MEET OUR 2024 JUDGES
The Women in Content Marketing Awards (WICMAs) are judged by an esteemed panel of industry leaders and experts in content marketing. Learn more about our judges!
Donna Barker
SVP, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer
Health Monitor Network
Donna is currently SVP, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at Health Monitor Network, a leading targeted healthcare marketing platform company. Her contributions have been transformative in the marketing of Health Monitor. Prior to joining Health Monitor Network, Donna held senior marketing leadership roles across Health, Wellness, Food, and Personal Care brands in OTC and CPG categories at Pfizer Consumer Healthcare, GSK, and Unilever, with brand/portfolio revenues from $50 Million to $1 Billion.
Donna sits on the Marketing Communications Committee of the Point of Care Communications Council (POCMA) and on the Global Leadership Council of United Way of Northern New Jersey.
Donna earned her bachelor’s degree in marketing from The College of New Jersey, where she graduated with honors (magna cum laude).
Julia Bartlett
Vice President, Marketing Operations
American Century Investments
Julia Bartlett is the Vice President of Marketing Operations for American Century Investments, an independent, privately controlled, pure-play asset management firm founded in 1958.
Ms. Bartlett is responsible for the marketing operations function for the firm, including managing marketing technology, data and analytics and campaign execution. Prior to American Century, Ms. Bartlett worked in the technology sector, previously working at Cerner, a healthcare IT company, leading Corporate Marketing, at IBM driving Industry Marketing and Sales Enablement and at Accenture as a Client Experience executive.
Ms. Bartlett holds a bachelor of science degree in Accounting, graduating with honors, from the University of Denver.
Kristen Berke
VP, National Advertising & Branded Content
Los Angeles Times
Kristen Berke currently serves as the VP of National Advertising and Branded Content at the Los Angeles Times where she has worked for 10 years. She is responsible for helping LA Times develop new revenue streams with a focus on branded content creation through the publisher's Oscar-winning studio arm LA Times Studios. Kristen has worked in content-based advertising for over 14 years and finds joy in helping brands find their voice in the most authentic way possible.
When she is not working, Kristen volunteers her time with the National Arts Club, where she co-chairs the Young Members' Committee, and runs as a guide with Achilles International, a global organization dedicated to transforming the lives of people with disabilities through athletic programs and social connection.
Marilen Cawad
Head of Content Design
J.P. Morgan Wealth Management
Marilen has spent more than 15 years creating content, primarily on business and finance. She currently leads a team of content designers and strategists who are dedicated to delivering products and experiences that drive customer engagement and business results for J.P. Morgan Wealth Management. Prior to that, she led the editorial content center of excellence at Prudential Financial, educating customers on retirement and financial planning.
Marilen began her career as a journalist, specializing in business and economics. She was previously the news editor at Institutional Investor magazine and managing editor for audience development at TheStreet.com. Marilen was awarded the Knight-Bagehot fellowship in economics and business journalism at Columbia University where she also holds a dual degree master’s in journalism and public affairs. She is based in New York City.
Stephanie Conner
Owner/Principal
Active Voice Communications, LLC
Stephanie Conner is the owner of Active Voice Communications, which recently celebrated its 15th anniversary. Stephanie and her team specialize in content strategy and copywriting for healthcare, technology, real estate and higher education clients. She is also the host of the award-winning Kiddos in the Kitchen podcast.
With more than 20 years of content marketing experience, Stephanie has earned various industry awards for excellence in copywriting and strategy. She was a Women in Content Marketing Awards winner for Freelance Excellence in 2023.
In addition, Stephanie has worked as an associate faculty member at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, her alma mater. And for three years, she served on the board of the Phoenix chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators, where she led community involvement programming and member communications.
