The Boldest Voices in Business & Culture

Claude Silver is the world's first Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX, where she oversees people and culture for over 2,000 employees across 11 countries. Known for pioneering “emotional optimism,” Claude leads with empathy to create thriving, people-first workplace cultures. Under her leadership, VaynerX has grown exponentially, with its foundational company, VaynerMedia, being named Adweek’s Breakthrough Media Agency of 2022. A sought-after speaker and award-winning leader, she has been featured in the New York Times, Forbes, and Fast Company, inspiring others to embrace empathy as a driver of growth and transformation.

Anuj Bhasin is the Chief Brand Officer at Gatorade, where he oversees marketing, innovation, consumer engagement, and community impact across the Gatorade, Propel and LIFEWTR brands.

A 14-year PepsiCo veteran, Anuj has held several roles across the Gatorade Portfolio, marketing, brand strategy and innovation. Most recently, he served as Vice President of Marketing & General Manager, Gatorade Brands, where he oversaw Gatorade’s Direct to Consumer evolution along with marketing efforts for Muscle Milk, Evolve and Propel.

Throughout his tenure, Anuj has played a key role in elevating the cultural relevance of Gatorade’s sport and fitness brands through partnerships and campaigns with some of the world’s most famous athletes and celebrities. He was also integral in driving growth on a global scale for the Gatorade Portfolio with a key focus on international market expansion. He also managed short-term business deliverables and strategic planning for several platforms within the Gatorade Portfolio, including Gatorade Thirst Quencher, and Gatorade beverage enhancers, as well as the development of the Gatorade Prime Energy Chew Innovation Platform.

Prior to Gatorade, Anuj spent time working as a brand manager for Kraft Foods, and as a buyer for Macy’s. He is a graduate of University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business and Washington University in St. Louis. He lives in Chicago with his wife, Priya, and two young sons, Shail and Sahil, but still roots for his University of Maryland Terps.

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Lori Hatcher is a brand builder, challenger, and innovator and Chief Marketing Officer for Kicking Horse Coffee. She sees life as a continuous journey and is endlessing finding ways to create the new and different, and to enhance the experience for those around her. 

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Having spent over 15 years shaping some of the world’s most iconic brands, including General Mills, Canada Goose and Truss Beverages Co.,  Kicking Horse Coffee provided Lori with a unique opportunity - to take a brand with equity dating back to the mid-90s and develop its first ever marketing strategy - and challenge the coffee industry in Canada like never before.

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Under Lori’s leadership, Kicking Horse Coffee launched its first-ever North American brand campaign - Kickstart Your Heart - aimed at bringing Kicking Horse Coffees’ story to new consumers that, like the coffee, is a big, bold kick in the ass. 

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Recognized as one of Canada’s leading marketers, Lori is well known for her transformational leadership approach to the brands she builds and the teams she leads.  A traditionally trained CPG marketer, Lori has applied those skills to some of the most successful market disruptors from cannabis beverages to coffee. 

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In her spare time, Lori loves bringing her friends together over a delicious meal, as well as vacationing with her family at her cottage in Newfoundland. It’s here she gets to explore her true passion for being outdoors and connecting with nature.

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Andrew Yaffe is the Chief Executive Officer of Dude Perfect, joining the team in 2024. Prior to that, he served as EVP, Head of Social, Digital, and Original Content at the NBA, where he led content strategy across platforms with over 200M+ followers and helped launch major initiatives like the NBA App and key content franchises.

Earlier in his career, Yaffe was the NBA’s Head of Global Strategy, playing a key role in launching the Basketball Africa League and NBA2KLeague. He holds an MBA from Stanford and a Public Policy degree from Duke University. He lives in Dallas with his wife, Christen, and their two children.

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Alex is a copywriter, marketing strategist and the founder of the Copy Posse, the raddest, baddest crew of copywriters on the Internet with over 500,000 students worldwide.⁣

Alex got her start in the marketing world in 2008 when she accepted an internship at Mindvalley and quickly became part of the executive team that grew the company 3X to over 8 figures in annual revenue.

Alex left her position as Creative Director at Mindvalley in 2011 to start her own successful consulting and copywriting business. Since then she has helped launch several successful brands and has proudly partnered with many of the hottest transformational authors and businesses on the planet, writing high-converting sales copy, scaling multi-million dollar brands, and crafting iconic promotional campaigns.⁣

⁣In 2020, she founded the Copy Posse, an online academy dedicated to helping copywriters and entrepreneurs from around the world ignite their businesses with her fun and empathetic approach to branding, marketing and copywriting.

Alex has been featured on Forbes, Mindvalley, and Foundr. She is a 5-time speaker at Ad World, was crowned 2022 Marketer of the Year by DigitalMarketer, was voted #1 most popular copywriter in 2023, and received the Game Changer Award at the Women of Inspiration Awards in 2024.

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Janne Robinson is a poet, author, and keynote speaker known for her transformative work in corporate culture. She has led workshops for global companies, using prose and narrative to foster vulnerability, connection, and purpose among teams. Her approach has been credited with enhancing employee well-being and engagement, and has been featured in leadership retreats from Beverly Hills to boardrooms across North America. Janne is also the founder of This is for the Women Who Don’t Give a Fck*, a celebrated poetry collection and cultural movement.

Colin O’Brady is a 11x world record holder, New York Times bestselling author, and globally renowned keynote speaker recognized for helping individuals and organizations unlock peak performance and cultivate a limitless mindset. Known for his groundbreaking feats—including solo crossings of Antarctica and summiting Mt. Everest—Colin translates the principles of resilience, innovation, and mental fortitude into powerful lessons for business and life.

His story has been featured on The Today Show, The Tonight Show, The Joe Rogan Experience, HBO Real Sports, Outside Magazine, Forbes, and The New York Times, among others. As the author of The Impossible First and The 12-Hour Walk, Colin empowers audiences to break through self-imposed limits and achieve excellence, both personally and professionally.

Through transformative keynotes and bestselling books, Colin continues to inspire global audiences to reimagine what’s possible—proving that with the right mindset, there are no limits.

