Jennie Sutherland, Marketing Expert in Ann Arbor, MI, United States
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Jennie Sutherland

Bio

Jennie is a strategic marketing advisor with 15+ years of experience across Fortune 500 companies (Dell, HP, and AT&T), higher education institutions (University of Michigan), and global agencies (Leo Burnett/Starcom and GSD&M). Organizations engage her when growth slows or strategy needs clarity. Jennie partners with executive teams to refine go-to-market (GTM) strategy, strengthen positioning, and turn complex marketing data into clear decisions that accelerate growth.

Project Highlights

Expertise

  • Agency Relationship Management (ARM)
  • B2B
  • Brand Marketing
  • Data-driven Marketing
  • Digital Media
  • Go-to-market (GTM) Strategies
  • Growth Marketing
  • Recruitment

Work Experience

Fractional CMO

2025 - PRESENT
Freelance Clients
  • Served as a strategic advisor and fractional CMO, helping leaders cut through complexity, align product, brand, and growth strategy, and make confident, high-impact decisions.
  • Defined ICP, positioning, and go-to-market strategy for early-stage and scaling organizations, translating ambiguity into focused, actionable plans that drive momentum.
  • Diagnosed growth challenges across audience, messaging, and channel strategy, identifying gaps and prioritizing the highest-leverage opportunities for traction.
  • Advised founders and executive teams on go-to-market sequencing and retention logic, aligning cross-functional efforts around measurable growth objectives.
  • Led brand architecture and positioning for an early-stage storytelling platform, developing an integrated marketing and communications roadmap to strengthen audience alignment and launch readiness.

Marketing Director, Brand

2023 - 2026
University of Michigan
  • Headed strategic planning across 10+ business degree programs at the University of Michigan (Michigan Ross), advancing brand, recruitment, and national reputation objectives.
  • Directed a 30-person marketing and communications organization through multi-year strategic planning, resulting in record-breaking application growth and sustained improvements in national rankings.
  • Designed and executed full-funnel enrollment strategies spanning market research, digital/paid, SEO/SEM, content marketing, and audience segmentation, doubling lead generation targets.
  • Developed differentiated program positioning centered on flexibility, sustainability, AI, ROI/outcomes, and strengthening competitive advantage in a global, multi-segment market.
  • Led the launch strategy for Ross LA, aligning market opportunity, brand strategy, and GTM planning.

Director of Marketing

2019 - 2022
St. Edward's University
  • Oversaw marketing efforts, achieving 10:1 ROI and elevating ranking to Number 8 Regional Universities West (USNWR).
  • Led a standing-room-only workshop at AMA Higher Education Symposium, mentoring 100+ senior marketers on data-driven strategy.
  • Partnered with admissions and finance teams to create net cost and affordability planning tools, driving engagement with prospective students and delivering 3x lift in qualified applicants.
  • Built and managed a new analytics function, delivering executive dashboards and actionable insights to inform cabinet-level scenario planning and strategic decision-making.

VP of Media

2018 - 2019
Ampersand Agency
  • Partnered with the CEO to develop media capabilities, website, and detailed playbooks to support client acquisition and growth.
  • Led a media team to optimize digital programmatic, social, and SEM campaigns.
  • Achieved a 2x increase in qualified leads, exceeding year-over-year (YoY) enrollment targets.
  • Managed regional clients across various industries, including consumer products, grocery, and higher education.

Strategy Director

2016 - 2018
Agency Mania Solutions
  • Designed custom scorecards, playbooks, and scope of work (SOW) tools for CMOs, resulting in a 175% increase in compliance.
  • Oversaw 75+ 360-degree evaluations for Fortune 500 companies, including interpreting gap analyses.
  • Delivered data-driven insights and executive recommendations, boosting transparency and strengthening partnerships.

Senior Marketing Consultant

2008 - 2016
Dell
  • Managed global media, creative, and production agencies, delivering $20 million in YoY savings by streamlining the creative process.
  • Developed executive scorecards as a Microsoft solutions lead, showcasing strategic influence, leadership, and data-driven decision-making. Created a predictive B2B sales enablement tool, contributing to $65 million incremental pipeline growth.
  • Oversaw a $500+ million consumer media strategy across a portfolio including laptops, desktops, Alienware, and retail, driving quarter-over-quarter growth.

