David Cohen joined IAB in April 2020 as President and was named Chief Executive Officer in September 2020. Cohen is a widely respected advertising agency leader who, prior to IAB, served as President, North America for MAGNA, Interpublic Group’s (IPG) centralized media intelligence, investment, and innovation arm. In this role, Cohen was responsible for more than $20 billion in media spend. During his tenure, Cohen structured and executed large global transactions on behalf of IPG and its clients, with such major IAB member companies as Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Spotify, Twitter, and Verizon Media.

Prior to MAGNA, Cohen served as Chief Investment Officer of UM, ensuring that digital innovation, data, and technology acumen flowed throughout the agency to drive performance. From 2001 to 2011, Cohen served in critical, transformational roles at UM during the explosive growth of digital advertising, including Chief Media Officer, Chief Digital Officer, and Executive Vice President, U.S. Director of Digital Communications. In the late 1990’s, Cohen was responsible for launching and building IPG’s digital practice.

Cohen has a long history of working with trade organizations including IAB and 4As, where he served as chairman of the Interactive Marketing Committee from 2009-2013. He has also been instrumental in initiating several vital industry-wide programs, including the Future of Television, facilitated by EY. Cohen is a Queens native, with a bachelor’s degree in communications from Adelphi University. He was recognized by Adweek as a “Media All Star” and was part of the “Adweek 50” in 2012.

In 2016, David was elected to the Board of Directors of Partnership with Children a non-profit whose mission is to strengthen the emotional, social, and cognitive skills of vulnerable children in New York City to help them succeed in school, society, and life.

David enjoys spending time with his wife and two teenage daughters. A self-described gadget-geek and sometimes fitness fanatic – he ran the NYC Marathon in 2014 and 2019 and Boston Marathon in 2016.

Andreas Reiffen is the founder and CEO of Crealytics. He was born and raised in Germany and has been living in New York City since 2016. With the expansion to the US and offices around the globe, Crealytics is one of the few successful German Ad Tech exports.

For the past five years, Andreas has been on a mission to democratize the retail media ecosystem with a supply-side platform for sponsored products and display. What initially seemed to fail is now fueling the growth of some of the largest retail media networks in the United States.

Chris Bruderle brings over 25 years of experience in Data/Web Analytics and Media Market Research at premium Digital and Muti-Platform web publishers including The Daily Beast, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Conde Nast Publications and This Old House Ventures.

Before working at IAB where he leads research-based thought leadership initiatives, Chris was most recently VP, Analytics & Research at The Daily Beast where he spent nearly 7 years and was responsible for the tracking, analysis and reporting of The Daily Beast’s O&O site and off-platform data/analytics for Senior/Corporate Management, Editorial, Advertising Sales, Product/Engineering, Audience/Business Development, Social Media and PR. He established the company-wide Editorial Analytics and Advertising Sales data and research stacks which included, among others, Google Analytics, Parse.ly, Krux DMP, Optimizely, comScore, Kantar, Samba, Newswhip, Crowd Tangle, Buzzsumo, and CrazyEgg.

Prior to The Daily Beast, Chris spent 5 years as Associate and Acting Director at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia where he directed the correspondence and development of all research-based strategies supporting the Advertising Sales and Marketing staffs of each of the MSLO media brands and platforms across digital, mobile/tablet, TV, print and radio. Chris has also held marketing and market research positions at Conde Nast and Time Inc.

Chris started his career at BBDO as an Assistant Media Planner where he most notably completed the “Media Training Program”.

With more than 25 years of experience in media & entertainment and advertising technology leadership, Paul Brenner served in several c-suite roles including division President with Emmis Operating Company [NASDAQ:EMMS]. As President of NextRadio/TagStation his work focused on global innovation through FM Chip activations in all smartphones for audience measurement, improved in-car user experiences, and data attribution platforms for all broadcast radio. In 2019, Paul joined Vibenomics as Chief Strategy Officer to help develop the go-to-market strategy for the company’s first-to-market Audio In-Store advertising solution. Following a successful launch, Brenner was promoted to President of Audio OOH to oversee all efforts surrounding revenue-generating activity and related partnerships. After the company’s recent integration with Mood Media, Paul was promoted to SVP of Retail Media and Partnerships, where he works to evangelize and innovate the In-Store segment of Retail Media.

With 25+ years of experience, Jill Cruz has been specifically entrenched in both the buy side and sell side of retail media for a decade – well before it was a buzz word and explosive growth area for our industry. She helped grow retail media network practices for three of the top four holding companies and paved the way for many top clients to strategically enter the e-commerce and retail media space.

At Publicis, she is tasked with further strengthening the organization’s commerce media capabilities, including advocating for more strategic retail media partnerships; championing the Publicis integration with newly owned solutions; and providing thought leadership, commerce training and enablement services to all Publicis agencies to build best-in-class retail media network practices. She represents Publicis on the IAB’s Retail Media Committee where she has been a contributor to the 2023 Retail Media Buyer’s Guide and co-chair for the RMN Measurement and Standards Committee.

Prior to Publicis, she held a dual role within WPP – on the senior leadership team at Wunderman Thompson Commerce (WTC), helping grow commerce revenues 2.5x and leading three key clients to become some of the organization’s most successful clients in 2021. She was also chosen by Mediacom to help build its retail media network practice and develop a specialized commerce team to serve Mars – an account for which she helped triple the agency team supporting the business over a span of two years. Over her career, she has won many retail awards and led dozens of Fortune 500 clients across many different sectors, such as energy, banking, telecom and CPG (including brands like P&G, Tyson, GE and Hershey).

She was a pioneer in the industry as VP of Sales at early retail media network, MyWebGrocer (MWG), where her leadership impacted how the various retailers connected with consumers to provide end to end advertising and promotion solutions across on/off site advertising, data platforms and retailer software. At that time, the company was the retail media network for Kroger, Albertson’s, Peapod, Giant Eagle and 100 local and regional grocery chains.

She is a well-respected, awarded leader and speaker in the space. She was the Path to Purchase Retail Media Award winner and been named CampaignUS 40 over 40. She is the recipient of both Global and North America Effie awards and has served multiple times as an Effie juror and Grand juror. Her work has also been awarded at the ANA’s REGGIE Awards, receiving the coveted Super REGGIE as well as Gold (2) and Silver (1) distinctions. She received numerous awards at MWG for Largest Retail Media Growth Account (P&G), and awarded multiple times as the Top Retail Media Revenue Producer.

Jill was an inaugural member of the leading women’s executive leadership organization, Chief, where she has been a dedicated member for the past five years. She has mentored many young up and coming commerce talent and championed better inclusion across all the work she does. She is a driving force in the industry to usher in a new age of commerce for clients where every moment can be a buying moment.

As EVP of Media and Ecommerce, Ethan is tasked with managing growth and success for two of The Mars Agency’s most vibrant and critical business centers. During his career, he has conducted groundbreaking work in the areas of digital shopper marketing, ecommerce, retail media and voice-enabled engagement. His talent for spotting the “next big thing” has made him a critical asset for the agency across roles that put him directly in charge of innovation and strategic investments, and his work building the ecommerce and media practices has made the agency an industry leader in both areas. He is also a highly sought speaker at industry conferences and contributor to industry publications.

Ethan received a BBA from the University of Michigan Stephen M. Ross School of Business. A devout Michigan football fan and avid skier, he and his wife, Jodi, have two children.

Before joining the IAB, Cintia Gabilan had experience working across global ad agencies (Wunderman Thompson and Dentsu), CPG (Unilever), and tech companies (Facebook and Amazon). She has global experience driving growth by overseeing marketing, communications, and sales strategy. With a Master’s in Business, she most recently built many strategic and significant marketing programs at Amazon Ads, such as their Customer Advisory Boards, Analysts Relations, Competitive Intelligence program, and more. You can find her exploring nature, playing sports, and baking with her husband and daughter in her free time.

