FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 15, 2024
CONTACT:
Amanda Sawney
asawney@wict.org
The WICT Network Announces Honorees for 2024
Women of the Year and Women to Watch
Awards to be presented during the Touchstones Luncheon, Monday, October 21
WASHINGTON, DC, (August 15, 2024) – The WICT Network today announced it will honor Amy Blair, SVP and Chief People Officer at Liberty Global, with its Woman of the Year – Operator award; Johnita P. Due, EVP, Integrity and Inclusion, CNN Worldwide, with its Woman of the Year – Programmer award; and Sandy Howe, Board Director, ATX Networks, with its Woman of the Year – Technology award. Woman of the Year is The WICT Network’s highest individual accolade, bestowed on those who embody its mission to develop women leaders who transform the industry. Honorees have achieved top industry status and demonstrate a strong resolve to help others along their path.
The WICT Network also announced the esteemed 2024 Women to Watch honorees from an operator, programmer and technology organization, respectively: Julie Unruh, Head of Strategic Operations, Sales and Marketing at Charter Communications; Courtney Thomasma, EVP, Linear and Streaming Products, AMC Networks; and Steph Lone, Global Director of Solutions Architecture for Media & Entertainment, Games, and Sports at Amazon Web Services (AWS). The WICT Network’s Woman to Watch accolade recognizes leaders who show tremendous achievement and progression in their professional accomplishments, with a strong commitment to their company and the industry at large.
Honorees will be presented their awards during the Touchstones Luncheon held Monday, October 21 at the New York Marriott Marquis as part of The WICT Network Leadership Conference. The WICT Network gratefully acknowledges AMC Networks and Warner Bros. Discovery as the Champion Sponsors, of the 2024 Touchstones Luncheon. We thank our partners at SCTE and Cablefax for helping us designate the Woman of the Year – Technology honoree.
“The WICT Network is thrilled to honor the remarkable achievements of the 2024 Women of the Year and Women to Watch at the upcoming Touchstones Luncheon this October,” said Maria E. Brennan, CAE, President & CEO, The WICT Network. “These outstanding individuals set new standards in transforming our industry while inspiring the next generation of leaders in media, entertainment and technology.”
The Touchstones Luncheon historically boasts a sold-out crowd of more than 1,100 professionals, and seats will sell out quickly. A limited number of table sponsorships are available. Companies interested in reaching leaders throughout the industry may complete this form to reserve a branded table and join the growing list of sponsors for this special event. Please contact Cindy Key with any additional questions.
More information about the Leadership Conference may be found at wict.org/lc2024. All conference registrants receive admission to the luncheon.
MEET THE WOMEN OF THE YEAR
About Amy Blair
Amy Blair is Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer for Liberty Global, a world leader in converged broadband, video, and mobile communications and an active investor in cutting-edge infrastructure, content, and technology ventures, with 33,000 employees across its operations and 85 million connections in six European countries. Amy leads Liberty Global’s Human Resource function, including its global People Strategy – a purpose-driven and strategically aligned approach across talent, organization, culture, engagement, performance management, reward, leadership, and internal communications. As an Executive Leadership team member, Amy oversees critical global people, transformation, and change activities resulting from growth and business restructurings. She also serves on Liberty Global’s People Planet Progress Committee and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (“DE&I”) Council, which she was instrumental in establishing, and oversees the Company’s broader DE&I agenda. Amy has over 30 years of industry experience. She joined Liberty Global in its start-up phase in Denver, Colorado, and has held numerous international leadership positions since, including Vice President of Operations Management and Managing Director of Human Resources for European operations, based in the Netherlands. Today, Amy works from the Company’s Global Headquarters in Denver. Over her career, she has innovated and transformed the People function at every level, including creating the Company’s flagship talent & leadership programs and leading through hundreds of M&A transactions and restructuring over the years while fostering a conscious culture of values-driven learning, innovation, and inclusion. Amy is also an engaged industry and civic leader. She serves as a Board Member of the Syndeo Institute at the Cable Center, Colorado Public Radio, and as an Advisory Board Member for the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver. Amy has also held leadership roles with The WICT Network, focused on empowering women in media, entertainment, and technology, and guided the launch of their first two chapters outside of the US, in the UK and continental Europe. She has been recognized as Woman of the Year by the WICT Rocky Mountain Chapter. Amy holds a Bachelor of Arts & Sciences from Colorado College and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Denver.
