Career Path of a Chief Marketing Officer at Lookout
Deb, an English major with no prior internships, unexpectedly discovered a passion for advertising after a brief stint at Enterprise Rent-A-Car and an entry-level role at a B2B ad agency; this led to a fulfilling career progression through client services, brand building, and various marketing functions ("demand generation, field marketing"), showcasing a successful transition from an unrelated major into a thriving marketing career.
Career Exploration, Marketing, Advertising, B2B Marketing, Career Development
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Deb Wolf
Chief Marketing Officer
Lookout
Cal Poly
English, Writing & Education
Technology
Communication and Marketing
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. Deb's career path highlights a non-linear progression, starting from an English major with no internships to a CMO role. This showcases the transferability of skills and the importance of finding a field that sparks passion.
2. Her early career in B2B advertising, despite its unsexy nature in the late 80s, reveals the possibility of finding unexpected career satisfaction and illustrates the evolution of marketing in the tech world.
3. Her experience in various marketing functions (advertising, brand management, demand generation, field marketing) highlights the diverse skillset required for a successful marketing career and encourages exploration of different marketing areas for students interested in this field.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Please include any internships or jobs you had before your current role.
Yes, I can share that. I was an English major at Cal Poly and honestly, I had no real understanding of business. I thought I'd go into creative writing or teaching.
When I graduated in 1988, I didn't have any internships. The world wasn't as connected as it is today, globally or technologically. As an English major, I didn't feel my skills were directly applicable to what I eventually did.
My senior project involved submitting a couple of short stories. After graduating, I worked for Enterprise Rent-A-Car for a short time, and I knew that wasn't for me.
My boyfriend's neighbor worked for an ad agency and they were hiring for an entry-level administrative role in advertising. I took that job and fell in love with the art of advertising. It was for business-to-business, which in 1988-89 wasn't considered glamorous like technology companies are today.
It was very technology-driven, focused on "speeds and feeds"—really boring stuff. But for some reason, I loved it. My writing background probably helped me appreciate the art of advertising.
I worked on client service teams at two advertising agencies early in my career. Then I transitioned to the corporate side and built my career from there. I spent a lot of time doing advertising and branding for B2B companies and clients before moving into corporate life.
I also worked in demand generation and field marketing. Marketing has so many functional areas, and you need to understand a bit about each as you rise through the ranks. That's how I got my start and began my journey. I never really knew much about it, but I loved it and just kept going.
Advizer Personal Links
LinkedIn.com/debwolf