Rose Ferraro brings a wealth of leadership experience and a robust track record in advertising, business development, and media marketing. Throughout her career, she has helped brands navigate new territories of innovation, from the early days of search and social media to digital publishing, video, and branded storytelling. Now at Rockbot, Rose spearheads advertising and retail media initiatives, connecting brands with consumers through Music, TV, Digital Signage, and Advertising solutions. Her focus on innovation and collaboration continues to revolutionize how brands connect with their customers in real-world spaces.

Cely is a seasoned, marketing professional with progressive experience in driving brand growth while providing shopper leadership in our highly competitive categories. With a comprehensive understanding of the marketing lifecycle, she focuses on using data-driven insights, all while keeping the consumer at the forefront. She has held roles across the and-to-end marketing including brand, shopper, sports marketing and capabilities. Currently, as the Senior Director of Retail Media Partnerships & Shopper Marketing at PepsiCo, Cely spearheads initiatives to cultivate robust relationships with retail media suppliers. Her team is responsible for developing innovative retail media strategies and capabilities and ensuring a positive return on investment across PepsiCo’s marketing media mix that they partner with Retail Media Networks.

With a career spanning over 25 years in the digital industry, Michael Olaye has consistently fused technology, creativity, growth, and product development to establish a distinguished reputation. Currently serving as the EVP, managing Director at Hero Digital, he brings unparalleled expertise and visionary leadership to the forefront.

Michael’s professional journey is marked by extensive collaboration with renowned brands across diverse sectors, including Credit Suisse, Investec, Santander, BMW Group, Pernod Ricard, and Unilever. His strategic guidance has significantly contributed to their success, underscored by numerous prestigious accolades such as Cannes Lions, LIA, D&AD, Guldagget, Eurobest, Cristal, and Clios, affirming his exceptional contributions and industry acclaim.

Nicolás Montero is VP of Analytics, Loyalty, and Cencosud Media at Cencosud, one of the leading retailers in the Americas. It operates in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Colombia, and the United States, where it owns The Fresh Market.

At Cencosud, Nicolás has led the regional expansion of Cencosud Media, a retail media unit with operations in the five Latin American countries where the company is established. He has integrated advanced analytics and customer insights into various company projects, strengthening its digital ecosystem.

Nicolás began his career at LATAM Airlines and later held commercial and planning positions in Falabella. After studying for an MBA from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago, he joined Cencosud, where he has held various leadership positions in analytics and strategy.

Kavita leads Commerce Activation and Strategy at dentsu, delivering customized solutions for advertisers navigating through the ever-changing Retail industry. Kavita believes in developing holistic omnichannel strategies that prioritize the customer experience and journey. Her focus at Dentsu is strategic consulting, educating advertisers about the intersection of traditional and retail media networks, developing best-in-class partnerships and tech stacks, and ultimately creating positive customer experiences and driving business outcomes.

Kavita has broad retail and omnichannel commerce experience, with roles across Product Buying/Planning, Corporate Strategy, Merchandising, Product Development, and Retail Media. Prior to dentsu, Kavita consulted various companies across industries such as Softlines, CPG, Toys, and Beauty on how to successfully build infrastructures and product lines for long-term success in their e-commerce channels. Additionally, Kavita worked in apparel manufacturing, utilizing vertical production capabilities to develop e-commerce specific product lines across national and private brands and launch various marketplace, D2C, and B2B commerce initiatives. Earlier in her career, Kavita has spent time at Kohl’s Department Stores in the buying office and pivoted to e-commerce at Amazon Fashion, focusing on vendor management, financial planning, and advertising launches.

Evan Hovorka is Vice President of Product Innovation at Albertsons Media Collective. Evan and his team focus mainly on the expansion and diversification of Albertsons Media Collective’s product mix, adtech stack and capabilities through strong collaboration and key external partnerships. By assessing market demand, Evan and his team have been able to uncover and build solutions for a variety of advertisers and consumer concerns.

Evan was an instrumental part of the team that took retail media in-house at Albertsons. In the first year after the launch of Albertsons Media Collective, he was able to leverage insights to design and build patented, industry-leading, products that drive growth for the organization and the Retail Media industry as a whole.

Evan’s 20+ year industry experience across innovation, data, privacy and business, combined with his deep passion for finding solutions to complex problems, has allowed Evan to redefine what’s possible for Albertsons’ retail media offering.

Evan’s dedication to innovation and collaborative problem-solving began in his at-home garage. Now, “The Garage” is an Albertsons Media Collective mindset and mantra that drives growth and industry-leading innovation while maximizing partnerships, capitalizing on opportunities, and building solutions.

Prior to his time at Albertsons Media Collective, Evan was at Target for over 17 years in various roles from Senior Data Analyst to Director of Business Development and Monetization Products for Target’s retail media network, Roundel. At Roundel, Evan managed digital media channels and drove product and partnerships, taking the retail media network from launch to its first billion-dollar year.

Evan holds an MBA and a bachelor’s degree in computer science.

Marie Fallon is a marketing and media executive whose 20+ year career spans media planning, buying, digital strategy, and marketing analytics. She has worked at the leading NY advertising agencies Spark Foundry and Universal McCann. Most recently, she has worked on the client side at companies such as Bimbo Bakeries USA and Comcast. Marie has a proven track record of defining high-profile media strategies and negotiating multimillion-dollar agreements. Marie holds an Executive MBA from Villanova and a Bachelor’s from NYU’s Stern School of Business. Additionally, she has served as an Adjunct Professor at Syracuse and Temple University.

Nick focuses on broadening and deepening relationships with Tesco’s key advertiser and agency customers. His team includes Strategic Planning, Agency Development and New Business Development and has been set up to recognise the more expansive role that Tesco’s retail media offering is playing on marketing plans. Prior to this role, Nick was Head of Media at Tesco and Chief Client Officer at Mindshare.

Peter is the senior reporter at Marketing Dive, an online trade publication tracking digital transformation’s impact on marketing. His coverage areas include consumer packaged goods, ad agencies and the evolving retail media landscape. Peter is also passionate about pop culture and makes an admirable effort to catch up on movies and podcasts in his free time.

Will Lee is the CEO of ADWEEK, the premier media brand serving the marketing and advertising industry. As CEO, Will is leading ADWEEK through its transformation from an industry publication to a vibrant and essential business intelligence platform blending content, experiences, and community for the brand, agency, media, and technology ecosystem.

Prior to ADWEEK, Will served as Chief Operating Officer of NPR, overseeing strategy, transformation, and growth. He led the launch of the NPR Network, an ambitious and first-of-its-kind reimagining of the business and strategic relationship between NPR and its 249 Member stations.

Previously, Will led the digital businesses of Time Inc. for PEOPLE, Entertainment Weekly, Sports Illustrated, and The Hollywood Reporter. At PEOPLE, Will guided the brand’s digital evolution, driving triple-digit growth in audience and revenue in less than four years, and creating multiple new lines of business including commerce, licensing, creator-led content and an ad-supported streaming network. Prior to Time Inc., Will served in various management and editorial roles at Penske Media Corporation and Warner Bros. Television.

Will serves on the board of directors of The Door, which provides a full range of youth development services to New York City teens and young adults, and is on the Board of Advisors of the NYU Center for Publishing and Nekton Mission, a UK nonprofit established to accelerate and the scientific exploration and protection of the oceans.

Will graduated with an AB in Classics with honors from Brown University and an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business. Will lives in New York City with his wife Suejin Yang and son Troy.

Arlene recently served as Assistant General Counsel and Chief Privacy Officer at Lowe’s Companies Inc., a fortune 40 company in the home improvement retail industry. At Lowe’s, she established and oversaw the Lowe’s privacy program, led a cross-functional team to operationalize privacy requirements, and advised on complex data privacy regulatory issues to enable the company’s technology transformation. During her decade-long experience with Lowe’s, she has also covered regulatory compliance, ethics, antitrust, international trade, commercial and governance issues in both the U.S. and overseas operations. She holds CIPP/US, CIPP/C, CIPM and PLS certifications. Arlene received her J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law, LL.M from University of Southern California, and LL.B. from Nanjing University.

