Two Marketing Moms

In this episode, The ROI of Moms in the Workplace, author Heather Lane Powers (The Power Lane) explains why retaining moms at work is an economic imperative. We explore how outdated systems, rigid policies, and lack of childcare push moms out of specific workplaces—not the workforce itself. With compelling data and a $1.5 trillion opportunity at stake, Heather introduces the REVS framework and five levers for driving measurable change. Listeners will gain practical tools, policy insights, and a clear path to creating workplaces where moms—and the economy—thrive.

In this podcast with special guest Amos Gelb, you'll learn how to navigate the workplace with confidence by mastering the key elements of professionalism for those new to the workforce. We'll explore the vital connection between professionalism and hard and soft skills, showing how technical expertise is amplified by strong interpersonal abilities like teamwork, accountability, and emotional intelligence. Whether you're an intern or early in your career, this episode offers actionable insights to help you stand out, grow your skills, and build a foundation for success in any professional environment.

Learn how to unlock your productivity and creativity through meaningful connection and humor with award-winning showrunner, executive producer, and comedian Marta Ravin. Marta helps next-generation leaders find the secret sauce to leadership by embracing authentic leadership with a sense of humor.

Thomas Kemeny shares his journey as a copywriter and author of the book Junior: Writing Your Way Ahead in Advertising. Thomas provides tips on writing, presenting, and pitching, and explains why juniors are the lifeblood of an advertising agency.

In this episode, Karen F. Geiger, author of Storied Life Journal: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Living shares how journaling helps you design a life with more stories. Karen will cover the benefits of journaling as a regular practice and demystify the difficulty of journaling with helpful techniques and prompts to help you connect to the page and tell your own story. 

In this episode, Bonnie Wan shares her journey as an advertising brand strategist and author of the book The Life Brief: A Playbook for No-Regrets Living.  Modeled after the ad agency creative brief, the life brief is a playbook that will help readers unlock clarity in a part of life that matters most. You will learn Bonnie's three-step practice with specific exercises to make your life brief a reality. 

In this episode, Dr. Stefanie K. Johnson, PHD talks to us about her Wall Street Journal Bestseller Inclusify: The Power of Uniqueness and Belonging to Build Innovative Teams. You will learn the most transformative leadership skills of tomorrow, how to build stronger relationships with your team, practical strategies to become an Inclusifyer, and how Inclusifying is the key to innovation, growth, and success.

In this episode, Amy Saidman from Story District teaches us about storytelling. You will learn the biggest challenges facing storytellers, how to address them, the key elements of a good story, and tips to improve your storytelling skills.

Middle managers play a crucial role in organizations bridging the gap between top-level management and front-line employees. But it takes the right combination of skills, visibility, and strategic networking to help middle managers get noticed. Listen to host Kelly Callahan-Poe and special guest Carli Sidoti from Buttoned Up Consulting talk about the challenges of being a middle manager and learn tips to get noticed.

There are times when you feel stuck in your career and need a boost! Carli Sidoti, a brand and marketing strategist, talks about how she was able to get unstuck in her career with a big transition. Learn five ways to get unstuck in your career.

Colette Fortin, a divorce mediator turned business coach provides a framework for having difficult conversations that may change your perspective on how to view tough conversations. Learn the types of difficult conversations, different ways to view them, and how to get to the zone of yes using the model and continue the path forward.

Layoffs are a fact of life if you work in marketing or advertising. Marketing leadership coach and consultant Elizabeth Coluby shares her personal experience and tips on how to survive and thrive after a layoff.

In this episode, Kelly Callahan-Poe and Julia McDowell provide 5 entry-level interview tips for marketing and advertising jobs. Today employers take an average of 6-8 seconds to review a resume. While hard skills make up the majority of a resume, it's the soft skills that make or break your ability to get hired. Learn the top 5 ways to sell yourself with a bonus 5 at the end of the episode.

In this podcast, Kelly Callahan-Poe chats with Sara Madera, a career coach for working moms about motherhood and ambition. They discuss the impact of kids on your career, tips for how to create success across work, life, and family, and why Sara has so many clients from the marketing/agency world. 

In this episode, Kelly talks to Opeyemi Oluwole, Senior Vice President, Consumer Engagement at Teledoc Health and a Board Member at Stride. Opeyemi and Kelly discuss their mutual passion for mission-driven marketing and how marketers can be a force for good in the industry. 

In this episode, Kelly talks to Cary Hatch, former CEO of MDB Communications about her 40-year passion as an advertising evangelist advocating for the power of communications to elevate the profile and stature of brands, causes, and organizations. Cary talks about her rise to become CEO and Owner of MDB Communications, provides her input on the state of the industry, and gives advice for women wanting to follow in her footsteps.

