Despite the company’s longstanding brand reputation, the marketing team was small and required everyone to wear many hats. My promotion to the Director of Marketing and Creative Services role presented a unique yet rewarding challenge as I was responsible for leading a team of graphic designers without actual design experience. I was successful because I led by letting people, all experts in their field, do the jobs they were hired to do, setting forth the brand standards and giving them leeway to execute their specific tasks. I stepped in and made changes and decisions when needed, but overall, I was the steward of their excellent work. There was a level of mutual respect and accountability that was second to none, making my job as the project leader much more effective. Thanks to my dream team of creative thinkers and graphic designers, we could fully utilize the latest marketing tools and resources and elevate our market presence. A snapshot of my achievements during this time includes:• Designing and executing a competitive blueprint for all brand marketing and creative strategy to accelerate the brand’s identity in the NCAA and NFL. • Crafting nearly 100% of Riddell’s brand messaging since its brand re-launch in 2012• Personally, copywriting all product launch support materials, inclusive of website, video, and social media assets• Spearheading end-to-end project management and go-to-market strategies for Riddell’s first new football helmet platform since 2014 and directing the industry’s first data analytics subscription service to increase market share in the NCAA and NFL by 1% each.• Building and managing Riddell’s dominant presence at six annual industry tradeshow events • Overseeing the design, creation, and maintenance of a new trade show booth that debuted in January 2022 for a new product launch.

I was hired by a long-term Marketing Director at a time when the company traditionally relied on traditional marketing mediums, including flyers, catalogs and other static visuals, to promote the brand as a branch of the sales function. As the company transitioned its business model to remain competitive, I realized a need to modernize and expand the marketing function. As a result, the marketing team expanded from using 25% of the marketing spectrum to launching a multichannel approach that incorporated social media, digital marketing, photography, video production, event management and more. We became much more valuable to the organization during this transition. When a management decision was made to part ways with the current Marketing Director, the Communications Director assumed the role of Director of Marketing and Communications, leaving a team of two designers and me. Some of my accomplishments include the following:• Implementing Riddell’s strategic marketing plan, which led to five consecutive years of goal-shattering revenue, profitability, and market share topping $250M in sales revenue;• Clarifying and strengthening the roles between marketing and a 250-member sales team to drive overall growth and goal attainment;• Reducing the costs of a grossly inflated catalog project from $300k to $150K• Introducing an annual marketing calendar to deliver on all project milestones• Re-imagining our trade show visuals and messaging to boost overall awareness and engagement• Leading an agency-driven brand ambassador initiative that ran for three consecutive years to increase social media engagement among the sales team.I believe my ability to hold the marketing function together and move forward throughout the company’s period of transition was pivotal in not only my promotion to Senior Manager but my eventual rise to the role of Director within a couple of years and our ability to tap into niches and opportunities we weren’t equipped for previously.

Manage national marketing strategy through strategic planning, advertising, collateral, promotions and trade shows with $2.4M marketing budget. Manage strategic product launches, brand strategy, marketing planning and reporting. Help lead 3-person staff and outsource agency partners to develop website, advertising, sales materials and implement brand standards. Identify, develop and align marketing initiatives, strategies and programs against company strategies and objectives.• Contributed to 5 consecutive years of record revenue, profitability and market share by effectively managing and executing Riddell’s strategic marketing plan• Helped fuel sales to over ~$200M in revenue by driving vision and marketing strategy planning and implementation for institutional business unit• Cut sales catalog printing costs by $100K by negotiating rates and strategically implementing new distribution plans• Broke down silos and built strong relationships with 250-person sales force and sales leadership• Increased customer leads from email marketing by 100% through development of email marketing and new lead dissemination strategies• Launched new tradeshow booth strategy, complete with new booth investment that enhanced brand recognition and awareness at industry tradeshows• Manage industry tradeshow and event strategy• Direct the efforts of agency partners in development of all advertising, collateral and sales materials• Establish and track project timelines for advertising, marketing and promotional activities• Contribute marketing plans that deliver business targets of goals, revenue, profit and share• Collaborate across business functions to ensure consistent messaging and brand strategy across all channels

