The most valuable agency partners don’t just deliver what’s in scope—they anticipate future needs and unlock new opportunities.
In recent years, Constructive’s client partnerships have grown from standalone web design projects into long-term, multi-year initiatives spanning strategy, branding, digital, and communications. As these projects evolve and relationships deepen, they’ve required strategic leadership to not only manage current priorities but also chart the best path forward.
Cecilia Portillo has been central to this growth. Her consultative guidance, both short- and long-term, has been essential in delivering value beyond immediate scope while helping us and our partners maximize the fullest potential of our collaboration.
With this in mind, we’re thrilled to announce Ceci’s promotion to Client Services Lead! In this role, she’ll continue to support our clients on what we’re building together now and what comes next.
We sat down with Ceci to learn more about her vision, approach, and priorities for this new chapter.
Can you share a bit about your background and experience?
I studied Global Food Security at McGill University, which led me to work with the UN World Food Programme and co-design projects with Indigenous communities in North and South America. From there, I moved into social entrepreneurship, where I founded two startups.
These experiences have shaped how I approach projects by collaborating and co-designing without imposing my or an ‘expert’s’ perspective and being open to iterating, adapting, and meeting people where they are.
I joined the Constructive team at a pivotal time when projects were becoming more complex. These projects required someone who could not only focus on the present but also envision, plan, and strategize for what comes next.
With our clients, this approach starts by encouraging them to think strategically, embrace iteration, and foster creativity. As a result, many of our client partnerships have evolved into multi-year relationships. Ultimately, this allows us to create deeper impact and deliver greater value to our clients’ mission and audiences.
What is your philosophy or approach to working with partners?
Social impact, collaboration, and co-design have consistently been at the heart of my work. Last year, I thought a lot about human-centered design as it applies to project management.
Recently, I’ve been thinking more about design ontology—how design shapes the world. For example, think about holding a coffee mug. Some mugs require you to use one finger; others need multiple fingers or your whole hand. So it’s designed a certain way and designing your behavior in return. Dive a bit deeper, and you realize that creating the mug not only influences behavior but also shapes the entire supply chain behind it.
I started thinking about how I was designing the client experience and wondered: how does this design impact our partners, their audiences, their mission, our team, and even myself in return? And how might I craft an experience that fosters collaboration, openness, creativity, strategic thinking, happiness, and excitement among all stakeholders? This is something I will explore as the Client Services Lead.
I’d say my philosophy is always evolving, but it’s firmly rooted in finding ways to make a positive impact on the lives, missions, and organizations of our impactful partners.
What does a successful partnership look like?
In my experience, my most successful partnerships (you know who you are!) are with organizations led by passionate, mission-driven individuals committed to creating impact. These partnerships are built on mutual respect, with each party bringing their expertise to collaboratively create something entirely new.
The people involved are creative, enthusiastic, and prioritize the project because they understand the value of a strategic brand. They are also accountable and reliable, which makes the collaboration both meaningful and effective.
What are you looking forward to most in this new role?
I’m excited to help design our client experience—from the first email to the project conclusion. I’m ready to keep building on the positive momentum with our team and help Constructive become well-known for its exceptional service.
I especially look forward to the opportunity to keep collaborating with our current partners (a lot of exciting things are coming!) while also meeting and working with new partners eager to make an impact.
More about Ceci
Active listening, collaboration, creativity, and reciprocity are infused into everything that Ceci does—core values that she brings to relationships with Constructive’s partners and our teams. Inspired by her work with Indigenous communities in Canada and Mexico, Ceci helps identify and deliver on opportunities with partners to create value focused on their needs and aspirations—and Constructive’s ability to make a meaningful impact supporting them.
Ceci’s cross-disciplinary expertise spans social entrepreneurship, service design, project management, interactive, and communications strategy—skills that she applies to keep everyone focused on mission-aligned goals, to provide project leadership so that execution delivers on strategy, and to identify new areas of opportunity.
Before joining Constructive, Ceci co-founded a social impact design studio, Mutual Design, supporting clients such as the UN World Food Programme, One Drop Foundation, and Makivik Foundation. She also founded a regenerative social enterprise, Masara Foods, in her native Mexico. Ceci loves to cook and holds a BSc in Global Food Security (Systems Thinking) from McGill University.
Work with Constructive
For nearly 25 years, Constructive has partnered with leading nonprofits and social impact organizations, combining the insights of a brand strategy consultancy with the creativity and technical expertise of a digital agency. Learn more about our mission, our work, and our thinking.
