Stephen M. Mikolajczak

Obsessed with building brands of the future

Throughout Stephen’s 25+ year career he has built a track record of innovation. His philosophy stems from a curiosity to listen and understand where audiences and society are going to take calculated risks. Another undercurrent for his pursuit of innovation is mentoring start-ups. Stephen’s experience spans: Brand Strategy, Digital, Social, CRM, Integrated Communications, Product Innovation, Shopper, and Content Marketing.

Stephen began his career working on the agency-side for brands such as McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, and Office Max. Stephen then moved to the client-side in the CPG sector for Nestlé, working on brands such as Nestlé Toll House and Stouffer’s. Here he learned how to uncover consumer insights and guide the design and execution of differentiated marketing campaigns. Stephen was a recipient of the “Innovative Communications Award” from Nestlé, USA for developing a word-of-mouth influencer program for Nestlé Toll House. His entrepreneurial skills were honed working in Sporting Goods for challenger brand, Mizuno. Here he oversaw brand marketing for the Baseball, Softball, Volleyball, and Golf businesses.

After a successful stint in the B2C space Stephen entered the B2B world with IBM, where he led branding and content across several business units including Watson IoT, Blockchain, and Data & AI. Today, Stephen is leading a team of strategists to increase brand relevancy and reputation for IBM’s AI portfolio, along with the responsibilities of overseeing the brand and content strategy for IBM’s Social Impact and Research initiatives surrounding AI and Quantum Computing.

Stephen holds his BS in Marketing from Miami University and an MBA from Case Western Reserve University.