Associate Media Director

2002 - 2008
GSD&M
  • Supervised 10 direct reports and oversaw $200 million omnichannel strategic media plans for high-profile accounts such as the United States Air Force, Pennzoil, Krispy Kreme, AT&T, and John Deere.
  • Presented national brand plans to Four-star Generals at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C; presented to 500+ recruiters at the National Recruitment Conference.
  • Developed and implemented integrated marketing strategies to drive qualified leads across enlisted and officer (healthcare, law, etc.) audiences.

Project History

Dell | Predictive Analytics for Pipeline Growth

CHALLENGE
Marketing and sales data were fragmented across systems, limiting visibility into which prospects were most likely to convert. Sales teams lacked a consistent way to prioritize leads, resulting in inefficient follow-up and missed revenue opportunities.

SOLUTION
• Developed a predictive sales enablement tool in Salesforce that analyzed behavioral, marketing, and pipeline data to identify high-probability opportunities.
• Built executive scorecards and forecasting models that translated marketing and pipeline metrics into actionable insights for leadership, enabling more effective lead prioritization and stronger alignment between marketing and sales teams.

This created a data-driven lead prioritization system that gave sales teams clearer visibility into pipeline opportunities and enabled strategic collaboration between marketing and sales.

IMPACT
• Generated $50 million in qualified B2B pipeline within 90 days.
• Improved sales prioritization and pipeline visibility.
• Strengthened alignment between marketing and sales teams.
• Established a repeatable, scalable analytics framework.

University of Michigan | Enrollment Growth Strategy

CHALLENGE
There was a need to grow demand across multiple business degree programs in an increasingly competitive higher education market. Marketing efforts were fragmented across programs and channels, limiting visibility into performance and making it difficult to align strategy and maximize growth opportunities.

SOLUTION
• Led strategic planning across a portfolio of 10 business programs, aligning a 30-person marketing and communications organization around a unified full-funnel enrollment strategy.
• Refined program positioning and audience segmentation to clarify the distinct value of each program and better match messaging to target audiences.
• Implemented market research, SEO/SEM optimization, and integrated content and paid media campaigns to improve demand generation and conversion across the enrollment funnel.

IMPACT
• Doubled lead-generation targets across priority programs.
• Delivered more than 35% application growth across key segments.
• Contributed to improved national rankings and stronger market positioning.

Dell | Global Creative Production and Agency Streamlining

  • $20 Million — in Annual Marketing Cost Savings
  • 20% — Reduction in Agency Spend
  • 600+ — Global Marketers Trained on New Processes

CHALLENGE
Creative production and localization workflows were fragmented across multiple agencies, resulting in significant duplication in translation and transcreation processes. The lack of coordination slowed campaign execution and increased marketing costs across global markets.

SOLUTION
• Partnered with cross-functional marketing, procurement, and agency teams to streamline the global creative and production operating model.
• Consolidated translation and trans-creation workflows across agencies and implemented clearer governance and scope management frameworks to improve coordination and reduce duplication.

This created a more efficient global production model, accelerating campaign execution and improving oversight of agency workflows.

IMPACT
• Delivered $20 million in annual cost savings.
• Reduced agency spend by 20% through improved efficiency.
• Trained 600+ global marketers on the new model and workflows.
• Improved coordination across internal teams and agency partners.

St. Edward's University | Marketing Analytics Transformation

  • 10x — ROI Visibility
  • 50% — Reduction in Monthly Marketing Reporting Preparation

CHALLENGE
Marketing channel owners inconsistently reported performance, creating fragmented visibility into results. Leadership lacked a unified view of marketing performance and enrollment drivers, making it difficult to prioritize investments, identify growth opportunities, and forecast enrollment outcomes with confidence.

SOLUTION
• Designed and launched a centralized marketing analytics function that unified reporting across channels.
• Established measurement frameworks defining which metrics each channel should track and how insights ladder up to enrollment outcomes.
• Built executive dashboards and a repeatable monthly reporting process that translated marketing data into clear strategic insights for leadership.

This created the organization’s first unified view of marketing performance and established a shared framework for data-informed decision-making.

IMPACT
• Standardized reporting across marketing channels.
• Enabled data-driven investment and enrollment strategy decisions.
• Received an invitation to present the framework at the AMA Higher Education Symposium, mentoring 100+ senior marketers.

Ross LA Launch

Michigan Ross was preparing to expand executive education into the LA market, creating an opportunity to reach a new audience while maintaining alignment with the institution’s established brand. The challenge: introduce Ross LA into a highly competitive, saturated market while ensuring messaging resonated with West Coast audiences and remained consistent with the positioning and reputation.