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Allegra Poschmann is the Founder & CEO of Pact, the design-and-engineering studio behind category-defining ecommerce experiences for Counter, Hill House Home, Studs, Rifle Paper and other breakout brands.   Her work has driven more $1 Billion+ in revenue for Pact’s clients and routinely delivers 10× ROI and double-digit conversion gains, earning Allegra a reputation as one of the leading creative and growth partners for modern retail brands.  A former Head of Design & UX at Dynamo, she shaped the earliest digital experiences for pioneering DTC brands such as Glossier, Reformation and The Honest Company before founding Pact in 2020. Over the past 5 years, she has scaled Pact into a seven-figure business driven entirely by word-of-mouth growth. She’s been awarded by the Art Director’s Club and Brand New, and her work has been featured in The Dieline, RGD, Typewolf, Awwwards, The DTC Pod and many more.

Keith Ferrazzi is a #1 New York Times bestselling author who previously served as the Chief Marketing Officer of Deloitte and Starwood Hotels. Today, he is recognized as one of the world's top executive team coaches, with clients including the turnaround of General Motors and the country of Bhutan. Ferrazzi is also a venture partner at Lightspeed, where he coaches some of the fastest-growing Unicorn executive teams.

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Namita is a partnerships lead with 15+ years of experience working at the intersection of lifestyle & tech while embodying a strong entrepreneurial spirit. Passionate about developing partnerships from scratch that are rooted in purpose, community, and culture. Results driven, analytical, and creative with a knack for building strong cross-functional relationships and industry connections. Mental health advocate who always leads with empathy, and has the emotional intelligence that truly up-levels communication style. Loves connecting with + advising diverse brands & creators who are changing the world for better.

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Nicole Wingard is a viral marketing architect, brand storyteller, and the force behind one of the most successful short-form campaigns in the beverage industry. Best known as the co-creator and face of the “Best Marketing Strategy Ever”, Nicole helped rebrand Mixoloshe, a non-alcoholic cocktail company, into the now-iconic SMASHD, generating over 120 million views, half a million followers, and a 1200% revenue increase in just 60 days. As SMASHD’s Chief Smash Officer, Nicole didn’t just lead content strategy—she was the content. Her can-smashing videos activated a nationwide grassroots movement dubbed the “Smash Army,” which sparked features in AdAge, Gary Vee’s podcast, and LinkedIn’s top marketing newsletters, and catapulted two product lines to sold-out status. The campaign is now cited in books, podcasts, and agency playbooks as a masterclass in authentic, community-driven marketing. Now she works with Gallery Media Group as a Creative Strategist ideating content for some of the most iconic brands in the US. Nicole is a seasoned public speaker and four-time finalist in the Miss Texas pageant, where she used her platform to launch her “Rise Above” podcast and college tour advocating for sexual assault prevention. When she’s not helping brands go viral, you can find her volunteering as the Program Director for an international high school debate team, finding all the best coffee shops to try with her fiance, and reading mystery novels.

Evan Jones has served as Chief Marketing Officer at Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC), the world's leading musical instruments manufacturer, since 2015. In this role he leads Fender's global marketing strategy and investments to drive growth, elevate the brand, deepen consumer engagement across Fender's brand channels, and fuel an expanding global community of Fender artists, players, creators and influencers.

During his tenure, Jones has led the transformation of Fender's marketing approach, elevating and amplifying the brand's relationships with artists & musicians, driving global demand for Fender product innovation and key product categories, expanding the brand's reach to younger, more diverse, global audiences, and helping establish Fender's digital foundation and ecosystem including platforms like Fender Play and Fender Tune. His leadership has contributed to triple-digit growth across Fender's brand channels, driven parallel triple-digit expansion of Fender's global business, and substantially grown Fender's overall market share. Jones also helped develop the Fender Play Foundation, which has provided over 15,000 instruments to students in LAUSD.

Prior to joining Fender, Jones was CMO at New Era Cap Co. and has held previous leadership positions at other companies including Activision/Blizzard (Guitar Hero), and DC Shoes/Quiksilver. Jones started his career at Nike, where he spent 12+ years in various marketing and sales roles in Europe and in the United States, including leading Nike Basketball marketing in the US from 2004-2007.

A lifelong music and sports enthusiast, Jones played professional basketball in Europe after earning his Bachelor's degree from UC Davis. He bought his first Fender American Standard Stratocaster in 1995 and continues to play, write, and record music. Jones lives in Los Angeles with his wife Kirsten and their three children.

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President, The Gathering, Leadership Guide, Author

Mandy Balak is the President of The Gathering, the world’s premier business and leadership Festival, where high-performance leaders and brands redefine what’s possible. A strategist, movement builder, and leadership guide, she’s spent 15+ years helping executives scale impact, build legacies, and lead with authenticity.

As a soon-to-be-published author of Chasing Enough and host of The Well Podcast, Mandy helps high-achievers break free from the endless chase for “more” and step into alignment, freedom, and fulfillment. Her work challenges leaders to think bigger, prioritize well-being, and create lasting impact—in business and life.

Coby Cotton is one of the co-founders of Dude Perfect, one of the most popular entertainment properties in the world. With over 110 million followers, live shows in NBA Arenas, and a host of products and experiences for families, Dude Perfect is striving to be the most trusted entertainment on earth. Coby has an incredible wife and is a proud girl dad of two! He is also a passionate connoisseur of chocolate milk.

Cory Cotton is one-fifth of the sports and comedy group Dude Perfect, known for sinking impossible shots and putting smiles on faces across the globe. A Jesus follower, twin, husband, and proud dad of 4, Cory loves what he does and strives to push forward Dude Perfect’s mission of being “The Most Trusted Entertainment on Earth.” He’s a huge fan of basketball and milkshakes, and is very sorry to all parents and teachers for the whole water bottle flipping thing.

Bryce Adams has spent the last nine years creating award winning influencer marketing programs for brands like Buick, Verizon, Unilever, Uber, the NBA and many others. His passion is helping partners navigate complex business opportunities to create successful outcomes by deepening the connection consumers feel to their brand.

Chad Coleman is the Chief Brand Officer at Dude Perfect, where he leads brand strategy, creative direction and brand partnerships. Since joining in 2019, he has helped grow the brand’s global presence and fan engagement. Prior to Dude Perfect, Chad led the social and digital marketing team at Callaway Golf. He holds a journalism degree from the University of Arkansas and is a proud husband and girl dad.

