E-JOURNAL 

Natasha Persad 

LinkedIn 

Overview 

Natasha is an eminent marketing expert with over 13 years of experience with specialization in digital marketing and demand generation. She holds a strong background in Statistics and Economics. She has gained a unique perspective on marketing from her time in the software industry, which allows her to position products and services to meet customer needs. 

Natasha's role as a Partner and Ecosystem Marketing Director involves developing and executing growth strategies through partnerships and alliances. She is skilled at identifying opportunities for partnership and ecosystem growth and creating strategies that benefits both companies. Her journey began with a leap of faith into a second career in her late 20s, and she has worked hard to become a skilled and successful marketing professional. She enrolled at Humber College as an international student, was eager to gain new skills and knowledge that would enable her to pursue a career in Marketing. While studying at Humber, she worked on campus and took an unpaid internship, determined to gain hands-on experience, and make the most of her time in school.

 During her time at Humber, the speaker developed social media strategies for anyone who needed help, offering her skills and expertise free of charge to build their portfolio and gain valuable experience. She also utilized the resources on campus, attending events and conferences such as the Ontario Colleges' Marketing Competition (OCMC) and networking with other students and industry professionals. 

Her hard work and dedication paid off when she was offered a job at Prophix Software, where She gained their first experience in the world of software marketing. This role allowed her to apply the skills and knowledge she had gained at Humber, as well as to learn new skills and techniques that were specific to the software industry.

 After their time at Prophix, she made a pit stop at CFIB, where she continued to gain valuable experience and build her network. Today, the speaker is working with a great team of Marketers at Vena, where they continue to leverage their skills in Digital Marketing and Demand Generation, as well as their experience in software marketing and partnership development. Their journey has been characterized by hard work, determination, and a willingness to take risks and seize opportunities. Through their dedication and commitment to their craft, they have become a skilled and successful marketing professional, able to make a meaningful impact in the industry. 

Vena is a software company that provides cloud-based Corporate Performance Management (CPM) solutions. Their platform allows finance and accounting professionals to streamline their financial close process, budgeting, forecasting, and other critical financial tasks. The Vena platform is designed to be flexible and scalable, allowing businesses of all sizes to tailor the software to meet their specific needs. It integrates with popular accounting systems like QuickBooks and Xero, as well as with Microsoft Excel, which is widely used in finance and accounting. Vena's software is known for its ease of use and its ability to simplify complex financial processes. Their platform includes features such as data integration, workflow automation, and version control, which help to streamline financial operations and reduce the risk of errors. 

Overall, this speaker is a highly skilled and strategic Marketing professional who can leverage her deep understanding of statistics, economics, and digital channels to drive results. She can balance the art and science of Marketing, using her skills to craft compelling campaigns that resonate with audiences and generate measurable results.

 Learnings 

The speaker discussed how the rise of digital channels and data-driven decision making has led to significant changes in the field of marketing. The speaker is an experienced marketing professional who is skilled in using data to inform marketing strategies and has a deep understanding of consumer behavior and market trends. She is also skilled in a variety of marketing techniques, such as content marketing, webinars, and events, and has a unique perspective on marketing from her experience in the software industry. 

As a Partner and Ecosystem Marketing Director at Vena, Natasha is responsible for developing strategies to drive growth through partnerships and alliances. The lecture emphasized the importance of building a strong ecosystem of third-party vendors, integrators, and other stakeholders in partner marketing, and discussed the value of Chat GPT, an AI powered chatbot that can be used for various marketing purposes. The speaker highlighted the importance of building a strong ecosystem of third-party vendors, integrators, and other stakeholders in partner marketing. They also emphasized the benefits of partner marketing, such as increased reach, reduced costs, improved credibility, access to new markets, and collaboration and innovation. The speaker's experience in digital marketing and demand generation allowed them to track the success of partnerships and ecosystem programs, and use metrics to demonstrate the ROI of marketing campaigns. 

In addition to partner marketing, the speaker touched on the value of Chat GPT in the marketing toolkit, including content creation, customer service, lead generation, market research, and personalization. They also provided valuable career advice for aspiring marketers, such as having a good understanding of how different functions of marketing work together, being prepared for the challenges of working for a fast-growing company, staying up to date with industry trends, and developing strong relationship building and teamwork skills. 

The speaker recommended utilizing resources such as the career center and participating in programs like OCMC to gain valuable networking opportunities and experience in marketing. They also emphasized the importance of building a professional network through platforms like LinkedIn and making a positive impression during the job search process, including sending a personalized note along with a resume and being prepared to discuss ways to improve a company's marketing strategies during a job interview. 

Overall, the lecture emphasized the importance of taking an analytical approach to marketing and being prepared for the challenges of working in a fast-growing company. Natasha's journey serves as an example of the importance of hard work, determination, and seizing opportunities in pursuing a successful marketing career. 

Impact on the career path 

 The information provided can be beneficial for us as recent marketing graduates in several ways. First, it highlights the various functions of marketing that are important in today's industry, such as partner marketing, content creation, lead generation, and personalization. By understanding these functions and developing a well-rounded skill set, recent graduates can become more valuable to potential employers. 

Additionally, the information emphasizes the importance of building strong relationships, teamwork, and presentation skills, which can help recent graduates become more effective marketers. The tips provided, such as utilizing career centers and connecting with marketing leaders on LinkedIn, can also help recent graduates build a strong professional network and gain valuable experience in the field. As the industry continues to shift towards digital marketing and remote work, recent graduates will need to be adaptable and willing to learn new skills. This includes focusing on digital marketing skills, such as social media marketing, SEO, and data analysis, as well as becoming comfortable with remote work and collaboration. However, these shifts also present new opportunities for recent graduates, such as the potential for more demand for digital marketing specialists and the ability to work with companies and clients from different parts of the world. Lastly, she even talked about building connections on LinkedIn which would ultimately help us in leading up to our dream jobs in the Marketing industry. 

 Overall, we as students can use the information provided to develop a strong foundation in marketing, stay up to date on industry trends, and be prepared to discuss marketing strategies and KPIs during our future job interviews. By applying this knowledge and being willing to adapt to the changing landscape, we can navigate our career paths and find success in the field of marketing.