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Hola. I'm Claudia Romo Edelman and I'm Cynthia Kleinbaum Milner and
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a La Latina, the playbook to succeed being your authentic self
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today. Sophia Colucci,
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chief Marketing Officer at Moon courses.
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In this episode, you're gonna learn three key takeaways.
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Number one, the importance of identifying yourself as a Latina because
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it is an asset to your company.
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Number two, we discussed the three Rs formula for success,
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relationships, results and resilience.
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She gave us very specific tips on how you can build each
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of them. And number three,
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pretty pragmatic when making career decisions,
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big roles based, not solely on your passions but how they
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can set you up for success.
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This and much more in this episode of today.
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An incredible guest, Sophia Colucci.
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Sophia is the chief marketing officer at Molson Cos she's been recognized
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by campaigns US CM of 50 cranes,
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40 under 40 brand innovators,
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top 100 women in marketing and her team's work has won multiple
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awards including E cans and D A and D.
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It's such a great pleasure to have you here.
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Sophia, you're a Trailblazer.
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Thank you. What an honor.
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I'm very happy to be here.
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We want to start by asking you about our favorite subject today
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You what brought you to be,
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what brought you to be who you are and what you do
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today? Yeah, absolutely.
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I'm here on La Latina because I'm lucky enough to be from
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a, a family from Uruguay,
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so raised in Uruguay in Canada and then I've been in
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the US for the last 11 years and right now I
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am the Chief Marketing Officer at Molson cos so get to do
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And you lived in Uruguay and in Canada,
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like, what was your upbringing like?
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Yeah, absolutely. So my parents are from Uruguay,
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huge family there. So my dad's one of 13,
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so 41st cousins on Papa's side and then Mama's side is also
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from there too. And then,
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you know, and you know,
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this Latinos come in all colors and shapes and sizes.
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So my family is Colucci is my maiden name.
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And so came from Uruguay.
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But Mama and Papa wanted their four kids to be raised in
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Canada because for them,
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even though they had a great life in Uruguay,
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I think they realized that they wanted to have more opportunities for
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their kids. But Mama and Papa Uruguay,
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so you're upbringing your culture,
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you, yeah, very much Uruguay.
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And I think that's part of also being raised in Canada,
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Canada. And in geography,
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you learn that the US is more of a melting pot and
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Canada's cultural mosaic, they like to say,
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and they really cherish and embrace the cultures that you come from
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So when we were growing up,
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like we grew up Uru,
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we spoke Spanish at home.
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You know, we ate dinner every night after eight o'clock,
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we would have breakfast and listen to Uruguay flore music.
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We would have to tell our parents friends when you know
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they were over at our house,
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do not hug and kiss people who come into the house because
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Canadians, you're not used to it so very much a Uruguay
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household. And I'm happy about it because it's been hugely
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beneficial just having that Latin connection in my life today.
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But yeah, I had a great upbringing.
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I think the thing too that I love about Canada,
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it's very middle class.
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So while like well educated,
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you know, they definitely had good jobs.
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They also wanted their kids,
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you understand the value of hard work.
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So it was always be a good person.
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You're going to do well in school and guess what?
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You're all going to have part time jobs.
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So my first part time job was working at a brake pad
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factory and just learning,
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you know, early on the value of that hard work,
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in Uruguay, there aren't those opportunities because it's,
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it's just not the way the society works that way.
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So I think it was really important to have that upbringing in
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our family and you came from Canada to the US,
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yeah, I came 11 years ago,
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so I've been working now in marketing for 20 years.
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Exactly. So, really,
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three companies first, a Canadian food company called Maple Leaf Foods
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Very fitting. Kind of.
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Yeah. So if it's the stereotype,
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then I went to Pepsico.
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So I spent eight years there and then move you to the
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US. That's what moved me to the Yes,
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because so basically what happened was when I was in maple
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leaf foods, which is packaged meats and bread.
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I was working on bacon.
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My blend boyfriend Jonathan was working on hot dogs.
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So it was a match made and package meat heaven and he's
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American actually. And so he always wanted to go back to
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the US. So then at that point,
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well, if I want to get to the US,
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it's probably makes more sense for me to go work at a
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more globally recognized company.
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And Pepsico was that.
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And so I actually went to Pepsico in Toronto and then,
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you know, a few months in,
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I'd love to get to the US and they kind of looked
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at me and they said,
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well, one, let's see if she's any good.
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And then two, let's see if she stays with this guy
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so both of those things after a lot of
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hard work. And then my long distance relationship with Jonathan because
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he was doing his MB A in Boston,
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they worked out and,
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you know, I have so much gratitude for Pepsico because they
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actually transferred me over to Chicago.
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And and then Jonathan and I met up when he graduated
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Let's talk a little bit about your experience in Pepsico because
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my understanding is that there's a lot of these global companies that
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can provide you an opportunity to move from place to place.
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But it's not like how systematized is it like how did you
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raise your hand? How did you know what to do?
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So they would actually allow you to move?
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I think you have to be very open and upfront about what
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you want. So it's not like in these companies,
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there's these established formal programs,
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like a part of it is navigating the SIM system and making
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sure that you work hard,
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you're delivering results, you know,
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you make it known that you want that opportunity.
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And then also when that opportunity happens,
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you can't just, you know,
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say you want those things,
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you actually have to do it.
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So it is like a combination of taking advantage of those things
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that are possibilities, but also having that hustle mentality and actually
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pushing and driving because those things that just don't come,
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you also need to create them for yourself and what were moments
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or people that helped you to learn how to navigate or push
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you through one navigation system to the other.
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I think starting as a starting point,
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like when I look at how I am today in my career
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and, and what brought me here,
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it does start at home and it does start with my parents
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and specifically my mom.
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So my mom had four Children,
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but she is an incredibly accomplished professional.
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So she's actually works in international development.
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And so her my whole youth,
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like she would, you know,
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work in management consultant,
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consulting and go to all these countries to set up sustainability projects
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Beu China Vietnam everywhere.
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And I grew up then like seeing a role model of a
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woman who was very successful at the same time,
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didn't necessarily do it for the money,
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but did it because she really got a lot out of her
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work and then was able to balance having four Children,
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which when I look back on it,
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I don't understand how she did it.
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But to me, I think as a starting point,
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there was never a question for me about what I could eventually
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become because I had that role model in my mother.
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You just gave me the script that I want my daughter to
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say one day we record it and just like memorize a play
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to her when she's asleep so that she can at some point
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in her life, say one thing like that and I tell
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you know, that I talk about you a lot and she's
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very humble. You know,
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for them, they're like,
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no Lomas important person.
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Like, it's like my parents,
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it's like, of course they're happy to see the success,
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but we always go back to,
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it's really important to be a good person,
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you know, and I believe that in that too.
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your kind of board of directors when you were early in your
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I would say they were probably,
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I would say my parents always said,
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you know, work hard and also be a little bit pragmatic
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This is one thing and I'm going to say something controversial
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But this I got from my parents and I believe
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in deeply, I never pursued my passions.
