Friends of Dave David A. Frankel

On this edition of the podcast, I have a fun time catching up with longtime friend and college classmate, Monica Wright.  

Monica is a growth marketing guru and thought leader, devoting pretty much her entire career understanding how media and content drives engagement and conversion.  She spent a good chunk of this time at Third Door Media, publisher of global known and respected marketing news, information and resource sites such as Marketing Land, Search Engine Land and MarTech Today.  As she considers her next move, Monica is now engaged in solving a variety of company growth challenges by freelancing as a fractional marketing strategist.

During our chat, we cover some interesting topics such as:


Her unique journey from thinking she wanted to be a doctor when she went to college into the media space
How online media and publishing has evolved over the last two decades
Overcoming challenges in managing her career while battling (and beating) cancer
What's up next in social media and marketing
Her involvement in the new organization Women Of MarTech.

Monica's story is both unique and inspiring -- I think you will enjoy it.

Monica Wright is a growth marketing guru and marketing technology thought leader.  For a long time she was an executive at Third Door Media, publisher of global known and respected marketing news, information and resource sites such as Marketing Land, Search Engine Land and MarTech Today.  Today she is contributing to company growth by tackling marketing challenges as a freelance marketing strategist.

Monica is a cancer survivor.  Here she talks about how allowing herself to be vulnerable throughout her fight helped her maintain balance and success in her personal and professional life.

Monica Wright is a growth marketing guru and marketing technology thought leader.  For a long time she was an executive at Third Door Media, publisher of global known and respected marketing news, information and resource sites such as Marketing Land, Search Engine Land and MarTech Today.  Today she is contributing to company growth by tackling marketing challenges as a freelance marketing strategist.

In this clip, Monica shares her thoughts on how she saw early the importance of putting the customer at the center of the equation in order to build the best customer experience.

Monica Wright is a growth marketing guru and marketing technology thought leader.  For a long time she was an executive at Third Door Media, publisher of global known and respected marketing news, information and resource sites such as Marketing Land, Search Engine Land and MarTech Today.  Today she is contributing to company growth by tackling marketing challenges as a freelance marketing strategist.

Here she shares the three most important things that have contributed to her career success.

Ever catch yourself having such an easy, natural conversation with someone and then you look at your watch and time has gone quicker than you expected?

That's what happens this episode.

On this edition, time flies by as I chat with friend and colleague Jean Donnelly.  Through her work as founding Executive Director for FinTech Sandbox, a Boston based non-profit focused on supporting innovation amongst data oriented startups, Jean has become well known and respected in the FinTech and data and analytics spaces.

Jean has a fascinating backstory and during our time together we talk about:


Her early days and the challenges she faced as a woman at a primarily male engineering college and in technology
Her stints at GE and Fidelity, where, among other things, she teaches us the operational significance of the term "suck, squeeze, bang, blow"
What it was like during her 6 years at FinTech Sandbox working with startups, entrepreneurs and large partner companies
The post COVID environment and opportunities for innovation in FinTech
What she is looking to do in her next chapter

I'm sincerely grateful to have gotten to know Jean and consider her as a Friend of Dave in many regards.  She's a wonderful person, and I really think you will enjoy getting to know her better during this episode.

Jean Donnelly is an operational leader, entrepreneur and a widely respected FinTech executive.  Until recently she served as the founding Executive Director for FinTech Sandbox, a Boston based non-profit focused on supporting innovation amongst data oriented startups.

In this preview she reflects on what she learned from her role at FinTech Sandbox and what she is seeking from her next challenge.