Sport-bike racer, track & field All-American, multi-patent holder, biometric lab creator, The Wall Street Journals Marketers That Matter Visionaries, Adweek 50 most important people in Media Marketing & Tech, Adweek Change Creator of the Year, American Advertising Federations Mosaic Champion, and Savoy Magazines Most Influential Black Executives In Corporate America—these are just a few of Walter Geer’s self-earned epithets.

A veteran of the digital advertising space, Walter is the Chief Creative Officer, Innovation North America at VML, leading work for brands like Advil, Progressive and Coca-Cocla, and holds a total of six U.S Patents for digital ad formats that have changed the landscape of the digital advertising space we know today.

Veronika Sonsev is the Co-Founder of CommerceNext, a community, event series and conference for marketing and ecommerce leaders at retail and direct-to-consumer brands. Previously, she led the retail practice at Chameleon Collective and founded and held executive roles at various tech companies. Veronika enjoys programming and writing about the retail industry and advises several retail-industry tech startups. She has a BA from American University and an MBA from the Wharton School.

Stephen Chriss is a seasoned marketer with a robust track record of connecting consumers with brands through creative and effective strategies. With extensive experience across all facets of consumer/shopper marketing and eCommerce, Stephen has led omni-channel marketing campaigns that drive brand engagement and growth for some of the world’s top CPG organizations, including Nabisco, Kraft, Mondelez and currently Campbell’s. As part of his Omni Channel marketing focus he has also been a leader in partnership marketing, Chriss has secured official sponsorships with major events like the Olympics, NCAA, MLS and NASCAR, as well as collaborations with prominent figures and entertainment entities such as Peyton and Eli Manning, Venus and Serena Williams, Lady Antebellum, and One Direction. Chriss is known for his bold marketing innovation, strategic vision, and ability to drive results across diverse marketing landscapes.

Deepak Jose is a purpose-led executive leader in digital transformation, AI, Data, and analytics with a proven track record of driving profitable growth for global brands leading a diverse, global analytics solutions team. He started the Mars AI Learning and Innovations lab driving multiple proprietary provisionally patented solutions and is a member of the Global customer leadership team. Deepak is an in-demand speaker, and analytics thought leader in the CPG and Retail Industry. He is a member of the Forbes Tech Council, AWS Retail & CPG Executive Advisory Forum, Industry standards associations, Editorial Board for CDO magazine, and Advisor for startups and AI/ Analytics service companies.

Deepak has revenue management, marketing, sales, and strategy experience across all major
global markets in multiple categories such as confectionary, gum, food, beverage, and Health & Wellness. Before Mars, Deepak was part of global brands like Coca-Cola, ABB, Asurion, and Mu Sigma in strategic roles driving business growth. Deepak has an MBA from George Washington
University and a Mechanical engineer from NIT Calicut, India. He completed an executive education program from Oxford University Said School of Business in Economics of Mutuality.

Deepak was awarded the Consumer Good Visionaries 2023 by CGT and RIS news, 2023 40 under
40 by CDO Magazine, Top 100 Innovators in Data & Analytics in 2022 &23 by Corinium Intelligence, AI 100 2023 – Top 100 Influencers in AI in the US by AIM Media House, 2023 Direct 60 Award for Brand Leaders at the Forefront of the Direct-to-Consumer by The Lead and Data IQ 100 2023 & 24 – the 100 most influential person in Data. Deepak’s team is recognized by Data IQ as Best Place to work in Data and AI in 24’. He is a Distinguished Toastmaster, and he is from Kerala, India.

Sarah Marzano is a principal analyst on EMARKETER’s Retail and Ecommerce desk, where she covers commerce media across sectors. Her work also includes coverage of seasonal and holiday shopping and emerging consumer technology. She is a frequent guest on EMARKETER’s podcasts. Sarah’s previous experience in the retail industry includes working as a buyer and as an analyst at L2 and Gartner. She has been cited by numerous top tier media publications including the Wall Street Journal as well as prominent trade outlets Adweek, Ad Age and Modern Retail. Sarah graduated from The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York with a BA in Fashion Business & Merchandising.

Marlow Nickell is the co-founder and CEO of Grocery TV, the leading in-store retail media network in grocery stores. Under his leadership, the company has grown to nearly 5,000 stores reaching 1 in 4 American shoppers in brick-and-mortar grocery stores. His vision for Grocery TV has been shaped by a decade of experience in developing technology and go-to-market strategies for technology companies. Prior to Grocery TV, Marlow co-founded Cube, an app development firm providing design and engineering services. His career began at McKinsey & Company as a Business Analyst, laying the groundwork for his experience in technology and strategic business development. He holds degrees in Physics and Plan II Honors from The University of Texas at Austin.

Dan Kurtter is SVP, Strategy at Attain. He has over fifteen years experience in measurement and analytics, with previous roles leading measurement at Pinterest and Colgate-Palmolive. Dan has helped develop the measurement business at Attain leading to partnerships with The Trade Desk and Magnite and other strategic partners.

Elizabeth is the Group Director of Strategic Marketplaces Services at Tinuiti, where she works with teams in advancing cross-functional strategic enterprise services through partner development, advertising and sales support on retail media channels, such as Walmart, Target, Instacart, Kroger, Criteo Retail Media and more. With more than 15 years of ecommerce and digital marketing experience, Elizabeth is a noted industry expert and has spoken at many of the leading marketing conferences in North America and is also a regular contributor to AdWeek on retail media.

Jennifer Leen Berglund brings a diverse portfolio of marketing experiences across the areas of brand, digital, content and ecommerce at both large and small CPG companies. Currently serving as the Vice President of Digital Marketing & E-commerce at Once Upon a Farm, Jennifer oversees the direct-to-consumer business, ecommerce marketplaces, digital and social media and shopper marketing functions. In this role, Jennifer has helped Once Upon a Farm deliver significant growth in its mission to provide organic, crave-worthy, refrigerated snacks for children of all ages, while also establishing it as a leading omnichannel brand. Prior to joining Once Upon a Farm, Jennifer led the marketing team at Solid Gold Pet and held various brand and digital marketing roles at large Fortune 500 companies including Nestle, General Mills and 3M. During her career she also managed relationships with CPG clients on the agency side while working at Omnicom’s Barefoot Proximity. Jennifer holds a Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications from Northwestern University. She resides with her husband, Matt, and two dogs, Bristoe and Aoife, in Chattanooga, TN.

Jeriad is the Chief Commerce Strategy Officer at IPG where he leads the commerce strategy across the portfolio, overseeing a comprehensive and cohesive approach to commerce, including strategic investments, partnership development, and asset strategies. In addition, he serves as a trusted advisor to clients helping them architect solutions from the full breadth of IPG’s capabilities, enabling them to grow profitable market share in an increasingly complex and evolving commerce landscape. Jeriad holds a Ph.D. in Operations Research, owns multiple patents, and co-invented an AI-driven suite of personalization tools.

Bill Watkins (@wewiv) has enjoyed two decades of a career in the Technology sector, with a focus on digital media. In 2014, Bill joined Pinterest as one of the first 250 employees, and founded the Pinterest Chicago office. Having joined the company pre-monetization, Bill recruited & hired the initial sales team, developed sales and go-to-market strategies that launched ads monetization on Pinterest, and helped to grow the company’s business through the IPO.

In Bill’s current role as Chief Revenue Officer, he is a direct report of the CEO and a member of the company’s Executive Leadership Team. Bill leads the company’s global sales organization and monetization efforts, overseeing more than 2,000 employees and 10-figure revenue. Bill is responsible for developing and executing the enterprise strategy and operations, working closely with client and agency partners, and collaborating with internal teams, such as ads product & ads engineering, to create scalable advertising tools and business solutions.

