In pursuit of its mission to pave the way for more women to lead at all levels of marketing, media and tech, She Runs It routinely shines a spotlight on transformational leaders who set the pace for the industry, including an annual salute to three executives who best embody the fearless spirit of the organization: Women of the Year, which is now in its 61st year. The 2024 award recipients are: Andrea Brimmer, Chief Marketing & Public Relations Officer, Ally Financial; Charisse Hughes, SVP, Chief Growth Officer, Kellanova; and Eileen Kiernan, Global CEO, IPG Mediabrands.
Winners are selected from dozens of nominations and are chosen for lifting and championing others while driving growth and innovation for their companies.
“We consider this award to be our most prestigious because it honors some of the most accomplished and inspirational women in marketing, media and tech,” said Lynn Branigan, President and CEO of She Runs It. “This year is no exception. These women are remarkable leaders who have the unique ability to achieve equal measures of business success and social responsibility, all while leading with empathy, advocating for DE&I, challenging the status quo, and lifting others.”
Andrea Brimmer
Andrea joined Ally in 2006 and spearheaded the creation and launch of the Ally brand in 2009. Since becoming CMO in 2015, she has unified the brand under the company’s “Do It Right” mantra, and at her direction, Ally has established itself as a “different” kind of financial services company, dedicated to solving customer pain points that traditional institutions ignored. Andrea is widely recognized as one of the country’s most innovative and effective marketing leaders, known for being a dynamically disruptive and culturally astute trailblazer. The work of her team garnered recognition for Ally on many prominent industry lists and rankings, including the 2022 & 2023 Fast Company Brands that Matter list. She is passionate about advancing DE&I, and using her platform to create good in the world. In 2022, she launched the marketing industry’s first 50/50 pledge with the goal of spending equal amounts in advertising for women’s and men’s sports. Her leadership in gender equity resulted in her being named to Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business for 2023, Forbes World’s Most Influential CMOs in 2023 and the 2022 WISE Woman of the Year.
Charisse Hughes
As SVP, Chief Growth Officer at Kellanova (previously Kellogg Company), Charisse is responsible for driving the growth agenda for the company through leadership of Global Brands, Innovation and R&D, Commercial Advanced Analytics, Marketing Excellence, and Licensing & Cultural Initiatives. Charisse is putting data intelligently at the heart of commercial planning and finding behavioral patterns that unlock unique business opportunities. Whether identifying a licensing partnership by sharply understanding the cohorts of brands that influential consumers love most or finding a way to open up brands and products to an underserved community, Charisse’s inspired view on data application for CPG has permeated the company with a new enthusiasm to win through technology and the power of data. Previously, Charisse was the CMO for Pandora Americas. Her experience also includes marketing and brand leadership roles with The Estee Lauder Companies, Avon Products, Inc., and Sara Lee Corporation. She is a passionate advocate for ED&I and is an active member of Women of Kellanova+ and the African American Resource Groups. She was named 2022’s CMO of the Year by Consumer Goods Technology, recognized for leaning into purpose and technology through her work and personal mission. She was also recognized in the inaugural class of Adweek’s Marketing Vanguard Awards in 2023 and consistently ranks on Brand Innovator’s Top 100 Women in Brand Marketing.
Eileen Kiernan
As Global CEO, Eileen is responsible for the vision, strategy, and performance of IPG Mediabrands, the media and marketing solutions division of IPG, and its 18,000 employees across 130 countries. With more than 25 years of experience spanning brand stewardship, integrated marketing, creative strategy, business development and client and team leadership, Eileen brings a rich blend of purpose-driven creativity, innate curiosity, and diversity of thought to her role. Previously, she served as Global CEO of award-winning IPG Mediabrands agency, UM, where she oversaw global strategy, product, operations, and management of clients like Spotify, American Express, BMW, J&J, Levi Strauss & Co., H&M, and Sony. Earlier in her career, Eileen was Global President at J3, held a global remit overseeing UM’s Coca-Cola business in over 40+ markets worldwide, and served as Global CMO for UM. She was named an Honoree of Campaign’s 2024 Inspiring Women Awards and 2022 Female Frontier Awards, led IPG Mediabrands to secure the title as Ad Age’s 2024 US Network of the Year, and has served as a juror for award ceremonies around the world, including Cannes Media Lions and Festival of Media Global.
She Runs It will honor the three Women of the Year recipients at an awards celebration on July 17, 2024 at The Edison Ballroom in New York City.
Branigan added, “The awards event is a wonderful learning experience for everyone who attends because these winners will also share their insights, experiences, and strategies for rising to the top.”
About She Runs It
Founded in 1912 as Advertising Women of New York, She Runs It exists to pave the way for women of all backgrounds, identities, and ethnicities to lead at every level of marketing, media and tech. Membership stands at nearly 6,000 women, men and corporate alliance partners spanning 42 states and 10 countries. To learn more about She Runs It, visit sherunsit.org.
