Valerie Philco

I attribute my success to a combination of continuous learning, adaptability, and a passion for solving problems. Throughout my career, I’ve had the opportunity to lead international marketing campaigns, manage significant budgets, and develop strategic initiatives across diverse markets. As marketing evolved, I embraced technology by learning coding languages and building automation solutions, which allowed me to bridge the gap between marketing and technical innovation. What motivates me most is creating efficiencies that save colleagues time, reduce repetitive work, and enable teams to focus on higher-value strategic activities that have a meaningful impact.

One of the best pieces of career advice I’ve received is to embrace what makes you different rather than trying to fit a predefined mold. After receiving an autism diagnosis as an adult, I gained a deeper understanding of my strengths and the unique perspective I bring to my work. That experience reinforced my belief that neurodivergent individuals can excel in technical, creative, and leadership roles. I’ve learned that success comes from leveraging your strengths, seeking support when needed, and staying confident in your ability to achieve ambitious goals regardless of perceived limitations.

My advice to young women entering the marketing and technology industry is to stay curious, embrace lifelong learning, and never be afraid to step outside your comfort zone. The lines between business, marketing, and technology continue to blur, creating exciting opportunities for those who are willing to develop both technical and leadership skills. Focus on solving problems that make work easier and more efficient for others, and remember that great leadership is rooted in service, collaboration, and empowering those around you. Most importantly, value the unique perspective you bring to the table—diverse experiences, backgrounds, and ways of thinking drive innovation and create stronger teams. Whether your path begins in marketing, technology, or another field entirely, remain adaptable, advocate for inclusion and accessibility, and believe in your ability to make a meaningful impact.

The biggest challenge in my field right now is keeping up with the rapidly changing technology landscape. There are so many resources and so many ways of learning now because information is just easy to get access to, but that also makes it overwhelming. I think you've got to be very flexible and adaptable, especially because careers themselves are changing now. Everyone's going to have to start changing and transitioning to learn something new, especially coming from different backgrounds. Even established careers are evolving, so adaptability is really the key word. To stay current, I use resources from companies like Anthropic, which does a great job providing courses for people to get well-versed with AI tools and how to use AI in general. Adobe also has amazing resources, not just on the paid service but also the free resources they offer with articles on how to maximize the use of their products. I also recommend the Code Newbie podcast, which is specifically designed for beginners and covers career transitions, learning strategies, and coding fundamentals. I think nowadays it's good to know even a little bit of coding, especially because of emerging technologies, and it's a very good resource if you're breaking into a tech role.

Work-life balance is incredibly important to me, and that's what drives my passion for what I do. I know that so many of us are enveloped in our jobs and working so hard that sometimes we don't have enough time for our families or our dogs, or even for the things we like to do. Knowing that my job makes so many people's jobs less stressful and takes less time so that they can maybe do the things outside of work is what makes me really happy. There are so many nuances to marketing work, and it can be exhausting, so being able to reduce that and make those tasks that sometimes feel so mindless already automated is part of what I love about my job. I want people to not be suffering as much in the work they're doing and not working five hours to submit a project request. I've always loved helping people, and creating accessibility of learning for different people is so important, especially understanding that we all learn differently. I really want people like me to feel happy and know that they can get there, they can build automations in an amusement park and do all of these things. You can really reach those goals and get anywhere you need and find all these cool opportunities that are so well fit for us.