Jon Gordon – Best-Selling Author and Keynote Speaker

Jon Gordon's best-selling books and talks have inspired readers and audiences around the world. His principles have been put to the test by numerous Fortune 500 companies, professional and college sports teams, school districts, hospitals, and non-profits. He is the author of 30 books including 17 best sellers and 5 children’s books. His books include the timeless classic The Energy Bus which has sold over 3 million copies, The Carpenter which was a top 5 business book of the year, Training Camp, The Power of Positive Leadership, The Power of a Positive Team, The Coffee Bean, Stay Positive, The Garden, Relationship Grit and his new release The One Truth. Jon and his tips have been featured on The Today Show, CNN, CNBC, The Golf Channel, Fox and Friends and in numerous magazines and newspapers. His clients include The Los Angeles Dodgers, In-N-Out Burger, The Los Angeles Rams, Campbell Soup, Dell, Publix, Southwest Airlines, The Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, The Colorado Rockies, Truist Bank, Clemson Football, Northwestern Mutual, Bayer, West Point Academy and more. Jon is a graduate of Cornell University and holds a Masters in Teaching from Emory University. He and his training/consulting company are passionate about developing positive leaders, organizations and teams.

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Marketing professional focused on brand and platform development across sports and entertainment. Experience with progressive brands, including adidas, EA SPORTS, Audi, TAG Heuer, Heineken, and others.

Bill Neff is the Head of Marketing at YETI, where he leads the company's global marketing strategies and initiatives. His innovative approach to brand development has significantly enhanced YETI's market presence and community engagement.

Bill joined YETI in 2015 and has since held various critical roles, including Vice President of Strategic Partnerships and Customer Experience, Vice President of Marketing for EMEA, and Vice President of Consumer Marketing. These roles have allowed him to drive YETI’s brand growth and reputation for high-quality outdoor lifestyle products​.

One of Bill's notable contributions is the "YETI Presents" film series, which emphasizes the brand's commitment to storytelling and community. This initiative has helped YETI connect deeply with its audience by celebrating outdoor adventures and the communities that thrive within them.

Before joining YETI, Bill gained extensive marketing experience at SITKA Gear, 901 Tequila, and Under Armour. His career began as an Assistant Buyer at May Department Stores, highlighting his long-standing dedication to the field of marketing.

Bill holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a focus on Marketing from Truman State University. His passion for the outdoors and deep understanding of consumer behavior make him a key figure in YETI’s ongoing success and growth

Chris Kneeland is an advisor, brand builder, marketer, revenue generator, profit producer, and thought provoker. He is an enabler of big ideas and ideal experiences and a dedicated enthusiast of cult brands. At his core, Kneeland is a teacher who finds his greatest joy in learning and helping others apply new principles or concepts.

Co-founder of Cult, Kneeland established the company to assist business owners and brand leaders in elevating their thinking about the possibilities for their companies and careers. This mission is rooted in his extensive research into the world's most cult-like brands. Kneeland is driven by a daily commitment to making businesses more deserving of brand advocates who not only purchase more but also buy into the brand’s ethos.

Kneeland combines a unique blend of data-driven insights and instincts to enhance customer and employee experiences, ultimately fostering stronger brand attachment. His professional purpose centers on helping businesses become more successful and significant by engaging customers, prospects, and staff on a deeper emotional level. Through empathy and expertise, Kneeland and his team assist organizations in creating better products, programs, and value propositions that boost brand relevance and make their offerings irresistible.

Kneeland’s approach emphasizes not just communication but meaningful interaction, striving for clear and compelling engagement that leads to category dominance. He finds fulfillment in significantly improving the trajectory of companies and elevating people's understanding of their true potential.

In summary, Chris Kneeland is a strategic leader dedicated to helping businesses achieve greater success and significance through enhanced brand engagement and customer experiences. His passion for teaching and his expertise in building cult-like brands make him a valuable asset in the marketing community.

Tim Ellis is a dynamic executive with over 30 years of experience in the marketing industry. He is recognized for being the driving force behind some of the most innovative, award-winning marketing campaigns in the U.S. and across Europe. During his tenure at the NFL, he was awarded Marketer of the Year by Ad Age, named a top CMO by both Adweek and Ad Age, won four Emmys, and created the #1 Super Bowl ad on the USA Today Ad Meter. While at Activision, he received the Adweek Brand Genius Award and the Grand Effie Award for the most effective campaign in the U.S. At Volkswagen, he was honored as the Cannes Lions Global Marketer of the Year and led campaigns and strategies that set new industry standards, including the Volkswagen TV ad, "The Force," which was recognized as Ad of the Year by Adweek, deemed the most successful Super Bowl ad ever by Muse Clio, and credited by TIME as the ad that changed the Super Bowl forever. While working at Volvo in Europe, he won the Cannes Lions Titanium Award for the most forward-thinking campaign. His extensive experience includes client and agency positions, with over 19 years in international marketing management, including 12 years based in Europe managing global and pan-European marketing programs. He is a Board Member of the Adweek Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Council, the Adweek Executive Mentor Program, and the Ad Council.

Veronica Romney is a 16+ year marketing leadership expert, international speaker, podcast host, and the proud creator of the Rainmaker Residency™ programs. As a former Speaker and Trainer for Tony Robbins and Dean Graziosi, Chief of Staff at BossBabe, Director of Marketing Suite Products for a $2B evaluated software company, and former Marketing Agency Owner, she’s had the privilege of witnessing the marketing industry's evolution firsthand from every angle possible.

Whether through keynotes, workshops, or strategic consultations, Veronica’s mission is to empower marketing teams not only to perform better and generate record-breaking revenue results but also reignite their passion for their work, fostering a culture of proactivity and long-term commitment within their companies.

When not helping her members and private clients “make it rain”, you can find her hosting the Rainmaker Podcast, writing her upcoming marketing + leadership book, and wrangling her two man cubs in the beautiful oak trees of North Carolina.

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With over 15 years of experience as a wellness professional, Randelle Lusk brings a rich blend of expertise as a yoga teacher, meditation guide, conscious leadership coach, and somatics educator. Drawing from her extensive studies and personal journey, she founded Rare Method, a somatic-informed approach that weaves together movement, meditation, and self-inquiry to support nervous system health and foster lasting transformation, both personally and professionally.

With over 14 years of experience in the natural food industry, James Boettcher is dedicated to fostering a culture and community that supports and empowers his team, customers, and partners. As the Chief Empowerment Officer and Custodian of Culture at Righteous Gelato, James leads with a compelling vision, clear communication, and unwavering determination, inspiring those around him to strive for excellence.

James has a proven track record of success in business planning, marketing, sales, and entrepreneurship, highlighted by his numerous awards, including the 2018 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year, the ATB We Grow Alberta Award, and the Cut Red Tape Award. As a leader within a certified B Corporation, he is committed to social and environmental responsibility, believing that shared food experiences have the power to build communities, support small businesses, and transform spaces. This belief also led him to co-found Taiko Canteen and YYCFoodTrucks, two innovative ventures that celebrate the diversity and creativity of the local food scene.

