Lisa Gralnek

Steer the strategic and operational agenda for more deeply integrating social and environmental criteria into the application and jurying process of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD across 93 categories of design

Opened the first North American subsidiary of iF Design- a respected member of the global design community since 1953, with offices now in 9 countries incl. headquarters in Germany; responsible for driving brand awareness, expanding participant & partner networks, and supporting U.S. brands and designers Committed to excellence and impact- iF Design hosts the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD where 10K+ entries from 70+ countries participate every year in a rigorous jury process that celebrates design achievements in the disciplines of product, packaging, branding & communications, UX, UI, service & systems, architecture, interiors, and concepts The iF Design Foundation- the organization’s only shareholder- publishes proprietary design research, advocates for design education incl. through the if DESIGN ACADEMY for executive design education, and awards €150K in annual prize money to winners of the iF DESIGN STUDENT AWARD and the iF SOCIAL IMPACT PRIZE aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

FUTURE OF XYZ is a Telly award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we're going. Each episode engages a visionary subject-matter expert for a quick & candid conversation about what's coming down the pipeline on a specific topic related to art & design, science & innovation, culture & creativity. Now in its 8th season with over 165 episodes — FUTURE OF XYZ was licensed to PBS affiliate WSBE from 2023-24, and is now presented by iF Design and a proud member of Sandow's SURROUND Podcast Network. Listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, follow futureofxyz on Instagram, and visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for links. New episodes every other Thursday!

Help senior leaders challenge the status quo with future-forward ideas, strategies and tactics that solve the problems of today and anticipate the opportunities of tomorrow; provide project-based & advisory services in brand positioning, go-to-market, innovation & impact for diverse design-driven and impact-minded organizations Clients: IKEA, Walmart, Reckitt, Warner Bros. Discovery, & other publicly-traded companies- plus myriad startups, mid-market brands, & nonprofits incl. 1% for the Planet; Advisor to FURI Sport (furisport.com), STACKABL (stackabl.shop), Merryfield (merryfield.com), and Yunity (yunity.io)

Served as interim CMO & CSO for ULedger — the first enterprise-grade blockchain built to handle big data and high-frequency transactions at scale with integrity; established the brand positioning, launch comms and related assets to ‘secure public trust for private data so parties can connect, interact, and transact with confidence’

Was one of the first 150 members of the NYC-originated club for female business executives- now a global network recognized as the fastest-growing female-founded unicorn; co-created ‘Moving the Needle’ (MTN) which focused on expanding private sector contributions to social & environmental action and quickly became the club’s 2nd largest member group before expanding externally

Served as interim marketing lead for Walmart’s tech incubator focused on future of retail initiatives 5-10+ years from scale; refined brand positioning and key messaging, developed go-to-market strategy, and helped recruit & onboard full-time executional team; close collaboration with senior Walmart and Jet.com management, creative & brand teams, and portfolio companies

Drove strategic growth initiatives across the brand portfolio with responsibility to maintain category leadership and maximize commercial impact by surfacing relevant consumer insights, creating compelling communications, and steering accretive innovation; rearchitected the product portfolio in advance of an award-winning design rebrand; mentored companies in the inaugural cohort of the Chobani Incubator

Imagined, built and directed a new marketing team responsible for establishing the brand in the US and achieving ‘cult’ status among creative & design audiences; generated >50% YOY revenue growth and tripled aided brand awareness through cross-channel storytelling, integrated partnerships, and value-adding product innovation

Ran global go-to-market for Rockport Shoes across 20+ countries — managing cross-functional operating budgets, seasonal sell-in/sell-through, brand licensing, in-market retail activation, and factory adherence to adidas Group's social & environmental standards; led a close-to-market transformation — overhauling product delivery processes and implementing change across design, manufacturing, marketing, sales & logistics

Directed strategy to reposition, grow and globalize the Rockport brand; used market data, industry trends, competitive analysis, and consumer insights to define a strong dual gender proposition; outlined priority requirements for successful execution and gained cross-organizational buy-in