Meet The Team
We are Step Up Social – a social media agency truly run by experts. Our team brings a wealth of industry knowledge combined with a disruptor mindset to help deliver best-in-class results on social media. We couldn’t have done any of this without the people featured below. Take a look!
Our Leadership Team
Emil B.
Founder & CEO
Emil Barr oversees growth and sales at Step Up Social.
Emil founded Step Up Social out of his dorm-room and has grown the business into a multi-million dollar agency.
He is also the Co-Founder of Flashpass, an online education platform and has experience working with startups in the Staffing, FinTech, and AI industries.
Celine Q.
Senior Account Manager
Celine Quadra leads client service at Step Up Social.
Prior to Step Up Social, Celine was an Account Manager at StackAdapt, a programmatic advertising platform and an Account Project Manager at Structured Media, a top media buying agency.
Celine has experience managing millions of dollars in ad spend for her clients.
Kari K.
Social Media Director
Kari Karanikos leads operations and social media strategy at Step Up Social.
She has experience leading marketing and buidling systems for multiple startups, include SwayPay and My Pocket CFO.
Kari is also a personal finance content creator with a large Gen-Z following on Instagram and TikTok.
Our Advisory Board
Tim W.
CEO - Helium SEO
Board Member
Tim Warren is the Founder of Helium SEO, an $10M digital marketing agency.
Helium SEO has been named one of the country's fastest growing agencies for five years in a row and is at the forefront of AI search.
Rob M.
CEO - Miller Companies
Board Member
Rob Miller is a seasoned entrepreneur with four startups and three co-founded ventures under his belt.
His track record includes four exits, one at a $1B+ valuation, primarily in regulated industries and tech.
Mark S.
Founder - Stall Legal
Board Member
Mark Stall is a business attorney with over 30 years of experience as well as an active angel investor in numerous startups.
Prior to founding Stall Legal, Mark worked in M&A and was General Counsel for an $8B+ US company.
Bryan A.
Dean of Business- NMSU Board Member
Bryan Ashenbaum is the Dean of Business of the New Mexico State University College of Business.
Prior to his current role, he served as a Management Professor and Associate Dean at the Miami University Farmer School of Business
Jeff S.
Chairman - Relevate Health
Advisory Member
Jeff Spanbauer is the Co-Founder and Chairman of Relevate Group, an $70M marketing agency.
Jeff grew the agency from a start-up through 4 acquisitions and 200 employees, with double digit growth rates.
