Mollie Spilman is Chief Revenue Officer at Oracle Advertising. She is a 25plus-year media and adtech veteran whose prior gigs include roles at Criteo, AOL, Yahoo and Oracle. We asked who her hero is.
Who is your digital hero?
My digital hero is Amanda Richman, VP, Global Media Sales, Microsoft Advertising.
What has she done to win hero status in your eyes?
Amanda is hero because of her leadership, evangelism and humanity as it relates to digital advertising and digital media. I have been in the adtech space since 1998 and Amanda has been in the same ‘movement’ as I have since then, but back then from she drove from the Agency side.
Amanda’s ability to understand, communicate and evangelise the values of digital advertising have helped this sector to grow and thrive. And what is maybe the primary thing that drives me to call her my hero – is her “humanness”, grace and empathy.
Amanda is a very caring, down-to-earth leader who inspires and teaches as she drives business results. This is a fast-paced industry, and in the past more male-dominant, but Amanda always has been invited to have a seat at the table because of her intelligence and hubris.
How has her heroism helped drive digital?
Amanda has helped drive the digital industry to new heights through her incredible work at Mediavest, Starcom, Mindshare and various other digital agencies. She has shown Marketers how to think about digital and how to plan and execute digital media campaigns to drive outcomes.
Amanda has always been willing to be part of industry boards and coalitions, AdTech and media company ‘client advisory boards’ as well as important industry conferences as a valued thought leader. She has also been a staunch advocate for diversity and inclusion across gender, race and sexual orientation.
What the biggest challenges in digital we need another hero to solve?
It is definitely a ‘buzzword’ not just in adtech these days – but the world at large. Artificial Intelligence. I think that we need education about what “AI” is and what it isn’t. And we need not only education – but real exploration into the benefits and opportunities to drive even greater performance and insight from digital advertising.
What is your most heroic personal achievement so far in digital?
I guess my personal achievement is sticking with it! I started working in digital for Richy Glassberg at Phase2Media in 1998 and there were days over the next decade that I wondered why I had left ‘traditional’ media to move to digital.
Despite the questions, bubble bursts and bankruptcies I stuck with it because I knew that digital was not just a ‘fad’, it was a game-changer. I feel lucky to have had amazing learning experiences at places like AOL, Yahoo, Millennial Media, Criteo and Oracle. I always say, “it takes a village” and I feel like a hero that I was able to lead and work alongside so many amazing people in each of these villages on my journey.
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