Riding on the success of my role at CDW, I headed up regional marketing efforts for Cricket Communications during its rapid growth stage. Entering the market in 1999, the company was previously known for its focus on small, rural markets and expanded rapidly as the prepaid wireless vertical gained momentum with new companies entering the market. Backed by an energetic regional marketing team, I created targeted collateral and sales support programs in alignment with our multichannel marketing strategies to flood the B2C market with branded messaging and campaigns. We optimized the $250K annual budget by executing a mix of advertising, POP merchandising, event management, seasonal promotions, and product launches that captured the audience’s attention through a relatable and endearing tone. Each of our marketing programs, including trade show participation, delivered on targeted goals for revenue, profit, and market share. Furthermore, a newly introduced lead generation strategy built our pipeline to more than 2,000 annual leads. The success of our regional marketing strategy, combined with national marketing efforts, built brand awareness among a growing niche of prepaid wireless customers, positioned us for multiple profitable partnership agreements, and enabled us to remain neck in neck with our leading competitor MetroPCS. During this time, the company also launched its music streaming service and upgraded its services to the 3G network through a wholesale agreement with Sprint. The success of our marketing efforts was pivotal to the company’s year-over-year growth of up to 4.5M subscribers, culminating with its acquisition by AT&T in 2014.

Recognized as a Fortune 500 company, CDW Corporation has maintained market dominance as a leading multi-brand provider of hardware, software, and integrated IT solutions to business, government, education, and healthcare customers in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada with over $22B in annual sales. Within its expansive portfolio of customers and nearly $13B in overall revenue (now $22B as of CY’22), I was accountable for driving awareness, buy-in, and sales across the medium and large business segment. Overseeing a $3.2M annual marketing budget, I crafted a content strategy to ensure consistent messaging and led all planning and implementation for company, brand, and product-specific marketing plans. Supporting the company’s commitment to long-term partnership development, I launched the company’s $2.5M investment in strategic partnerships by introducing multiple named event opportunities, including The Masters, U.S. Open, NCAAs, and MLB All-Star Game.

Before its eventual acquisition by IBM in 2009, SPSS Inc. was a global manufacturer of software applications utilized in data analysis, reporting, and modeling, boasting over 250K customers across diverse industries, including academia, banking, consumer packaged goods, finance, government, healthcare, insurance, retail, telecommunications, and market research. As an integral corporate field marketing team member, I designed and executed strategic sales and marketing strategies to drive lead generation and revenue growth based on $300M in annual revenue. To accomplish this, I worked collaboratively with the sales team to identify new target markets, research new niche opportunities and brainstorm additional ways to expand our existing market programs across multiple channels. As a direct result of my efforts, we generated over 1,500 new sales leads annually. Before joining SPSS, I worked as a Sales Account Executive at RedDoor Marketing, Inc. (Omaha, NE), and held prominent account management and consulting roles at several leading agencies in Chicago, IL, including Williams-Labadie Healthcare Communications, Marketing Werks, Inc., and Grant – Jacoby (Chicago, IL)

•Called-on marketing executives in a variety of industries, consulted customers to determine needs and goals and recommended products and strategies to achieve desired results•Provided lists and database services to companies implementing direct marketing campaigns

•Worked intimately with all facets of the agency – Account Service, Creative, Production, Media, Art Buying, Interactive – to ensure the highest quality work was completed in the most efficient manner; managed project traffic from inception to completion•Managed and developed project timelines and agency hours for agency’s highest profile/revenue producing account, to ensure completion on deadline and within budget•Concepted and implemented “Best Practices” wall where employees posted the best advertising/business practices

•Traveled North America and provided on-site support at special events for clients; promoted events on radio and television

•Wrote, edited and coordinated distribution of press releases, including: new product announcements, special events, etc.•Launched International Truck's $900 billion new product development in 2001, resulting in 125 positive placements in trucking trade media in 2001•Pitched industry trade media, including case studies, executive interviews, new product and event announcements •Planned, managed and attended client-sponsored NASCAR events •Planned, managed Power Stroke Diesel 200 photo contest – 2001, 2002; wrote, designed and managed press and promotional materials