Bill has a proven track record of building teams and driving business excellence in hyper-growth environments. He has been recognized as a digital thought leader and a 2019 Crain’s 40 Under 40 award recipient and Crain’s Tech 50 award. Bill is passionate about empowering people, delivering value to customers, and advancing Pinterest’s mission of bringing everyone the inspiration to create a life they love. Bill earned an B.S. in Management Information Systems from Miami University, and resides in Kenilworth with his wife, daughter, and two sons.

Robin Wheeler is the Chief Revenue Officer at Fetch, where she leads the sales organization, leveraging her extensive 20+ year career in driving revenue teams at major social and traditional media companies. Under Wheeler’s guidance, Fetch’s sales organization continues to thrive, helping consumer packaged goods (CPG), restaurant, and retail brands reach today’s consumers and influence their purchasing journeys. Wheeler’s strategic acumen and dedication to driving results make her an essential leader in Fetch’s mission to revolutionize the consumer engagement landscape.

Prior to joining Fetch, Wheeler held several leadership positions during her 11-year tenure at X (formerly Twitter), where she oversaw sales teams for the CPG, technology and telecom verticals. Wheeler most recently served as X’s Vice President of U.S. Client Solutions, where she onboarded and worked with some of the country’s biggest brands including P&G, Kraft, Coca-Cola, Kellogg, and Mondelez. Previously, at X, she also headed up the social media platform’s global mobile-app monetization business, MoPub, as Chief Commercial Head.

Earlier in her career, Wheeler demonstrated her exceptional sales and leadership skills during her tenure at some of the most recognizable companies in the media industry. At AOL, she served as the Category Sales Manager, driving revenue in the tech, telecom, and retail spaces. There, she successfully launched and led the political category, making a significant impact during the 2010 midterm elections. Earlier, at Time Inc., she held key roles, contributing to digital and print media sales for People Magazine. Prior she held positions at leading media company U.S. News & World Report, and advertising agency TBWA\Chiat\Day LA in sales and media planning, respectively.

As the Chief Revenue Officer at Fetch, Wheeler is at the helm of revenue growth and strategic development, leading Fetch’s dynamic sales team, guiding them to success in achieving revenue targets while cultivating and nurturing essential client relationships. Her role is vital in developing revenue strategies, optimizing the sales process, and ensuring that Fetch’s consumer engagement platform aligns seamlessly with the demands of the CPG, restaurant, and retail industries. With a keen eye on market dynamics and a wealth of experience, Wheeler is dedicated to expanding Fetch’s capabilities and solidifying its position as a best-in-class consumer engagement platform.

Adolfo Fernández is a Spanish executive and business advisor with deep expertise in the digital, media, and technology landscape, as well as global strategy and operations.
As the Global Director for Product Strategy & Operations at TikTok, Adolfo currently oversees various facets of TikTok’s performance advertising business including product marketing, operations, incubation, and go-to-market strategy for AI-powered and vertical solutions across eCommerce, Travel and Media & Entertainment as well as innovative TikTok-custom solutions for premier global advertisers.

As the Executive Director of Commerce for GroupM NA, Lauren leads the advancement of our commerce offering for GroupM agencies Wavemaker, EssenceMediacom, and Mindshare across various categories, including CPG, Apparel, Alcohol, Electronics, and more. In her role, Lauren oversees a range of commerce capabilities, including retail media and ad tech partnerships, commerce strategy, and activation best practices. By leveraging data-driven media plans, Lauren helps our clients find business solutions and unlock incremental revenue.

Lauren joined GroupM in 2022, bringing with her extensive experience working with Fortune 500 companies as a performance marketing and commerce leader.

What sets Lauren apart is her passion for understanding the “why” behind the “what.” She takes a client-centric approach to aligning brand and sales teams’ objectives and strategically leverages retail media networks as a fundamental lever for investment to achieve unified business outcomes. When she’s not working hard for our clients, you can find Lauren cheering on Philadelphia sports teams or exploring the endless array of amazing restaurants and shows in NYC.

Amy Lanzi is the CEO of Digitas North America. She’s focused on delivering new solutions for Digitas clients, tapping into the agency’s Creative, Media, Data and Technology expertise. Her ability to connect products and services, infused with driving what Digitas coins as “Networked Experiences,” she is leading the agency forward in the next generation of growth. Before joining Digitas, she was Chief Operating Officer of Publicis Commerce, a full-stack, purpose-built unit of 10,000+ commerce experts worldwide. During her tenure, she played an instrumental role in notable acquisitions such as Profitero and CitrusAd; contributed to some of the holding company’s biggest new business wins; was key driver behind some of Publicis Groupe’s most important commerce-focused partnerships with platforms such as TikTok and Snap; developed unique Power of One commerce solutions for the holding company’s largest clients; and launched a dedicated Commerce Advisory Board, comprised of client members from over 20 brands. Today, she remains Chairperson of Publicis Commerce in addition to her role as CEO of Digitas, NA.

Amy is widely respected in the industry and has been recognized across honors such as Adweek 50; She Runs It “Working Mother of the Year”; Path to Purchase Institute’s “Executive of the Year” and “Industry Impact” winner; and Campaign US’s “Female Frontier” and “Digital 40 Over 40” Awards. She is also a 2023 Creative Commerce Lions juror for the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity and served as President of the Creative Commerce Jury in 2024. Most recently, Campaign US’s “Agency Leader of the Year” award in 2024.

Prior to joining Publicis, Amy spent 20+ years at Omnicom’s TPN, where she helped grow the company from a team of 30 to 350 and expanded its presence to include offices in Chicago, San Francisco, Bentonville, and London.

Matt is the Head of Integrated Media for Kenvue. His team has responsibility for the planning, execution, and optimization of all brand and retailer media as well as the advancement of media capabilities. He also publishes a biweekly newsletter, “Matt’s Hot Take,” where he offers thought leadership around digital marketing, ecommerce, and technology. Prior to his current role, he has built and led teams of embedded digital media, content, and ecommerce experts across the US Skincare portfolio and was the marketing lead for J&J’s Baby portfolio leading the business’s digital transformation and turnaround. Matt began his career at J&J in finance before moving to roles across both brand and digital marketing. Matt holds a BBA in Accounting from the University of Notre Dame as well as an MBA from New York University Stern School of Business.

Jenna is the Vice President of eCommerce and Digital at Riboli Family Wines, with nearly two decades of experience building renowned consumer brands like Jack Daniel’s, Woodford Reserve, and now Stella Rosa. Her expertise spans sales, distributor and customer management, and various geographies. Currently focusing on eCommerce and digital, Jenna drives innovation, creates omnichannel growth solutions, and builds meaningful connections with retail partners and consumers through digital strategies.

Lauren Chesley is Head of Industry at SiriusXM where she leads strategy and development for the Retail & Restaurant verticals.

Lauren has nearly 18 years of experience across Creative, Marketing and HR functions. With previously held roles as a creative & brand strategist, marketing analyst, influencer & experiential marketer, and a trend/consumer/media insights manager, Lauren has consistently sought out a range of resources to understand and synthesize complex information into meaningful and digestible actions, ideas and innovations. She activates her varied background help partners create audio advertising approaches and creative that stands out in the marketing landscape by bringing breakthrough brand experiences to SiriusXM’s dynamic portfolio of podcasts, streaming platforms and live content.

Pam is a 30+ year veteran of the media and marketing industry who is a proven media strategist across digital, programmatic, and traditional platforms. Known for innovative approaches to media and marketing challenges that turn the complex media eco system into understandable ideas for both the C-Suite and day-to-day tacticians. Pam sees the world as a white board – empty, boundless space to create, transform and innovate for growth; to re-imagine how media and marketing can work to grow brands and build companies. Pam believes winning at the intersection of data, content, marketplace, and technology means refusing to let the status quo be good enough and being humble enough to know true transformation takes collaboration, iteration, willpower, and trust.