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Gary Vaynerchuk is a serial entrepreneur and serves as theChairman of VaynerX, the CEO of VaynerMedia, and the Creator& CEO of VeeFriends. Gary is considered one of the leadingglobal minds on what’s next in culture, business, and theinternet.Known as “GaryVee,” he is described as one of the mostforward thinkers in business. He acutely recognizes trendsand patterns early to help others understand how shiftsin consumer attention impact the realities of the businessworld today. Gary’s approach sits at the intersection ofbusiness and pop culture. He keenly understands howto bring brand relevance to the forefront. He is a prolificangel investor with early investments in companies likeFacebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Venmo, Snapchat, Coinbase,and Uber.Gary is an entrepreneur at heart – he builds businesses.Today, he helps Fortune 1000 brands leverageconsumer attention through his full-service advertisingagency, VaynerMedia, which has offices in New York,Los Angeles, Toronto, Mexico City, London, Amsterdam,Sydney, Singapore, Tokyo, Bangkok, and Kuala Lumpur.VaynerMedia is part of the VaynerX holding company, whichalso includes Eva Nosidam Productions, Gallery Media Group,The Sasha Group, VaynerSpeakers, VaynerCommerce, andTingley Lane Trading. Gary is the Co-Founder of VaynerSports,VCR Group, VaynerWatt, ArtOfficial, Resy, and Empathy Wines.He guided Resy and Empathy to successful exits -- which he latersold to American Express and Constellation Brands, respectively.He also owns a Major League Pickleball team called the 5s, is partowner of a Big3 basketball team, and is an investor in the revivalof the SlamBall League.Gary is also the founder and creator of VeeCon – a contemporarysuper conference that converges business and pop culturewith innovation and technology. In addition to running multiplebusinesses, Gary documents his daily life as a CEO through hissocial media channels, which have more than 44 million followersand garner over 300 million monthly impressions/views across allplatforms. His podcast, “The GaryVee Audio Experience,” ranksamong the top podcasts globally

Chris has 16 years of marketing experience in CPG, sports and start-ups and is a graduate of UCLA's Anderson School of Management. He began his career leading media strategy and advertising for the Houston Astros and spent a year at an early-stage sports-tech start-up during his time in Houston. After getting his MBA at UCLA, he worked at General Mills in Minneapolis, MN for 5 years where he had brand management roles working on Yoplait, Nature Valley and the snacks portfolio in innovation, customer strategy and base business/P&L roles.

He has been with The Coca-Cola Company for three years, first leading portfolio strategy on the Sparkling flavors business (Sprite, Fanta) and has been the Sr Brand Director, Coca-Cola portfolio strategy for the last year and a half.

Amy Campbell, Chief Marketing Officer, SHOWTIME/MTV Entertainment Studios & Paramount Media Networks, has played an instrumental role in MTV’s brand presence in her 20+ years at the company and now oversees marketing, creative, social and digital media across the entire SHOWTIME/MTV Entertainment Studios portfolio as well as Nickelodeon.

Amy sets the Marketing direction for all of these properties and brands, leading a team of cross-functional marketing – including social, production, planning and strategy – as well as creative talent to develop multi-platform campaigns that drive audience, subscriber growth and brand enrichment in partnership with divisions across the company. Additionally, she spearheads brand innovation for the group, driving consumer engagement across multiple platforms including continued experimentation with new methods for reaching young audiences.  

As CMO, Amy’s oversight leads the Brand Marketing operations across the portfolio, including scripted, unscripted, adult animation and late-night franchises including Yellowstone, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Jersey Shore Family Vacation, South Park and The Daily Show. She also has driven the branding for iconic tentpoles VMAs and the MTV Movie & TV Awards.  

Amy has been an instrumental part of MTV’s legacy and award-winning social impact campaigns, from women's maternal health and social justice to civic action and mental health, including major recent initiatives such as "Mental Health Is Health," "Vote Early Day," "Mental Health Action Day" and "A.S.K."  

A mentor to many young people in the industry, Amy oversees Paramount's “ambassador program,” a diversity & inclusion initiative designed to recruit up and coming diverse talent in both the creative and production industry. Cablefax named Amy one of the Most Powerful Women in the industry in 2023, while Multichannel News honored her as one if its "Wonder Women of New York."

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Proactive, visionary leader with proven track record of driving dynamic business results – from smaller, high risk portfolios to managing $600MM operations and strategy. Broad based experience in marketing, strategy, insights, digital, data and engineering roles resulting in a unique mix of analytic skills and strong consumer understanding. Energetic leader and mentor with entrepreneurial spirit; proven strength leading and developing 40+ member teams.

Industries: Consumer Packaged Goods, Technology, Automotive, Retail, QSR

Core Competencies: Marketing, Strategic Planning & Execution, Customer Experience, Data Driven Marketing, Unified Marketing Analytics, Zero Based Budgeting, Re-invention, Cross-Functional Team Leadership, Sales and Business Acquisition, Digital Transformation, New Channel and e-Commerce Development, Integrated Multi-Media Marketing, P&L / Budget Management, Talent Development & Recruiting

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Joe Cano is the Chief Merchandising and Marketing Officer at Zappos.com, the experiential e-commerce and customer service company. In his executive role, Cano leads business development initiatives and focuses on improving the customer experience within the e-tailer’s product offerings, 360 marketing efforts, social strategy and innovating the product category review process, splitting his time between Los Angeles and Zappos headquarters in Las Vegas.

Cano, who has over 20 years of experience in e-commerce,  merchandising and marketing, most recently served as the GM of menswear, womenswear and accessories at Walmart.com, where he worked with the Jet.com and Walmart.com teams in New York.

Prior to Walmart, Cano’s leadership journey began as a Senior Director of Planning for Saks Fifth Avenue, where he quickly grew into the role of VP, Chief Site Merchant, creating strategic roadmaps for the advancement of Saks.com in the digital space.

After attending college, Cano worked at a software company, real estate company, and several retail stores before finally deciding to give corporate retail a try. While onboarding through Hot Topic’s corporate training program, he immediately fell in love with the

process of marrying data and products. Cano’s first big break was pitching the movie Twilight to his Vice President of Merchandise, predicting ahead of time that the franchise would explode to the cultural phenomenon it is today. He credits vampires for kick- starting his career.

