Meet our Discipline Leads - Stewards of Excellence
Nishat Akhtar, VP Creative, Leon Anderson, VP Production, John Brown, VP Technology and Luca Vergano, VP Strategy
At Instrument, the magic is in the mix — a blend of creative, strategy, technology, and production. This multidisciplinary approach is core to how we work, and has helped us solve problems, seize opportunities, and accelerate growth for the world's most progressive brands. Over the past 18 years, we've shaped our skill sets into centers of excellence, each with dedicated leadership. Meet Nishat, Leon, John, and Luca, the discipline leads at the forefront of our work and partnerships.
Luca, Nishat, JB, and Leon are passionate leaders in their craft who, together, are setting an example of what can be achieved when diverse perspectives come together.
Nishat Akhtar, VP of Creative, has worked across brand, marketing, and product design. A designer at heart, she pushes the discipline beyond the expected to create modern and accessible experiences that delight and produce impact. Nishat has played a pivotal role in our partnerships with both Nike and Google, and has long been valued as a creative partner and visionary by clients. Outside of Instrument, Nishat takes joy as a design educator, and as an artist and illustrator whose work has been featured in the New York times, the ACLU, and many more.
Leon Anderson, VP of Production, is a former engineer and portfolio manager who's worked across industries, from aerospace to medical devices. His diversity of experience — and lessons learned along the way — make him an indispensable leader and client partner. Leon puts in the work to solve problems, creating platform and system solutions that both establish process and improve workflow. Leon is a TedX speaker and improv artist, performing with his troupe Broke Gravy in Portland — and brings a spirit of excitement, energy and play to every interaction.
John Brown, VP of Technology, has led the charge on many of our most innovative tech projects — from future technology to enterprise engineering to immersive physical and digital experiences. He's a tenured front- and back-end developer, with a passion (and knack) for transforming the dreams of our clients into reality. His work emphasizes the merging of technology, strategy, and design, paired with experimentation and exploration to build tech-forward creative solutions. John is a creative technologist and artist in his own right, spending time building generative art, interactive installations, and speaking around the world about the power of technology and creativity.
Luca Vergano, VP of Strategy, joins us this year as the newest of our executive discipline leads. He brings extensive global experience in building strategic frameworks for all industries — including media, tech, product, and creative. He's passionate about precision, getting to the root of business challenges, and driving scalable solutions. He's also a natural people person, ready and eager to jump in and problem solve. Luca has lived, worked, and spoken around the world, bringing a global mindset and perspective to our work, and to our clients' challenges.
