Casey Hurbis: Level Up Free Professional Development Resourcing Webinar

The MSU StratCom Program presents Level Up: A Professional Development Series. These free events will feature industry leaders who will be sharing insights and lessons learned, as well as offer practical tips to implement in work and life. The format will be interactive with a presentation, interview and live Q&A. Level Up will be hosted by Merri Jo Bales, Vice President and Strategic Director of University Communications for MSU. 

Session Details

Session Title: “Rocket Mortgage Brand Evolution and Lessons Learned”
Presenter: Casey Hurbis, Chief Marketing Officer, Rocket Mortgage
Recorded: Wednesday, October 20, 12-1pm EST

 

Watch The Event

Casey shares behind the scenes stories about the evolution of Quicken Loans to Rocket Mortgage, breaks down the process of creating a superbowl ad, how Rocket created a culture that endures today. He shares that become the leader in lending, there were several key moments that required wisdom, risk, and guts. Casey will share some of these moments and the principles that were foundational to those moves. After Casey's conversation with Merri Jo, they took questions from the online audience to offer practical tips to apply principles shared in the event. 

Casey shares with Merri Jo on his professional journey from Michigan State to Rocket Mortgage. He shares key pivot points that Rocket went through where they had key decisions to make to market and grow. He finishes by talking about developing "isms" culture that started at the beginning and is key to where they are today.

Casey Hurbis, Chief Marketing Officer of Rocket Mortgage, shares how Rocket Mortgage worked with his team and partners to create a Superbowl ad. He shows the story boards, the process, production and final product.

Casey Hurbis, Chief Marketing Officer of Rocket Mortgage, shares insights on leadership, developing the right culture and how to implement them to win.

Casey Hurbis, Chief Marketing Officer of Rocket Mortgage, gives feedback on questions from the audience.

The Presenters

About Casey

Casey Hurbis is the Chief Marketing Officer for Rock Central (Rocket Companies Centralized Company. He oversees both online and traditional marketing initiatives, while driving new, innovative strategies to captivate the audience of the nation’s largest and most trusted mortgage lender. To achieve these goals, Casey leads a marketing team of over 300 team members, known as Detroit’s premier in-house agency. The in-house agency was recently named one of Ad Age’s Best Places to Work 2021.  

Under Casey’s leadership Rocket Mortgage launched the two highest rated Super Bowl commercials in 2021, starring actor/comedian Tracy Morgan showing how certain is better when it comes to home financing. This is the second year in a row that Rocket Mortgage received some of the highest ratings for Super Bowl commercials. In 2020, Rocket Mortgage launched a commercial starring Hollywood A-lister, Jason Momoa. Casey’s team also signed an exclusive multi-year partnership with the NFL, making Rocket Mortgage the first official mortgage sponsor of the NFL in over a decade. In addition, 2021 marked the second year of the Rocket Mortgage Super Bowl Squares Sweepstakes, giving fans the chance to win millions of dollars in prizes. 

Along with Rocket Mortgage, Casey oversees the marketing efforts for 12 successful brands in the Rock Family of Companies, including Rocket Pro TPO, Rocket Homes, Rocket Loans, and Rocket Auto, helping to elevate these brands in their respective industries.

Casey joined the Rocket family in 2017 after 24 years in automotive marketing – most recently leading advertising and communications for FIAT, where he helped successfully reintroduce the FIAT brand to American car buyers thru cheeky and culturally relevant advertising and promotion.

About Merri Jo

Merri Jo Bales

Merri Jo Bales is vice president and strategic director of University Communications at MSU. In this role, Bales directs a strategic, coordinated and proactive approach to communications and public relations, overseeing the work of two teams, Marketing, Public Relations and Digital Strategy, and Media and Public Information.

Bales recently completed a 27-year career with Consumers Energy where she ultimately was responsible for establishing, expanding and aligning the strategy function and for executive communication. Prior to joining Consumers Energy, Merri Jo was executive director of the Michigan Sesquicentennial, the commemoration of Michigan’s 150th anniversary of statehood.

During her career, Bales has gained extensive experience in public relations, internal communication, media relations and crisis communication, as well as strategic planning and major program development.

A 1977 graduate of MSU’s College of Communication Arts and Sciences, Bales is among the college’s Distinguished Alumni and has served on the executive board for the MSU International Alumni Association and the ComArtSci alumni board.