Her Story
About Erika
Erika Goldwater is a seasoned B2B marketing and communications executive with nearly three decades of experience helping technology companies accelerate growth through strategic storytelling, integrated marketing, and market expansion. As a consultant with Chameleon Collective, she serves as a fractional marketing and communications leader for high-growth organizations, partnering with founders and executive teams to build marketing engines that drive revenue, strengthen brand positioning, and support long-term business success. Her expertise spans public relations, content strategy, demand generation, partner marketing, global communications, and go-to-market execution.
A graduate of the University of Maryland with a degree in Journalism, Erika began her career in the late 1990s after a startup CEO recognized her talent for writing and storytelling and encouraged her to pursue marketing instead of sales. That pivotal opportunity launched an international career focused exclusively on technology companies, ranging from startups to global enterprises. Throughout her career, she has played key roles in major business milestones, including international market expansion, category creation, acquisitions, executive transitions, and private equity-backed growth initiatives. Most notably, she helped a European-founded technology company expand its presence in the United States, grow into an industry leader, and successfully navigate acquisition.
Known for her collaborative leadership style and passion for connecting people and ideas, Erika believes that the most successful organizations are built on teamwork, continuous learning, and a shared commitment to growth. She is a strong advocate for aligning marketing with business outcomes, closing the gap between marketing and sales, and using storytelling to create meaningful connections with customers and markets. In addition to her professional accomplishments, Erika has dedicated significant time to community service, serving for nearly a decade as President of the North Shore Massachusetts chapter of the Pajama Program, helping provide books and pajamas to children experiencing instability and hardship.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Erika
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to a combination of strong storytelling and writing skills, a natural ability to connect with people, resilience through challenges, the support of exceptional teams, and a commitment to learning and growing throughout my career.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Know your worth. Just because you're a woman in the room, you don't have to be the default note-taker or get everyone's coffee. You can be agreeable, but know your worth and your role, and stay strong. Become the best in your role, whatever it is - if you're an intern, be the best intern you can be. Always seek to learn more. If you're starting off in PR doing research or grunt work, be the best researcher you can. Everything you can do to learn and to achieve is what you need to do, and never accept second best. Always do your best. You need to learn yourself - who you are, what your strengths are, and your weaknesses - and figure out how to best manage those. Be a lifelong learner, always seek to find the best answers, and be the best answer for your team. Find your tribe of people who are your brain trust that you can run ideas past and share concerns with. You have to always evolve and trust your instincts. And if you're in a situation where your CEO or leader doesn't respect or believe in marketing, or if you're on a team where there's not true collaboration and teamwork, get a new job. Don't stay there - you're not going to change that person's mind or that environment. You need to be part of a great team to be successful.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the biggest challenges—and opportunities—in marketing and technology today is keeping pace with constant change, as emerging technologies and evolving markets require professionals to be adaptable, resilient, and committed to finding collaborative environments where diverse perspectives can thrive.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values that guide both my work and personal life are teamwork, empathy, lifelong learning, resilience, trusting my instincts, and having the confidence to advocate for my worth and the value I bring to others.
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