Cano understands the importance of continuing to build upon the strength of Zappos’ brand partner relationships, and to help authentically tell customer stories through Zappos’ amazing brand partners’ products. Having experience in teen, luxury, and mass- market retail, he was determined to find a company with an amazing culture which led him to Zappos. The rest as they say is history!

Brandon Marshall is the creator of the wildly successful unscripted podcast, I Am Athlete (IAA), and the newly launched daily show, Paper Route. The platform has quickly garnered over 1 Million YouTube subscribers within its first few seasons. Co-hosted by Marshall and fellow former NFL stars, IAA is steadily gaining momentum by tackling essential and controversial topics around sports, culture, and society that meaningfully redefine what it means to be a celebrity in these turbulent times. Marshall has always been a vocal advocate for several socially conscious issues, especially his own battle with mental health.

Marshall spent 12 years in the National Football League as one of the top wide receivers in the game. He would spend his career shattering records and collecting countless awards and accolades. Now, just a few years into his retirement, Brandon continues to exceed expectations and redefine what it means to be an athlete. Marshall is also the founder and CEO of House of Athlete. This lifestyle wellness brand provides every athlete of all levels access to the top-tier resources necessary to unlock their full potential and train like a pro. Brandon is utilizing his many years of experience with mental and physical health, to build an empire of limitless potential. Marshall is also widely considered a pioneer and the face of mental health awareness. Through his many business ventures, he continues to serve his community by raising awareness through motivational speaking and providing access to mental and physical health resources.

In between wearing his many hats, Marshall is a two-time Emmy nominee for his role as a host on Paramount Networks Inside the NFL and was a contributor on The Drew Barrymore Show, and a co-host on Fox Sports hit show, “First Things First”.

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Over her 20 year trajectory, Jillian has become one of North America’s leading brand strategists in the rapidly evolving sport and entertainment industry. With an entrepreneurial and creative mindset, she has worked with leading brands such as the New Jersey Devils, Prudential Center, Calgary Flames, Calgary Stampeders, Calgary2026 Olympic Bid, and Nike Canada to amplify fan engagement and build enterprise value.

In her current role as Chief Marketing Officer for the New Jersey Devils and Prudential Center, Jillian has led a highly successful transformation agenda over the past six seasons with record growth in ticket sales, retail revenue, and sponsorship value. Situated in one of the most highly competitive sports and entertainment markets in North America, Jillian’s creative and production teams have consistently developed and executed award-winning brand and content strategies, recognized as a best-in-class across the National Hockey League.

Jillian’s brand leadership in the sport and entertainment industry exemplifies the power of true integration across platforms: from grassroots community initiatives, venue assets, and sponsorship activation to influencer engagement, in-game experiences and digital storytelling. She has led accelerated pivots to digital value creation for NHL teams and entertainment venues through richly integrated layers that drive the evolution of live and virtual fan experiences.

With a lifelong passion for community service, Jillian brings the same focus and purpose to align brand engagement objectives with corporate social purpose initiatives to drive impact and connection, with a dedication to female-empowerment through sport. Her leadership in supporting expansion of youth hockey and growth initiatives throughout New Jersey has delivered unprecedented investment in e-gaming, rink refurbishments, and minor hockey partnerships including a new U12 girls hockey club.

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Bassem El-Rahimy is the Head of Canada at Turo. Since its launch in 2016, Turo has quickly become Canada’s largest car-sharing network. He was the first hire for Turo's Toronto office, allowing him to be at the forefront of scaling a marketplace business and mobility solution over the past eight years.

Before joining Turo, Bassem was the third employee and co-founder at GVE Online Education. This ed-tech platform enables children in China to access an international elementary school education virtually. GVE provides one-on-one tutoring, ESL curricula, and an immersive online classroom experience. The platform has connected thousands of students to hundreds of tutors across 27 Chinese provinces and five countries.

Prior to GVE, Bassem joined BFL Canada’s rotational program, where he learned the fundamentals of commercial insurance, particularly for real estate, entertainment, farming, and transportation.

Bassem's first entrepreneurial venture was developing the Young Professionals Development Network (YPDN) community. This experience allowed him to launch and scale a business, providing a strong foundation early in his career.

As the US Chief Marketing Officer at JLR North America, Charlotte combines her background in psychology with a passion for understanding and influencing consumer behaviour. Joining JLR in 2022 as the Director of Transformation and Analytics, she spearheaded a movement to create personalized, omnichannel shopping journeys for the company’s modern luxury clients, before being promoted to US CMO within the same year.

Prior to her tenure at JLR, Charlotte devoted 15 years to driving consumer psychology initiatives and global branding programs in the media and automotive industries, holding several global marketing positions at General Motors and new product innovation at Turner Broadcasting. She then served as of one of the world's first "Chief Behavioural Officers" at Maritz, where she played a crucial role in designing incentive systems for Fortune 500 companies. Recognized for her thought leadership and field research, she was honoured as a Visionary by Incentive Magazine and acknowledged as one of the 25 Most Influential People in the incentive industry in 2016. Her dedication to field research is further showcased in her TEDx talk, 'Lead Like a Scientist,' advocating for experimentation to enhance workforce incentives and motivation.

Charlotte holds a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology from Emory University and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School. She recently happily relocated with her husband and two young daughters to her cherished and spooky hometown of Sleepy Hollow, NY.

Dr. Marie Claire Bourque guides seekers, achievers and high-performers to uncover what’s possible and reach their true potential. An accredited psychiatrist and internationally acclaimed speaker and educator, she blends her expertise in human behaviour with an energetic presence to deliver her work.

A champion for authenticity, Dr. MCB’s vocation is leading others toward values-aligned living. First, through her own inner-work and then as a mental health consultant for the Toronto Maple Leafs, a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary's Cumming School of Medicine, and as a Clinical Instructor at UBC's School of Medicine, she uncovered a passion for helping others move through fear to flow. 

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She was previously President of one of  Medical Staff of Canada’s largest teaching hospitals, and corporate medical director of Cleveland Clinic Canada.  She’s worked with leaders in companies such as the National Ballet of Canada, Amazon, EY, TC Energy, Purolator, TD, RBC and Scotiabank. 

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Michelle is a marketing and strategy leader with over 30 years of experience developing and inspiring financial institutions and organizations to put clients at the center, grow market share, reinforce brand leadership, build customer and stakeholder loyalty and cross-sell products and services. At First Citizens Bank, she orchestrates marketing and client experience functions to effectively serve the bank's clients and generate tangible business outcomes.