Carolyn Cohen
Senior Marketing Manager
H&R Block
Carolyn Cohen is the Senior Manager over Content and Social at H&R Block on the Marketing & Experience team. She manages a team that is responsible for social channels across three lines of business and works collaboratively with their .com, blog, PR, and media teams. In Carolyn’s role, she is uniquely positioned to work with both field marketing and corporate marketing teams- building plans for activations and IRL events across the country.
She also leads H&R Block’s Employee Advocacy program, in its fifth year with 6,000+ participants. Carolyn works with Go-To-Market teams on yearly plans and overarching content pillars. Partnering with agency teams she provides the POV for our social communities and content performance. Prior to H&R Block, Carolyn has more than a decade in content marketing leadership both at Garmin, Barkley and VML.
Lauren Fritsky
B2B Freelance Content Marketer
Self-employed
Lauren Fritsky began her career as a print journalist in Philadelphia before running a successful travel blog, freelancing for major websites and overseeing content marketing for an IT company in Sydney, Australia. After returning to the US, she ran content for demand-side platform MediaMath for six years. In 2021, she began writing for SaaS companies, PR firms and content agencies on websites including Entrepreneur, Forbes, Fast Company and many more.
Lauren has been interviewed for the New York Times, USA Today, Salon and 10 News First Sydney. In 2023, she won the Freelance Excellence category in the Women in Content Marketing Awards. She earned a bachelor’s degree in English from La Salle University and resides in New Jersey with her husband and two children.
Amanda Garcia
Sr. Group Manager, Content Marketing
Twilio
Amanda Garcia is an Emmy award-winning broadcast journalist and content marketer based out of Los Angeles. For almost a decade she's worked in content marketing for both startups and global technology companies like Slack and Salesforce.
She’s spent the last few years at Twilio as a Principal Content Marketing Manager crafting engaging thought leadership content for Twilio’s Blog and spearheading in-depth global research reports for integrated marketing campaigns like Twilio’s 2024 State of Customer Engagement Report. She’s also responsible for publishing marquee Twilio customer stories, drafting scripts for short-form videos featuring Twilio products, and collaborating on brand media content for Twilio’s social channels.
Megan Gilbert
Vice President
FORTUNE Brand Studio
Megan Gilbert is Vice President of the award-winning FORTUNE Brand Studio, a division of Fortune Media. She drives the editorial direction, strategy, and production of all branded content, co-leading the creative studio team in digital, audio, video, social, and print storytelling for high-profile clients such as Salesforce, PayPal, Zurich Insurance, AWS, Boston Consulting Group, and more. Her varied and lengthy career in branded content includes positions at Gawker, VICE, Slate, The Washington Post, and Univision.
Megan is a graduate of Boston University and earned her M.F.A. in Creative Nonfiction Writing from Sarah Lawrence College. She teaches a graduate-level Branded Content course at New York University (NYU). She was named Content Marketer of the Year in 2022 by Masthead Media. She is a Telly Awards and AIVA/W3 Awards judge and will attend 2023 Elevate, Sundance Institute & Brand Storytelling's annual invite-only conference.
Kristin Gold
Senior SEO Content Strategist
Etsy
Kristin Gold has more than 20 years of experience as a content and marketing professional working across tech, e-commerce, traditional media and digital publishing. She has built a reputation for delivering holistic, forward-thinking solutions with an emphasis on content as a means to drive measurable business impact. Kristin has led teams and initiatives that span multiple disciplines including marketing, SEO, editorial, PR and member services. Her career has come full circle, from her early days as a tech copywriter to her current role driving content strategy for Etsy’s member services.
Kelly Haggard
VP, Marketing Innovation
Synchrony
Kelly Haggard has over 20+ years in omni-channel marketing, covering multiple industries, including financial, retail, publishing, healthcare, and education. Kelly leads marketing innovation work at Synchrony, evaluating new opportunities through a scoring framework and activating new capabilities in the Fintech marketing space. Kelly serves as co-chair for the Email Excellence Committee with the Association of National Advertisers and received the Stefan Pollard Email Marketer of the Year award in 2023. Kelly lives in Costa Mesa, CA, and volunteers with multiple non-profit organizations, including the OC Wine Society and South Coast Repertory Theatre, and co-leads Synchrony’s volunteer Diversity and Inclusion Committee for the Costa Mesa site.