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And I will tell you because I know that that's something that
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people say to young young graduates or people starting their career,
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pursue your passions. I think that is a dangerous counsel to
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give if taken the wrong way.
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I say pursue your passions,
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but be pragmatic about it.
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And if I think about the lessons from my parents as immigrants
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that was something that was really important to them,
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of course, it wasn't like there was never any advice of
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go for any job and just make money,
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never. But it was never go for something that you're so
08:54
passionate about. No it's do something that you find interesting that
09:00
you can have a career in and then work really hard at
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it. And so that was if I think back to the
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advice that my mom gave me from the get go,
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that was it. And if I think back to even how
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I started my career,
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I started my career in marketing.
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I was marketing bacon.
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There's nothing too sexy about it,
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but I worked very hard and I found it interesting and that
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opportunity turned into something else and turned into something else.
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And then 20 years later,
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you know, our team just wrapped up filming a Super Bowl
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commercial. Never in my wildest dreams that I think I'd get
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here. But I think it's important to also set a level
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of pragmatism with young professionals to say yes,
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you should pursue something that you're interested in.
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But also don't expect that you're going to be so passionate about
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it. The passion will probably come from the hard work and
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from the impact that you can make and the feeling of achievement
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And I know it's a little bit different than the typical
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that's given. But it's something that actually for me is,
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is very important. You know,
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my grandfather used to say similar to what your parents were telling
10:04
you that you could follow whatever you thought you were good at
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and you could succeed at.
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But you always have to make a living out of it or
10:12
make a business out of it.
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So he had five kids and two of them are dentists,
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but they're dentists that they're not,
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they don't only practice being a dentist,
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but they created like clinics of dentists.
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And my uncle who's a theater now producer,
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he started his career as an actor and then his dad told
10:30
him so much, you have to make a living out of
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this. That then he left acting,
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but still wanted to stay in the industry and now he's a
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theater producer. So,
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and I mean, I want to be clear,
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I don't, I'm not telling people to go and pursue something
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that they don't like just because it's high pain,
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not at all. So for instance,
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I was fortunate when I started at Maple Leaf Foods,
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I started in this management training program and for three years,
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you work in three different parts of the company.
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So I was in a sales role which I loved.
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Then I went to this finance role,
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which was risk management,
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working with options and futures.
11:04
I was terrible at it and I hated it and had I
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probably had that been my real job and not this rotation program
11:12
I probably would have been fired.
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I was able to learn very early in my career I didn't
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like and what I wasn't good at.
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And so then when I got to marketing,
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even though it was like marketing something like packaged meat I suddenly
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loved it because it was a good fit for my skill set
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and it was something I could make a career out of.
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So, again, it's not about like just going for the
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money, but it is about being reasonable with how you pursue
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your career. Those training programs we haven't talked a lot about
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but I think it's an excellent way to start your career
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If a company is willing to invest in you and give
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you enough opportunities to try the waters,
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it's much better than having to quit that job and go to
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another job for sure.
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And also to the good thing with these training programs and like
11:52
General Electric GM, like a lot of these companies have them
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is they give you a good sense of the different parts of
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the company and how things run.
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And so if I look at my career,
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I've only really worked at three companies now.
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And so for instance,
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from maple leaf Foods to Pepsico and now most of cos
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there is a big part of navigating the system and figuring out
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how to leverage relationships with different stakeholders with sales people.
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And having that early on in my career was a huge asset
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I want to ask about the hot dog and how he
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his role in this because you and I were talking before,
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how much at some point when you had to like wonder about
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your Latini dad. He was instrumental.
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So tell the story about you as a Latina and then of
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your husband totally. And,
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and, and my husband's amazing and he's always a great kind
12:45
of sounding board on things.
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So it was interesting.
12:48
So I grew up in Canada and obviously to parents that were
12:51
from Uru and look when we moved to Canada,
12:54
like it was reverse.
12:55
Like I spoke English with an accent now because I've been here
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for so long, I speak Spanish with an accent,
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right? And so over the years,
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like, because Canada has so many diverse nationalities,
13:06
there isn't the same kind of I guess like thing that
13:09
happens here where you go into a company and you check what
13:12
box you are so suddenly when I got to the US and
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I remember my hr person said,
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like, why didn't you check the Latina box?
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And, and, and I said to her,
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I've never really felt that I was discriminated because I have blue
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eyes and I have pale skin and I mean,
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fake blonde hair. But yes,
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like blonde. And my dad,
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like he's very dark and he speaks English with a very thick
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accent. He's Latino.
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And it was interesting because I talked about this with Jonathan who
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did grow up in the US.
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And he said, Sophia,
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like your family is from there,
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you speak Spanish culturally.
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but more important, you are an asset to the organization because
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you're bringing a diverse point of view and you can actually relate
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and connect with those consumers.
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And especially that's important in marketing as a leader in an organization
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And so all of a sudden,
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it made me realize like it is a big asset for these
14:06
organizations to have these diverse perspectives.
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And even though I might not look,
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you know, like what people would typically consider a Latino person
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to be. I am just as much.
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So it was a good conversation with Jonathan that we had and
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you know, like I hate to say it but bacon and
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hot dog perfect match.
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There's no hot dog without bacon.
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But look, I think that overall we see that a lot
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We see that there's an incredible amount of Hispanics,
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Latinas, Latinos that do not claim their Latinidad because they're
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afraid they're not 100% Latinos.
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They are. I don't have the looks,
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I don't have the the language.
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I don't have the like the 100%.
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And it takes moments like listening to you or people like Jonathan
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saying, claim it for us to do it.
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But this is happening every time,
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more Latinos are every time,
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more unified. Every time,
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more proud, every time,
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more language, every time,
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more values, every time,
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less assimilation, every time,
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understanding more that there's not one Latino look because we're all in
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this you know, put together all of a sudden like that
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but also as a mother,
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this might be quite interesting for you in a moment where a
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lot of your growth depends on your own community.
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and we were talking about it earlier,
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like it has been a huge advantage that I didn't really think
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about before. Like one,
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I just even think from an organization perspective.
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Like there are a lot of Latinos at minors and they do
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want to speak to different leaders and it,
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for them to see that there is a Latina who sits in
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the C suite who can support them.
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Like you become unofficial mentors and coaches to different people in the
15:51
organization. You know,
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the second thing and we were talking about it a little bit
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earlier. It's just like being able to connect and actually like
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be an asset for the organization.
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You know, we work in the beverage business and marketing where
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you can imagine, like we're constantly talking to different potential partners
16:07
celebrities. There is a situation where we went with a
16:11
few people or C suite to meet with a potential partner who's
16:15
quite well known and it turned out that the entire thing had
16:18
to be done in Spanish and,
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you know, I didn't know that going in and of course
16:24
But what was actually interesting about it was,
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it was less about the Spanish.
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It was more that when I started talking to this person,
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we're the first thing I did because I was trying to get
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to know them a little bit more.
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The first thing I did was ask about their family because it
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just felt like the natural thing to do and automatically like we
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had a connection. I felt at ease.
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And honestly, I was just more comfortable asking that.
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sometimes people think that I'm very intrusive because I asked people all
16:50
these questions about their personal life.