Previously,Michelle served as Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer for Silicon Valley Bank for the last 11 years, steering initiatives to advance SVB’s mission to increase the probability of its innovative clients’ success. Understanding the unique needs of the global innovation economy, Michelle strengthened SVB’s client experience capabilities by building teams focused on strategy alignment, experience design and customer insights. Under Michelle’s leadership, SVB launched its “Make Next Happen Now” campaign to tell the stories of the entrepreneurs behind SVB’s clients and its “Yes, SVB” campaign to reestablish trust in the brand after its acquisition by First Citizens Bank.  

Before joining SVB, Michelle spent nearly two decades at Charles Schwab as the company grew from 3,000 to 14,000 employees. As a member of the senior management team responsible for business-to-business enterprises, she oversaw a range of functions from advertising to brand management and client communications.Michelle also served as a director of investor services segment marketing, and vice president of advisor services marketing programs, developing marketing strategies for both the retail and institutional sides of the business.

Tara Bosch made Canadian history by scaling her company to be the fastest growing CPG brand created by a solo female founder...ever. When a love affair with candy devolved into an unhealthy relationship with food, Tara became inspired by a conversation with her grandmother about the detrimental effects of sugar. She soon dropped out of college to fulfill her dream: to create the future of candy. With distribution in over 180,000 stores across North America and over 5.6 billion grams of sugar kicked, she landed a $360M majority acquisition just 4 years after launching the company from her basement. As a leader, Tara is wildly passionate about empowering the next generation of entrepreneurs and believes their big impact-driven visions are needed more than ever before in the world, leading her to create a first-of-its-kind initiative- Bold Beginnings. In addition to fostering connection and tailored support for Canadian entrepreneurs, Tara is working to normalize the feelings of self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and insecurities that all entrepreneurs face, while putting funds back into the ecosystem supporting entrepreneurs to bring their visions and companies to scale. Publicly, Tara has been recognized for how she beat the statistics of women in entrepreneurship not only by being a solo founder, but maintaining ownership of her brand, keeping gender parity on her board and scaling a team that has always been 80% female-identifying. She is the recipient of several entrepreneurial awards, including being named Canada’s Most Powerful Women Top 100 Award, Forbes 30 under 30, Inc 30 under 30, and EY Entrepreneur of the Year’s National Product Innovation awardee. In the media, Tara’s work has been profiled in Entrepreneur, Inc, Forbes,The Today Show, Fortune, the Globe and Mail, CNBC, and Business Insider.

Jennifer Rooney is an award-winning innovator, curator, and connector among the world’s leading CMOs and beyond. She has built a professional reputation as a trusted, unbiased thought leader, trend-tracker, and visionary. With over 25 years of experience as a business journalist covering the advertising, marketing, and branding industries, as well as executive-level marketing decision-makers, she possesses a deep understanding of the marketing industry's dynamics and leadership.

Jennifer has successfully launched multiple initiatives, platforms, series, and events for CMOs, other C-suite executives, and the broader advertising and marketing community. Through interviews with hundreds of marketing leaders, participation in the marketing industry's foremost alliances, summits, and organizations, and collaboration with premier business schools nationwide, she has cultivated an extensive and valuable network of relationships with the most influential global chief marketers, business leaders, educators, and futurists.

Currently serving as the Chief Experience Officer at Adweek, Jennifer is tasked with bringing a community-first lens to all of Adweek's activities. She creates new initiatives, resources, and experiential offerings to better connect with and serve marketing decision-makers and the overall marketing ecosystem, building consistency and value across all touchpoints.

Previously, Jennifer served as Managing Director and Cofounder of CMO House at Black Glass, an IPG marketing consultancy, where she advised CMOs and provided them with essential resources and access to excel. Prior to that, she spent 10 years at Forbes as Communities Director, Assistant Managing Editor, and Editor and Chair of the CMO Network. In these roles, she managed content and events critical to executive-level marketing decision-makers, particularly the annual Forbes CMO Summit. She also led the Forbes CMO Video Interview Series, the World’s Most Influential CMOs list, the Forbes CMO University Alumni Series, and conceived and launched Forbes CMO Next, an annual list of 50 game-changing CMOs, as well as the Forbes 30 Under 30 in Marketing and Advertising list.

As Editorial Communities Director, Jennifer created and launched the Forbes CxO practice, spotlighting C-suite executive collaboration. She also co-hosted Wharton Business Radio’s monthly “CMO Spotlight” show on SiriusXM for seven years and consults with universities on marketing-curriculum development. Jennifer is a recipient of the Jesse H. Neal National Business Journalism Award.

Cameron Wagner is the Chief Client Officer at Elevate, an award-winning, full-service consulting firm supporting high-performing organizations in sports and beyond. In her role leading the agency’s global brand consulting and activation practice, Wagner utilizes Elevate’s powerful data and insights engine to create convention-defying partnerships and activations for brands. She believes in the unique power of sports and live events to forge meaningful connections between consumers and brands and has played a key role in crafting some of the most iconic brand programs in sports history.

Elevate’s global client roster includes world-class brands such as Procter & Gamble, Duracell, UKG, Moderna, Globant, BCBS, FM, Rapid 7 and Santander Bank. Elevate has executed campaigns and activations across major sports properties, teams and events including the Olympic Games, FIFA World Cups, NFL, NBA, MLB, MLS, PGA, LPGA and the NWSL, among others.

Before joining Elevate, Wagner served as the Chief Client Officer at GMR Marketing, where she oversaw US-based offices in New York, San Francisco and Charlotte, as well as teams in the UK, Brazil and Tokyo. Prior to her tenure at GMR, Wagner held a key leadership role at IMGwhere she led significant programs for major brands including Coca-Cola, Visa and Hasbro.

In 2023, Wagner, alongside Elevate’s senior leadership team, accepted the “Best in Property Consulting, Sales and Client Services” award at the Sports Business Journal Awards. Additionally, she was individually as one of Sports Business Journal’s “Forty Under 40” in 2010 and has consistently led her teams in delivering outstanding work for clients on a global scale. Under her leadership, notable client programs have earned accolades such as the Event Marketer Silver Ex Award in 2013 for Procter & Gamble’s Family Home at the 2012 Olympic Games and the Event Marketer Silver Ex Award in 2017 for Humana’s “Bring the Parks to You” Tour.