Erin Hansen McKnight
Principal, Global Content Strategy
Adobe
Erin Hansen McKnight has 15+ years of experience in content creation for both publication and marketing. In her current role as Principal, Content Strategy at Adobe she creates, develops, and delivers thought leadership content for the Adobe Experience Cloud business. Her role as the lead strategist for the annual Digital Trends campaign has earned Adobe a finalist status for both the “Best Multi-Year Content Marketing Program” (2023) and “Best Content Marketing Program” (2022).
Prior to joining Adobe, she worked as a copywriter and culture journalist for Kovel/Fuller, The FADER, and Complex Media, and is published in the Cité de la Musique - Philharmonie de Paris book, Jamaica Jamaica! When not strategizing, she enjoys painting at home in Los Angeles, California.
Jen Hayes Lee
Head of Marketing + Content
The Bump
Jen Hayes Lee is a passionate content champion and Marketing executive, dedicated to the creation of culturally relevant, inclusive storytelling, developed to inspire and empower families of color. As the Head of Marketing + Content at The Bump, Jen stewards Editorial and Marketing initiatives to support parents and parents-to-be as they navigate life with baby.
Prior to joining The Bump, Jen worked across the Media and Technology space, leading brand strategy and audience engagement efforts at Hearst, Complex Media Networks, and Saks Fifth Avenue, launching multi platform campaigns for Coca-Cola, Macy's, McDonald's, EA Sports, and more.
Jen studied Marketing & Communications at the Goizueta Business School at Emory University and was later selected as a recipient of the Consortium Academic Fellowship, where she earned an MBA at NYU Stern School of Business.
Jen was recently featured in Amazon Live, Essence Magazine, The Bump, Worth. Emory University 40 Under 40 and Brand Innovators 40 under 40.
Jessica Hreha
Head of Marketing AI Strategy & Transformation
Jasper
Jessica’s 20-year career is marked by her drive to challenge status quo and get epic sh*t done. As Head of Marketing AI Strategy & Transformation at Jasper, Jessica engages directly with clients to collaborate on developing and expanding genAI initiatives. Her focus is on fostering AI literacy and responsible adoption within marketing teams by identifying, building, and scaling use cases and programs.
In early 2023 as Head of Global Demand Content Strategy at VMware, Jessica had the privilege of founding VMware’s Marketing AI Council, a cross-functional team dedicated to educating and empowering marketers to use genAI tools responsibly and effectively, ultimately scaling responsible AI literacy and adoption to over 750 global marketers.
Jessica is proof that anyone, at any level, within an organization can step up and spark widespread change and transformation within an organization. Her mission is to champion other marketers to take action in this new AI era–it’s a wide open leadership opportunity for any career level to become an agent of action and change.
Zerlina Jackson
Vice President of Digital and Experience Design
New York Life
For over 20 years Zerlina has created and delivered digital strategies and engaging experiences that help users meet their goals and ensure businesses deliver results. As a noteworthy leader in the digital space, she’s worked at some of the nation’s most recognizable brands, including Domino’s Pizza, PNC Bank, H&R Block, and currently New York Life. In her role as VP of Media & Channels, Zerlina works with her team to maximize the value of NYL’s marketing investments to improve engagement, increase consideration, and drive sales across owned and paid channels.
Zerlina holds a Master of Science in Marketing & Management from Walsh College and a Bachelor of Applied Science with minor in Computer Science from the University of Michigan. She currently resides in South Orange NJ with her husband and son.
