Lavin Bernick Executive Chat with Julian Posada '97

The Lavin Bernick Executive Chats are an exciting way to engage with successful and esteemed executives and civic leaders. You will have an opportunity to participate in an intimate conversation around the theme of leadership.

This session will feature Julian Posada '97. Julian is an operationally-focused professional with over 17 years of experience creating and executing strategies to maximize enterprise value. He has demonstrated results building, streamlining and leading organizations of different sizes and facing different challenges. He is experienced working with a variety of ownership groups including private equity, venture capital and family offices. Julian successfully applies transformational leadership and operational excellence to ambiguous situations and can work across marketing, sales, operations, existing leadership and strategic planning. Industry expertise has focused on media, sports, non-profit with an emphasis on winning within Hispanic markets.

Julian Posada currently serves as EVP of Marketing and Strategy for Chicago Sun-Times. He managed several departments during his tenure including Chicago.com, Technology, Strategy and co-publisher of the Reader publication. He currently manages and leads the $30M Audience Development/Circulation team as well as all marketing initiatives for the company.

Previously he was the President and CEO of the Chicago Fire Soccer Club. He was responsible for the day-to-day operations serving as the top Fire business executive leading the strategic planning and overall management of the club. During his tenure the organization saw record setting revenue growth in all revenue categories including Quaker Oats jersey deal and growing Hispanic fan base.

Prior to this, Posada was Publisher/GM for Hoy, Chicago's only Spanish Daily Newspaper (Tribune owned and operated). Posada was responsible for the day-to-day activities of Hoy Chicago including strategy, editorial, sales, finance, marketing, circulation and production. In addition to launching Hoy Chicago, he also launched Hoy Los Angeles. He lead both organizations to double digit revenue and profit growth during his tenure.

Posada has launched his own company Café Media LLC which focused on 2nd and 3rd Generation Hispanic and has held senior level positions at Citibank in Colombia SA where he worked on both the marketing and operations side of the business. He served as GM/Director of Business Development at Querico.com as part of Ethnicgrocer.com a digital start-up backed by KB Partners and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
Posada has served on numerous non-profit boards over his career. Currently he sits on the board of the Chicago Parks Foundation, The Taproot Foundation, World Sport Chicago and The Otho S. A. Sprague Memorial Institute.

He has received several awards and recognitions for his business achievements and community service including being a McCormick Tribune Media Fellow (2006), winner of Presstime's 20 under 40 (2007), Chicago United Business Leader of Color (2007), Cook County State's Attorney's (2008) Arnold Mireles Community Empowerment Award, the NSHMBA Brilante Award in (2009) , the (2010) Exito Award from HACE, Centro
Romero Community Service Award in 2011, the 5th 3rd Bank's Community Leader Award in 2013. Most recently he was recognized by MALDEF with a Corporate Social Responsibility award (2014).

He earned an MBA from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management and a B.S. from Michigan State University.

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