Among her industry accolades, Wagner considers the client programs her team developed and activated across eight Olympic Games as some of the most significant and meaningful of her career. This includes work for clients, such as Procter & Gamble, Visa, Intel, General Electric (GE), Bridgestone, and many others.

Wagner earned her B.S. in Communications from Appalachian State University. A casual runner and determined golfer, she resides in Charlotte, NC, with her husband and two sons. She is an active member of the community, serving on the board of Charlotte’s Crisis Assistance Ministry and previously on boards for the Charlotte Housing Authority Scholarship Fund and the Bethlehem Center, where she also served as a CHAMPS mentor.

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An accomplished creative audio and sonic branding leader, Rah brings over 15 years of experience working with major agencies, brands and entertainment companies. 

His repertoire includes an eclectic mix of branded content, long-form, animation and interactive projects. From orchestrating a team of creatives to freelancing as a composer / music producer, he has worn different hats within the vast domains of Audio, Advertising and Entertainment. 

To name some of the notable clients or brands he has collaborated with / worked on:

• AGENCIES: McCann, Publicis, Ogilvy, JWT, DDB, BBDO, FCB 
• BRANDS: Disney, Jockey, Nestle, Hotwheels, Seatgeek, Nokia, Haier, Destination Toronto
• NETWORKS: Disney XD, Disney Star, History Channel, Nat Geo, Global News

Since joining MassiveMusic North America, Rah has led creative strategy and production for several brands ranging from dynamic startups to industry giants in retail, tech, automotive, personal care, and more.

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Roger Sho Gehrmann is a trailblazer in the world of creative, audio advertising and sonic branding — currently serving as the VP of Integrated Partnerships at Songtradr. With a career that spans advertising agencies, music streaming, and social content platforms, Roger has become a thought leader in the industry, known for shaping the future of how brands connect with audiences through sound.

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In 2019, Roger co-founded Studio Resonate, an internationally awarded audio creative studio that has been instrumental in crafting cutting-edge digital advertising for some of the biggest brands on the planet — directly supporting more than half a billion dollars in media sales for the SiriusXM group.

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During his tenure as Executive Creative Director for the SiriusXM/Pandora group, Roger led the rebranding of SXM Media, the world's largest ad-supported audio media network. As the resident 'Audio Media Evangelist,' he keynoted at global events like CES, SXSW, and Cannes Lions, championing the unique power of audio as a medium for brand storytelling. His leadership also spearheaded award-winning programs like the Six Dimensions of Sound and The Stand for Sonic Diversity.

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In his current role as VP of Integrated Partnerships at Songtradr, Roger drives innovative projects that blend music, technology, gaming, and marketing into powerful brand experiences. From crafting sonic identities for global brands to leading strategic partnerships, his work continually pushes the boundaries of what’s possible in the audio space.

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Deeply passionate about equitable voice casting and sonic diversity, ensuring that the future of sound is inclusive and representative of all voices, Roger co-founded the Stand for Sonic Diversity. 

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From growing up on the stunning coast of Nova Scotia to forging his career in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, Brendon Arnold (BA) has become a Brand/Marketing powerhouse in the sporting goods arena.

 Over the course of BA’s career, he has worked with some of the biggest and baddest sporting goods brands in the world, including Nike, Jordan Brand, Adidas, Fitbit and Apple.

In 2018, a unique opportunity arose to takeover and lead the Sherwood Hockey brand out of Calgary, Alberta. Since that day, BA has been at the helm of the Sherwood brand – helping guide Sherwood in the direction of disruption – purposely steering the ship into uncharted waters to find the ‘white space’ within the sport of hockey. Under his leadership, BA has been able to resuscitate a dusty, irrelevant brand, and transform it into the hottest, fastest growing hockey brand in North America, while attracting and signing some of the biggest names in the sport.

Ian Trombetta serves as Senior Vice President of Social, Influencer, and Content Marketing for the NFL. In this role, Ian oversees the integration of social strategies and content development across all social platforms for the League, Player, Collegiate, and Club handles. He is also responsible for developing an entirely new Influencer Marketing Department with a mission of creating authentic initiatives which leverage the platform of the NFL to reach priority audiences. Over the past three years, the NFL has continued to modernize their approach particularly against GenZ, GenA, and diverse audience segments through enhanced use of their ecosystem. In addition, Ian’s Content Marketing Group is responsible for creating promotional assets that span across broadcast, digital, social, sponsorship, and more. 

Ian joined the NFL from Activision Blizzard Inc., where he served as the Global Vice President of Consumer Marketing under the now NFL CMO, Tim Ellis. Considered the “jack of all trades”, Ian was responsible for overseeing consumer marketing, digital/social, events, and strategic brand/influencer partnerships. Under Ian’s leadership at Activision, they launched the #1 and #2 global console titles in 2017 Call of Duty WWII and Destiny 2.

Prior to joining Activision, Ian was the Head of Brand Marketing at Red Bull North America during record years in total volume and revenue growth. In that role he oversaw all brand, paid media, sampling, collegiate, product, and consumer insights while achieving record growth for the company throughout his tenure.

Ian spent the early portion of his career on the agency side at agencies such as TBWA Chiat / Day working with brands that included Taco Bell and XM Satellite Radio. He is a passionate marketer who infuses his love for the NFL with his strong desire to continue modernizing the league as it enters the next 100 years of football.

Melissa Rosenthal is a media and tech executive dedicated to building a platform that addresses the challenges she's encountered throughout her career.

Melissa has held significant leadership roles, including Chief Creative Officer at ClickUp, Chief Marketing Officer at Insight Timer, Chief Revenue Officer at Cheddar, and Vice President of Creative at BuzzFeed. Her achievements have been recognized by Forbes’ 30 Under 30, Business Insider’s 30 Most Creative People Under 30, and Digiday’s "Changemakers."

With a deep passion for net new value creation, Melissa is driven by the mission to empower brands to own the conversations that matter most to them while effectively reaching their ideal customers. This passion led her to co-found Outlever, a company that transforms brands into the #1 news source in their industry. Through Outlever, Melissa enables brands to own critical conversations at an unprecedented scale, establish true authority, and connect with key audiences in meaningful ways.

Simply put, Melissa Rosenthal opens a net-new marketing and sales channel for ROI-focused B2B and B2C brands.