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But then I've realized that's just like a thing Latinos do.
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And it was funny because I told my parents about it and
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you talk about your family.
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And it was funny because after that meeting,
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you should have been there because you're a CMO.
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But my goodness, you're also a Latina CMO.
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Like we didn't just put a random Latina into that meeting you
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were there. And that was kind of eye opening for me
17:19
because it does make you realize like the magnitude of it and
17:22
the importance of it.
17:23
And so I'm very grateful for that.
17:25
And when your boss give you that feedback,
17:29
right? Like it is great to be yourself identify a
17:32
Latina claim it and so on,
17:34
what do you think are the superpowers that come from that background
17:39
that you bring to the table because you said you
17:42
only have three companies,
17:43
but you're the youngest interviewer that we have had like the youngest
17:47
guest. So I think that you have a bright future
17:49
and it's, it's such an honor to have you as probably
17:52
my biggest superpower is more that I have a lot more to
17:55
and that's just been something that there is that learning mindset that
17:59
you have. And I think it does come a little bit
18:01
from being an immigrant.
18:03
I think one of the things that I always reflect on is
18:06
leaving Uruguay and coming to Canada when I was in third grade
18:11
and I talked about this with my sons after and I remember
18:14
being the immigrant kid and feeling left out.
18:17
And then over the years,
18:19
teachers would always ask me to welcome whatever new kid because I
18:24
think I had this like deep empathy for making people feel included
18:29
I think because I came from somewhere else and that stuck
18:33
with me. I'm a very sensitive person and I think that
18:37
definitely comes from being an immigrant and being a Latina.
18:41
And I think as a leader,
18:43
what I've tried to do with that is,
18:46
you know, we were in a group a couple of weeks
18:48
ago with very high powered agency leaders,
18:51
the marketing leadership team,
18:53
the people who report to me in those situations.
18:56
What I really like to do is make sure that everyone has
18:59
a voice and everyone physically and literally has a seat at the
19:03
table. And I think that like over the years I've realized
19:06
like that kind of ability to be inclusive has been very helpful
19:12
for me because as a leader,
19:13
I often don't have all the answers.
19:16
Like I actually say,
19:17
like I'm never the smartest person in the room.
19:20
But what I try to do is really bring out knowledge and
19:25
bring out ideas from other people and find a way to make
19:29
things happen with them.
19:31
And I think that that was being coming from Uruguay and having
19:35
that kind of learning at a early age of being inclusive has
19:38
definitely helped. So you moved to Canada,
19:41
you felt like you were an immigrant in Canada and then you
19:43
came to the US and you also felt like you're on the
19:46
I, I actually did that's,
19:48
that's 100% because when I came to Pepsico so I can,
19:51
I was a marketing manager in Pepsico in Canada and they transferred
19:57
Chicago as a senior marketing manager.
19:59
And all of a sudden,
20:01
I had these people reporting to me who were Harvard mbas,
20:04
Kellogg MB A si had an undergrad from a school that no
20:11
like I felt and I talk about it and,
20:13
and it could be twisted,
20:15
I had imposter syndrome because all of a sudden it was daunting
20:18
to have these people reporting to you who come from all these
20:22
like really accomplished like backgrounds.
20:24
And so that was something for me to try to figure out
20:27
how I could get out of my own head and figure out
20:30
how I could add value and find my own strength and not
20:33
let that make me feel insecure.
20:35
So how do you do it?
20:35
Because in these conversations,
20:37
you already, you were so humble talking about how your superpower
20:41
is actually being humble growing learning.
20:43
Now you're talking about the imposter syndrome,
20:46
but yet you are very young.
20:49
I mean, look like here's what I would say.
20:50
I think some of the things that have,
20:52
that have worked is going back to the superpowers that come from
20:55
being Latina is I'm a very relationship driven person.
21:00
I'm a very social person.
21:02
I love to connect with people like I,
21:04
you know, I'm not afraid to hug people and like in
21:07
companies like Pepsico like Molson Coors.
21:09
I remember when I first got to Pepsico,
21:11
my head of hr he said there's two things that are going
21:14
to make you successful at Pepsi,
21:16
the two Rs relationships and results.
21:18
So you need to be a person who can have strong relationships
21:21
and then also be very results driven and look like while I
21:25
definitely recognize, I need to learn,
21:27
I recognize the importance of bringing the best out of people throughout
21:31
my whole career. Like I have worked my butt off in
21:35
II, I don't know if I say I'm very driven,
21:38
but I have always had this like,
21:40
push and this drive because I like to do things well,
21:44
you know, and there is a certain level of like,
21:46
you know, this like feeling of accomplishment of being able to
21:49
to get these things done.
21:51
working in a field like marketing where it is a lot
21:54
about collaboration, relationships.
21:58
When I was growing up,
21:59
the things that I got involved in,
22:00
yes, I was into sports.
22:02
But you know what I was doing in high school,
22:03
I was doing student counsel,
22:05
like I was doing those things that required like organization and leading
22:09
other people. Like never forget my mom driving me to a
22:12
student council meeting and seeing an agenda.
22:14
And she said, Sophia,
22:15
like this is something that,
22:16
you know, most people don't learn about until like much later
22:20
in life and you're 15 years old and you're learning how to
22:22
do this and all of those things have served me.
22:25
So, yeah. So I think like there is a certain
22:27
element of, there was a natural kind of like desire to
22:30
be an organization and leadership roles that certainly shaped me into who
22:35
I am today. I want to ask you about the I
22:38
like the R and R is not rest and recovery is relationship
22:42
and results. But I like it even more if we can
22:44
do it like a La Latina results.
22:47
What are the results that come from your strengths as Latina that
22:51
you mentioned? Humble learning relationship also sensitive and very acute
22:59
to be inclusive. So what what if,
23:01
if you would be the ceo of a company and you say
23:04
like those values bring,
23:06
what, what are the results that you know,
23:08
like that are brought by simply being able to be yourself?
23:14
it's a great question and a great push.
23:16
And so if I think about myself as a leader with those
23:19
qualities, like you get to a point in your career,
23:22
especially as you continue to move up or you're leading teams,
23:25
it's not what, you know,
23:27
it's more how you do it and how you inspire people and
23:30
how people follow you,
23:32
right? And, and by the way,
23:33
I've learned this over time,
23:34
there's been times in my career where I've been so driven,
23:37
I haven't brought people along as well.
23:40
like, I think what I've really tried to hone in is
23:43
that kind of sensitivity and that empathy that then makes people actually
23:47
want to be on your team and they want to work hard
23:50
and they want to like,
23:50
you know, give it their all and look like as a
23:53
leader. The most important thing is having people on your team
23:56
who are happy working on your team and who want to follow
24:00
you and who want to actually,
24:01
like, you set a vision and you set a strategy and
24:04
they get on board and they want to feel like they're a
24:05
part of it, you know.
24:08
like one of the things that I've,
24:09
I'm very vulnerable and pretty open.
