Identity, Collaboration and Privacy: Taking on a Post-Cookie World

As Winterberry Group’s Senior Managing Partner and Founder, Bruce Biegel leads the specialist management consultancy’s consulting practice and establishes its strategic and operational agenda. During his tenure at Winterberry Group, Biegel has led several hundred growth strategy, commercial diligence and enterprise data and technology engagements. Global clients served by Biegel and his team include a wide range of enterprise marketers in media, financial services, retail and technology, advertising and marketing agencies, data and digital marketing service and technology providers, along with many of the private equity firms who invest in the sector. A DMCNY (Direct Marketing Club of New York) Silver Apple and Mal Dunn Leadership award winner, he's a frequent speaker at major marketing industry conferences and symposia. This includes Adweek, the DMCNY, DMA, RampUp, I-COM Global Data Symposium, Mirren Agency Conference, the Institute of Direct Marketing (IDM UK) and the 4As—as well as private corporate and client events. In addition to his role at Winterberry Group, Biegel has served as Senior Advisor to investment bank Petsky Prunier LLC and as a member of the DMA board. Today, he serves as an advisor to and member of the board of directors for a number of private companies in the data, data services, technology and agency sectors of the global marketing industry. Biegel also serves as a program chair and trustee for the non-profit education organization MarketingEdge, as well as a data startup jury member for the I-COM Global Symposium and a CODIE Awards Judge. Prior to establishing Winterberry Group—a strategic consulting business that supports growth initiatives in advertising, marketing, media, information and technology—Biegel founded and sold two companies, one in marketing technology and one in data. During that time, he served in a variety of roles including as a board member, President, CFO, EVP of Sales and within the marketing and customer service departments. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, he began his career at Kidder Peabody in MIS.

As Chief Data Officer at Horizon Media, Laura McElhinney is responsible for the technological architecture and daily quality assurance practice and processing of Horizon’s data warehouses, data lakes and data marts. She leads a team of internal and external technology professionals in providing Horizon and their clients with comprehensive media and technology consulting services and solutions. Horizon secures and processes large volumes of data from thousands of complex and linked sources. McElhinney is tasked with the enhancement, creation and implementation of data technology platforms, systems and solutions that seamlessly integrate, analyze and distribute accurate client level data across Horizon clients and account teams. Previously, as the North America Head of all media technology at Havas Media, she was responsible for the implementation, training and integrity of all systems, platforms and related applications — and led a team of technology and solution consultants responsible for all media system activations. McElhinney is married and, along with caring for her five children, is an avid skier and sports enthusiast. In her spare time, she also pursues her passions of cooking and music.

Andre Swantson is a proven leader and entrepreneur with a wide range of experience in marketing, finance and starting and growing companies. As CEO and Co-founder of Tru Optik-- which was acquired by TransUnion in 2020-- he has led the company’s business development, product innovation and go to market strategy. Under his leadership, Tru Optik has become the preferred over-the-top data and technology partner for many of the world’s largest media companies, brands and agencies. Before founding Tru Optik, Swanston served as Vice President of Investments at JP Morgan Chase and also led the Media and Entertainment division at a boutique investment bank in New York City

Matt Spiegel is an EVP at TransUnion responsible for the company’s growing suite of digital marketing products and leading TransUnion’s solutions development for the media and advertising industry. His decades long experience developing and guiding businesses at the intersection of marketing and media with technology and data are a natural fit given TransUnion’s unique data driven capabilities. His experience as an entrepreneur, agency executive, marketing technology executive, and strategic consultant, provide him with a depth and breadth of expertise that is critical for being a business builder and change agent. Spiegel comes to TransUnion with a history of executive leadership roles within digital marketing and technology organizations. He’s the founder of Resolution Media, Omnicom’s search marketing agency. As Omnicom Media Group’s global digital CEO, he launched Omnicom’s trading desk Accuen. He ran the enterprise sales and solutions business for MediaMath across North and Latin America, and most recently was a SVP at Medialink where he was responsible for a host of Fortune 100 client relationships. In addition to Spiegel’s work at TransUnion, he informally advises/mentors start-ups and young entrepreneurs, is a board member of the KWOE Foundation, and was a Crain’s Chicago Business 40 under 40 honoree in 2014.He lives in Chicago with his wife, Marnie and two children, Leo and Penny.