The Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI) has made strategic personnel changes at the executive level in sales, technology and marketing.

Matt Barnes, Colleen Orem, Ryan Hutchison and Kevin Jiang, ASI

“To position ASI and the promo industry for long-term success in an ever-changing business environment, I’m thrilled to promote two highly skilled and respected senior leaders in sales and technology and welcome an outstanding executive with more than 20 years of B-to-B marketing experience to my executive team,” says Timothy M. Andrews, president and chief executive officer of ASI.

Matt Barnes has been named executive vice president of ASI and ASI Show, and in his new role will lead strategy for all supplier and distributor sales. He joined ASI in 2015 as vice president of supplier sales, and was most recently vice president of supplier sales and marketing.

“Matt has proven himself time and again as a thoughtful, determined executive who is well-regarded by key suppliers and distributors alike for his energy, professionalism and success at nurturing the relationships so essential to this industry,” says Andrews. “I’m confident that expanding Matt’s role will maximize his considerable talents and result in even greater innovation and growth.”

In addition, ASI has appointed Colleen Orem as senior vice president of marketing; she is tasked with spearheading marketing strategy for supplier sales, distributor sales, ASI Show and corporate marketing. Most recently, Orem was vice president of marketing at OPEX Corp., a global leader in industrial automation.

“Colleen’s hiring is integral to ASI’s industry position as a major technology powerhouse, and I’m confident her insights and perspectives will expand the footprint of our latest innovation, the revolutionary platform ESP+, along with our many other products, services, member benefits, shows and events,” says Andrews.

On the technology side, ASI has promoted Ryan Hutchison to CTO; he will now be responsible for product development and all technology development resources. Hutchison has been with ASI for 15 years, most recently as vice president of development. “Ryan has earned a well-deserved reputation as one of the most elite technology experts in the industry and is among the best I’ve ever met,” says Andrews. “Ryan truly understands customer needs and can think like a user and deliver exactly what’s needed. He possesses an incredible skillset and is committed to helping ASI drive innovation that benefits the entire promo industry.”

As a result, Kevin Jiang’s title will change from CTO to CIO; he will continue to oversee infrastructure and security, integrations, quality assurance, project management, internal and external help desks and EIT. Jiang joined ASI in 2020 as senior vice president and CTO.

“Technology is at the core of what we do, and building a tech portfolio that supports our customers as well as our colleagues has become even more important to our business,” says Andrews. “With the increased emphasis on technology, it makes sense to split our lead technology position in two, with Kevin concentrating on our internal systems and processes and Ryan focusing on external product development and resources for our clients.”

ASI provides technology, marketing and information, including digital content, professional education and live events to 25,000 suppliers, decorators and distributors in the $25.8 billion promo industry.