24:13
So,, one of the things when I was younger
24:16
that I would get told is I'm too emotional,
24:19
and, and we've talked about,
24:20
I'm too emotional and look like I remember I would get red
24:25
This is where the pale skin like doesn't help or I,
24:28
I could cry easily right over the years,
24:31
you know, I found techniques to manage that.
24:33
But at the same time,
24:34
look like the amount of people that have cried in my office
24:37
And I just like for other things and I just say
24:41
you can cry all you want.
24:42
It's fine and and look like even as a leader in
24:46
the last year in the role I've been in,
24:49
I've had some tough situations and I remember being at a town
24:53
hall with hundreds of people on my team and just,
24:56
I could feel the tears or even,
24:59
you know, or like late last year,
25:01
I was filming Super Bowl,
25:02
which was really fun,
25:04
but I, we were in the midst of some very hard
25:06
decisions in terms of like,
25:08
you know, giving businesses to different agency partners.
25:12
And the problem is because I care so much,
25:15
it was like tearing me up inside.
25:16
And I remember I was with some of the people on my
25:18
team and they didn't know all the details or who was going
25:20
to get it. But they asked how it was going and
25:23
look like we were at this point like five days into filming
25:25
So we're all very tired,
25:26
but I just broke down because I was like,
25:29
because it pained me so much.
25:31
And a part of me was a bit embarrassed initially thinking,
25:34
oh God, they just saw me cry and then I thought
25:36
who cares? I'd rather then know I'm a human being
25:39
and know that I care and I think it's like a little
25:41
bit like being open and being OK with people like seeing you
25:45
as a regular human being.
25:46
And I would rather that because then it allows them that freedom
25:51
So I'd like to modify your framework or maybe add to your
25:55
framework. You said R and R relationships and results.
25:58
that's not my framework.
26:02
but now we're gonna have a three R because you just spoke
26:05
about resilience. That's the third R.
26:08
Absolutely. And you said I have my techniques basically to be
26:11
resilient. But you didn't give us the techniques.
26:13
Can you share your techniques to be resilient for sure.
26:16
So there's a few things that I have tried to do and
26:18
I haven't perfected it.
26:21
this has come from years of being in tough situations.
26:24
So in those moments and then throughout my career,
26:28
I've had ups and downs,
26:29
there's certain things that I've done.
26:30
One thing I remember a teacher taught me this great teacher,
26:35
Mr lepage. He's like 10 years from now.
26:37
Is it really going to matter?
26:39
And I know that sounds funny.
26:40
But I always say this to my teams 10 years from now
26:45
And it's more a little bit just to give perspective?
26:48
Does it really matter that much?
26:50
That's one piece of advice.
26:52
The second thing that I try to do is,
26:54
and this is one of the things that is a very Uru
26:57
was saying is tranquilo,
26:59
like take a breath tranquilo and I always try to do that
27:04
ok, Tran focus on one thing at a time because a
27:08
lot of times and situations we can get really overwhelmed and we
27:11
can think of the worst case scenario.
27:13
And one of the things I always try to tell my teams
27:15
and like these crisis management things is break things out into steps
27:19
and focus on one step at a time.
27:22
And you know, as these things happen,
27:24
once you accomplish one of those little steps,
27:27
you get a sense of confidence and then you get another step
27:30
and another step and then all of those things you were worrying
27:33
about start to dissipate a little bit.
27:35
So those are some of the techniques I've tried to do.
27:38
you know, I'll learn more over time,
27:40
but they've certainly helped.
27:42
I think that part of what we try to do with the
27:44
podcast is to flip the script to make sure that people understand
27:47
that being social is a positive total for a corporation,
27:50
not a negative. How through empathy and vulnerability you generate trust
27:56
create stronger teams that want to work harder,
27:59
that are able to navigate through things.
28:02
But the same that applies to people applies to the consumer that
28:07
there's a change out there.
28:09
There is more and more the Latino power.
28:12
How do you see that as in,
28:13
in your area of responsibility?
28:15
What do you see that is changing?
28:17
And what script is being flipped by,
28:19
by the minute of Latino?
28:22
I think there's a lot of myths or scripts that have to
28:26
be flipped. I think as a starting point,
28:28
we used to talk about attracting Latino consumers as our de
28:33
I efforts. And that's ridiculous.
28:35
Like Latinos, it shouldn't be ad e I effort now to
28:38
be clear, we do support you know,
28:41
Hispanic student scholarships,
28:43
all of those things.
28:44
But we do that across for like many different groups that is
28:47
not marketing to Latinos.
28:49
The flipping of the script is saying,
28:50
hey, Latinos are actually the most important growing consumer segment and
28:55
in fact will be they are no longer the multicultural segment.
28:59
This is the American consumer now.
29:01
So how do we think about not just attracting them in a
29:05
segmented way, but they are part of our full on consumer
29:09
targeting that we do?
29:10
So that's like one piece of it.
29:12
The second piece of it is,
29:13
I think in the past,
29:14
we would think about having are,
29:16
you know American program and then we'd have something specific for Latinos
29:20
Now, we need to be like,
29:21
no, what are those universal insights that apply to Latino consumers
29:26
American consumers, you know,
29:28
people who grew up here and then figuring out actual ways
29:32
to bring them to life that are relevant.
29:34
So for instance, like a couple of years ago,
29:36
one of the things that we decided to do was,
29:38
you know, on top of creating a platform that made sense
29:42
on Miller Lite for all consumers,
29:44
specifically Latinos, how do we then bring in partnerships that
29:49
resonate with them? So we partnered up with J Balvin Colombian
29:52
Reggaeton artists, honestly going back to it,
29:54
like had I not pushed for that being in the role I'm
29:58
in, I don't think it would have happened,
30:00
but I think it was having people on the team who are
30:04
Latinos who are gonna say no,
30:06
it's important for us,
30:07
for our consumers to see themselves in our products.
30:10
And so it's just about really changing and reframing the way we're
30:14
looking at things. And is there any insight of the other
30:17
way around that Latino insights that spill over to the general market
30:22
I mean, like Americans love our food,
30:24
our music. Like there's more tortilla sold on bread,
30:28
there's more salsa sold on ketchup.
30:29
There's a taco Tuesday,
30:31
not a pizza Friday or something like that.
30:34
without a doubt actually,
30:35
like that's a great example.
30:36
One of our most successful products that we've had recently,
30:40
we were just talking about it is that we have a Topo
30:44
Spike Seltzer. And so this is a partnership we have
30:47
with Coca Cola, which actually owns the Topo Chico mineral water
30:51
And three years ago,
30:52
we partnered with them to launch a Spike version of it.
30:54
So this is a Mexican mineral water.
30:57
Yes, it started out in Mexico,
31:01
It's so authentic. It's hip that it's actually become very mainstream
31:06
So exactly to your point.
31:07
Like there's so much we can be learning from Latino culture because
31:10
it's actually what consumers are seeking out.
31:12
It's like being hip in a way that you are applying and
31:18
on the marketing piece.
31:20
I think that part of the goal or part of what I
31:22
would love to see is when and how do companies and people
31:27
like you start looking more at Latinos in front of camera behind
31:31
the camera more like more totally.
