Latest Posts

2017 USF Fast56 Nominee Attributes Success to College Professor Loyd Pettegrew

March 16, 2017

TAMPA, FL. (March 16, 2017)- McKay Advertising + Activation has been selected as a member of the University of South Florida’s Fast 56 Class of 2017. This nomination hits very close to home for McKay since more than half of their management team, including President Robert McKay, are all USF alum and they have all had a relationship with Professor Loyd Pettegrew of the Communications Department.

  • Bob Mckay, President: May 1987: BA: Communication
  • Eric Ortiz, Director of Sales & Acquisition: May 2015 BA: Organizational Communication & minor in Psychology
  • Matthew Oldfield, Director of Software Development: August 2015, BS: Physics
  • Alex Andrews, Director of Content Development and Strategy: May 2016 BS: Psychology minor in Communications.

According to President Bob McKay, “Professor Pettegrew was a great teacher and career counselor, but most importantly introduced him to Eric Ortiz and also Alex Andrews.”

Eric attributes success outside of school to Professor Pettegrew and says that, “…he gave me a glimpse of what the real workplace was like outside of school, prepared me to be ready for it”.

According to Pettegrew, “A diversity of educational preparation and a commitment to achievement here at USF melds these gentlemen. We all recognize its unique assets, especially its graduates and its role in making the entire Tampa Bay area stronger and better place to live and work.”

Pettegrew also introduced the idea of a Digital Communication Audit to McKay, an approach that is now considered a main asset to the business when it comes to seeking new clients and spreading the word of digital marketing.

ABOUT USF FAST 56

The Fast 56 identifies, recognizes and celebrates the world’s fastest growing USF Bull-owned or Bull-led businesses. The awards celebrate their success while also providing a forum to pass lessons to the next generation of Bull entrepreneurs.

Categorized in:

This post was written by Elevate, Inc.

1 Comment

Get Connected

Join our networks and stay in touch.

Read Our Testimonials

Hear what our customers have to say

“Aakash Patel, Chris Melvin and the rest of the Elevate team simply delivered. The connections Aakash made led to valuable relationships for me and new clients for RevStar. You can’t fully appreciate what Elevate can do for your business until you experience it first hand. I personally recommend their services to anybody looking to grow their network and business within the Tampa Bay community.”

Ken Pomella, PMP – CEO, RevStar Consulting

“If you’re looking to dive into the who’s who of Tampa Bay, Elevate, Inc. is the only way to go. Elevate worked closely with Tampa Bay Plumbers to help us get our foot in the door with the right business and community circles to help us grow. We appreciated Aakash Patel & Chris Melvin’s professionalism, attention to detail, and willingness to go over and above to provide us a quality service. The contacts through Elevate are numerous and professionally beneficial and the staff is always available to us. We enjoyed working with the Elevate team and will definitely keep them in mind for our future business needs.”

April Diemer – Tampa Bay Plumbers

“Working with Aakash and his team at Elevate was a great fit for our growing organization. His team helped us connect with key influencers across the region and identify opportunities. Together you work to define your goals and who you’re targeting and through their connections and network they can make warm introductions to the decisions makers you need to connect with.”

Chon Nguyen – Founder & CEO, Newgentek

“Elevate, Inc’s. business relationship building process and their specialized one-on-one client service has opened doors and created potential opportunities that we wouldn’t have been able to create on our own. If your business would benefit from business relationship building introductions, I highly recommend Elevate, Inc.”

Gary LoDuca – Founder & Owner, Thoughtful Advisors – 401(k) Plan Designs