Andrea Katz

Andrea Katz

Andrea Katz is the founder and Managing Director of Ideon Agency. She launched Ideon, a branding agency in the USA in 2008, with a simple key purpose to have impact and make a difference. Ideon has evolved with a belief that brands can transform societies, markets, businesses and industries: The power of a simple idea, well told and executed with integrity, can create value and lasting bonds between a company and its constituents. Ideon is widely acknowledged to help clients get there and to make the world a better place in the process.

Based in New York City, and privately held, Ideon is a research, strategy, design, storytelling and activation agency. Its client roster includes corporate powerhouses, institutional innovators, and non-profit entities on the cusp of change. All share a commitment and desire to own a brand with impact, one that makes the world a better place.

Andrea earned a Bachelor of Arts in government, economics and politics from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg South Africa in 1981. She also received a Master of Science in urban planning from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation in 1984.

Andrea started by building NYC’s urban development strategies under Mayors David N. Dinkins, Edward I. Koch, and Robert R. Kiley at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. After, she led marketing for KPMG USA, defining the consultancy’s reputation and influence on a global scale. At Thomson Reuters (the global information and technology giant), she served as CMO, reinforcing growth and customer engagement. Andrea brought global advertising, marketing, digital transformation and consulting skills to Omnicom agencies including Interbrand and BBDO, before opening Ideon in 2008.

On January 8, 2024, Andrea was celebrated by Marquis Who’s Who for her dedication to the field of branding. As in all Marquis Who’s Who biographical volumes, individuals like Andrea are selected and profiled on the basis of current reference value. This award recognizes individuals who have, over the course of their careers, demonstrated significant excellence in driving strategy, innovation and leadership through their personal contribution and efforts in industry.

Andrea attributes her career success to her unbridled optimism and creativity. Despite growing up under apartheid, she always contributes a winning combination of strategy, creativity, and business acumen on a very human scale. She credits her accomplishments to the people she has encountered, viewing them as a rich source of joy. To her, there has never been a more transformative time for brands: As we strategize, design, and develop a more connected world, we must be visionary leaders with new ideas that reflect how we’re growing as a country and world.

Making the world better is also central to her work as a trustee of National Children's Theatre of South Africa and is integral to the operations of Ideon Agency, which has been NCT’s agency-of-record since 2021. As trustee, Andrea secured Ogilvy and Leagas Delaney as NCT’s PR and advertising agencies and Disney as NCT’s inaugural partner. It includes NCT’s exclusive production of Disney's "The Lion King JR" show and the Disney-NCT Musical in Schools workshop program at select disadvantaged schools in Johannesburg. Andrea sees a substantial opportunity to connect disadvantaged learners with American education and entertainment spheres. She and Ideon are also managing a global fundraising campaign for NCT in their quest to rejuvenate and rebuild NCT’s brand locally and internationally.