31:33
part of what we've been doing in the last number of years
31:37
is we've actually just like we have mandated like within our
31:41
own diversity recruiting and retaining efforts.
31:46
Like we want to have a certain number of people of color
31:49
Obviously, Latinos is one of them actually,
31:51
part of it is the same with our agency partners too.
31:53
We challenge them and part of them working with us is to
31:57
make sure that they have a certain percentage of leadership people in
32:01
leadership positions that come from diverse backgrounds.
32:04
And that's really, really important.
32:06
It can't just be like someone that we're not really interacting with
32:09
it. They have to be people in leadership positions.
32:11
Yeah. No, absolutely.
32:12
I dream of that day.
32:15
I dream of the day not only to see Mexican restaurants in
32:17
every corner but see Latino models and Latino actors and Latino
32:23
you know, like directors and more of that I like
32:27
And it's like so important too because again,
32:29
if you go back to it,
32:30
when agency partners are coming to us with creative ideas,
32:33
if they don't have Latinos in their creative teams and their account
32:37
teams, like they're not going to bring relevant ideas like period
32:42
and like, that's just it.
32:43
And so actually like some of the best agency partners we worked
32:47
with are the ones that have strong leaders that are Latinos
32:52
who understand and really push that way.
32:55
What's your approach to,
32:56
to like developing campaigns?
32:59
like a main agency and a Latino agency or do you have
33:02
an agency that has Latino employees that can like have a point
33:07
So, and it's funny because now I know Alma is
33:09
going to be listening to this.
33:10
So we work, we work with many great agencies and
33:13
so you have to imagine we have a lot of different brands
33:15
So it's smart for us to have a diverse roster of
33:18
agencies partners. We've gotten to a point that they've become
33:22
nicely curated and so we feel really great about them.
33:25
D DB Droga five mischief rethink like some of the best agencies
33:29
that we have. And then as part of D DB Alma
33:32
is and they're one of the top Latino agencies.
33:35
So it's interesting that you ask that question because within the agencies
33:39
I would say all of them definitely have Latino creatives,
33:42
Latino people, you know,
33:43
working on their account side.
33:45
Alma is a specific Latino focus agency.
33:48
Although they would push and they'd say we're no longer a specific
33:51
Latino agency. We're in all all market agency because they've also
33:55
flipped it because this is what the US has become.
33:58
And now at the same time though,
33:59
like their masters in terms of like whenever we are launching a
34:03
major campaign and then we're thinking about like embedding Latino insights and
34:07
making sure the Latino is like the Latino creative is really strong
34:11
We always partner with the Alma team.
34:13
I would also say that some of the best work that we
34:15
have that isn't necessarily Latino stereotypically driven also comes from Alma just
34:21
because it's like this is where the US is going.
34:23
So, and, and that's really important and this is a
34:26
for Alma is you better be happy with this.
34:31
We have to say when I was working at Wal Mart,
34:33
we had a Latino agency that in the beginning would basically get
34:37
the script that our mainstream agency would create and was tasked with
34:43
just make these Latinos.
34:44
So if it's a family having dinner,
34:46
just replace the burger and put a taco and we saw it
34:49
evolving to coming up with original ideas for the for the mass
34:53
market, correct? And so that's,
34:54
I mean, at a minimum what we do now and like
34:57
again, you have to imagine some of the big brands we
34:59
of course like Miller Lite Blue Moon at a minimum.
35:01
Like we have Alma partner from the get go with the other
35:05
agency of record so that it's a true collaboration.
35:08
So it doesn't feel like an add on sometimes it's just Alma
35:11
doing it on their own for everyone.
35:13
So it kind of depends and how is your the structured.
35:15
So you have a perspective from any diverse group.
35:20
When you approve, when you approve marketing,
35:22
when you approve any materials.
35:23
I feel like if you don't have somebody that belongs and that
35:26
has a good understanding of how it feels to see something
35:30
from your point of view.
35:31
You can just push out or like publish marketing campaigns like
35:35
the Kylie Jenner Pepsi,
35:38
you know. So how do you make sure that you have
35:41
representation too? Yeah.
35:44
at a starting point,
35:45
we try very hard within marketing that we have a diverse
35:49
group of marketers and we try to make sure that they're on
35:51
different parts of the team.
35:53
Also, we work with agency partners who help us too and
35:56
they have diversity. But on top of it,
35:58
we have within Molson Corps almost like a,
36:02
a council that we bring in diverse opinions.
36:06
Yeah, we bring in and,
36:07
and it's super powerful,
36:09
we bring in diverse people from all across the organization that represent
36:14
you know, all different ethnicities backgrounds and something rural
36:19
you know, like different,
36:19
like Latinos, black consumers LGBT Q plus.
36:23
And they really work as a sounding board for us to make
36:27
sure that we're being really thoughtful and diverse about things.
36:30
And, and so that's something that we've had it for a
36:33
number of years. And I can tell you we were so
36:35
happy we have it because it has definitely been a powerful asset
36:39
for us. We had the same and I think that in
36:42
every Latino employee should feel almost responsible for whatever their company is
36:47
putting out there. And if they're putting something that's insensitive to
36:50
to Latinos, even if you're not in marketing,
36:52
you should feel like you can go and speak about a toy
36:56
yeah, we have that council and then we also have
36:58
employee resource groups. So we have our Latino employee resource
37:03
group called Salud, which obviously is a pun with us working
37:06
in a beverage company sal and we'll,
37:12
So sometimes if we want to vet something,
37:15
Now, we have to be careful because we also don't want
37:17
salute the people on that team to suddenly become translators for us
37:21
and you have to be respectful of that too.
37:23
So we need to make sure that we're investing and putting the
37:26
right resources to do things,
37:28
you know, actually like leverage these human beings the way we
37:31
should. And so that's like AAA slippery.
37:34
So we don't want to,
37:34
I think for, for marketing,
37:36
I've seen most companies that do have an EG or BRG that
37:42
is a filter and you know,
37:46
yeah, a good sounding board that have,
37:49
have, have very powerful results.
37:51
Two more questions on the industry and then I would love to
37:53
talk to you about you again and identity and so on.
37:56
Number one, it is really in an incredible honor and
38:01
a great achievement for you to be the Chief marketing Officer of
38:06
North America of such a big company as a Latina.
38:09
But it must be lonely out there because there's not enough Latinos
38:12
in marketing or enough Latinas in marketing and given that we're so
38:17
creative, it should be an area where we are there.
38:20
What do you think happens and what would be a dream for
38:23
you to have like a network of people?
38:25
Like, how do we get there?
38:26
Like, or maybe you don't feel that lonely?
38:29
No, I feel very lonely,
38:31
like as a starting point,
38:32
that was actually one of the biggest shocks to me when I
38:37
And you know, that kind of people say it's lonely at
38:39
the top. It is because and not just,
38:42
and again, I'm very,
38:44
I love what I'm doing.
38:45
I'm fortunate I, I worked hard to get here,
38:48
But at the same time,
38:49
it's tricky because all of a sudden you feel like everything you
38:53
say is going to impact people.
