Russ Axelrod is the Senior Brand Strategist for MSN’s  Branded Entertainment and Experiences Team (BEET), widely recognised as the leading team in the industry.

Russ is responsible for heading up the team’s efforts to develop custom branded content and experiences on behalf of key clients looking to create deeply integrated programs across MSN.  In addition to leading a national team of five strategists, Russ also spearheads the team’s relationships with its major content and production partners.

Previously at Microsoft, Russ was on the US marketing team for the Xbox division.  While there, he led the team’s branded entertainment and alternative marketing initiatives, generating over 10 on-air shows in two years, for such networks as MTV, Spike and The Speed Channel to support the Xbox 360 and the first-party game portfolio (Halo 3, Gears of War, etc.)  In addition, he worked with several of the team’s strategic partners, including Pepsi, Comcast, Fox and 7-11.

Prior to Microsoft, Russ was the Director of Marketing and Promotions at Zilo Networks, a leading college entertainment company. While there, he led the company’s live event division, producing over 75 sports, music and comedy events on behalf of such partners as General Motors, Coca-Cola, Motorola and the US Army.

While attending NYU’s Business School, Russ co-founded ProMotion Pictures, a groundbreaking branded entertainment initiative, where he brought together grad students from both the film (Tisch) and business (Stern) schools to create short films for advertisers.  The programme raised over $750,000 within the first two years, generating work for such clients as Volvo, Verizon, Heineken and Axe.  Russ is still an acting member of the board and continues to help the current students in their sales and strategy efforts.

He holds a M.B.A in Finance, Marketing and Entertainment from New York University’s Stern School of Business, and a B.S. Degree in Marketing from University of Maryland at College Park.