Helped shape the messaging strategy, translating Ross’s institutional strengths - action-based learning, leadership development, and global reputation - into narratives designed to resonate with a new regional audience.

KEY CONTRIBUTIONS
• Creating launch deck and leading cross-functional coordination across stakeholders and agency partners, managing workstreams to ensure alignment and role clarity.
• Partnering with external agencies to develop branded environmental elements, including outdoor signage and interior design, bringing the Ross brand to life within the Los Angeles space.

Established a clear narrative by clarifying messaging and aligning cross-functional stakeholders and workstreams. This structure improved efficiency, reduced revisions, and set the foundation for a strong market introduction in 2026.

Education

1995 - 1999

Bachelor's Degree in Business and Liberal Arts

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

Certifications

MAY 2024 - PRESENT

Organizational Leadership

Harvard Business Online

Skills

Core

Marketing, Funnel Marketing, Google Ads, Branding, Brand Marketing, Funnel Optimization, Digital Marketing, Digital Marketing Strategy, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), Lead Generation, Go-to-market (GTM) Strategies, Marketing Technology (MarTech), Content Creation, Sales, Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO), Social Media, Organic Social Media, Brand Strategy, Content Strategy, B2C Marketing, Marketing Mix, Video Ads, Instagram Marketing, LinkedIn Marketing, LinkedIn Ads, Product Positioning, Media Intelligence, Competitive Intelligence, Social Media Platforms, Customer Segmentation, Media Buying, Market Research & Analysis, Marketing Research & Analysis, Brand Activation, Marketing Strategy, Marketing Analytics, Strategic Marketing, Marketing Leadership, Content, Content Marketing Strategy, Paid Advertising, Social Media Marketing (SMM), Campaign Strategy, Audience Targeting, Social Media Content, Social Media Analytics, Marketing Campaigns, Content Marketing, Channel Strategy, Online Marketing, Sales & Marketing, Ad Campaigns, Facebook Ads, Performance Marketing, Product Marketing, Landing Pages, Marketing Communications (MarCom), Digital Marketing Best Practices, Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), Salesforce B2B Commerce, Account-based Marketing (ABM), Marketing Budgeting, Marketing Budget Management, Email Marketing, Email Automation, Organic SEO, Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Search Engine Optimization (SEO), TV Advertising, Drip Marketing, Web Marketing, SEO Marketing, TikTok Marketing, eCommerce Platforms, AI Marketing, Agile Marketing, Research Proposals, SEO Keyword Research, Brand Consulting, Public Relations (PR), Google Paid Ads, Influencer Marketing, YouTube Ads, Social Media Advertising, SEO Tools, SMS Marketing, Google Tag Manager, Keyword Research

Platforms & Tools

Instagram Ads, LinkedIn Profiles, Marketo, Google Analytics, CRM Systems, TikTok, Google Ad Manager, Meta Platform, Marketing Platforms, Mobile Platforms, Advertising Tools & Platforms, Digital Advertising Platforms, Canva, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Google Analytics 360, Google Analytics 4 (GA4), Business Intelligence (BI) Platforms

Business Models

B2B, Business to Business (B2B), Market Positioning, Business to Business to Consumer (B2B2C), B2B2C, Business to Consumer (B2C)

