In the labs of the Ultimate Focus Group, we lean into our integrated practice and multidisciplinary studio structure—while also calling upon a curated consortium of project-appropriate and site-specific strategic partners—centralizing insights to ensure impact where it matters most. As your Creative Conductor, WHY Idea provides strategic direction and oversight for robust and vibrant concepts and products, along with corresponding business plans, brand guides, development collateral, and implementation roadmaps that deliver full-stack experiences comprising physical, built environment; its cultural, digital, and virtual touchpoints; and the community that bring it all to life.
Michael Woodsmall, Director of WHY Ideas
Michael Woodsmall is a veteran General Manager and Director with nearly two decades of strategy, development, and operations experience ranging from media to politics to venture capital, including over 10 product launches. From publishing, creative agencies, and political campaigns to tech startups and real estate ventures, Michael has led incisive consortiums of strategists and creatives from early-stage ideation through launch and execution while employing quantitative data and qualitative evidence to generate constructive feedback loops that ensure sustainable growth and guarantee impactful results. Over the course of his career, he has acted as a Managing Editor, Director of Development, Founder, Director of Operations, and Investor—and his responsibilities have included: strategic planning; business intelligence; creative direction and branding; concept and product development; operations design; community building; client acquisition and relations; asset management; data analysis; and metrics and reporting. These days, he finds himself right in the middle of previous experience and forward frontiers, overseeing Business and Strategy at WHY while maintaining a vast network of cultural stakeholders, investors, real estate developers, industry leaders and creative entrepreneurs with whom he acts as a “conductor” for developing and implementing new concepts and products.