Suzanne Horton

Suzanne Horton is an uncommon mix of strategist and activator, data-driven decision maker and gray-space innovator, executive leader and mentor. A theme woven tightly throughout her entire career is her ability to usher businesses into new phases of success at the convergence of traditional and digital strategy, always with a focus on social responsibility and serving the global good. She is a digital thought leader who has delivered results within both growth and turnaround environments for businesses ranging from tech and media startups to Fortune 100 divisions.

Among Suzanne’s strengths is her boldness in pushing beyond the boundaries of convention to inspire new levels of disruption and P&L performance. She is consistently sought out by boards, investors, and C-level colleagues to put the right business models, global and national brands, go-to-market roadmaps, infrastructure, cross-functional teams, relationships, and metrics in place to create enterprise value and position businesses for successful exit.

An engaging media persona, Suzanne has been featured on ABC, CBS, KTLA 5, and YouTube. She has been called “A Builder of Empowering Technologies” by Cornell’s SC Johnson College of Business and has been interviewed for multiple business publications.

The trajectory of Suzanne’s career began at American Express where she advanced to become a key member of the team that founded the first digital media/technology venture fund for strategic growth investments. As Senior Director, she pioneered the first digital media internet investment team at American Express and managed a $32 million portfolio of growth companies with a 64% ROI. She would go on to serve in a Division President capacity, leading a 250-member team to make Homebuilder.com—a sister company to Realtor.com— the #1 new home real estate site. In 2014, the parent company, Move.com, was acquired by News Corp (NASDAQ: NWS) for $1 billion.

Most recently, as the Founder of Horton Associates, LLC, Suzanne has been retained as an interim executive and strategic advisor for numerous corporate clients. As the Interim CMO for Invitation Homes—a Blackstone portfolio company, she devised a national brand that established the company as the industry leader, transformed the housing industry, and positioned the business for an IPO in 2017.

Within two years, Invitation Homes’ market cap had exceeded $13 billion (NYSE: INVH). Her work with Fox Networks (NASDAQ: FOX), Ryland Homes (NYSE: RYL), and Experian (LSE: EXPN) has been pivotal in unlocking new organic (e.g., e-commerce market expansion, new revenue channels) and M&A growth opportunities.

In 2016, Suzanne was selected for a short-term leadership engagement to help position Veritone, Inc. (NASDAQ: VERI), as an AI leader in search technology in preparation for an IPO. Serving as the Interim CMO and Corporate Communications Officer, she put a formal marketing and PR strategy in place that delivered unprecedented revenue growth in one year. Veritone completed a successful IPO in 2017. The market cap after two years had exceeded $175 million.

In late 2014, Suzanne was selected by the Board of Directors of MamaBear to lead this tech firm into new phases of strategic vision, venture funding, and differentiated brand positioning within a $100 billion global smart family market.

As President, CEO, and a member of the Board of Directors, she secured $1.4 million in funding, led an acquisition, and achieved a more than three-fold increase in monthly app registrations in under one year. MamaBear was sold to Grom Social (OTC QB: GRMM) in 2015. Her extraordinary press push increased awarness among parents and families and accelerated the move toward the digital safety of children.

Suzanne joined Be Jane in 2008 as the CEO, President, and a Member of the Board of Directors. Recruited to turnaround this insolvent DIY home improvement digital brand targeting the female market, she restructured debt and shareholder equity while also securing bridge financing. Her new vision and business model—as well as an enterprising revenue strategy that engaged blue-chip brands—more than tripled website traffic and significantly grew the member base.

The designer and builder of more than 100 homes, she quickly became Be Jane’s “Chief Jane” media persona. She negotiated the successful sale of the company to Builder Homesite, Inc.—a consortium of 31 top national and regional builders, under critical deadlines.

In 2006, Suzanne was tapped by mobile technology icons, Arlene Harris and Martin Cooper (cell phone inventor), to lead the launch of Jitterbug (now GreatCall)—a mobile health tech business targeting the boomer-senior market. As the Chief Business Development Officer, she held select CEO-level responsibilities (e.g., fundraising) and helped hire a new CEO. In addition, she was a member of a senior leadership team that positioned the company for multimillion-dollar revenue deals and the ultimate sale to Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) for $800 million.

Suzanne holds an M.B.A. in finance and marketing from Cornell University’s SC Johnson College of Business. While completing this degree, she was one of two students selected from a field of 281 for a semester at the London Business School. She also holds a B.A. in economics and government with a concentration in international relations from Cornell.
  
A humanitarian powerhouse, Suzanne has teamed up with Habitat for Humanity on network television. She built a raised garden bed on air to advocate for affordable housing and drive volunteers to a Women’s Build. She has also served as a digital advisor to her friend, Fran Drescher, in support of Fran’s Cancer Schmancer Movement. Continuing the legacy of her grandfather—a New York Senator who was the political founder of Stony Brook University (a S.U.N.Y school) and renowned for securing workers’ compensation for NY firefighters, Suzanne worked directly with firefighters and volunteers to gather supplies for those hit by Hurricane Sandy. They secured more than 1,000 toys from Lego to provide gifts to displaced children during the holidays.