Dipti Kachru
CMO
Broadridge
Dipti Kachru is the Global Chief Marketing Officer for Broadridge Financial Solutions and a member of the Broadridge operating committee. In her role, she leads all aspects of global marketing and corporate communications, including brand strategy, public relations, product marketing, digital marketing, demand generation and events.
In her two-year tenure at Broadridge, Dipti has helped re-energize the Broadridge brand, helping improve its visibility and strengthen its reputation and credibility. She also led the evolution of the marketing organization to a high performing growth driver, supported by modern marketing capabilities, and a digital first and data-driven mindset.
Widely recognized as a change agent and purpose driven leader, Dipti has deep financial services expertise, an established record of building industry-leading brands, and a passion for transforming marketing organizations to help drive business growth. As a DEI champion, she is actively involved in mentoring talent and making the industry more inclusive.
Diana Kelly Levey
Freelance Writer, Copywriter, Editor
DKL Content Services Inc.
Diana Kelly Levey is Long Island, NY-based journalist, former magazine editor, freelance copywriter, and content marketing writer who has owned her own freelance company for nearly two decades. She was nominated for a Freelance Excellence WICMA in 2023. Her clients include Headspace, Fitbit, Dropbox, Synchrony Bank, SoFi, and Clinique.
She self-published a freelance book, 100+ Tips for Beginner Freelance Writers, blogs about freelance topics on DianaKelly.com and BestFreelanceTips.com and sends out a weekly newsletter. You can find her posting frequently on LinkedIn (she was named a "Top 10 freelance writer to follow on LinkedIn" by Taplio) and Instagram @DianaKellyLeveyFreelance.
Mimi Liu
Content Marketing Manager, Disney Advertising
The Walt Disney Company
Mimi Liu is a marketing and communications professional with an M.S. in Integrated Marketing from NYU and over a decade of experience in helping both B2C and B2B companies grow their content, communications, and social media programs. Currently, she’s focused on rebranding and scaling Disney Campaign Manager (formerly Hulu Ad Manager), an easy-to-use platform for streaming TV ad buying that gives brands and agencies of all sizes access to engaged audiences across the Disney portfolio.
Outside of the marketing world, Mimi can be found studying for her next Wine & Spirit Education Trust exam. Feel free to reach out for wine recommendations!
Mia McPherson
Freelance Content Writer
Self-employed
Mia McPherson is an award-winning writer and content creator specializing in B2B technology, marketing, and human-interest stories. She is the former Content Director and Editor-in-Chief of Oracle media properties including SmarterCX.com, the Customer Experience Blog, Modern Marketing Blog, and Advertising Blog. Mia was named a 2022 Women in Content Award Winner for Freelance Excellence, 2019 Killer Content Award winner, and 2018 Oracle Marketing Excellence Award winner. Mia holds a BA in Journalism and MBA with a focus on Organizational Leadership. She is currently working in her dream roles as stay-at-home parent, freelancer, and Director of Philanthropy for the Mt. Lebanon Moms Network.
Karri Neal
VP, Content Marketing Manager at Regions Bank
Regions Bank
Karri Neal manages content marketing for Regions, overseeing content marketing and financial education strategy for the bank. In her role, she designs programming that provides advice, guidance, and education to support associates, customers, prospects and community organizations on their path to financial confidence. Under her leadership, Regions launched a podcast series, Regions Insights, which featured perspectives across the bank on various financial topics affecting both consumers and businesses.
She previously led communications for the Office of Advancement at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where she developed donor communications, which helped the institution reach its $1 billion capital campaign goal. While the latter part of her career has been with internal marketing teams at large organizations, she credits her account management experience in the agency world as where she cut her teeth.
Karri holds a bachelor’s degree in both Arts Management and Marketing from the Women’s College of Brenau University.
Lauren Porter
Senior Creative Strategist
Bleacher Report
Originally from the suburbs of Washington D.C., the Syracuse University alumna has a passion for storytelling with experience in editorial and marketing.
