IBM

IBM

At IBM, I lead content strategy for enterprise products and launches. In 2025, I took everything I've learned making viral content at BuzzFeed and applied it to... mainframe computers.

IBM’s biggest launch of 2025 was for the new AI-powered z17 mainframe. I oversaw our creative strategy, proving that you can make even 60-year-old technology compelling if you focus on the humans who build, test, and rely on them every day.

Z17 launch: From AI to Z

Opportunity: For IBM's largest product launch of 2025 for the z17 mainframe, we wanted to reposition the mainframe from "legacy technology" to an AI-powered enterprise solution central to modern data strategies.

My role

I owned the messaging and narrative strategy across the launch, working with cross-functional teams to develop the integrated campaign narrative “Z makes more possible.”

I also led a multi-audience creative campaign, crafting franchise and creator content that connected the technical strengths of the full stack to enterprise-level business outcomes.

Embedding with the social team, I helped develop a 30/60/90 plan for using internal creators to reach loyal practitioners and decision-makers.

Challenge: The campaign needed to reach CIO/CTO and practitioner audiences globally, drive upgrade consideration among existing customers, and contribute to aggressive pipeline goals, all while emphasizing the lasting power of mainframes.

Results:

$2.1B sales pipeline for 2025

18% conversion of "Skipper" accounts previously not expected to upgrade

26% retention of "Attrition" accounts at risk of leaving platform

9M+ impressions across campaign assets

693K+ engagements on creative content

  • Hero video

    Watch

  • AI Academy: What's next for mainframes and AI?

    Watch

  • z17 Earthquake test (social)

    Watch

  • From AI to Z use case series

    Watch

  • Smart Talk with Malcolm Gladwell podcast + video

    Watch

Hybrid Cloud social revamp

Opportunity: IBM’s Hybrid Cloud social channels were seeing diminishing returns. The content was fine. The technology was interesting. But something wasn't connecting. Impressions were declining, engagement was flat, and we were losing in a sea of enterprise tech sameness.

My role

Instead of operating as separate functions, I embedded directly with the social team for our hybrid cloud work. Not as an occasional consultant or approval layer — as a working partner in the room (well, Slack channel) every day. We showcased real IBM engineers and architects, not stock photos and generic messaging. We leaned into what made our technology genuinely interesting to our audience instead of sticking to the same old status quo.

The approach:

  • Ran collaborative workshops to align on audience understanding, not just personas but actual human beings making technology decisions

  • Developed creative pillars together that balanced campaign and brand goals, platform best practices, and what actually resonates with our audience

  • Co-created content from ideation through execution rather than handing off strategy documents, working to make things as authentic and unpolished as we could

  • Tested rapidly based on real-time performance, iterating together instead of in silos

Results:

2,204% over impression KPIs (exceeded goals by 22x)

1,443% over engagement KPIs (exceeded goals by 14x)

Established a workflow and framework across strategy and social that scaled to our z17 launch

Next

Consulting