April 28, 2025

Call it a full-circle career moment: Micah Aberson, who began as an intern at L&S, is now the advertising and marketing agency’s new CEO.

Aberson began the role today, marking a return to the firm almost one decade to the month since he left for a role at Sanford Health, where he ultimately served as executive vice president.

He then went on to serve as president of Mammoth Sports Construction and most recently as president of Cambria.

In addition to Aberson’s new role, longtime L&S leader Laura Mitchell has been promoted to president and chief operating officer — a new role for the firm. She too began as an intern before being hired after graduation from South Dakota State University in 2006 as an account coordinator.

She held various leadership roles on the marketing and digital sides of the business before becoming vice president of marketing and part of the leadership team that has helped guide the agency for the past five years.

Aberson joined L&S in 2003 while still a student at Augustana University. His first full-time role was as an account coordinator, and he ultimately was promoted to vice president of client service and business development in 2010, a role he held before leaving the firm in 2015.

At the time, Scott Lawrence, whom Aberson is replacing as CEO, encouraged him to explore the opportunities ahead of him, though on the way out said “maybe someday you’ll be back,” Aberson said.

“I don’t know that I contemplated that then or that I contemplated that a year ago, but life happens and opportunity happens, and you never know what’s around the next corner. This is sort of a full-circle moment, and we’re all excited to come together for this chapter.”

He said he plans to draw on experience he has gained in the past decade working with marketing agencies nationwide.

“Marketing has always been my first love and my native language, and I’ve been incredibly fortunate over the last 10 years to work with some really talented and smart CEOs and leaders, but I’ve never been too far removed from marketing,” he said, adding that at both Sanford and Cambria the organizations’ chief marketing officers reported to him.

“The agency business really is a relationship business at the end of the day — the combination of relationships to get you in the room and then producing a superior product, which is where Laura will focus a lot of time and attention.”

Mitchell and Aberson worked together for years on tourism-related accounts at L&S.

“I’m really excited to help grow our products and ensure we’re staying competitive and still creating those great marketing strategies for our clients and making sure we’re helping them meet their goals,” Mitchell said. “Creating emotional connections with the clients’ brands we get to work with every day is our job and what makes it fun every day.”

Five years ago, the owners of L&S, including Lawrence, transitioned daily management and operations of the marketing and advertising agency to a newly formed leadership team.

Lawrence announced then that he planned to remain president and CEO until this year, marking 17 years in the role.

“The leadership team has done a great job getting us to where we are today, and they’re all intact and in place,” Lawrence said. “Laura’s role has been elevated, which I’m very excited about, and with the opportunity with Micah, things kind of fell into place, and this gives us the opportunity to expand our footprint outside our realm with other types of business. It all fit.

“I’m happy for Micah, I’m happy for Laura. (I’m) happy because we have a great brand and history, and now it’s time to write the next set of years.”

Aberson, who previously had ownership in the firm before leaving for Sanford, will buy out partners Mark Glissendorf and Dan Edmonds this week. Lawrence and John Pohlman plan to sell their remaining shares by the start of next year though future ownership hasn’t been announced.

The leadership team remains in place:

• Ryan Budmayr, vice president of public relations and business development.
• Ryan Gardner, vice president of finance.
• Jamie Hegge, vice president of client service.
• Kristy Laue, vice president of creative.

In 2026, L&S will mark 50 years since its founding by Lawrence’s brother Craig and Paul Schiller.

“They’re really excited about (the transition). They’re excited the name and legacy will continue,” Lawrence said.

L&S has evolved its client mix in recent years as well as opened an office in the Twin Cities.

Clients include Pizza Ranch, various departments for the state of South Dakota such as tourism, health, social services, highway safety and South Dakota Lottery, and a variety of other state offices such as the Montana Office of Tourism and Idaho Lottery.

Aberson’s relationships through Minnesota-based Cambria offer another opportunity for growth.

“I really missed being in Sioux Falls full time,” he added. “L&S is so interwoven into the fabric of the community, and that’s always been a passion area for me. It took me five minutes to get to the office, and for the last two years, it’s been 3.5 hours. Cambria is an amazing company and (CEO) Marty Davis remains a mentor and friend, but the distance and travel was just difficult.”

In looking ahead to opportunities for L&S, Aberson hones in on the concept of “being obsessed with client success.”

“For me, it feels really familiar and comfortable to move back into an environment I understand intimately. My last couple career changes have been foreign languages — trying to understand the dynamics of countertop manufacturing or construction or even health care — and this feels really comfortable and right.”