Pam spent her first 25 years on the agency side at Publicis Media leading clients such as Procter & Gamble, Microsoft, Activision, Yahoo and others. In addition to client leadership Pam built new practices for the agency including Advanced TV and Experience Design. To broaden her experience, Pam also spent 3 years leading Media for Starcom Mediavest Group in Russia when that market first opened to media in the mid-1990s. This taught Pam that anything is possible to create in the marketplace with some ingenuity, marketplace knowledge, and a relentless push creates win – win – win experiences for consumers, marketers and publishers. Following her work on the agency side, Pam spent five years consulting for the media and technology companies (NBCU, Fox, Viacom, Double Verify) helping them design custom programs and market their digital assets for growth. For the past fifteen months, Pam has been at Amobee, an Ad Tech firm, leading their marketing and sales strategy efforts to bring new identity, performance and new targeting techniques to the DSP and cross channel planning marketplace.

Pam lives in Hastings on Hudson, NY with her two sons.

Christine has 15+ years of experience with digital marketing, content creation, and media strategy. As Vice President of Product Strategy & Media Operations at Kroger Precision Marketing, Christine oversees a team of world-class digital marketing product and operations team members who lead the industry in retail media expertise. In 2024, she was recognized as a Retail Innovator Award winner by Retail Touchpoints.

Prior to joining the company, Christine held multiple positions at independent digital marketing agency, Goodway Group, including Vice President of Media Solutions. Her career has spanned a variety of areas across all sides of media, from time at McClatchy to AOL’s Patch and social media marketing boutique agency, SoMedia Solutions. She currently serves on the AdMonsters Advisory Board, the RNM Ascendant Council and is a regular speaker at industry events.

Andrew Lipsman is an independent analyst and consultant at Media, Ads + Commerce. His industry coverage specializes in retail media—which he is known for anointing as “digital advertising’s third big wave”—and other areas of the digital media, advertising, and commerce ecosystem.

Previously, Andrew was a VP & Principal Analyst at eMarketer, where he covered retail & ecommerce and led the retail media practice. Before that, he was SVP of Marketing & Insights at comScore overseeing the company’s global marketing insights and thought leadership initiatives. 

He has published more than a half dozen articles in the Journal of Advertising Research and is frequently quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, The Financial Times, and Advertising Age.

Brian is a Global Client President and Head of Retail Media Solutions for dentsu. Prior to returning to Agency life, Brian worked client-side leading marketing and retail media monetization at Walmart.com and platform side, leading Retail Vertical Strategy at Pinterest. He enjoys intermittent entrepreneurial forays having launched 3 companies. Brian has been recognized in the American Advertising Federation Hall of Achievement, the Bay Area Innovation Group’s Hall of Fame, and as an AdAge Media Maven. Outside of work, Brian volunteers with the San Francisco Unified School District, the Gun Safety Alliance, and ExtraFood.org.

Casey joined UM/Kinesso in 2017 and has been focused on growing the Commerce practice ever since. She has expertise across multiple commerce media offerings including Retail Media, and shoppable technologies. With a deep understanding of the CPG, Apparel, and Retail industries, Casey has consistently delivered impactful solutions to drive business growth. Casey has worked across an array of clients including Gallo, BEHR, GoPro, Hershey’s, Columbia & Truvia and is currently leading the US Commerce business for General Mills. She has been committed to bridging the gap between commerce and brand by developing integrated approaches to create truly holistic omnichannel campaigns.

Jacquelyn Baker, CEO of Omnicom Commerce Group, brings over 21 years of CPG industry expertise, specializing in digital innovation, ecommerce, and omnichannel strategy. She has led global client engagements for brands like General Mills, Diageo, and Mars Wrigley. Jacquelyn’s leadership has earned her recognition as a retail media trailblazer and top 25 Commerce Marketer by the Path to Purchase Institute, Account Leader of the Year by Campaign US, and a Women of Excellence Innovator. She contributes to industry discussions through speaking engagements and editorial contributions and serves on the Instacart Advisory Board and Rokt Commerce Council.

As senior vice president, commercial & innovation law, Erica Irvin is responsible for the legal business partners to the merchandising, Pro & home services, supply chain, real estate and technology organizations. She is also responsible for data privacy, intellectual property and the India legal shared services center. She joined Lowe’s in 2024.

Erica has 25 years of legal experience. She has served as in-house counsel at public, private and start-up companies including Lucent, Siebel Systems, E. Spire and MCI. She was vice president, senior associate general counsel, commercial law for BrightView Landscaping Services, and vice president, senior associate general counsel for Adtalem Global Education. Just before joining Lowe’s, she was group vice president and chief counsel, digital technology and innovation, at The Albertsons Companies, where she supported the company’s digital transformation.

Erica earned a Juris Doctor from George Washington University National Law Center and a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from the University of California at Berkeley.

Mitsunaga Kikuchi is the founder and CEO of Shirofune, a leading ad automation tool in Japan. He began his career at one of Japan’s largest advertising agencies, where he observed young professionals working long hours to optimize campaigns. In response to this, Mitsu dedicated over 20,000 hours to coding a platform that could replicate the work of these professionals and improve efficiency. His vision for Shirofune was inspired by historical events, aiming to introduce Japanese technology to the world. Today, Shirofune holds a 91% market share in Japan and manages over $1 billion in annual ad spend

Paul is the Head of Operations & Systems at Media Republic, a renowned independent agency based in Melbourne, Australia. With over a decade of experience in biddable media, Paul is recognized for his innovative approach to SEM. He has previously worked at large global agencies like Dentsu, where he honed his expertise in crafting strategies that give clients a competitive edge and drive exceptional performance. His extensive experience spans all major industry verticals, managing campaigns for both large enterprises and smaller businesses. At Media Republic, Paul continues to deliver tailored SEM solutions that meet diverse client needs while staying at the forefront of the industry.

Parbinder is the Vice President / General Manager of CVS Media Exchange (CMX), CVS Health’s top-ranked retail media network. He oversees sales, strategic development, operations, marketing, business intelligence, product, and strategic operations.

Parbinder has spent his career building and transforming world-class teams in the digital advertising ecosystem, with growth and consumers at the core. Before joining CVS in 2022, he lead and in-sourced the media business for Walmart Connect. Joining Walmart in 2019, he oversaw everything Beauty, Personal Care, and Health and Wellness, leading a multi-disciplined team that helped grow Walmart Connect’s Supplier and Merchant partnerships across the category.

From 2018-2019, he worked with leading media industry CEOs, consulting to drive strategic change, digital growth, and change management. From 2016 until he left at the end of 2017, he was the VP of Global Accounts at Spotify, working across the business’s largest Global advertisers to transform partnerships across the platform, building the discipline of deal-making with critical partners across the streaming giant.

Between 2012 and 2015, he and his family resided in Barcelona, where he was the CRO, leading the global sales and operations for Softonic, a software download company. And previously to this, he worked on various businesses as VP and Director in London and New York for CBS Interactive.

Parbinder resides in Brooklyn, New York.

Melissa is a Senior Retail Media lead at Google. She supports Google’s top US RMN clients, helping them to fulfill best-in-class Retail Media programs. Melissa is a trusted strategist to C-suite decision-makers across retail, brand, & tech companies. She is a public advocate of strengthening relationships between retailers and brands through transparency and shared goals. Prior to working at Google, Melissa co-led the North American sales team at Criteo Retail Media. Melissa founded the Kohl’s Media Network prior to that.

Kaisy Mae O’Reilly, CMO of luxury footwear brand Stuart Weitzman, is a brand marketing pioneer with over 21 years of global experience on CPG, prestige beauty and fashion. Prior to Stuart Weitzman, Kaisy had a 19-year tenure at Procter & Gamble, where she led multiple beauty brands (Safeguard, Olay and most recently SK-II) across multiple geographies (APAC, China, and NA). Passionate about consumer insights, trendspotting, creative storytelling and digital brand transformations, she has been recognized by P&G with several awards, including an induction to the highly esteemed “P&G Brand Mastery Society”. In her current role at Stuart Weitzman, she is responsible for guiding all aspects of brand building and driving brand heat, as well as leading their eCommerce business and transforming the global luxury footwear to become a more data-centric and digitally led organization.

