Team — ascadvisors

Meet Your Team

As the largest team focused exclusively on alternative investment management, we draw from experience at leading financial communications agencies, major investment managers and prominent media organizations.

We promise partner-level attention to every client, ensuring the highest level of service and accountability. Our culture of close collaboration and proactive support ensures client access to decades of relevant experience and insights that help clients achieve their goals.

Steve Bruce
Managing Partner
Stamford
Steve co-founded ASC Advisors in 2010. Steve has been providing strategic counsel to financial services clients for 40 years. During the last 20 years of his career, he has focused almost exclusively on advising hedge funds and private equity firms in every facet of their businesses, from brand building, to investor and media relations, speech and media training, position-level support, M&A, IPOs, and crisis management. His crisis management expertise encompasses regulatory, legal and market events, and he has counseled managers involved in many of the industry’s most well-known crises.
Prior to founding ASC Advisors, Steve spent 23 years at Abernathy MacGregor, where he developed and led the industry’s largest alternative investment communications practice. He joined Abernathy MacGregor in 1988 after his former firm, Bruce & Leavy Communications, was acquired by the firm. Mr. Bruce also previously worked at Ogilvy & Mather, J. Walter Thompson, Hill & Knowlton, and Burson-Marsteller. Steve received the Presidential Volunteer Award from President George W. Bush for his more than 40 years of work with Special Olympics International.
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Taylor Ingraham
Partner
Stamford

Taylor has more than a 15 years of financial communications experience, serving both alternative investment management and corporate clients. At ASC Advisors, he has assisted clients on a wide range of situations, including activist campaigns, investor days, position-level support, message development and media relations. Prior to joining ASC Advisors in 2014, Taylor spent five and a half years at Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher, where he consulted public companies and private equity firms in financial communications surrounding M&A and other special and crisis situations, including activist defense. He began his career at Smith Barney working directly with financial advisors.
An avid angler, Taylor founded The Tightlined Conservation Coalition and runs The Tightlined Slam, a fly and light tackle fishing tournament dedicated to raising money and awareness for marine conservation. He also serves as Secretary for the American Saltwater Guides Association, a non-profit organization with the mission of promoting sustainable business through marine conservation.
Taylor graduated with a B.A. in English and a minor in Economics from Davidson College, in North Carolina.
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MaryBeth Grover
Partner
New York
Mary Beth brings nearly 20 years of experience representing hedge funds, private equity firms and traditional asset managers. She provides strategic communications counsel to clients in situations including reputation management, media relations, mergers and acquisitions, investor relations and crisis management. Prior to joining ASC Advisors in 2015, she was a Managing Director and co-head of the asset management group at Abernathy MacGregor in New York. Earlier in her career, Mary Beth was a Senior Editor at Forbes, covering the asset management industry and an Assistant Editor at The New York Times Op-Ed page. She is a member of the Education Committee of 100 Women in Hedge Funds. Mary Beth graduated Cum Laude from SUNY at Buffalo and has a MBA from Baruch College.
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Keely Gispan
Managing Director
Miami
Keely joined ASC Advisors in 2021, where she advises clients on reputation management and profile-raising initiatives. With nearly a decade of agency and in-house experience in strategic communications, Keely leverages her diversified expertise in internal and external communications and media relations to amplify the brand presence of her clients.
Most recently, Keely served as Director at Red Banyan, leading the development and implementation of communications strategies for her multisector clients, both domestically and internationally.
Keely previously acted as Assistant Vice President of Media Relations & Corporate Communications across the Americas Region at BNP Paribas, focusing on sustainable finance initiatives; Account Director at Brunswick Group, managing ad hoc crises across various industries; and Account Executive at Abernathy MacGregor, executing communications strategies specifically for asset management clients.
She received her B.A. in English and American Literature from New York University in 2013 and completed a Sustainability Essentials for Business certificate from the University of Cambridge in 2020.
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Kylie Souder
Sr. Associate
New York
Kylie joined ASC Advisors as a Senior Associate in 2023, bringing more than five years of strategic communications experience. Prior to joining ASC Advisors, Kylie was a Senior Associate at Mission North where she advised clients across financial services, regulatory/compliance, technology and insurance industries. She also served as an Account Manager at Aspectus Group.
In these roles, Kylie's responsibilities included planning day-to-day account activity, managing client success and liaising as a key point of contact. She was also responsible for developing content and securing / managing external speaking engagements for executives at industry conferences and workshops. She has significant experience working with investment management firms and industry organizations, including ACA Compliance Group, Accenture, The Global Impact Investing Network, MicroVest, Betterment, SIX Group and DiversyFund.
Kylie graduated from the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University with a B.A. in Journalism and minors in both French and Merchandising.
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Elizabeth Amory
Associate
Stamford