Prior to her current role, Lauren was an editor and writer covering love and lifestyle at ESSENCE, a premiere lifestyle, fashion, and beauty magazine for Black women. There, she developed and launched several digital-first editorial franchises as well as spearheaded live experiential event video productions.
Since joining BR in September of 2018, she's helped to secure new brand partners with original multi-episode content series such featuring A-list athlete and creator talent. Lauren has also helped develop the brand identity and strategy for HighlightHER, Bleacher Report’s dedicated women-focused sports culture portfolio brand.
For her career achievements, Lauren has earned industry accolades from Masthead as a WICMA Rising Star, Forbes 30 Under 30 in Sports, and Hashtag Sports Creators of Color.
Robin Rothman
Previous Editor-in-Chief
Pfizer
Robin A. Rothman is a Brooklyn-based writer, editor, and content strategist. She has over 20 years of diverse experience across multiple industries, both in print publications and on digital platforms. Robin's professional journey began in journalism, honing her narrative skills as a rock critic. Today, the art of storytelling remains at the heart of all her work and reflects her belief in content's ability to connect, inspire, and effect positive change.
Most recently, Robin served as the Editor-in-Chief for Pfizer.com. Prior to Pfizer, Robin held senior editorial roles at the American Kennel Club, Amazon.com, Mindspark Interactive Network (a part of IAC), and MTV. When she's not working with words, she can be found... well, actually she probably can't be found as she and her wife are likely off on yet another travel adventure.
Jennifer Shambroom
CMO
Clickatell
Jennifer Shambroom is a SaaS and Mobile Marketing leader, author and three time CMO directly focused on achieving high growth rates within start-up, turnaround and rapid growth environments. Jennifer’s marketing leadership has contributed to 10 funding events, the sale of five software companies, and the acquisition of several more.
Named Top 50 Women in Tech Marketing Executives, Marketing Executive of the Year, Shortlist for Most Innovative Woman in Marketing, Advertising and Public Relations, 50 Women to Know in Martech and Mobile Women to Watch.
Julie Shapiro
Editor in Chief
Northwell Health
Julie is an award-winning content creator, digital channel strategist, and Editor in Chief for The Well by Northwell. As someone drawn to creative and strategic challenges, Julie has grown The Well into Northwell Health’s powerhouse digital platform that delivers expert-driven health and wellness guidance through its website, as well as editorial franchises via YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, newsletters, and podcasts. After getting her start in TV production at CBS, Julie worked in multiple communications and creative services roles for American Cancer Society and NewYork-Presbyterian, as well as founding her own photography company. She is honored to be a judge for the 2024 Women in Content Marketing Awards!
Emily Silber
Executive Editor
Foundry 360 at Dotdash Meredith
Emily Silber is an Executive Editor for Foundry 360 at Dotdash Meredith (DDM) with more than eight years’ experience producing branded content for clients across all formats and industry sectors, specializing in health, lifestyle and personal finance. She was named the 2023 “Content Marketer of the Year” for the Women in Content Marketing Awards, and was a 2023 judge for the Content Marketing Awards. While at DDM, she’s worked on dozens of projects, including Millie, an online/print finance publication for women; and Proto, an award-winning online/print publication about medicine. She is also Editor in Chief of Mosaic, a bi-monthly lifestyle magazine.
Before joining the DDM team, Emily received her MS from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and worked as an editor for Psychology Today, Audubon Magazine, the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory and the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center.
Stephanie Stahl
General Manager
Content Marketing Institute
As General Manager of CMI, Stephanie Stahl leads the brand’s event and digital operations – and gets to work with the best team on the planet! Previously, Stephanie served as VP of Content Marketing for UBM’s Technology portfolio, providing strategic guidance on content development, content optimization, audience engagement, and go-to-market platforms for technology clients. She’s worked for Informa (previously UBM), for nearly three decades, helping shape new multimedia content and event offerings. Stephanie lives in the Washington, D.C., area with her husband and they enjoy spending time taking care of their many pets and visiting their two daughters in different parts of the country.