Alexander Potts is an executive at Tombras, one of the largest independent ad agencies in the U.S., where he spearheads the integration of cutting-edge ad technologies across the agency. With a focus on the intersection of media buying and data-driven solutions, Alexander drives innovation in advertising measurement and showcases the impact of modernized, incremental approaches. His expertise lies in leveraging advanced identity solutions and intelligence engines to enhance client outcomes, making him a leading voice in the evolution of digital marketing.

I am a seasoned retail professional with extensive experience on the brand, agency, and technology sides of the industry. Specializing in eCommerce and retail media, I currently lead the Client Services team at Pacvue to deliver sustainable and scalable growth for our clients. My diverse background in technology, finance, and retail, along with direct hands-on experience working with large brands enables me to lead our organization to deliver tailored solutions that meet diverse business needs in a continually dynamic retail environment. While my specialty is CPG and eCommerce, I have managed brands across numerous categories throughout both online and brick & mortar channels in the broader retail landscape.

Elizabeth has 13+ years of experience in media sales and digital advertising. As Group Director of Agency Partnerships, Elizabeth is responsible for the growth and development of Kroger Precision Marketing’s agency partnerships. Her role is to establish Kroger Precision Marketing as a leading brand building and business driving platform in the eyes of all agency constituents.

Prior to joining the company, she spent 10+ years at NBCUniversal engaging brands as a sales and digital planner for NBC News & MSNBC. She attended Boston College for her undergraduate and master’s education.

Dominick Vangeli serves as Senior Vice President & General Manager of Advanced Advertising at NBCUniversal. In this role, Dominick helps to set the strategic vision for NBCU’s Digital and Advanced TV advertising sales business and partnerships. He also manages the strategy for data-driven linear, audience-based buying on digital video (inclusive of programmatic and self-serve platforms) and data cleanroom initiatives. Throughout his tenure at NBC, Dominick has played an integral role in modernizing the way brands use data to market to their consumers.

Since joining NBCUniversal in 2016, Dominick has held various leadership positions and has helped NBCUniversal grow its Digital and Advanced TV advertising sales business. Dominick’s strong relationships throughout the industry, has allowed him to serve as the leading point of contact with a variety of clients, agencies and ad tech partners supporting the programmatic initiatives. With over 20 years of experience in media, product management, strategy and analytics, Dominick is actively involved in driving thought and product leadership throughout the advanced advertising space.

Prior to joining NBCUniversal, Dominick served as Vice President of Advanced Advertising for Cablevision Media Sales where he launched and scaled the company’s addressable TV business. Dominick is a graduate of the University of Connecticut and earned an MBA in Media Management from Fordham’s Gabelli School of Business.

As Executive Director, Head of Operations for CVS Media Exchange (CMX), CVS Pharmacy’s retail media network, Melissa is responsible for overseeing and leading all CMX functions related to Business Operations, Ads Policy, Ad Technology Operations, Business Systems, Yield Management, and Media Performance and Activation.

Melissa is an industry veteran with over 20+ plus years in in Product and Operations. Most recently Melissa was the SVP, Global Exchange Operations for Yieldmo. Prior to Yieldmo, Melissa ran Revenue Operations for Walmart Connect. In her role, she led the US and India-based team responsible for ad campaign performance and optimization, technical operations, API partner and self-serve Advertiser Support, Ads Trafficking, Billing, and Ads Policy. Before Walmart, she worked at Index Exchange and IAB Tech Lab. At IAB she was responsible for the Modernizing Measurement Taskforce, IAB Tech Lab Content Taxonomy, Header Tag Working Group, OpenRTB and OpenDirect protocols.

Melissa is a cum laude graduate from SUNY New Paltz with a BA in International Relations. Melissa is a mother of two and she and her family are currently based in the greater Philadelphia area.

Kathryn Lundstrom is ADWEEK’s commerce and sustainability editor, covering the retail media boom and the advertising and marketing industry’s response to the climate crisis. Before joining Adweek in 2019, she wrote about politics for The Daily Donut, analyzed policy at the Texas Capitol and checked facts at Sports Illustrated. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a master’s in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin and a master of global policy studies from the LBJ School of Public Affairs.

Ryan Burns is Head of Strategy for Sam’s Club’s Member Access Platform (MAP), a premier Retail Media Network committed to delivering exceptional advertising experiences for its Members. In this role, he is responsible for shaping MAP’s long-term vision and guiding its strategic direction. He is a seasoned corporate advisor with a passion for leading people, serving customers, and driving innovation in the retail industry.

Before joining MAP, Ryan held several key positions in Walmart, where he represented the company on critical issues before the U.S. Congress and advised it on strategic acquisitions. He is a dynamic speaker who’s thought leadership is highly regarded for its practicality and relevance in navigating the rapidly evolving retail media landscape.

Ryan holds an MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business and a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from Covenant College. He is an avid runner and resides with his wife, Anna, in Dallas, TX.

Elliott Nix leads Retail Client Sales efforts across multiple categories at The Trade Desk, where he is responsible for supporting Retail Managed Service sales teams and driving e-commerce and in-store traffic to impact topline sales growth. With over 20 years of experience in Media & Advertising, Elliott brings deep expertise and leadership to the retail media landscape.

Before joining The Trade Desk, Elliott spent 15 years at Google, holding key roles, including Head of YouTube Sales for North America Retail. His career also includes 7 years in Media Buying at OMD, where he honed his skills in strategic media planning and execution.

Outside of his professional endeavors, Elliott served as a graduate course professor at West Virginia University for three years. He is also an avid Cross Fitter and a dedicated softball coach. Elliott currently resides in Glen Ridge, NJ, where he proudly embraces his role as a greying father to three wonderful daughters.

Michael Krans currently serves as the Vice President of Macy’s Media
Network, the Macy’s, Inc. retail media network for the company’s three
nameplates – Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury.

Originally from Wisconsin and a graduate of the University of Minnesota –
Twin Cities, Michael began his career at News America Marketing in New
York. In 2002, Michael launched a career in magazine publishing that
spanned nearly two decades. During this time, Michael worked for
venerable media brands such as OUT, Conde Nast Traveler, The New
Yorker, DETAILS and Harper’s Bazaar. He made an indelible mark at
Harper’s Bazaar where he led the digital transformation of the 150-year-old
media brand by expanding its footprint across digital, social, video and e-
commerce platforms. Most notably, Michael worked on the launch team for
ShopBazaar.com, the industry’s first “content-to-commerce” shopping
platform. Toward the end of his time at Hearst, Michael served as VP,
Head of Industry working consultatively with the company’s largest fashion,
beauty and retails partners to build data driven media solutions leveraging
audience insights drawn from Hearst’s digital ecosystem of 26 media
brands, such as Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping and Women’s Health.
In 2022, Michael joined Walmart Connect to lead the monetization efforts
for Walmart’s apparel business leveraging his prior experience in shopper
marketing, fashion and digital marketing.

Michael lives in Maplewood, New Jersey with his husband and two
daughters. In addition to supporting various adoption advocacy
organizations, Michael is very involved in fundraising efforts for LGBTQ+
organizations such as Lambda Legal and the Hetrick Martin Institute.

Pankita Desai leads Shopper Marketing at Chobani, successfully driving innovative initiatives with retailers during the rise of retail media networks. Her collaborative approach and cross functional partnerships deliver meaningful results focused on targeting key audiences and gaining incremental ROI, with an expertise in customer data analyses and budget optimization. Pankita is responsible for developing and driving shopper marketing strategies across all channels, educating on the evolution of retail media, and executing conversion driven activations and measurement, which have contributed to significant success in the competitive retail media and shopper marketing landscape for Chobani.

