266. Empowering Women Agency Owners, with Christy Hiler and Jean Freeman

The Innovative Agency

Intro

In this episode of The Innovative Agency, host Sharon Toerek welcomes two influential agency owners, Christy Hiler from Cornett and Jean Freeman from Zambezi, to discuss the importance of female leadership in the advertising industry. They dive into the alarming underrepresentation of women agency owners and the impact of initiatives like "Own It" in fostering support and growth for female-led agencies.

What you will learn in this episode:

• The stark underrepresentation of female agency owners in the industry.

• How the "Own It" initiative is working to support and track women agency owners.

• The challenges and barriers women face in transitioning to agency ownership.

• The importance of community and mentorship for female leaders in advertising.

• Why independent agencies have unique opportunities in the current market landscape.

• The role of AI and new technologies as tools for independent agencies.

• How women leaders can effectively drive change and inspire their teams.

Bio

Christy Hiler is the CEO and owner of Cornett, an independent, full-service advertising

agency located in Lexington, KY. Recognized as one of the best in the nation, Cornett is a 3X Ad Age Small Agency of the Year Awards winner. Christy’s journey from Strategist to CEO and owner reflects her commitment and passion to Cornett.

Her efforts have helped the agency achieve remarkable milestones, including earning two Shorty Awards, a Clio Award, a Gold National Addy Award, consecutive "Best Places to Work'' recognitions, and a client roster featuring brands such as Busch Light, A&W Restaurants, LEGOLAND, Keeneland, University of Kentucky and VisitLEX. Beyond driving business, Christy has worked tirelessly to diversify the advertising industry by co-founding Own It, a community empowering women and non-binary individuals to become ad agency owners.

Jean Freeman is Principal + CEO of Zambezi, an integrated & independent creative communications agency. Jean has successfully grown Zambezi from a startup to what it is today – a thriving agency twice named Small Agency of the Year by AdAge and one of the fastest-growing businesses by the Los Angeles Business Journal.

Resources:

• Website: http://www.teamcornett.com/

• Website: http://www.zambezi-la.com/

• Christy's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christyhiler/

• Jean's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeanfreeman/