT®’s global multi‑thousand‑person workforce.
“Havas Chicago has real teeth,” said Amodeo. “My job is to help us identify new clients that will benefit the most from our High-Low model, hunt the right opportunities, win big, and keep the vibe calm and human while we do it. Together, we are going to grow this agency and grow careers.”
This leadership refresh infuses fresh expertise, creative ambition and a people-first mindset, setting the tone for the agency’s new era.
