Mariely Rodriguez
I've spent almost 20 years in analytics, specifically marketing analytics, across many different disciplines. I've worked on data science teams, agency analytics teams, and client-side across various verticals. I spent about a decade in finance working on digital marketing analytics and data science teams at companies like American Express and Wells Fargo. I've also worked in consulting, all with the same goal: helping clients and stakeholders grow their business from a consumer-centric lens. My approach is about doing something that gives value to the consumer while also helping grow the business. First and foremost, I'm a consumer myself, so anything we bring to life needs to have that consumer lens. I've worked extensively on customer experience and personalization, including rebuilding websites at both Amex and Wells Fargo to be responsive to what different users were experiencing, making sure we're addressing their concerns and speaking to customers from their perspective. My background is actually in forensics, specifically behavioral sciences. I worked as an investigator doing behavioral analysis across different groups in law enforcement and legal aid. I was interested in going into behavior analytics within the FBI, but that was taking a long time, so friends in customer analytics at a finance organization suggested I could use my skills there. They said we're still looking at behavioral patterns, just from a consumer lens, trying to understand what drives a consumer. I made that transition and never looked back. The same skill sets I had in behavioral analytics really applied to this field, and it's fascinating work in terms of understanding what drives consumers and how to develop something from a business lens that's valuable to people, not just trying to sell a product for the sake of selling a product.
• Big Data Analytics Certifications from Harvard
• Big Data Analytics Certifications from Johns Hopkins
• Multiple Programming Language Certifications
• Google AI Training Modules
• Bachelor's in Psychology from Cornell University
• Master's in Forensics from University of New Haven
• Alzheimer's Organization Fundraising
• Florida State University Digital Marketing Mentorship Program
• Community Educational Events and Symposiums for Students
What do you attribute your success to?
I don't think I would have been successful without multiple people holding me up. Your manager makes or breaks your career, and I've been fortunate to have great leaders throughout my journey. At American Express, our VP was a huge proponent of putting our innovative ideas out there, even when others weren't up to speed on things like personalization. She got us a lot of exposure and coached us through how to communicate with non-technical teams, which had a huge impact on how I communicate today. All the way through to today, my current manager is someone I've worked with in multiple roles for many years. She has the greatest media experience across so many different types of teams, she's able to speak and work with so many different people, and she loves to collaborate. I feel like I've adopted that collaborative mindset over time from great leaders, and understanding how we push the envelope but do it as a team that brings together people with expertise across so many different areas, because that's what's going to make us successful.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
First, I'd want to understand from what perspective you're coming at it, because marketing and particularly analytics have so many different entry points and skill sets. For example, if your interests are in AI, now is the perfect time to take advantage of that. Think about creative ways you could leverage any skills you've learned for problems that exist today for you as a consumer. What brought me the most success is taking myself out of the marketer's seat and putting myself in the consumer's seat. From whatever discipline you're coming at it from, putting yourself in those shoes will help you really understand what it means to meet the needs of your business but also the consumer. From a personal perspective, particularly for women, there's a lot of pressure for us to excel, to take on everything, to place it all on our shoulders, and to drive a lot of success. I would say keep an eye toward taking care of your own well-being amid all of this. Success is great, it's great to push the envelope, it's great to throw yourself into your work, but not doing it at the cost of a work-life balance and your own personal growth, because it's not sustainable otherwise.
Locations
IPG Mediabrands
Orlando, FL