38:55
you don't have the same kind of alliances and people that
39:00
you could commiserate with because all of a sudden now they report
39:04
into and so you have to be very thoughtful about those things
39:08
to be able to have a network of people that you can
39:13
number one, what you guys are doing at a La Latina
39:16
is awesome because I do,
39:17
I've been listening to some of the podcasts and like,
39:19
it is really valuable.
39:21
I was listen to along with Marisa Solis,
39:24
And I still remember she kind of was like,
39:27
I was dotted lying to her for a while and my last
39:29
role there and I thought she was amazing and I ran into
39:33
a Dallas Cowboy game,
39:39
and it was, you know,
39:40
so cool to suddenly be in the role I'm in and to
39:45
you know, done amazing things in the NFL.
39:48
like, we came from the same place like that's,
39:51
you know, it's just like such a great feeling.
39:53
And so I think as a starting point,
39:55
creating this network is really powerful and,
39:58
and look and like for myself,
40:00
like I see it like when I,
40:01
you know, when I meet women,
40:03
like the president of D DB,
40:05
who's a Venezuelan Venezuelan lady who's awesome,
40:08
Andrea, you just feel that connection,
40:11
like you just like there's a certain kind of warmth and directness
40:16
and like experience shared experiences.
40:19
There's another woman,
40:20
Alejandra who lives in the north shore of Chicago and she's a
40:24
chief marketing officer at a bank.
40:26
So she should definitely come here.
40:30
And I remember a couple of years ago I met her and
40:32
she's about, you know,
40:34
just 9, 10 years older than me,
40:37
you know, further along in life and I met her and
40:39
I kind of, and she's from Argentina.
40:41
I felt like I had met like a cousin,
40:43
oh, I feel like we're so similar because of those shared
40:47
experiences and then seeing her in this role and she's gone through
40:52
you know, and then also not just as a S CMO
40:54
but then also as a mom as a Latina navigating the workforce
40:59
it's really important.
41:01
I want to understand how do we get more marketers,
41:05
Latina marketers into the Chief marketing officer.
41:09
And I just wonder what,
41:10
what is the, what is the barrier that we don't seem
41:13
to have, whether it's like getting into those professions?
41:16
I also do think and it,
41:17
and it goes for Latinas,
41:18
it goes for a lot of women.
41:20
it's always tricky getting continuing to rise up and then navigating having
41:25
you know, it does start with making sure that you have
41:28
the right support at home and that you can handle it.
41:31
And so like, that's a big one when I think about
41:35
like my husband's super career driven as well.
41:38
But even when I took on this role a year ago,
41:40
like there was a bit of a shift that we had to
41:43
be OK with like for years and years,
41:45
I think I was carrying more of that mental load.
41:48
Like they talk about that all the time with women being the
41:52
oh, like I have to remember to organize this activity and
41:55
do this. And I was constantly that person on all the
41:58
text threads in the land last year.
42:00
Like Jonathan has risen more to that.
42:03
I don't know if that's always going to be the case.
42:05
And I think that's going to be a barrier for,
42:09
I don't know if we change society in that case,
42:14
I tell like the women that I work with,
42:16
you know, when they,
42:17
they feel guilty about having to travel.
42:20
like I, I always say like your family comes first,
42:23
your personal life comes first,
42:25
but I will push and say,
42:26
hey, don't feel guilty about your husband taking care of the
42:30
kids. He's a parent,
42:32
you know, they're not babysitting like it's a core responsibility.
42:36
But also when when people feel guilty,
42:38
we're going to play them,
42:39
your script the way that you describe your mom who was working
42:43
and yet you admire her and yet you feel her presence.
42:46
So let's forget about the present guilt.
42:50
And remember that our examples,
42:53
I think many of us are like you in a city where
42:57
we don't have family and it's very easy.
42:59
Like I see many of my peers if they need something,
43:01
their mom will come,
43:04
that are not immigrants and whenever I have to do something,
43:07
it's like I have to hire somebody if my husband can't do
43:10
it and it's good to see that it can be done and
43:12
you can balance between what you do and what your husband does
43:16
I mean, but we are hanging on by no.
43:19
And I say it because I think it's also important to not
43:22
like pretend that it's easy.
43:24
Like we're like, because sometimes we'll look at each other and
43:29
But you take a deep breath and then,
43:31
you know, break things out into steps,
43:36
break things out into steps.
43:37
If you could be talking to young Latinas that want to follow
43:41
your example and are thinking of the industry,
43:43
marketing, creative communications,
43:46
what would you tell them?
43:46
Yeah, look, there's a number of things I think going
43:49
back to the conversation we had first like find something that you
43:53
like, but also find something that has ample career opportunities where
43:58
if you work hard and you work hard and you go for
44:02
it and you push and you take those opportunities that you're going
44:05
to have a chance to succeed.
44:06
Because I think like,
44:07
what I would hate to see someone do and I've,
44:09
I've mentored and I've talked to different young Latinas is that they
44:12
are very hungry, but then they start going in,
44:14
in directions where there aren't as many opportunities.
44:18
And so I want people to get those opportunities.
44:20
So as a starting point,
44:21
find careers and find paths where you can actually expand,
44:25
expand where there's like need to rise up where you're going to
44:29
valuable skills and valuable things that you can actually continue to rise
44:33
up. So I would say that,
44:34
can I double click on that?
44:35
How do we know which careers will have potential?
44:38
And which ones we look,
44:39
the advice I always give is get out there and talk,
44:42
you know, like meet different people,
44:45
listen to podcasts, you know,
44:46
go if you're in college,
44:48
university, go to career fairs.
44:51
if my parents, like they were not in like,
44:54
they, my parents like as,
44:55
as much as like they were my earlier influencers in life.
44:59
They don't really like,
45:00
they didn't tell me to go down this direction.
45:02
Like when I was in university in Canada,
45:05
I went to the career fairs.
45:06
I did an internship,
45:07
I took every opportunity I could.
45:09
So that would be again,
45:10
the other advice to the people that I would say is don't
45:13
think that something is too small initially,
45:16
go for it because every different experience is only going to build
45:20
up your and make you even more qualified and then you're going
45:23
to learn and you're going to learn what you like,
45:24
what you don't like and you're gonna be able to be connected
45:28
to different people who can then become coaches and mentors and people
45:32
So I think it's like,
45:33
it is very important.
45:34
And even, I don't know,
45:35
like a couple of weeks ago,
45:36
someone from, you know,
45:37
the media industry who I had met wonderful woman,
45:40
she called him like to ask me advice,
45:42
which I felt bad because I said,
45:43
I don't know enough about your industry to tell you specifically which
45:48
but here's what I would do if I were in your situation
45:50
like I would start networking and understanding what are the different
45:53
like three places that I would want to go and be
45:55
in five years from now and then work backwards to figure out
45:59
how am I going to get there.
46:00
So it is like you have to do the work to get
46:02
there. And I think that for marketing is quite interesting
46:07
to get involved in A I and things that are probably gonna
46:10
you know, like be there for 10 years.