Alan Brown the Founder and Chair of DNA, an LGBTQ+ and minority-owned advertising agency, highlights the Project 47 Pledge, a vehicle for advertising agency leadership to commit to mentoring LGBTQ+ talent to aid in career advancement. Alan talks about the challenges workers face in finding sympathetic mentors and provides strategies for employers and employees alike to foster a culture of inclusiveness for LGBTQ+ employees.

In this episode, Kelly interviews Taylor Adams & Khendra Lucas from Mental Health America on workplace mental health. Taylor and Khendra share Mental Health America stats on the state of the mental health crisis in America and how COVID-19 has impacted mental health in the workplace. They share strategies on how to support colleagues who may be struggling and provide resources on how employers can create a mentally healthy and supportive work environment.

As an intern with Williams Whittle, Imogen Stephens shares the skills she learned on the job and her advice on how to get the most out of your internship.

 In this episode, Julia interviews her life-long friend Keri Shull, successful entrepreneur and founder of the Keri Shull Team, the top-selling real estate team in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area, about the power of vision boarding. Keri gets into the details of how you can create a vision board, apply it to all aspects of your life including your career, and make it manifest your accomplishments. 

In our first episode with a marketing Dad, Julia and Kelly talk to Jason Teitler, Special Olympics Senior Vice President of Global Communications and Brand. Jason talks about his career on both the agency and client-side and shares his perspective on the importance of alignment in marketing and communications. 

In this episode, Julia & Kelly talk about the most overused words in marketing and vote on which words are still relevant and which ones need to go. All marketing professionals have words and phrases that grate on them from the marketing funnel and flywheel to integrated and multi-channel marketing to digital.

 In this episode, Kelly shares with Julia the story of her 2020 commitment to read a business book a week and shares her favorite authors, books, and quotes for inspiration. 

In their 30th episode, Kelly and Julia are tackling the age-old question for marketing and advertising professionals – what's better, agency side or in-house? There are pros and cons for both sides, so join in on the conversation to figure out what's your best next move.

In this high energy episode, Julia & Kelly talk with Andrew Lawless, a certified High Performance Coach. Andrew guides us through the top five mistakes people make with their LinkedIn profile, the three guidelines to finding your niche, and the key information that should be highlighted in the ideal profile. 

In this episode, Kelly & Julia chat with agency Creative Director Eva Day to learn How to Light Your Creative Spark. As a 30-year advertising agency vet, Eva shares how she manifests ideas with her creative posse, a sense of humor, and some good deeds as sprinkles of inspiration. 

In this episode, Julia & Kelly discuss the four categories that affect productivity; focus/clarity, organization, time management, and pace, and provide tips, tools, and hacks for each one.

In this episode, Julia & Kelly discuss the 5 ingredients for success in a client-agency relationship and how to navigate change when you know it's inevitable. They also talk about what to do when you have been sent in to "right the ship."

This special episode is dedicated to the people who helped us the most in our careers -- our professional journeys and our personal journeys -- our parents. As a working mom, Julia's Mom talks about not letting others define you, doing what's best for you and your family, and not undervaluing yourself. Kelly's Mom, a former teacher, focuses on the concept of not being invisible and standing up for yourself. Julia's Dad, both a sales and marketing professional and entrepreneur, talks about the challenges and mistakes he encountered in the workforce and how they turned into assets. Kelly's Dad, a former telecommunications professional who started one of the first cell phone companies in the 80s, focused on how to become a value creator and a change maker.

In this episode, we interview Kelly Francis, a certified life/motivational coach, keynote speaker, and the founder of KellySUITE, a business created to mentor and motivate career women., Kelly overviews her goal setting process called the Prosperity Effect that provides a road map to help you achieve your goals faster. From breaking patterns and getting unstuck, to defining balance and prosperity in a whole new way, join us in this lively discussion. 

In this episode, we interview Joann S. Lublin, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, leadership speaker, and author of the book Power Moms: How Executive Mothers Navigate Work and Life. Joann compares the first wave of power mom executives to the next generation, demonstrating how far working mothers have come—and how much further they'll need to go in a post-pandemic world. We talk about the distinctions between the two generations, how being a mom makes you a better boss, and life hacks for allaying mom guilt. We also learn how the younger generation of women use a concept called "work/life sway" to help them go with the flow between their professional and personal lives. 

In this episode, we talk with Heidi Parsont, the founder of Torchlight Hire, a recruitment agency that places candidates in marketing, communications and creative roles. Heidi provides job candidates with advice on how to make your resume and LinkedIn profile stand out using personal branding. She also provides valuable insights into today's job market, the top marketing skills that employers value right now, and tips for young marketing professionals starting out.  

In this episode, Julia talks with Eurah Lee, a fellow agency girl who also jumped ship and joined the creative gig economy as an entrepreneur. They talk about the value of internships and mentors, the difference between the DC and NYC agency environments, and how and when they made the move from agency to entrepreneurs. If you're contemplating your next career move, join them in a lively discussion.

