ANA Email Excellence Center Awards | ANA

Recognizing the Best and Brightest Email Marketers

ANA Email Excellence Center Awards trophies on display

The ANA Email Excellence Center Awards recognize top individuals within the email marketing industry through two prestigious awards:

Stefan Pollard Email Marketer of the Year Award

Celebrating those working at brand-side or marketing companies who lead in community-driven innovation and thought leadership.

Email Marketer Thought Leader of the Year Award

Honoring professionals at marketing service providers, agencies, consultants, freelancers, technology providers, data companies, or other third-party services who demonstrate email marketing excellence.


Learn More About the ANA Email Excellence Center

The ANA Email Excellence Center helps you and your company use email more effectively to grow, engage, and retain your customer base.

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Stefan Pollard Email Marketer of the Year Award


Established in honor of Stefan Pollard, a highly respected and beloved member of the email marketing community who suddenly passed away in 2010, this award honors a brand-side marketer who demonstrates the qualities and high professional standards that Pollard exemplified during his lifetime.

Corrina Cohen headshot

Congratulations to the 2024 Stefan Pollard Email Marketer of the Year, Corrina Cohen, CRM and marketing automation manager at NBCUniversal.

Ms. Cohen plays a key role in implementing marketing initiatives for major sporting events like the Olympics and Super Bowl. Previously, she drove innovative strategies at Caleres, crafted campaigns for brands like Nike and Expedia at ExactTarget (including producing the first email marketing music video), and spent a decade consulting on best practices in email and digital marketing.


Previous Stefan Pollard Email Marketer of the Year Winners
  • 2023: Kelly Haggard, Synchrony
  • 2022: Tracy Smith, Cicso
  • 2021: Scott Cohen, Purple
  • 2020: Sandra Cordero, Torrid
  • 2019: Kait Creamer, Scaled Agile, Inc.
  • 2018: Alice Li, Shutterstock
  • 2017: Genevieve Longtin, Sharecare
  • 2016: Jeanne Jones, Alaska Airlines
  • 2015: Alessandra Souers, JibJab
  • 2014: Zack Notes, UncommonGoods
  • 2013: Sal Tripi, Publishers Clearing House
  • 2012: Meg Reynolds, REI
  • 2011: Loren McDonald, IBM Marketing Cloud

Email Marketer Thought Leader of the Year Award


This highly coveted award is given to a vendor-side marketer who exemplifies the best and brightest in the email marketing industry, embodying thought leadership, service, innovation, vision, and influence.

Karen Talavera headshot

Congratulations to the 2024 Email Marketer Thought Leader of the Year, Karen Talavera, founder and principal of Synchronicity Marketing.

A key figure in the industry, Ms. Talavera has significantly influenced e-commerce revenue growth and email marketing performance across various sectors, including DTC, financial services, travel, health care, retail, and technology. She also serves as co-chair of the ANA Email Excellence Center, enhancing the field through her leadership and expertise.


Previous Email Marketer Thought Leader of the Year Winners
  • 2023: Ryan Phelan, RPEOrigin
  • 2022: Dela Quist, Alchemy Worx
  • 2021: Kath Pay, Holistic Email Marketing
  • 2020: Simms Jenkins, BrightWave
  • 2019: Matthew Vernhout, 250ok
  • 2018: Chad White, Litmus
  • 2017: David Daniels, The Relevancy Group
  • 2016: David Baker, Cordial
  • 2015: Justine Jordan, Litmus
  • 2014: Dennis Dayman, Return Path

Email Excellence Center Awards Subcommittee

Headshot of Jose Cebrian

Co-Chair
Jose Cebrian

Merkle

Headshot of Ryan Phelan

Co-Chair
Ryan Phelan

RPE Origin

Headshot of Scott Cohen

Scott Cohen
InboxArmy

Headshot of Heather Curcio

Heather Curcio
AARP

Brad Gurley

Brad Gurley
MessageGears

Headshot of Guilda Hilaire

Guilda Hilaire
Salesforce

Headshot of Kath Pay

Kath Pay
Holistic Email Marketing

Headshot of Gretchen Scheiman

Gretchen Scheiman
Alchemy Worx

Headshot of Tracy Smith

Tracy Smith
Ascend Marketing

Headshot of Tink Taylor

Tink Taylor
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