Renee Savelli is Director of Data Partnerships at The Trade Desk where she focuses on measurement data and building integrations and products that provide clients with clear value on their ad spend. Prior to joining TTD, Renee was at Oracle Cloud Data focused on building partnerships. She is a graduate of the University of Colorado Boulder and based in New York.

Justin leads the DoubleVerify (DV) sales team on the east coast out of DV’s NY Headquarters. He has been part of the DV team for 8 years, helping to build the organization’s client base both as a member of the team and as a leader. Justin’s team works with some of DV’s biggest clients, including Colgate, Dell, Kroger, GSK, and IBM. Prior to DV, Justin spent most of his career in ad tech helping to expand the commercial success of companies in ad serving, DCO, analytics, and emerging ad formats.

Wendi Dunlap built a career in Advertising & Media pioneering new technologies and integrating data into traditional media strategies. She has held senior-level roles at global media agencies, leading Digital Strategy and Planning for brands across verticals including Volkswagen, Visa, and Best Buy. She has worked client-side at Microsoft where she drove Global Media Strategy for consumer products & solutions. She is also a seasoned Business Development led, contributing audience insights, data innovation, and analytics strategies to new business wins.

Wendi is currently an EVP of Business Intelligence and Audience Science at Mediahub where she builds bespoke data & measurement strategies. She is passionate about equity in advertising, ensuring that data is inclusive and application is authentic and meaningful. You can find Wendi speaking on topics such as “Conscious Marketing,” “Brand Safety,” and “Unified Analytics” at industry events.

Wendi is a graduate of Cornell University where she majored in Film and Africana Studies. She is the recipient of several advertising industry awards including MEDIA magazine’s 2004 20 Rising Stars in Interactive Advertising, the 2022 40 Over Forty list and one of the 2024 She Runs It “Working Moms of the Year.” She is a published dark fantasy writer and the proud mother of a young adult son.

Preferred pronouns: She/Her

Devrie DeMarco’s breadth of operational experience includes go-to-market strategy, organizational design, digital transformation and product and brand marketing. At MediaLink, she co-leads our Growth Strategy consulting practice for media and technology companies and also specializes in helping brands build and future-proof their retail media networks.

DeMarco has held a variety of senior business, marketing and sales roles at companies like BBDO, USA Today, NBC, Condé Nast and Revlon.

She holds an MBA from Vanderbilt and a BA from the University of Georgia – where she sits on the board of The Grady School of Journalism & Mass Communication.

Lynne d Johnson is Content Director at AdMonsters, where she drives content and community strategy and oversees top-tier industry events. A digital and social media leader, she has led initiatives at major brands like Vibe, Spin, Fast Company, Waggener Edstrom, and the Advertising Research Foundation. Lynne is also the co-founder of Tech and Soul Podcast, exploring the intersection of technology, media, and culture. With a strong background in digital strategy, she’s a sought-after speaker on emerging tech and diversity. She also teaches Class, Race, and Gender at SUNY Empire State College, bringing a wealth of knowledge to her diverse roles.

Mike Brunick is the VP, Head of Ad Partnerships at Yahoo, guiding the monetization and strategy for managed supply partners for the company. He works with Microsoft across their Xbox, MSN and Outlook business lines, and is leading the expansion of Verizon Media’s DOOH and Connected TV partnerships.

Mike also oversees the Verizon Integrated Partnerships team – working to enhance and evolve how the multiple divisions of Verizon work together to deepen customer relationships and develop strategic business solutions – as well as Verizon Media’s SMB offering.

Spanning over 20 years of industry experience, Mike has worked in the agency, consulting and media spaces, providing strategic guidance to help better connect brands to their customers through the application of data. He is a pioneer in the evolution of data-driven marketing, and has led partnerships and business creation across a variety of categories.

Suzanne oversees agency partnerships at Instacart, the leading grocery technology company in North America. She leads a team focused on developing and deepening relationships across the industry, from media agencies to advertising partners that tap the power of Instacart’s unique retail media data. Previously, Suzanne led digital sales teams at Valassis, focused on enterprise solutions across media, data and measurement for their top CPG and agency partners. Suzanne has more than 20 years of digital advertising experience at major companies including Microsoft, BabyCenter, Bazaarvoice, and MySpace. She earned her MBA at Fordham University.

Sarah McLoughlin is the Head of Creative and Social at Power Digital, a tech-enabled growth firm–at the intersection of marketing, consulting & data intelligence–igniting revenue and brand recognition for leading and emerging companies around the world. With over 15+ years of marketing experience in social, influencer, creative and paid media – Sarah oversees all aspects of the strategy, curation, distribution and measurement of performance creative. Sarah’s background in media buying and verticalized performance for high growth B2C brands has helped her advise on new strategies in a quickly evolving landscape and co-develop technology to bridge the gap between data and creative. Sarah speaks regularly at major industry events including AdWeek, Shoptalk, SXSW, and has been featured across many major retail trade publications.

Kathryn oversees Hy-Vee’s industry-leading retail media network RedMedia. In this role, she helps advise brand partners on how to maximize their marketing investments while delivering measurable results and valuable consumer insights. RedMedia is a full-scale retail media network that directly connects brands to consumers using data touchpoints and marketing channels powered by exclusive first-party data.

Prior to joining Hy-Vee, Kathryn spent nearly 19 years of her career at DICK’S Sporting Goods. In her most recent role, she served as vice president of media/GM retail media and successfully launched and scaled a retail media network for the retailer. From 2017 to 2021, Kathryn served as the senior director of marketing planning and operations with the critical role of managing all facets of outbound and in-store marketing. Earlier in Kathryn’s career, she served in the following capacities at DICK’S: director of marketing financial planning, manager of marketing finance, senior analyst and marketing accounting analyst.

Kathryn is passionate about all things media and has a proven track record of optimizing ROI on spend. With a keen eye and strategic mindset, she drives impactful results in the dynamic retail media landscape.

Cara Golden has been Director of Research and Insights at Stingray since 2017, leading broadcast, digital, and in-store audio research focused on advancing measurement science in advertising and its impact on brands. With over 10 years in research, she previously held positions at Numeris and Newcap Radio Toronto. She started her career in media management and negotiation at agencies like GroupM and Omnicom, followed by roles in broadcast and research software sales. Golden views data analytics as an art form, providing insights and “what’s next” strategies for clients and peers.

With over 20 years of digital advertising and entrepreneurial expertise, Raj Chauhan played a pivotal role in developing supply-side platforms and real-time bidding during his senior tenures at Rubicon Project (now Magnite) and OpenX, where he held key positions, including Vice President for North American Sales and GM Publisher, Business US respectively. Raj also served as the founding CRO at Spaceback, the first social display advertising company, and is currently an advisor to both Spaceback and MNTN, a leader in connected TV performance marketing.

With his extensive knowledge and expertise, Raj is leading the charge to bring Vudoo’s category-defining commerce solution to agencies, publishers, and brands, empowering the ecosystem with tools that offer closed-loop attribution and seamless shopping experiences.

A seasoned executive with 24+ years of digital media, marketing and operations experience, Angelina Eng has focused her career on supporting agencies and brands to define, build and manage digital media and marketing efforts while enabling teams to operationally work efficiently and effectively with both internal and external partners and platforms. She’s been responsible for the development and management of internal systems and workflow, establishment of deliverable standards, designing ad trafficking and tracking guidelines, implementation of emerging platforms, as well as establishing best practices at companies such as Morgan Stanley, Merkle, Dentsu Aegis and Publicis Modem.

Over the years, She has been involved with multiple organizations and events to help define, establish and advocate some of the industry standards that we see in today’s digital media ecosystem (such as ad verification/brand safety, ad fraud, viewability and programmatic, social, etc)

Angelina has been awarded the AdMonsters 2018 Power List, IAB Data Rockstar 2016 and AdMonsters Digital Media Leadership Award 2016.