Elizabeth (Liz) joined ASC Advisors as an Associate in 2022. Previously, she was an administrator at a marketing agency serving RIAs and venture capital firms. While there, she managed client social media accounts, developed content, and conducted competitive research. Prior to that, she was an intern and, later, staff assistant in the office of Congresswoman Jahana Hayes, where she assisted staffers on various outreach projects, wrote correspondence, and compiled research on community stakeholders.
Elizabeth graduated from the University of Connecticut in May 2020 with a B.A. in English.
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Morgan Davis
Senior Associate
New York
Morgan Davis joined ASC Advisors in 2023, bringing in-house communications experience at professional services firms.
Previously, Morgan was a Communications Coordinator at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP. While there, she managed communications projects for the General Practice Group, which included the law firm’s premier Financial Services Group. Her responsibilities at Sullivan & Cromwell included collaborating with stakeholders to publish external and internal content and driving brand awareness through outreach and engagement with the press, co-leading the firm’s market-leading podcast and spearheading strategic social media campaigns.
Prior to this, she served as a Marketing & PR Coordinator at Crumiller P.C., where she increased engagement across the firm’s various social media channels and secured placements in national publications for the small, female-founded firm.
Her passion for community engagement led her to serve as a Marketing Manager at Cook Out The Vote, a nonprofit voting rights organization, successfully driving community engagement and increasing voter turnout in underserved areas.
Morgan graduated from New York University in 2021, double majoring in Spanish, with High Honors, and Public Policy.
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Sophia Craco
Associate
Stamford
Sophia joined ASC Advisors as an Associate in September of 2023. Previously, she was a Summer Intern at the firm, where she assisted in developing content, conducting media research and presenting her research to clients.
Prior to that, Sophia was an intern at Bethpage Federal Credit Union. She assisted the Credit Union’s community development team in planning, and participating in programs designed to promote positive outcomes in the community served by the Credit Union. She created content and partnered with other community-based non-profit organizations to coordinate, plan and execute joint efforts in underserved communities.
Sophia graduated from Skidmore College in May 2023, with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Business Management.
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ASC Creative Team

Marco DePlano
Co-Founder,
Creative Direction
New York
Marco is the Co-Founder of ASC Creative Solutions. He started his 30 plus year career as Design Director at Burson-Marsteller, and continued as Creative Director when Young&Rubicam merged the two giants. His first significant logo and brand development was for the 1984 LA Olympic Torch Run. A few years later, Marco founded De Plano Group (now DPGW)—as a creatively focused agency headquartered in midtown Manhattan and Los Angeles. Marco has been highly successful in introducing and repositioning well known brands, products and services in the luxury, finance and technology sectors by adopting an integrated marketing philosophy with an emphasis on strategic creativity and unique design. His partnership with ASC Advisors—truly unique in the sector—dates back to the inception of the agency and has seen numerous successful name and logo creations as well as compelling websites, video, collateral and social media applications. All seamlessly integrated with the brand’s strategic communications and objectives always the priority.
Marco received numerous industry awards and a commendation from the Mayor of NewYork for his pro-bono work, he has been widely published and mentioned in books such as "No Logo" and "Sexy Design;” and has appeared on CNN, NBC and RAI television.
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Ilaria DePlano
Film & Video Production
Los Angeles
Ilaria has spent most of the past decade either in front or behind the camera. She has built a full service production studio in LA and a network of related talent on both coasts. She is experienced in all facets of film, video and photographic productions. Whether it’s a photo session, a video interview, a television commercial, an advertising or social media campaign, she has directed and produced them all—always maintaining a rigorous eye on schedules and budgets. Her past experience with luxury, fashion and lifestyle products gives her an unparalleled edge when dealing with premium financial products and services at ASC.

Ben Logan
Account Management & Strategy
LosAngeles
Ben brings more than a decade of marketing knowledge and strategic planning to ASC. He has worked with leading international brands in finance, real estate and consumer goods. He is well versed in all media and related strategies and works assiduously in maintaining seamless communications between clients, projects and schedules—all aligned to follow the established brand strategy. His passion for art serves him well when working closely with the creative team.

Robert Miner,
Digital Technology, SEO, Compliance
Los Angeles
With a rich tapestry of two decades in the dynamic world of digital marketing, Robert Miner fulfills an increasingly important role at ASC Creative Solutions. He has masterfully blended deep insights from regulated industries such as healthcare and finance with cutting-edge marketing analytics and optimization strategies. At the core of his expertise lies a passion for harnessing data and technology to fuel marketing transformations — from accessibility and search engine optimization (SEO) to social media marketing and diverse advertising platforms. Beyond mere strategy, Robert Miner champions results-driven approaches that ensure brands not only amplify their reach but achieve tangible, optimized outcomes in every campaign. Serving in esteemed technology directorships and digital marketing roles, he brings to ASC a specialized acumen in these constantly evolving areas.
Adept at ensuring innovation aligns with the latest developments in regulatory compliance, Robert’s approach ensures that technology not only amplifies brand reach but also resonates with brand audiences and objectives across multiple channels.

Richard Stewart
Design Direction & Production
New York
Richie is a seasoned professional that brings 30 years of experience in all facets of design and production in both new and traditional media. He also brings his multi disciplinary talent to photography with a mastery in photo retouching. He worked for 10 years with DePlano Group heading production for a variety of international clients in finance, technology and lifestyle.
With his own group RAS he has managed luxury and fashion clients and continues to be a specialist in designing and producing engineering documentation. His multi faceted experience brings a welcomed holistic approach to ASC and their clients’ branding strategies and multiple applications.