As you are promoted, your job becomes very different. You become a leader and instead of trying to prove your own value, your job becomes about getting value out of your team.
Welcome to the the 97th Floor Mastermind Interview Series where each week we sit down with one of the makers, thought leaders and visionaries behind the biggest and/or up-and-coming brands around. We talk about everything from business and marketplace insights to personal journeys, successes, failures and legacy.
In this episode we’re talking to Brainstorm’s Chief Marketing Officer, Karen Peterson. Prior to Brainstorm, Karen was the Senior Vice President and CMO at Ancestry, the largest genealogy company in the world. After nearly two decades growing Ancestry, Karen decided to take a sabbatical and then a leap to a SaaS company that just happened to meet all of her criteria for company culture, infrastructure and growth. We talk about this, building good to great teams and setting expectations when they’re a moving target. Let’s jump in!
Show Notes
0:11-2:58 About Karen
2:59-4:28 Myths of marketing
4:28-7:46 Karen’s career path at Ancestry
7:46-10:46 Advancing within a company you love
11:05-13:45 Making a shift to a new opportunity and defining your table stakes
13:45-15:30 The true differentiator
15:30-20:20 About Brainstorm
20:23-25:38 Identifying the true culture
25:38-28:35 Building Good to Great teams
28:35-32:44 How to approach those who aren’t pulling their weight and identifying the value exchange
32:45-37:05 Failure and setting new expectations when they’re a moving target
37:06-44:10 Women in business
44:16-47:11 Karen’s legacy
Links and Resources Mentioned
Learn more about Brainstorm, Inc.
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