As Chief Marketing Officer, Doug Rozen leads strategy and execution for all Rokt’s global marketing efforts, including brand, performance, employee, product and sales marketing functions.

Prior to joining Rokt, Doug served as CEO of dentsu Media, where he transformed over 4,350 of the most progressive marketing experts at Carat, iProspect, dentsu X, 360i & beyond. Working at the intersection of creativity, technology and data, Doug has been recognized globally for transforming companies through change and removing barriers in the business world. Throughout his career he has been a trusted, go-to adviser in driving marketing transformation for some of the world’s greatest brands. As an award-winning innovator, Doug brings to Rokt proven strength in the advertising marketplace, lifecycle marketing, ad product development and revenue growth. Previously, he has also served as Chief Digital and Innovation Officer at OMD Worldwide, Chief Innovation Officer and General Manager at Meredith, and Senior Partner and Managing Director at WPP.

Doug is a vocal cancer survivor and proud advocate for Stand Up to Cancer. He just finished studying artificial intelligence at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. Doug is an avid cyclist and skier, living in Connecticut with his wife, daughter and son.

Lauren Johnson is Adweek’s deputy editor of retail media and commerce covering how advertising is changing with the emergence of retailers and shopping. Before joining Adweek in 2024, she was an advertising reporter covering digital advertising at Business Insider for six years. She previously worked at Adweek and Mobile Marketer and graduated from the University of Missouri with a degree in magazine journalism.

Bryan McGuirk has been the Chief Revenue Officer at Stingray Advertising since 2023. He brings extensive media experience, including launching TV networks and media satellites globally.  

Before Stingray, McGuirk was SVP of Business Development at LTN Global and CCO at Globecomm. Prior to this, as President at Vivisat, he pioneered the Mission Extension Vehicle, launched by Northrop Grumman, and as President of Media and Enterprise at SES Americom, he commercialized satellites for Viacom, Discovery, and NBC, and partnered with Dish TV and Comcast.  

Earlier in his career, McGuirk held leadership roles at Wink, NBC, and Turner Broadcasting. He holds an MBA from Emory University and a BA from Union College.

As the Managing Director and Head of Sales for Kinective Media by United Airlines, Aaron Gallagher is building a brand-new best-in-class sales and commercial team for the world’s first traveler and commerce media network from the world’s largest airline. Through Kinective Media, advertisers can map their customer’s journey, marketing to United’s customers before, during and after their travel journeys. The network has been custom-built on a foundation of technologies and partners, along with a broader set of data assets from the largest airline in the world, to enable premium brand advertisers to connect with a valuable audience, at scale. 

Prior to Kinective Media, Aaron was leading the digital ad sales organization at Warner Bros. Discovery, where he played an integral role in merging the Discovery and Scripps Networks digital sales organizations and built a strategic ad sales and revenue strategy for the combined companies. And during his tenure at Time Inc., Aaron was in sales leadership roles at CNNMoney.com, People.com, and the corporate digital sales group. 

Aaron graduated with a B.A. in English from the College of the Holy Cross and is a long time New Yorker where he resides with his husband and mini-berne doodle. He loves to travel and spend time at the beach in Montauk, NY.

Fernando Romero is Senior Vice President of U.S. Digital Advertising Sales at TelevisaUnivision, the world’s leading Spanish-language media and content company. In this role, Romero leads national advertising sales revenue for the company’s digital, streaming, branded social, experiential and digital audio properties, including Uforia, the largest Spanish-language audio platform in the U.S., ViX, the largest global Spanish-language streaming platform, ViX-powered FAST Channels and UnivisionNow, a direct-to-consumer streaming service in the U.S.

Romero is a highly dynamic executive with more than 30 years of experience across media, technology, and advertising. He is a passionate thought leader who views media ecosystems, innovative multi-channel marketing, and diverse consumer audiences as key drivers for business growth. With expertise in integrated advertising strategies, he scales revenue across multiple lines of business while adeptly navigating the modern media landscape.

Prior to joining TelevisaUnivision in 2023, Romero served as Head of Revenue for Fuse Media, where he led sales and ad operations across national cable, video, social, OTT, CTV, content and experiential; along with the company’s social impact partnerships with AdCouncil, IPSY, Sofar Sounds and Grand Park LA.

He has also held roles with Issuu, the world’s largest digital publishing and discovery platform, serving as Head of Global Partnerships; led sales and marketing at NBCUniversal’s DailyCandy; served as Head of Digital for Rainbow Media (AMC, WE, Fuse/MSG network), as well as other various sales roles at Viacom, InStyle and Gilt City.

In 2022, Romero was named to the 2022 Cablefax Diversity List for his influence and leadership in the industry. Currently, he serves on the board of IAB Video, shaping policies and standards within the digital video ecosystem, and is also a member of 212 NYC Digital.

He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Stony Brook University. He is a proud Ecuadorian-American, born and raised in New York, where he resides with his wife and two children. He is an avid triathlete/runner, having completed 200+ races including 18 NYC Marathons (active streak), and is a 70.3 Ironman finisher.

Rowena brings years of experience in product development of ad-supported casual games on mobile and web. Most recently, she led product at Jump Ramp Games where she was responsible for the strategic direction and vision of the consumer-facing mobile apps. This included the development and launch of several games, supporting internal tools, and ad monetization services. In addition to product leadership, Rowena also has a background in digital marketing. In her spare time, Rowena enjoys trying out new recipes and traveling.

Andrew Tobel is Privacy Counsel to Albertsons Companies and supports Albertsons Media Collective, advising on the collection and use of customer data. Prior to Albertsons Companies Andrew Tobel was the Founding Partner of Tobel Law LLC where he advised some of the world’s most prominent retail, healthcare, pharmaceutical, and data processing companies. Andrew’s experience includes operating as the Global Privacy Officer, Privacy Counsel, Privacy Technologist, and Privacy Program Manager for his clients. He is a proven privacy strategist backed by a blend of cross-functional disciplines and is well-versed in providing legal and operational guidance on novel privacy issues.

Andrew’s prior roles at Big Four and global consulting firms allow him to offer solutions that are based on challenges managed at entities of all sizes, complexities, and risk tolerances. While operating as the Global Head of Privacy for a retail and fitness app company, Andrew addressed privacy issues related to advertising technologies, marketing, and unified consumer profiles to support a global loyalty program launch. His experience also includes advising on technology stack implementations, sales of digital assets, divestitures, and breach notification requirements. He has supported the implementation of digital health platforms and advised on data lifecycle best practices at global retail, healthcare, pharmacy, and professional service companies.

David DeRobbio leads the API and Independent Agency Partnerships team and works on ads insights partnerships at Instacart, the leading online grocery platform in North America.
Prior to joining Instacart, David worked at Acxiom/LiveRamp, where he ran identity integrations for premium publishers (Facebook, Hulu, Twitter, LinkedIn) and later led LiveRamp’s data marketplace business development team. David began his career in Account Management at McCann Erickson, moving into advertising sales and management at AOL, Pandora, Microsoft and NBC News. David is a graduate of Syracuse University’s SI Newhouse School of Communications, where he sits on the Leadership Board and remains active in the Newhouse Community.

Jeffrey Bustos is the VP, MAD+Commerce (Measurement Addressability Data) at the IAB where he develops industry standards and guides for measurement and addressability solutions to enable revenue growth, efficiency, and scale with a focus in Retail Media Networks, Video / Advanced Television, and Privacy Enhancing Technology. Key projects include: Categorization & Definitions Buyers Guide for Retail Media, Data Clean Rooms and Privacy Preserving Solutions Research, and Attention & Engagement Metrics Standards. Previously Jeffrey worked at GroupM where he led Data & Audience Strategy for eCommerce clients, consulting them on cookieless solutions, audience strategy & activation, and data taxonomy & identity resolution for CDP and Data Clean Room activations.