About Johnita P. Due
Johnita P. Due is the Executive Vice President of Integrity and Inclusion for CNN Worldwide. Due, who is based in Atlanta and joined CNN as a media lawyer in 2003, was appointed to the newly created role in 2022. She has been Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer for CNN and WBD Sports (formerly Turner Sports) since 2019. As EVP of Integrity and Inclusion, both the DEI and Standards & Practices teams report into her. Johnita ensures that CNN’s brand integrity for television, digital and sales is upheld. She advises on everything from conflicts of interest and editorial fairness to reporting about sensitive stories, language used, and underrepresented communities, and ensures that a diversity of voices and perspectives are included in CNN’s content. Due also helps drive the company’s efforts to improve representation and development of employees on air and behind-the-scenes, as well as the production of impactful content that resonates with all audiences. An essential part of Due’s strategy is organizational investment in the development of employees through mentoring and training programs. CNN has been honored with significant industry honors that reflect her leadership like earning two prestigious awards for extraordinary brand campaign “We Are CNN”, the first of its kind multi-platform campaign highlighting CNN’s progress around DEI to celebrate progress made in improving representation across all screens and behind-the-scenes as well as its commitment to the work that continues. Due herself has also been individually honored and recognized for her achievements. From being in Cablefax’s Most Powerful Women List consecutively for three years to being honored as MIPAD’s (Most Influential People of African Descent) Global Top 100 List in 2020 and received their Most Influential 100 Hall of Fame award in 2021. In addition, she was recognized for a NAMIC Luminary Award back in 2008. These awards are just the many she has received since due to her extraordinary work. Throughout her CNN tenure as EVP of Integrity and Inclusion, Due has shepherded the development of the first ever mentoring program across News and Sports (LIFT — Leaders Impact the Future of Talent), championed CNN’s groundbreaking “Juneteenth” concert, helped launch the “Connected Conversations” – an internal engagement series where employees share and discuss their perspectives on events in the news and their connection to them, bringing diverse voices to the forefront. In 2021, Due worked with executive leaders and employees across CNN’s international businesses to launch CNN’s International Diversity Council. Previously, as CNN’s chief diversity advisor from 2005-2013, Due chaired CNN’s award-winning Diversity Council to advance the company’s diversity mission of growing its business in its programming and supporting an inclusive culture for its employees.
About Sandy Howe
Sandy Howe is a C-suite executive and experienced board director with extraordinary operational and go-to-market expertise in the global communications, broadcast, media, and semiconductor industries. Throughout a 25+ year career, she has built a track record of solid P&L management, operations, revenue growth, and product development capabilities for B2B and B2C markets. Sandy is respected for her knowledge of advanced technologies and market trends of applications for 5G, wireless, IP, DOCSIS, fiber networks, AI, data center, and Wi-Fi. Her strategic insights, business acumen and strong customer and partner relationships are widely sought in the global technology industry. Sandy currently serves as a Board Director of ATX, a global leader in broadband access and media distribution solutions and portfolio company of KKR (NYSE: KKR). She is also a Board Director of SQUAN, a network infrastructure solutions provider for wireline and wireless network operators, developers and utilities. SQUAN is a portfolio company of RFE Investment Partners, a private equity firm. In 2020, Sandy co-founded Coravant, a minority-owned value-added reseller focused on emerging technologies in cyber security, artificial intelligence, data center, infrastructure and IT networks. In addition to her current board appointments, Sandy regularly advises private equity firms (Digital Alpha and Littlebanc) and investment banks (High Street Global Advisors) on service provider, infrastructure and technology investments. Previously, Sandy served as Board Director of Minim (NASDAQ: MINM), a smart home solutions provider of hardware and AI-driven software products sold under the Motorola brand at retail. She was also an Advisory Board Member of Teleste (NASDAQ: TLT1V.HE), a broadband and public safety service manufacturer, and a Technical Advisory Board Member of Afiniti, an artificial intelligence provider in the call center space.
