A Transformation Playbook: From Intern to CMO in Under 20 Years
by Catherine Solazzo
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What you'll discover
when watching Catherine's story
- Building high-performing teams and fostering a positive work culture are key elements of effective marketing leadership.
- Developing a strong brand identity and architecture is essential, especially when working with multiple partner brands.
- Understanding your target audience and tailoring your marketing approach to different industries is crucial for success.
- Diversifying experiences across different roles and functions can make you a more well-rounded marketer.
- Leveraging AI and new technologies responsibly can enhance productivity and improve customer targeting.
- Aligning marketing efforts with sales and other stakeholders is critical for achieving business outcomes.
- Transformation and continuous improvement should be at the core of marketing leadership.
Meet Catherine Solazzo - CMO @ Syntax
Catherine Solazzo is the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at Syntax, a 52-year-old managed service provider specializing in ERP solutions and digital transformation. With over 20 years of experience in the tech industry, Catherine has held diverse roles in marketing, sales, and communications.
At Syntax, Catherine leads Syntax’s Global Marketing, Communications, Sales Operations, and Inside Sales functions. She has built the function from the ground up as the company’s first CMO, focusing on bolstering brand equity, demand generation, modernizing RevOps and customer experience. She is missioned with delivering growth and revenue across all routes to market.
Catherine is passionate about transformation and building high-performing teams. Prior to Syntax, Catherine worked at IBM and held positions at major IT Distributor, TD Synnex. She is a recent graduate of The Marketing Academy Fellowship Program, built for CMOs who are the CEOs of the future.
Check out Catherine Solazzo's thoughts on marketing leadership & strategy
When it comes to the importance of developing a brand strategy, Catherine shares:
"You need to understand your brand’s voice and tone. If you haven’t done that foundational work early on, launching a brand campaign becomes very difficult."
She also shares the role of transformation play in marketing leadership:
"Transformation is my absolute passion. I love identifying opportunities—whether in a team, business, or process. It can be broad or very tactical."
And how she builds and manages marketing teams:
"I prioritize achieving great results by building great teams. When I reflect on my career, that’s what I’m most proud of."
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