The former print and broadcast journalist leads Aspectus Group’s North American business with an editor’s eye, a commercial brief and a stubborn preference for work that can prove its value.

A six-year apprenticeship in code gave Manny Ataebi an uncommon marketing instinct: understand the machinery, strip away the jargon, and make the buyer care.

Before taking charge of Gordian's global marketing, Sharon Lubrano learned the business from the product inward - from Lawyers.com and Bowker to a Revit app, recruiting software and corporate learning. Her career is a study in making specialist information easier to find, understand and use.

The S&P Global Market Intelligence CMO has spent more than two decades translating complicated financial products into stories people can use. Her route from underwriting to the operating committee makes a case for careers built as portfolios, not ladders.

From Def Jam contracts to Visa's global network, Frank Cooper III has built a career translating between culture and commerce. His operating idea is simple: trust earns attention, and attention only matters when it helps people move forward.

Rachael Donnelly did not plan on a career in marketing. A nonprofit modernization project, an unpaid ad-tech internship and years spent translating complex products taught her how to make data useful - and how to lead without pretending change will stop.