MEET THE WOMEN TO WATCH
About Julie Unruh
Julie Unruh is Head of Strategic Operations in the Sales & Marketing organization at Charter Communications. In her current role, Ms. Unruh oversees Spectrum pricing and packaging with a focus on driving customer and revenue growth. In addition, she leads strategic initiatives that cross the company’s residential and small business marketing, sales, and retention teams. In her previous role as Senior Vice President, Programming Financial Operations & Analytics, Ms. Unruh led a team focused on delivering financial and analytical insights to inform Charter’s content acquisition decisions. She joined Charter in 2004 as Vice President of Revenue Assurance, a function she was hired to develop, based on her financial, analytical and operational expertise. In that role, Ms. Unruh helped drive profitability through the implementation of processes and technology that maximized revenue, minimized leakage, and managed costs. She also led the financial planning and analysis function for Charter’s Programming team. Prior to Charter, Ms. Unruh worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers within the firm’s advisory practice, where she delivered revenue assurance solutions to cable industry clients. Ms. Unruh is passionate about cultivating the next generation of leaders, as demonstrated through her involvement in Charter’s leadership development programs and diversity and inclusion initiatives, including the Spectrum Women Business Resource Group, mentorship programs, and speaking on behalf of Charter at industry events. Ms. Unruh was named a Woman to Watch in 2018 by Multichannel News as part of its annual Wonder Women awards, which honor exceptional women leaders in the cable industry for their innovations and influence. She has also been honored by Cablefax as one of their Most Powerful Women numerous times. Ms. Unruh holds both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from Michigan State University and is a graduate of The WICT Network’s esteemed Betsy Magness Leadership Institute.
About Courtney Thomasma
Courtney Thomasma is the Executive Vice President of Linear and Streaming Products at AMC Networks, responsible for managing the company’s portfolio of linear and streaming offerings, including targeted streaming services AMC+, Acorn TV, Shudder, Sundance Now, ALLBLK and HIDIVE and cable networks AMC, BBC AMERICA (operated through a joint venture with BBC Studios), IFC, SundanceTV and We TV. A respected industry leader known for her innovative, data-driven approach, Thomasma sits at the center of AMC Networks’ brands, driving strategic planning, business operations, user experience and programming optimization in partnership with the company’s content, marketing, technology and revenue teams to maximize the potential and value of the company’s full portfolio. Prior to her current role, Thomasma served as the company’s EVP of Streaming, General Manager of AMC+ and Executive Director of BBC America. In 2020, Thomasma was critical to the creation, development and launch of AMC+, where she oversaw the overall management and strategic direction of the service, working to drive subscriber acquisition, user engagement, global expansion, and more. She joined the company in 2013, serving as Vice President of Research & Insights for BBC America. Thomasma has completed the Cable Executive Management program at Harvard Business School, graduated from the Betsy Magness Leadership Institute, and was recognized as a 40 Under 40 Executive by Multichannel News, a Cynopsis 2022 Top Women in Media, and a Cablefax 100 honoree.
About Steph Lone
As the Global Director of Solutions Architecture for Media & Entertainment, Games, and Sports at Amazon Web Services (AWS), Steph Lone leads a global technology team responsible for providing industry-leading solution architecture guidance, program management, and expertise to solve the top challenges for many of the biggest brands in the entertainment world. Through the support of Steph’s team, AWS has enabled the leaders in entertainment, sports and games to reach billions of viewers and fans, while reimagining how they create, deliver and monetize content. Steph joined AWS in February 2022 with over 25 years of experience leading digital teams and transformation efforts in various roles at Paramount. As Senior Vice President of Engineering at CBS Sports Digital, Steph led technology teams and technical aspects for all digital platforms for CBSSports.com, CBS Sports HQ, CBS Sports Fantasy, 247Sports, MaxPreps, and SportsLine. Steph has managed CBS Sports’ record-breaking digital live streams for several marquee events, including Super Bowl LV, Super Bowl LIII and Super Bowl 50. Prior to this role, as part of CBS Interactive, she ran multiple central technology teams over the course of eight years including the teams responsible for the advertising & order management systems, data warehousing, CRM systems and digital video. Steph holds a Bachelor of Arts in Multidisciplinary Studies from North Carolina State University (Go Wolfpack!) and lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida with her husband, Bill and two sons, AJ and Patrick.
About The WICT Network – Empowering Women in Media, Entertainment & Technology
The WICT Network is a global organization whose mission is to create women leaders who transform our industry. We do this by providing unparalleled professional development programs, commissioning original gender research, and supporting a B2B network that helps advance women. For more than 40 years, The WICT Network has partnered with media, entertainment and technology companies to help build a more robust pipeline of women leaders. Founded in 1979, and now nearly 10,000 members with 24 chapters globally, The WICT Network is the largest and oldest professional association serving women in media. Charter Communications, Comcast NBCUniversal, The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros. Discovery are The WICT Network’s Strategic Touchstone Partners. Please visit www.wict.org or follow @WICTHQ on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X for more information.
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