Big business and startups may seem like two things that are mutually exclusive, but they don’t have to be, and according to this week’s guest, they shouldn’t be. Growing up, Jennifer Anaya, Ingram Micro’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, learned about the many facets of business over dinner with her entrepreneurial parents. It helped her learn about everything that went into running a business -- and ultimately where she wanted to fit. She’s carried this entrepreneurial mindset with her throughout her career because, from Jennifer’s perspective, entrepreneurship is defined by the ability to drive change. Jennifer describes herself as a “change agent” and she knows better than anyone that innovation can be just as important at large corporations as it is at growing startups.  

Key Takeaways: 

• People are attracted to startups because they can shape where the organization goes but you can also do this with larger organizations and it’s equally important to drive change to stay relevant.
• There have been significant changes to who is buying technology--it used to be CTOs and tech teams. Now business leaders are buying tech to give them a competitive advantage, so it’s important to communicate the business advantages technology can drive rather than simply explaining the tech itself.
• It’s important to be resilient and adaptable. Things change quickly and the best marketers are eager to learn and excited to make things work.
• The best managers embrace opportunities to educate the people they work with. It helps with retention when you’re giving your team the chance to learn and grow.

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