“Knowing what I wanted and going after it, taking that risk… was definitely a pivotal moment for the trajectory of my career.”

We’re kicking off the new year with a good one! In episode #47, the first episode of season four, I chat with Lisa Sullivan Cross about her amazing career trajectory, her evolution as a leader, and her plans for innovation at Art.com.

Background:

Lisa is the Chief Marketing Officer at Art.com. Prior to taking this role in April of last year, she was Vice President, Growth and Brand Marketing at Pandora. Lisa has over 20 years marketing experience and a track record of growing business at companies like Lucasfilm, Warner Bros., Dictionary.com, Evite, and Nielsen Business Media.

“I’ve learned how important it is to advocate for your team and be an ally.”

Recap:

In this episode, Lisa and I discuss –

  • What drew her to Art.com and her key areas of focus for innovating the brand and consumer experience in 2018.
  • Key actions she took in her career which accelerated her growth and trajectory (including a very impressive story involving cold-calling aggressively and taking a risk on a short-term opportunity to prove out a new role she created.)
  • How an unsuccessful product launch helped create space and mindset for innovation within one of her past companies.
  • How she wishes she knew earlier in her career the importance of being free to fail, as well as when to ignore the saying “don’t sweat the small stuff.”
  • What her leadership style is like now and how it has evolved as she has learned to value various attributes of leaders differently over the years.
  • Common leadership mistakes she’s observed.
  • Three pieces of advice for people interested in following in her footsteps.

“We’re living and breathing the concept that life is better with art.”

Connect with Lisa on Twitter.