Technical

Google Search Console

Other

Trello, Business, Critical Thinking, B2B Marketing, Recruitment, Digital Media, Agency Relationship Management (ARM), Executive Presentations, Data Analytics, Client Presentations, Leadership, Management, Media Planning, Strategic Planning, Business Development, Consulting, Analytics, Paid Media, B2B Product Management, Consumer Branding, D2C Branding Strategy, Direct to Consumer (D2C), Data Analysis, PowerPoint Design, Reporting & Dashboards, Excel Dashboards, Social, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Digital Strategy, Process Optimization, Campaign Optimization, Email Marketing Strategy, Ad Strategy, Growth Strategy, Launch Strategy, Product Strategy, Strategy, Lead Marketing, Marketing Plans, Instagram, Competition Research, Competitive Analysis, Competitive Strategy, Positioning, Brand Positioning, Team Management, Cost Management, Lead Management, Time Management, Brand Management, Higher Education, Markets, Market Sizing, Market Insights, Market Research, Demand Sizing & Segmentation, Market Segmentation, Audience Segmentation, Personas, Buyer Personas, User Personas, Persona Development, Media, Print Media, Media Pitch, Media Mix Modeling, Earned Media, Media Production, Buyer Journey, Customer Journey, Customer Research, Consumer Insights, Data-driven Marketing, Data-driven Decision-making, Social Media Research, Brand Awareness, Brand Voice, Brand Design, Brand Identity, Brand Building, Brand Guidelines, Product Branding, Brand Partnership, Branded Content, Digital Branding, Brand Architecture, Brand Repositioning, Brand Stewardship, Brand Development, Digital Brand Identity, Brand Awareness Campaigns, Brand / Traditional Advertising, Corporate Branding, Business Consulting, Marketing Consulting, Growth Marketing, Demand Generation, Executive Stakeholder Alignment, Stakeholder Alignment, Stakeholder Management, Team Leadership, Thought Leadership, Cross-functional Collaboration, Cross-functional Team Leadership, Creative Strategy, Marketing Management, Customer Acquisition, Meta Ads, Lifestyle, Business Strategy, eCommerce, Revenue Strategy, Strategy Planning, Offline Marketing, YouTube Marketing, Client Management, Fractional CMO, Cross-functional Team Collaboration, ROI, Marketing ROI Optimization, Creative Direction, Marketing Services, Messaging, Strategic Communication & Messaging, Value Proposition, Data Analytics (Marketing), Sales Funnel, Business Analysis, Lifecycle Marketing, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Wrike, Drupal, Interdisciplinary, Negotiation, Vendor Negotiation, Project Scoping, Scope Management, Analysis, GAP Analysis, Organizational Management, Forecasting, C-suite, Programmatic Marketing, Programmatic Advertising, Demand Planning, Website Design, Playbook, CRM, B2B Lead Generation, Brand Logos, Budgeting, Executive Leadership, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Research, B2B Partnerships, B2B Sales Management, MarTech Solutions, Salesforce, Sales Enablement, Sales & Channel Enablement, Webinars, Tech Sales, Microsoft, Cost Analysis, Sales Forecasting, Consumer Behavior, Behavioral Science, Predictive Modeling, Predictive Analytics, Leads, Lead Magnet, Conversion, Lead Conversion, Conversion Rate, Website Conversion, User Conversion, MQL, Microsoft PowerPoint, Dashboard Development, Dashboards, Board of Directors, Crisis Management, Crisis Communication, Consumer Products, Budget Management, Demand Forecasting, Marketing Forecasting, Financial Forecasting, Ad Optimization, Nurture & Retention Campaigns, Drip Email, Email Design, Organic Search Traffic, Paid Search, Radio Advertising, Magazine Ads, Direct Mail, Direct Marketing, Retail Strategy, Pricing Strategy, Data Strategy, Viral Marketing, Marketing Tools, Video Marketing, Video Analytics, Video Streaming, Snapchat Advertising, Snapchat, Business Intelligence (BI), Market Intelligence, Digital Marketing Product Manager, Growth Marketing Product Manager, P&L Management, Ads Management, Risk Management, SLA Management, Email Management, Change Management, Adult Learning, Online Learning, Education, Platforms, Sales & CRM Platforms, Analytics Platforms, Demand-side Platforms (DSPs), Market Fit, Marketing Cloud, Segment, Personalization, Content Personalization, News Media, Broadcast Media, Media Training, User Journeys, Journey Mapping, Customer Journey Optimization, Customer Insights, Research Methods, Product Research, Primary Research, Secondary Research, Qualitative Research, Consumer Research, Quantitative Research, Web Research, Design Research, Brand Tracker, Brand Books, Personal Branding, Executive Consulting, Management Consulting, Sales Consulting, Startup Consulting, Kanban, Executive Coaching, Business Coaching, Career Coaching, Expansion Strategy, Web Design Strategy, Outreach Strategy, Sprout Social, eCommerce Marketing, User-generated Content (UGC), Healthcare, YouTube, Validation, Landing Page Optimization, Website Optimization, Growth Strategy, Organizational Strategy, Organizational Design, Salesforce Sales Cloud, Visio, Patents, Salesforce Reporting & Dashboards, Social Selling, CRM Implementation, Semrush, Direct Response, Video Scripts, 360° Video, Asset Management, Data Management, Learning Management Systems (LMS), Reddit Marketing, UX Research, User Research, Brand Licensing, Software Consulting, Consultative Selling, Vendor Management, Risk Assessment, Risk & Compliance, Training, Cross-functional, Online Reputation Management, Social Listening, Shopify, Tableau, Shopify Marketing

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