Nick Bond is a visionary leader in marketing and customer experience, known for redefining how brands connect with their audiences. As the CXO and founding partner of Apex, an AI-powered platform that uncovers and quantifies customer desires, Nick transforms insights into actionable business strategies that propel brands to new heights. Trusted by global giants like WestJet, ATCO, Subway, and Deloitte, Apex is revolutionizing customer experience, helping companies accelerate growth by aligning with their customers’ true needs.

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With over a decade of leadership expertise, Nick has led transformative initiatives for industry heavyweights like Canadian Tire and Ipsos. He’s pioneered cutting-edge strategies that have driven double-digit growth and reshaped marketing efforts across sectors. Whether it’s through advanced analytics, loyalty programs, or digital innovation, Nick’s ability to translate complex data into meaningful actions has made him an indispensable advisor to top CX and marketing professionals.

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Beyond the boardroom, Nick captivates audiences with his dynamic speaking style and deep passion for customer-centric solutions. Expect an invigorating session where Nick unpacks the future of customer experience, sharing groundbreaking insights that will challenge and inspire. This is the moment to ignite your brand's potential and transform how you think about CX.

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For over 10 years, Brian Scherman has worked as an expert in the field of Sonic Branding and Sonic Experience Design, crafting elegant systems of sounds for some of the largest brands in the world including Walmart, Lexus, American Express, and Netflix.

Brian brings deep creativity together with technical expertise, designing interaction sounds for autonomous vehicles, critical alerts and alarms for medical devices, and entertainment ambiences for sound in wellness experiences.

He brings all his experience to Songtradr as Head of Creative Production, overseeing the bespoke composition work out of the Americas.

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Matthew Cowling has spent the last 25 years marketing some of the biggest brands in entertainment around the world. At Universal Music he developed the Australian marketing strategy for legends like U2, Metallica, Rihanna, The Black Eyed Peas and INXS. After moving to Canada, he took on a new category, working at Bell Media where he led the marketing team across CTV, TSN and multiple specialty channels. He built the award-winning Crave brand and established it as a must-have streaming service with Game of Thrones and launched the hit series Letterkenny. Moving to Prime Video he oversaw the Canadian acquisition marketing for The Rings of Power, Reacher and Jack Ryan. Now as VP of Marketing for Paramount+ & Pluto TV Canada, Matthew is developing acquisition and growth strategies, building new media brands like Pluto TV and establishing entertainment franchises like Yellowstone. Looking to build an envy worthy binge TV list? He's your best source!

Kathryn Dobbs is the senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the Columbus Blue Jackets.  Dobbs leads the club's efforts to grow the Blue Jackets brand, broaden the fan base, and integrate the club's collective marketing initiatives, including branding, promotions, event presentation, broadcasting, communications, community and fan development. Dobbs was promoted to the position in December 2018 after serving as the club's vice president of community development and executive director of the Columbus Blue Jackets Foundation for three years.

In 2017, Dobbs was named to the 40 Under 40 list by Columbus Business First and was recognized again in 2020 as a most admired executive.

Prior to joining the Blue Jackets, Dobbs spent more than a dozen years as a senior-level executive with the YMCA organization in multiple locations around the United States. The Northern Ontario native is a graduate of the University of North Georgia and currently lives in suburban Columbus with her daughter, Myah.

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Tyler Williams is currently a Development Officer (some call this role a Night Mayor) for the City of Las Vegas. A role in which he champions new and redevelopment projects for the cities Economic and Urban Development Department. This role supports the Mayor, City Council, and the City Managers office as they execute on behalf of their customers (the citizens of Las Vegas). Developing new and existing land, creating process improvements, and helping shape public policies that increase wealth and prosperity, provide needed services, entertain, feed, educate, keep safe, and inspire city residents.

Tyler developed the foundation for his current role over a 12 year tenure at Zappos. An online shoe retailer owned by Amazon famous for its employee culture and unmatched customer service. Starting in the call center, he quickly moved from New Hire Trainer to their very first Fungineer. Then heading up their Brand Marketing as Head of Brand Aura, and eventually resigning from Zappos as their Director of Brand Experience. Wowing employees, customers, community, and shareholders was his ultimate purpose.

Before joining Zappos, Tyler was a touring musician, drumming for various rock bands that toured the country. He brings his passion for music, fun, and creativity to everything he does. Tyler's mission is to help foster strong cultures of authentic belonging that enrich people's lives.

In his free time, Tyler keeps the good times rolling. With a love for all things Viking culture, his hobbies include ax throwing, archery, and oarsmanship (rafting). And of course, once a musician, always a musician, he loves writing and recording music. Beyond the drums, Tyler also plays guitar, bass, banjo, mandolin, ukulele, piano, and harmonica!

Married to his high school sweetheart for 18 years, Tyler and his wife are proud paw-rents to their rescue dogs, teacup Shih Tzu/Yorkie mixs named Petunia & Sunflower.

Evin Shutt is the Global CEO of 72andSunny, where she leads the agency's sports clients, primarily focusing on the NFL. She co-pilots the innovative Sports Brand Strategy service and played a key role in the creation of Sport Beach at Cannes 2024. Evin also co-produced one of the most iconic Nike Soccer ads of all time. As a business leader, she helped bring in 72’s first sports clients, including Nike, Quiksilver/Roxy, and 2K Sports. A former Division 1 volleyball player at Drake University, Evin stays connected to sports by coaching youth flag football. Her achievements have earned her a place in the Advertising Hall of Achievement.

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Mariam Wilton is Senior Manager of Brand Strategy & Activation at WestJet, bringing nearly 20 years of experience from both agency and client-side roles. She has been instrumental in shaping one of Canada’s most loved brands. During her tenure at WestJet, Mariam has played a pivotal role in repositioning the brand as it evolved into a global carrier and, more recently, in steering its positioning back to its leisure-focused roots. Under her leadership, Mariam and her team drive brand strategy and marketing initiatives, collaborating across the organization to ensure WestJet’s signature charm is delivered across all experiences.

Jo leads Whalar, part of The Whalar Group, with a visionary approach, forging pivotal relationships with brands, Creators, platforms and strategic partners to drive innovative growth.

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She has led core partnerships across some of the world’s leading brands, including: Amazon, Estee Lauder Companies, Google, the NFL and Spotify, and forged global marketing collaborations with LinkedIn, Meta, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter/X and YouTube.

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Jo champions Creators and, in 2023, co-founded Whalar Group’s Creator venture studio, Moby Ventures, developing products and brands with and for Creators.

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Jo joined Whalar with over 16 years of media experience. Splitting her career between London and NYC, she brings a unique bi-global perspective to her current role in NYC.

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