Our Senior Team

Rick Heffner, President & Creative Director

Fresh from design school, Rick got his start at one of D.C.’s premier design firms, Supon Design Group. He then moved on to be one of the initial members of the design team for Discovery Communications as Senior Design Manager. In that role he was responsible for designing and art directing collateral for Discovery Channel, TLC, and Animal Planet. Thirsting for an opportunity to apply his skills to a wider array of clients, in 1996 he founded Fuszion. The studio would soon be a national player, expanding into the museums, arts, associations, and institutional markets.

Rick earned his MFA from the Vermont College of Fine Arts, MA from the University of Baltimore, BFA from Shepherd University, and AA from Frederick Community College. He has served on the board of directors for the Art Directors Club of Metropolitan Washington and holds membership in the Broadcast Designers Association, AIGA, and the University & College Designers Association. Rick is also an assistant professor of graphic design at George Mason University School of Art.

Fuszion’s work has earned praise all around the world from the Broadcast Designers Association, Art Directors Club of Thailand, Print, AIGA, HOW, Graphis, the ADDYs, Novum, ADCMW, CTAM, HOW Design Books, Rockport Publishers, DESI, American Corporate Identity, The Big Book of Logos, Entertainment Graphics and many others.

Tom Gamertsfelder, Senior Art Director

Tom is an award-winning creative with over 30 years of industry experience in advertising, visual communication and design. He is a veteran of creating and managing print and digital content to build relationships for organizations and individuals, his design work includes: corporate branding, annual reports, exhibit design, newsletters, brochures, advertising campaigns, web design, UI design — from concept to completion — for clients including the Smithsonian Institution, National Recreation & Park Association, Navy Seabees, GSA, Office of Military Commissions, NAVFAC, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of State (Office of Citizen Exchanges), U.S. Naval Academy, SiriusXM Satellite Radio, International Spy Museum and Ocean Conservancy.

Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite (InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Adobe Animate, Acrobat) QuarkXPress, Microsoft Office. Strong knowledge of the print and production process. Hired and art directed freelance photographers and illustrators. Proven track record of meeting strict deadlines and staying organized while managing client relationships and supervising staff.

Tom holds a BFA from Virginia Commonwealth University and has won numerous creative awards, including Print Regional Design Annual, Silver Inkwell, Addy Awards: Washington, DC & Frederick, MD and has been recognized in Excellence in Print Competition, Prints Best Logos and American Corporate Identity.

Tom’s immediate future goals are becoming a better human, father, husband and creative.

Sue Smith, CFO

With 20 years’ experience, Sue manages Fuszion’s finances and human resources. She handles accounts payable and receivable as well as personnel management. Previously she worked for organizations as diverse as the U.S. Army, Fortune 500s, and other small businesses. Sue was officially commended for exceptional performance by the Army for her significant accomplishments and commitment to detail. Her human resource duties range from day-to-day operations to tackling the firm’s ever-evolving employee benefit compensation package.

She holds a Bachelor’s of Business Administration, an Associate of Applied Science with a Concentration in Accounting, and a Certified Bookkeeper’s Certificate. She is also certified by the AIPB in Bookkeeping, Inventory, Depreciation, Payroll, Internal Controls and Fraud Prevention. Married and the mother of two, Sue is currently prepping for the CPA exam.

Jeff Goelz, Director, Business Development

Equal parts left- and right-brained, Jeff utilizes his business savvy and creative flair to help meet clients’ marketing objectives as he builds Fuszion’s new business portfolio. He began working with Fuszion in 2006 and has nurtured partnerships with long-term clients with which the firm has worked ever since.

Jeff holds a BA in Marketing with a minor in Mass Communications from Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville. A midwesterner, Jeff started his career selling steel. He would then evolve his focus to the marketing of creative services instead. Before working with Fuszion, Jeff helped grow an award-winning branding firm from four to 15 employees and raise revenues by 400%. He is a Certified Agency Financial Manager and has been involved in a variety of professional organizations such as Toastmasters International, AIGA, American Marketing Association, and Public Relations Society of America. Women In Cable Telecommunications awarded Jeff its Volunteer of the Year award in 2015; and  in 2017 he served as Director of Georgia Programming for the organization’s southeast chapter.

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