46:12
So that instead of thinking that it could replace your work
46:16
talking about Marisa Soli,
46:17
she has like an entire workforce that is A I based and
46:22
how are they, you know,
46:24
engaging? Absolutely. Like the way we look at it and
46:27
look like I am not an expert in those things.
46:29
But if I look at like,
46:33
digital performance marketing, I surround myself,
46:37
like some of the people that are,
46:38
those teams are super smart,
46:40
they're super capable and they're constantly pushing the boundaries on the things
46:43
that we can be doing and we're testing and we're going into
46:46
different spaces and, and yeah,
46:47
we're testing out A I now we're being very careful about it
46:51
Right. We're making sure that it's additive to what we're
46:54
working on. You know,
46:55
we're ensuring that we're complying by the policies that we've set out
46:57
to do. But you have to be curious and you have
47:00
to take these experiments.
47:02
And then also if you don't necessarily know about it yourself,
47:06
like learn, read about it,
47:08
surround yourself with people who know more about it than you do
47:11
But some people that say that they're experts in A I
47:14
they're probably lying.
47:15
They're lying. No one,
47:16
no one is, we're all figuring it out.
47:17
Totally. Yeah. But again,
47:20
you are in an incredibly big company c suite and we would
47:24
love to talk about how being a Latina has been in your
47:30
you know, like we understand that you didn't at the beginning
47:33
you feel can I claim this or I play it much
47:36
and so on? But did you have to dial down at
47:38
some point because you could hide it well,
47:40
probably. Right, because you didn't have an,
47:44
yeah, 100% I could hide it.
47:45
Well, and I think that,
47:47
you know, it's interesting since I came to Pepsico,
47:50
it was probably more of a question of,
47:53
do I hide it or not?
47:54
Because in Canada it wasn't as relevant.
47:57
It's expected that, yeah,
47:59
it's expected that you're diverse in Canada just is,
48:03
It's different here. Right.
48:05
I look at even Molson Cos and I look at the way
48:10
I don't know how familiar you are with the beer industry.
48:13
But I remember even like when I was leaving Pepsico said to
48:19
a mentor of mine in hr he goes,
48:20
are you sure you want to go to the beer industry?
48:23
Because there was a lot of stereotypes about it being kind of
48:26
sexist and especially to women.
48:28
And then if on top of it to a Latina woman,
48:31
like it could actually be a big disadvantage.
48:33
And so I think like,
48:34
even when I came to Molson Coors,
48:36
it was one of those decisions in terms of how much do
48:40
And I think, you know,
48:42
I, I realized go all in and be yourself and own
48:46
and I think even like,
48:48
as I navigated the distributor network,
48:50
one of those things is like,
48:52
there are men who have been in the beer industry for a
48:54
long time and the cool thing that I've realized is they're businessmen
49:01
who actually understand that the consumer demographics are changing so rapidly in
49:07
the US. And so they're actually welcoming the idea of someone
49:11
who can connect and better understand Latinos.
49:14
And so it's actually been a big benefit and to act,
49:17
to own it rather than try to hide it.
49:20
And then what I try to say to younger Latinas in the
49:24
organization is don't run away from it,
49:27
like own it because it's actually an incredible power and resource that
49:31
you bring and they own.
49:34
if you're like a hugger,
49:35
you go and hug at occasion.
49:37
So how, what is owning it?
49:40
And in a senior level,
49:41
owning it in a senior level is like,
49:44
for instance, like when you feel you're in the c suite
49:48
and there's discussions about I,
49:51
I'll even say it like we were at a board meeting a
49:53
couple of months ago and I think we're getting challenged and pushed
49:56
on some of the strategies we had and they were specifically like
49:59
in regard to Latinos.
50:01
And I think that's when I could be like,
50:03
well, actually I do have some level of experience and understanding
50:08
here and not being afraid to,
50:10
you know, give the rationale to why because like owning the
50:14
fact that you do have that background.
50:15
So that's one piece of it.
50:17
I think the second piece of owning it is owning the characteristics
50:21
that come with maybe like we talked about like being more emotional
50:25
being a little bit more passionate.
50:28
Right? Another thing that I was thinking about too is
50:31
maybe being a little bit more informal and that's ok because that's
50:34
actually helping you build those relationships.
50:36
And I think that like,
50:38
it's interesting because it just so happens that in my world,
50:42
those things are all really beneficial,
50:44
but in other industries,
50:46
it might be tougher.
50:47
So I think that's also going back to picking the right industries
50:50
that you know, where some of these characteristics are actually going
50:54
I mean, I do think that the beer industry could be
50:59
in my, it's very male oriented.
51:02
again, it goes back to I and there are stories of
51:06
the past where maybe it wasn't as friendly towards female leaders.
51:12
I have not experienced that.
51:13
And I will say there were probably other females that definitely opened
51:17
up the doors and broke some of those barriers down.
51:20
But I think part of it goes back to like some of
51:24
the qualities that we can bring as Latinas is a certain level
51:28
of like humbleness, eager to learn.
51:31
And then when you have that,
51:32
you can actually demonstrate that like that gives you credibility rather than
51:37
trying to prove yourself instead of being like,
51:40
let's just work together on this.
51:41
And that actually brings you even more credibility.
51:44
You've been speaking a lot about what it means to be a
51:47
Latina. Have you any other thought on those characteristics that comes
51:52
from our cultural values that are normally seen as negative,
51:57
that could be pushed into positive.
51:58
And one way in which people can flip the script,
52:02
turn it around. The other one that I would say like
52:04
flipping the script and turning it around is this idea of the
52:07
importance of family and warmth and connections when I was growing up
52:11
Like, yes, I had a mother who worked,
52:15
I did understand the importance of,
52:17
you know, having a mom who like was with me.
52:20
And I felt that connection.
52:21
And so as a leader and as a mother of two boys
52:25
like one of the things that I've tried to flip the
52:27
script on is like being very vulnerable and open about the hard
52:31
times I have and the guilt that comes with being a working
52:35
parent and letting other people know it's ok too.
52:38
So for instance, like some of the things that I try
52:40
to do is I try to be very open about the days
52:42
that I take off to go be a like mystery reader in
52:46
my son's class. And I think years ago we would have
52:51
you show up. It's like they have it on a Tuesday
52:53
afternoon, what parent is going to come into the class and
52:57
and and I think that's,
52:59
but it goes back to it.
53:00
I think maybe in the past or like,
53:02
there could be a stereotype of,
53:03
well, they're too family oriented and they're not,
53:06
like, not committed enough.
53:10
And like, you know what?
53:10
That's BS because I'd rather the working parents,
53:14
not just mothers, fathers to feel that at Molson cos we
53:19
support if you need to go and spend some time with your
53:21
kids, please do it because guess what,
53:23
we know you're probably working at night after you put your kids
53:26
and I say all of this,
53:28
I'm not always the best at it too.
53:30
I actually have a tremendous amount of respect for the moms that
53:33
are the classroom moms that are not working and they're always there
53:37
And I'm, I'm very grateful for them because I can't
53:40
do that. So I'm trying my best and what I want
53:43
to make sure the team understands is that they are welcome to
53:48
But I think that's a good example of,
53:49
of flipping the script of saying it's,
53:52
you can have a thriving career and you can also care about
53:56
your family too and prioritize that.
