Leading Ladies
WICT Southern California Honors Leadership
by Craig Kuhl -- Multichannel News, 10/26/2008 8:00:00 PM
For a 16th year, the Southern California chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications will once again present its LEA awards, recognizing five outstanding women for their contributions to the cable and telecommunications industry in the areas of leadership, education and advocacy.
“The goal is to give these women a special day, recognize their achievements and listen to their inspiring stories,” said Sherry Brennan, president of WICT’s Southern California chapter. “They are very special.” Among the awards presented are Woman of the Year, Advocate Leader, Woman to Watch, Board Member of the Year and Lifetime Achievement.
“It’s important that others outside their companies see the value of its leaders and employees beyond the microcosm of the company,” Brennan said.
The awards, which got their start in 1992 as the “Celebration of Achievement Awards,” were renamed the LEA Awards in 1997 and have since become WICT’s most important event of the year.
“It is very satisfying to see the popularity of the LEA Awards grow, and its impact on people’s careers,” Brennan said. “We have quadrupled attendance since the first year. It is a very big event for cable on the West Coast.”
With the merging of the San Diego chapter into its region, and considering the vast territory that WICT’s Southern California chapter covers, the organization continues to move on several fronts to serve the needs and recognize the talents of all its current and prospective members and potential members.
“We want to give our members what they need, like mentoring,” Brennan said. “But our chapter goes all the way to Las Vegas, so it’s very spread out. We are having more events in various markets, however, and planning a big kickoff session to give people a way to establish common ground and build relationships around certain issues. And, we want to partner with other organizations such as CTAM.”
The 2008 LEA Awards will be presented during a gala celebration held at the Beverly Hills Hotel on Oct. 30.
Woman of the Year
Danielle Wade
Vice President, Customer Care and Marketing, Bright House Networks – Bakersfield Division
Danielle Wade initially seemed to be headed toward a long career in advertising, but a serendipitous call to a friend changed all that.
“I had always been in advertising and wanted to work for an agency. But when I called Tracy Jenkins, who worked at Jones Intercable, and asked if she would critique my interview for an agency job, in 30 minutes I was discussing the cable industry with Jones executives,” Wade said. “My first thought was this is a very interesting business.”
As it turns out, Jones Intercable became interested in Wade. She was hired and sent to Chicago to work with her soon-to-be mentor Pat Andrews-Keenan — an experience that Wade says “opened up many new doors.”
One of those doors led to Prime Cable (later acquired by Comcast) in the Windy City, where she would come of age in the dynamic, albeit challenging urban market.
“There is a wide variety of ethnicities in the inner city, where you can really cut your teeth,” she said. “It allowed me to hone my marketing skills.”
It would also afford her an opportunity to join Time Warner Cable in Indiana, a smaller, less chaotic market, and then to Bakersfield, Calif., which would eventually become a Bright House system as part of the TWC-Bright House restructuring.
“It was a vice president position, which was somewhat unusual going from a management position to vice president. But it was a perfect fit and an opportunity to lead a team,” Wade said.
The move West also led Wade to Women in Cable Telecommunications. “The Southern California chapter really reached out to me,” she said. “I had very limited cable contacts on the West Coast, so by participating in their events and enabling several staff members to join, it has created a soft spot in my heart for WICT.”
A graduate of the Betsy Magness Institute leadership-training program, Wade oversees a significant portion of Bright House’s customer operations, as well as marketing and sales functions, including residential and commercial sales, core and ancillary markets.
Of her own achievements, Wade insists little could be accomplished without the team effort she staunchly believes in. “The LEA Award represents to me being fortunate enough to lead the 'team of the year,’” she said. “They do unbelievable things every day.”
Advocate Leader
Samantha Brown
Senior Director, Western Division Affiliate Relations, Sorpresa
Samantha Brown’s unlikely move into the cable industry while an event planner at UCLA’s student union was more a case of cable finding her than her finding it.
“ESPN brought me in right after graduation as a sales assistant. Several months later I was a junior executive, then account executive and eventually senior account executive,” Brown said. “People supported me all along the way. I’ve been very fortunate. The cable industry has become almost like a family.”
Brown has since moved on to become senior director of affiliate relations for Sorpresa’s western division.
But moving up cable’s ranks wasn’t always smooth sailing. “The early 1990s represented an interesting time, and the landscape was different. There weren’t many women executives at the sports networks,” she said. “But [Women in Cable Telecommunications] made sure I had the opportunity and great mentors. ESPN really helped me develop, and other networks were catering to women, like USA.”
Brown’s cable career took a hiatus when she decided to enroll at the Southwestern University School of Law. It was a move that would serve her well when she returned to the industry. “In law school, I could actually read about [Tele-Communications Inc.], the impact of cable on the world, and the world we experienced, in text,” she said.
Still, Brown admits to being impressed by how the industry continued to evolve and mature. “I saw the buzz and excitement at the Western Shows and was in awe of the vitality,” she said. “I thought: we are really an impressive industry.”
In joining WICT, Brown has also become an integral part of the organization in Southern California. “There are women who came in like me, so I’ve been very active in the mentoring program and developing ways to expand the advisory committee,” she said.
Her passion for cable and what networks can accomplish fueled her decision to move to Spanish-language children’s network Sorpresa.
“I grew up in two distinct cultures, it really spoke to me,” said Brown, who is of Hispanic descent. “It must be something I believe in.”
Brown is honored to receive the LEA award for Advocate Leader. “I thought that one day I could be like these women in cable, and hopefully I’ve done some good,” she said. “So, you can’t imagine how much this honor means to me, and how honored I am to receive it.”