In this episode, we talk with professional stylist Tara Luizzi from Tara Styles DC on how to build a working wardrobe when you're first starting out, navigating changes to your body (helpful hints for dressing the Mom-Bod), and getting the most out of investment pieces. We answer a lot of your (and our) burning wardrobe questions: Should you try out wardrobe styling boxes? Should you ditch the "nylons"? Do yoga pants work for casual Friday? And last, we talk about how you can create your own style and most importantly, use your wardrobe to help you feel confident and empowered to accelerate your career.You can connect with Tara on her website http://www.tarastylesdc.com or on any social @tarastylesdc.

In this episode, we talk about why you should and how you can develop your own personal brand. Become the "CEO of ME" and define your why, choose your platform(s), and start sharing your expertise alongside demonstrating your personality. Join us for a lively discussion on personal branding and the value it will bring to your career. We also pull out a long list of our favorite marketing professionals, including well-known and growing personal brands.

In this episode, we pull back the curtain on all the things you wondered about leadership coaching and why YOU need a coach of your own! Jill Rogers, an entrepreneur, Associate Certified Coach (ACC) with the International Coaching Federation (ICF), and MOM, talks to us about her journey to becoming a coach, the principles of leadership coaching, and the impact coaching can have on your career trajectory.

In this episode, we learn about conscious leadership with business and self-transformation coach Kelly Campbell. Kelly explains how to harness and balance feminine and masculine aspects (not gender-based). By integrating these qualities, you can become a more receptive and collaborative version of yourself which leads to greater trust and more predictable, sustainable growth.Kelly's downloadable resource can be found here!

In this episode, we interview our very first guest, a powerhouse woman and new author, Katherine Wintsch. She is the founder and CEO of the Mom Complex, an agency that helps companies develop better products, services, and experiences for mothers. Her book Slay Like A Mother helps you identify your dragon of self-doubt and slay it so you can conquer motherhood and all the other facets of your life.

In this episode we provide tips to help you Manage Up. From adopting the preferred communication style of your boss, to understanding their priorities and making their job easier, managing up means building trust over time through a record of consistent performance.

We all make mistakes, but few talk about it. In our 12th episode titled “Failure”, we cover our biggest failures at work. From people and politics to decision-making abilities and misaligned expectations, we share the difficult lessons we learned and the stories that strengthened us.

As you build your career, getting advice seems like the best way to borrow "experience." And often the advice is exactly what you're looking for! But as we look back, we realize we've received a lot of bad business advice and, worse, sometimes didn't even know it. In this episode, we call out the worst business advice we've ever received and discuss how we turned them into learnings and growth.

In this episode about futureproofing your career, we dive into how you can become indispensable. Knowing change is always on the horizon, ensure that you will be marketable now and in the future. It starts with being introspective, and we [Kelly and Julia] are no stranger to business personality testing and how you can use the results to create value and longevity! We also drop some hot tips on how to become the top candidate for a job, a promotion, and how to translate that to a new hustle.

In this episode, we answer career advice questions from young marketing and advertising professionals. From how to ask for a promotion, to how long you should stay in a job, to the most important non-marketing skills we look for when hiring, to the advice we would give to our younger selves. This episode features 10 gems to guide young professionals.

In this episode, we talk about how being a mom has made us better in business. By providing perspective, flexibility, and adaptability, being a mom has increased our confidence, made us more empathetic, and helped us define balance in a whole new way as we prioritize what is really important.

In this episode, we reveal some of our secrets and insights into winning new business. From reading the room, to preparing a script, focusing 75% on solving their problem, to the importance of theatre and a gotcha insight, this episode has dozens of new business best practices and ideas. Our personal pitching stories of wins and losses and key takeaways including why we study comedians will inspire you for your next pitch.

In this episode, we reveal our top 10 mistakes in advertising and how to prevent them. From the easiest mistake of typos and not proofing to always have a plan B for technology hiccups, to listening and taking notes, to NEVER pitching unsolicited creative and avoiding office politics, you can learn from your mistakes before making your own!

In this episode, we advise you on how to advance your marketing knowledge while juggling kids, a family, your team, and your job. From having a regular practice of reading, attending webinars, events, getting involved in local and national groups with like-minded professionals and/or Mom’s groups, there are so many ways you can continue to learn innovative ideas on-the-job to keep you sharp.

In this episode, we go deep into the role of the account executive. From departmental, managerial, and individual account person goals, to specific day-to-day roles and responsibilities, and guidance on what to do when you don’t have billable work, this episode is a high-level account management training seminar. Our helpful takeaways include tips like thinking of your boss as a second client, knowing when and how to speak up, the importance of honesty, the hot potato rule, and more -- all to make you an indispensable account manager.

In this episode, we talk about our early years working and juggling kids and work, and finding our personal and professional tribes and support systems. From breastfeeding at work, managing childcare, to making your own rules without feeling guilty, we talk about our different approaches to juggling it all.