Grad Conn

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve wanted to be an astronaut — to explore the unknown, map new frontiers, and make the impossible routine. And since I couldn’t get to space, I’ve done that in marketing instead. Instead of The Right Stuff, I’ve been more focused on The Write Stuff. Across multiple CMO tours — at Microsoft, Sprinklr, Pendo, and a few bold startups — I’ve spent my career exploring new frontiers of growth. I’ve led human + AI teams, created new categories, and helped organizations transform how they connect story, system, and scale. My focus is helping companies evolve from traditional digital marketing to AI-powered growth systems — using intelligence to automate, predict, and personalize every customer interaction. I specialize in turning complex technology into clear market advantage: repositioning SaaS companies as enterprise-grade AI platforms, launching entirely new categories, and guiding brands from private to IPO.

Key milestones:
• Created categories such as Software Experience Management (SXM), Unified CXM, and Avalanche L1s,
• Built hybrid human + synthetic marketing organizations with digital copilots and predictive workflows.
• Scaled global demand-gen, ABM, and revenue-ops programs through AI orchestration.
• Recast brand narratives to compete — and win — in the intelligent-software era.

I believe marketing’s next great leap isn’t digital transformation — it’s intelligent transformation. AI doesn’t replace creativity; it multiplies it. It gives great ideas orbit, propulsion, and reach.

I’m also the author of The Copernican Shift — a long-running blog (625 posts and 1.4 million words since 2013) and podcast (194 episodes) exploring the art, science, and future of marketing.

And today, just like Leo Burnett advised, I’m still reaching for the stars. I’m still an aspiring astronaut. And I believe that storytelling is still the rocket fuel.