Lifetime Achievement
Karen Kranick
Vice President, Customer Operations, Cox Communications Orange County/Palos Verdes
Karen Kranick, who recently retired as vice president of operations for Cox Communications’ Orange County/Palos Verdes system, was an integral part of the MSO’s leading edge operation in Orange County since the halcyon days of the mid-1990s.
“In 1995, when Cox acquired [her then-employer] Times-Mirror Cable, it was a watershed moment for me,” Kranick said. “Cox was dedicated to broadband, women and customer service, and I was selected for the company’s first high profile conference, and was asked to be on the leadership management committee. That indicated to me I was supported, acknowledged and accepted in the industry.”
Another defining moment — for Kranick and the cable industry — was the launch of digital television, high-speed data and voice services in 1997.
“We needed to be more flexible, nimble and responsive,” she explained, adding, “I’ve never seen a company invest more in training and development than Cox.”
The biggest lesson, according to Kranick, has been “listening to the team.” And that skill has earned her the kudos of her colleagues. “Karen always had time to listen, teach and share both the joyous and difficult times,” said Elena Arosemena, senior MIS analyst for Cox. “She is the embodiment of a true, sincere and successful leader.”
Kranick’s leadership style has also been invaluable to WICT during her 25 years as a member.
Similarly, her work with Cable Positive has played an integral part in her cable career. “Cable Positive was an organization I felt very close to, and I wanted to be on its board. It was just the right thing to do,” she said. “I’m one of its biggest advocates.”
In the end, Kranick insists it’s all about teamwork. “I’ve found that building high-trust teams and giving people the authority and responsibility to make decisions, with accountability for their actions, is leadership skill number one,” she said. “I’m honored to receive this award, but it’s really recognition of the Cox team.”
Board Member of the Year
Dwayna Haley
Senior Account Executive, Ketchum Atlanta
When Dwayna Haley’s husband, a federal agent for the Department of Homeland Security, was transferred, she found herself trading in Stuttgart, Ark., for Los Angeles. She arrived in L.A., a self-described “small-town girl with big-city thoughts.” And, she added, “that was scary.”
In California, she joined PR firm Bob Gold & Associates. “That’s when I got really excited about the cable industry,” she said.
Haley credits Gold with giving her “a pure love for the industry and its people. It’s like a close-knit family, and that related to the existence I’d always known,” she said.
The Southern California chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications also had a significant impact on her career and personal life.
“I was asked to be a mentor in WICT, but I was soon in awe of how the women held each other up and how we all became a bit stronger because of WICT,” she said. “From board member to 2007-’08 Membership Chair, it has been amazing.”
Just as amazing has been Haley’s impact as membership chair for the organization and as public relations co-chair for the annual WICT/LEA Awards.
“I’m not shy about talking to women about joining WICT. The organization gives you the 360-degree plan needed to succeed in the cable industry. It has given me tangible tools I can use in my professional development,” said Haley.
That professional development has included account executive duties for multiple top-tier clients within the cable and entertainment industries and managing Charter Communications’ first-ever national sales incentive.
But even more important than the work, Haley noted some of the people that she has gotten to know in the industry and within WICT. “People like Erin Farrell [currently vice president of affiliate relations for CRN Networks] in WICT have changed my life,” she said. “She’s given me 20 years of experience and tools from actual experiences in the industry.”
Haley’s professional focus is now on Ketchum Atlanta, where she has accepted the proverbial “offer I couldn’t refuse” as a senior account executive. “[Joining Ketchum] brought me back closer to home, but the names and faces in cable don’t change for me,” she said.
Of the LEA Award, Haley added: “For 17 amazing women to say Dwayna stands out among them is deeply humbling. I’m still speechless.”
Woman to Watch
Veronica Islas
Marketing Director, TuTv
Veronica Islas entertained the idea of pursuing a legal career after graduating from Loyola Marymount University, but she realized that she “just didn’t feel the passion for law.” That’s when fate — and a job offer — stepped in.
“I was very fortunate to be offered a position at Lifetime Television,” she said. “That’s where I was introduced to cable. I thought: 'Wow, what a great place to be, with a great team and learning the industry.’ I felt a whole new world opening up for me.”
That world opened further when she discovered industry organizations such as Women in Cable Telecommunications and the National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Cable.
“I had heard about WICT, NAMIC [and the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing] and thought, now that is impressive — networking and relations. It was a very positive environment,” she said.
Islas’ next professional move was to Charter Communications. “It was the right time for me to progress my career, especially to Latino marketing,” she said. “It was a big transition because you had to wear many hats. But I liked the exposure to several different business aspects and how a system operated from the ground up, and knowing you are touching the customers. It was exactly for me.”
She would go on to lead several successful subscriber acquisitions and upgrade campaigns for Charter’s Western Division, aimed at both the general and Hispanic markets. She was also instrumental in growing the system’s Latino subscriber base through targeted marketing campaigns.
“Something about Latino marketing has always been exciting to me,” said Islas, who is now marketing director for TuTv. “TuTv gave me that opportunity. I’ve always had a passion to market to Latinos. Now I can help other cable operators with Latino marketing.”
Being an active member of the industry and organizations such as WICT has been a top priority for Islas.
“I remember a beautiful event, the LEA Awards, and hearing these amazing women speak,” she said. “They were being recognized and it really lit my fire. I felt I could do it too. It was very inspiring.”
Now, Islas herself is joining the ranks of LEA honorees. “I can’t believe I’ll be sharing the stage with these fantastic women,” she said. “Little me.”
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