53:58
I think it's great that you're like comfortable being vulnerable.
54:01
I, I try to be like that also as a leader
54:03
let me ask you if you could go back to your
54:06
30 year old self and you could give yourself some advice.
54:10
Any, anything you would do differently,
54:12
anything you would like to tell that Sophia Colucci.
54:15
You were in Canada working in sausages.
54:18
I just, I just come to,
54:21
by the way, I started in sausages and then I went
54:24
to bacon. So you got it right.
54:26
II I elevated myself of the package.
54:29
Meat. World bacon is bigger than sausages.
54:33
Even those meats, there's levels and sausage is at the bottom
54:37
Actually, no snack meats are at the bottom.
54:38
So I, I'll never take that job and I'll never eat
54:42
a snack meats. I don't even know what that is.
54:46
you know what, at 30 I had just gone to Pepsico
54:50
and I think I was like,
54:52
I was always extremely hard on myself like I still am,
54:56
it's funny because being so hard on myself has led
55:00
me to where I am today,
55:01
but at the same time,
55:02
there's probably a lot of pain that I could have avoided if
55:06
I had just been kinder to myself.
55:09
So this goes back to a little bit.
55:11
What we talked about.
55:13
This is a little bit about not,
55:15
not stopping the hustle,
55:17
not stopping the push,
55:19
but not letting it eat you up and figuring out a way
55:23
to work hard. But no,
55:27
it's going to turn out right.
55:28
And so I wish I could go back in time and tell
55:30
myself that I can't.
55:34
so I think if anything,
55:35
I've decided, what would my 55 year old self tell me
55:39
what could I tell myself,
55:43
30 year olds? You know?
55:44
And, and I think for me,
55:45
the things I'm struggling with now honestly are probably,
55:51
it's navigating being a working parent and that guilt that comes right
55:54
And I'm constantly like the thing that I worry about all
55:57
the time is, are my kids happy?
55:59
Why didn't they get invited to that play date?
56:01
Are they going to be ok?
56:03
And so again, this goes back to how do I tell
56:07
myself, hey, guess what?
56:09
In 10 years, 15 years they're going to be ok.
56:13
But I do want to ask the Sophia 55 years old to
56:17
like, tell us what would you have told the Sophia 43
56:21
years old in the 17 years?
56:27
I think, I think the number one thing that I probably
56:31
would have told myself is enjoy the ride,
56:34
enjoy this moment because what you have right now is incredible.
56:40
So, and, and that's really,
56:42
that's something that this year I'm trying to do.
56:45
You know, like even like,
56:48
but, but enjoy it because like how incredible this opportunity I
56:52
have to work with the people I got to work with,
56:55
to the type of work I get like to even sit here
56:57
and you know, to have a poster child.
57:01
Wow. I don't know about that,
57:03
it is like, I have to pinch myself.
57:05
I don't think, you know,
57:06
if I told 30 year old Sophia that I would one day
57:11
you know, talking to the two of you like it.
57:14
I beyond my wildest dreams,
57:17
right? So I think it's a little bit of actually like
57:20
enjoying it and saying like,
57:22
how amazing is this and,
57:24
and then giving back and saying,
57:26
how, how can I then help other people inspire other people
57:32
help navigate them. And so it starts with the people in
57:35
our marketing team, it starts with then the people Molson cos
57:38
and then honestly, a lot of other young Latinas who if
57:42
I can help, I'm happy to,
57:43
I think that that's what gives me an incredible amount of hope
57:48
and not only optimism but possible because I know it's possible because
57:52
I hear every time more and more,
57:53
not only that we're more united,
57:55
more proud to be Latinos,
57:56
but also more willing to give back,
57:58
more, willing to turn down and say like I'll take time
58:02
so that the next gen can do it in half the time
58:04
And it's, it's really encouraging to hear more and more
58:09
Latinas that are in that ride.
58:11
So therefore, I feel that,
58:13
you know, like everything is possible for us.
58:16
there's amazing, like some of the,
58:17
like I've been connected to some incredible young Latinas and I think
58:22
to myself, like there's this one woman she's in Toronto and
58:28
I was never as accomplished as you are just as smart and
58:32
you know, just like understanding and,
58:33
you know, knowing the world.
58:35
And so my push to her and I've,
58:37
as I've given her career advice is go for it.
58:40
So you set yourself up high like you can do this because
58:44
it's, it's the bar is like the people are getting stronger
58:47
and stronger. So it's,
58:48
it's our job to help them out.
58:50
careers are long. So I enjoy the ride while you were
58:53
here. So you started developing names about like who,
58:56
who are inspiring you,
58:58
who else shall we have here in this chair,
59:01
sharing their knowledge that you admire.
59:03
I can give you two people off the bat Latinas.
59:06
OK. First one and I'm going to make her listen to
59:09
it. Her name is Andrea Di Gus.
59:11
she is from Venezuela.
59:16
I want to say president or CEO of Gut Global,
59:20
which is an incredible agency that they won a bunch of awards
59:23
I worked with her personally,
59:25
I don't know, a year and a half ago when she
59:26
was president of C DB Chicago and she's just one of those
59:30
powerful, but at the same time down to earth and direct
59:34
leaders. I love her.
59:37
I cried when she left C DB Chicago.
59:39
And so I still keep in contact with her.
59:41
So you need to have her on the show.
59:42
She's awesome. Another person that I would say is Alejandra
59:46
Denda. She is a CMO at I think I want
59:50
to call it Federal Savings Bank and she's also a Northwestern professor
59:53
in marketing. and I met her in the north shore
59:56
of Chicago and she's brilliant and super strategic and she's actually someone
1:00:01
who, as I've navigated my work life,
1:00:04
like she has given me a ton of advice.
1:00:06
So I, I joke and it's fine.
1:00:07
I want to speak in one of her classrooms and it just
1:00:10
so happened, my parents were visiting from Canada and they came
1:00:14
and watched and then I introduced them and it kind of felt
1:00:16
like we're all family because of the connection there.
1:00:19
Really cool. So I am feeling a lot of goodbyes for
1:00:22
Chicago. I think that what we should do is host with
1:00:25
Sophia at dinner in Chicago of incredible Latinas that are willing to
1:00:30
give back. And I want to bring other Latinas,
1:00:33
younger Latinas to tell them about their experiences.
1:00:36
That would be amazing.
1:00:37
We're doing something like that in,
1:00:39
in New York and we're gonna start going around the country doing
1:00:42
dinner salons and yeah,
1:00:44
network. Yeah, we gotta do that.
1:00:45
That'd be great. Yeah,
1:00:46
that's the next stop.
1:00:47
Next stop Chicago and we'll drink Topo Chico Hard Seltzer.
1:00:54
It's like a liquid dinner.
1:00:56
Let's do it. A liquid dinner.
1:00:59
What an incredible pleasure having you today.
1:01:01
Thank you for giving us so many tips,
1:01:03
actionable advice. It was great.
1:01:05
And you inspired us to lead a Latina.
Series