“Multicultural Marketing Redefined”

Erica Hughes is an award-winning marketing and advertising professional with a breadth of experience working for Fortune 500 companies. With a love of connecting brands with consumers, Erica has managed marketing strategies for iconic brands such as Chick-fil-A, Chevrolet, Slim Jim and Reddi-wip, just to name a few. Currently, Hughes serves as the Senior Director of Multicultural Marketing at Ally. In her role she is responsible for leading the vision and strategy for multicultural marketing. In addition, Hughes leads the organization’s efforts to increase awareness and consideration amongst diverse consumers segments. Before joining Ally, Hughes lead digital & social media strategy at Chick-fil-A. While there, she was a key member in the marketing organization creating a vision for the internal marketing tech-stack. Prior to joining Chick-fil-A, Erica worked at Conagra Brands from 2012-2018. While at Conagra Brands, Erica took on a lead role in transitioning the organization from a traditional marketing company to a forward-thinking digital marketing innovator. In March 2017, Erica’s team at Conagra Brands was recognized by AdExchanger as a Top Ten Programmatic Advertiser. Erica Hughes is a native of Flint, MI and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Michigan State University (MSU). In 2018, Erica was the recipient of the MSU College of Communication Arts & Sciences Rising Star Alumni Award. In addition, Erica obtained a Master of Business Administration from Northern Illinois University.

Kirti Naik is Russell Investments’ global head of brand marketing & communications, responsible for leading and driving the development of the firm’s brand position and serving as the principal brand architect. She is an award-winning marketer with more than 17 years of experience in traditional marketing, consumer marketing, business-to-business and digital marketing across a variety of industries, including entertainment, manufacturing, luxury apparel, consumer banking and asset management. Prior to joining the firm, she served as global head of brand & advertising at OppenheimerFunds for nearly seven years, transforming the brand and leading marketing innovation via VR, 360, biometrics technology and a unique approach to brand partnerships. In her prior four years at Citibank, she launched new innovative communication platforms and led the company’s online communications strategy. She has an MBA from Columbia Business School.