Sharon Stenger
Vice President, Content Marketing
Prudential
As Vice President of Content Marketing, Sharon leads the delivery of meaningful content experiences that enable our customer to take positive financial action with Prudential.
Throughout her career, Sharon had led numerous teams, brands, and businesses through transformation to create a positive growth trajectory, looking at both supply side and demand generation. Her highly profitable track record is founded on three competencies: 1) imaginative, insights-based strategies grow brands and businesses, 2) execution focus to deliver results and consistently meet or exceed targets, and 3) organizational perception and talent mindset needed to inspire businesses, teams, and people.
Prior to joining Prudential and financial services, Sharon worked in packaged good marketing where she created billions of dollars in value and increased return on investment for noted global companies including Colgate Palmolive, Diageo, and Campbells Soup. Prior to Marketing, Sharon worked as a Process Engineer in the Pharmaceutical Industry.
Joyce Tsang
Founder and Content Marketer
Joyce Tsang Content Marketing Limited
Joyce Tsang is a content marketer and the founder of Joyce Tsang Content Marketing.
She began her career as a journalist and editor before transitioning to the role of Digital Marketer and Content Director. Passionate about telling the right story for brands, she develops content strategies for her clients and educates them on the importance of identifying target audiences, creating valuable and consistent content, monitoring and analyzing data to strengthen content strategies and enhance marketing effectiveness.
Karen Walsh
Founder/Principal
Allegro Solutions, LLC
Karen Walsh, a lawyer who previously worked as an internal auditor and college writing professor, is a subject matter expert in cybersecurity and privacy regulatory compliance. Her consulting and content services for cybersecurity startups translate technology features into business-oriented and compliance solutions. Her approach to B2B content writing couples her ability to communicate complex, abstract ideas as an instructor with her love (yes, love) of all things compliance. She believes that content marketing should drive buyer awareness, education, and value.
Author of Security-First Compliance for Small Businesses, Karen is a CMMC Registered Practitioner who has been published in the ISACA Journal, Dark Reading, HelpNet Security, NextGov, and Security Magazine.
Fransiska Weckesser
Co-founder and CEO
The Very Creative Firm
Fransiska Weckesser, the dynamic co-founder and CEO of The very creative firm, hails from Holland but made her mark in Shanghai and Los Angeles. Her enterprise specializes in large-scale shows, events, and video productions, boasting clients from Louis Vuitton to Hilton and even BMW. After doing projects all over the world from Europe to China, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and now the US she created this special way of thinking about how creative concepts & plans can be transformed into realization. This is one of the main reasons why she loves her work!
Besides a thriving Business, Weckesser is devoted to community service, volunteering where and whenever she can, supporting local enterprises & starting business owners, as well as being a board member on the GenV board (part of Visionary Women). A proud mother and pet owner, she emphasizes the importance of spreading positivity daily. Her journey, from a young dreamer to a successful entrepreneur, stands as a testament to her belief that the world is full of undiscovered possibilities.
Stephanie Wong
Head of Technical Marketing
Google Cloud
Stephanie Wong is the Head of Technical Marketing at Google Cloud, where she blends storytelling and technology to inspire developers. She's a 3x Webby award winner, 2022 Signal award winner, 2022 WICMA Pivot winner, global keynote speaker, and creator of popular content like the Google Youtube series Discovering Data Centers and Where the Internet Lives podcast. For over a decade, her career has spanned Sales, Engineering, and most recently AI Product Management where she helped build Google Cloud’s first AI-powered developer assistant, Gemini. She is a venture capital operator and angel investor supporting the intersection of AI and media.
Born and raised in San Francisco, Stephanie is a women-in-tech advocate, former pageant winner, hip hop dancer, and has an unhealthy obsession with dogs.