It's No Fluke

As CEO of Porter Novelli, Jillian Janaczek manages talent and operations of the strategic communications company globally, nurturing key client relationships, and driving business growth across Health, Corporate + Brand, Food + Ag + Nutrition, Purpose + Impact, Tech, and Government, as well as strategic services. She is part of OPRG’s (Omnicom PR Group’s) global leadership team. ​

 Before Porter Novelli, Janaczek was President, BCW New York, spearheading the firm’s largest market and managing Fortune 500 clients. She sat on BCW’s Global Board and was Chair, Client Risk Committee. ​

Earlier in her career, Janaczek was Managing Director of Healthcare at Cohn & Wolfe. Her background includes extensive work with prescription medications and Rx to OTC switches. She has worked closely with leading companies such as AbbVie, GlaxoSmithKline, Gilead, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Novartis and Novo Nordisk, among many others, providing strategic counsel for U.S. and Global programs. She expanded her role with Novartis Pharma AG by working in-house as Global Brand Manager in Basel, Switzerland. ​

Dakota Lowe is an award-winning social strategist with nearly a decade of experience helping brands break through with innovative digital storytelling. As VP of Social Strategy at Edelman, Dakota leads social engagement for iconic names across CPG, e-commerce, and food with an emphasis on their earned-centric campaigns—including Degree, Dove, Hellmann's, and Mars.

Previously at GSD&M, Dakota modernized Fruit of the Loom’s social presence, including launching the TikTok with 150% month-over-month growth and 10M+ views, and secured the agency’s first TikTok AOR with Stanley, leading all social creative outputs.

Recognized by AdAge, Adweek, Fast Company, the Clio Awards, the Webby Awards, and (of course) the Shorty Awards, Dakota’s work has earned various industry honors. With a passion for mentorship and a deep understanding of digital culture, Dakota thrives on helping brands break through the noise—always ready to connect, strategize, and cheer you on (just don’t ask for free deodorant). You can find her on LinkedIn and Substack.

Scott Sutton is the CEO of Later, where he leads the company's strategic vision and operations. Previously, he served as Chief Business Officer at ZoomInfo, helping grow the business from $150M to over $1.2B ARR through 10 acquisitions and an eventual IPO. Scott holds a Bachelor's and Master’s in International Management from Portland State University and studied business analytics at Harvard Business School.

Listen to Scott's podcast Beyond Influence.

Alexis Ramos & Ray Brown are Co-Presidents of Sixteenth Sports,  a division of Sixteenth, one of the leading, global Athlete Creator talent partnership companies. They lead Sixteenth Sports under the Whalar Group umbrella, creating a new stadium for Athletes to collaborate with brands beyond social media reach and build IP worthy of long-term partnerships.

A visionary leader and influential Hispanic woman in the sports industry, Alexis is known for her strategic insight and transformative leadership. As one of the few Hispanic women to represent a 1st-round pick in the NFL draft, her career spans nearly a decade in the sports industry.

Alexis began her career with the European Cup, enhancing fan engagement through innovative Fan Zones, and later joined the Las Vegas Raiders, where she discovered a passion for player and community initiatives. Since then, she has shaped player development and strategy for elite NFL talent, influencing the careers of stars such as Maxx Crosby, Najee Harris, Cameron Jordan, and Quentin Johnston. Renowned for her collaborative approach and creativity, Alexis encourages philanthropy and leadership amongst her athlete partners.

A seasoned entertainment industry veteran, Ray Brown is celebrated for his talent discovery, management, and producing skills. His career highlights include working with Alfonso Ribeiro on "The Fresh Prince" and managing Shemar Moore on "Criminal Minds" and "SWAT." Ray co-founded Ncredible Entertainment with Nick Cannon, creating impactful projects like "Star Camp" and the "School Gyrls" films.

Ray was instrumental in discovering Grammy and Oscar-winning artist H.E.R. and has collaborated with influencers like Sommer Ray to launch successful consumer brands. 

Ashley Sonlin is a digital marketer with a sharp eye for what drives engagement.

She began her career as a celebrity talent manager, working with multi-platinum, Grammy-winning artists, then moved into the creator economy, leading influencer campaigns for brands like McDonald’s, Xfinity, and Macy’s at Influential. While earning her MBA at Northwestern Kellogg, she built a TikTok following of 500K+ and 175M+ views, and today, she’s a Senior Content Strategist at Influent, where she builds LinkedIn thought leadership for top CEOs and founders.

Prior to founding Humble and moving to Taos, Jeff Shardell spent his career living and working in the San Francisco Bay Area. His last company was Google where he was Director of Business Development. There, he helped build their strategic partnerships team and rode the rollercoaster from an early stage start-up to one of the most successful tech companies in history.

Prior to that, he was at a number of Internet startups, including co-founder of Gloss.com which was sold to Estee Lauder and at Netscape, the original browser company. Jeff's passions include storm chasing, playing guitar, surfing and camping with his 8-year old son.

Christian Muche is a renowned global executive and business strategist operating at the intersection of the digital, marketing, technology, and event industries. Muche has worked with global brands and executives, including AOL, YAHOO, and FIFA, to bring successful results. He was the Co-Founder of DMEXCO which has become the leading and most international digital marketing event in the world. Seeing a gap in the marketing community, he believed the time had come for a new event experience created specifically for the entire marketing world which is POSSIBLE.

Nii A. Ahene is the founder and managing director of Net Influencer, a website dedicated to offering insights into the influencer marketing industry. Together with its newsletter, Influencer Weekly, Net Influencer provides news, commentary, and analysis of the events shaping the creator and influencer marketing space.

Through interviews with startups, influencers, brands, and platforms, Nii and his team explore how influencer marketing is being effectively used to benefit businesses and personal brands alike.

With a strong passion for Partnerships and Marketing, Sarah Adam has over 10 years experience in various B2C and B2B SaaS Marketing roles, from PR, Field Marketing and Content to Partner Marketing and Influencer Marketing. Today, Sarah heads Partnerships and Influencer Marketing at Wix, focusing on Wix's end-to-end web creation platform for Agencies and Enterprises, called Wix Studio. 

Charles Haynes is the founder and managing director of Ziggurat XYZ -- representing the world’s top factual entertainment creators including industry leaders like James Hoffmann, a globally celebrated coffee expert; Matt Parker (Stand-up Maths), whose mathematical storytelling captivates millions; aeronautical engineer Xyla Foxlin, whose creative projects inspire young makers and women in STEM; Answer in Progress, who explores life’s big questions through curiosity and humor; and, pop culture commentator and comedian Carley Thorne (uncarley) among many others.

Previously Charles worked as a technology consultant and in publishing, becoming acquainted with the first forays into eBooks and digitization. And prior to that, he worked on comedy feature film 'A Cock and Bull Story' and the Silver Bear-award winning documentary 'Road to Guantanamo'. A failed comedian and would-be filmmaker, Charles also gardens.