Marketing leadership becomes more useful when it is connected to the whole business. Campaigns still matter, but experienced marketers also learn how pricing, product decisions, customer behavior, and internal priorities affect business performance.
Cathy O’Kane developed that perspective across 23 years in consumer products marketing. Based in Kansas City, she spent most of her career at a family-owned business, where she grew from an entry-level marketing role to Director of Marketing. Because the company was smaller, her role stretched beyond a traditional marketing function. She saw how decisions were made across the business and how marketing needed to support them.
That experience influenced what she wanted next. Cathy still valued marketing, but she wanted more ownership over the work she was doing and the clients she could serve. She wanted a role where her experience could guide business owners, not only support internal company goals.
WSI gave her a practical path into that kind of work. The model allowed her to build a consulting business around her marketing experience, with support from established systems, vetted partners, and a global digital and AI consulting network.
Cathy began thinking more seriously about ownership after a major career transition. When the family-owned business where she had spent much of her career was sold during the pandemic, she joined a company she admired to help develop a new product category.
She spent three years helping build that category. When it proved not to be the right fit for the organization, Cathy had to decide what kind of work she wanted to pursue next.
“After being in the job market for a few months, I realized I wasn’t finding anything I was truly excited about. That’s what led me to start exploring business ownership more seriously.”
Another corporate role was possible, but it was not the path that interested her most. The work she kept coming back to was the part of marketing she had always valued: helping businesses understand their market, make more informed strategic decisions, and connect marketing activity to broader business priorities.
She wanted to stay connected to marketing, but in a role where her experience could guide decisions rather than stay tied to every tactical detail.
A franchising coach first introduced Cathy to business ownership. Once she understood that the financing path could work, she began looking at opportunities more seriously. From there, the decision became more practical. She needed to find a model that fit her background, her goals, and the kind of business she wanted to build.
For Cathy, ownership was a deliberate next step. It gave her a way to apply her marketing experience in a business she could lead herself.
Cathy looked at several business opportunities and came close to choosing a different one. Then a career coach reviewed her background more closely and introduced her to WSI.
WSI stood out because it offered more than a path into consulting. It provided a way to step into that role with structure, credibility, and support already in place.
Cathy could have explored independent consulting. But building that from scratch would have meant establishing credibility, sourcing trusted delivery partners, and keeping up with the constant changes across digital platforms and AI-driven tools on her own. She also recognized that AI was becoming a more practical part of how businesses make decisions. Being part of a network already building capability in that space gave her a more effective way to stay relevant as client needs change.
With WSI, she was able to step into a consulting model where those elements were already built in. She could focus on guiding clients at a strategic level, while drawing on vetted partners and the wider WSI network for specialized execution.
That distinction was important. It allowed her to stay focused on the work she valued most, helping business owners make more informed strategic decisions, without needing to build every capability herself.
“As I started exploring the opportunity I realized I could keep doing marketing, which I loved, without having to be the person who keeps up with all the quickly evolving details of executing campaigns. This would allow me to step into more of a strategic and guidance role while leveraging the expertise of vetted partners and a network of marketing professionals.”
Cathy’s story will feel familiar to marketing professionals who have spent years inside businesses and are now considering a different kind of role.
For many experienced leaders, the next step is not always another senior position. It may be a chance to use their experience more directly, with more influence over the types of clients they work with and how they advise them. Some choose to remain inside larger organizations. Others move into independent consulting. Cathy chose ownership within a model that gave her room to lead, while still providing structure and support.
That choice fit the way she wanted to work. Cathy was not starting over. She was taking the marketing and business experience she already had and applying it in a consulting practice she could lead.
Her focus also came from a market she knew well. Smaller companies and creative businesses often need experienced marketing guidance, but they may not have the budget or internal structure for a full marketing team. They need help deciding where to focus, what to prioritize, and how marketing should support broader business objectives.
Cathy brings that kind of perspective to the work. She understands how marketing decisions are made inside a business, not only how campaigns are executed. That gives her a practical way to advise business owners who need clearer direction before committing additional resources to marketing.
Outside of work, Cathy’s life is firmly rooted in family and the interests that keep her curious. Raised in St. Louis as the youngest of five children, she now lives in Kansas City with her husband, two children, and three rescue dogs. She enjoys travel, discovering new food and beverage experiences, walking, hiking, and listening to audiobooks whenever she can.
"I've attached a picture from a couple years ago doing a few of my favorite things - traveling (France) and eating one of the best meals ever with good company. I'm second from the right." Cathy said.
At a certain point in a marketing career, the question shifts. It is no longer about gaining more experience, but about where that experience can create the most meaningful impact.
Years inside a business build more than campaign knowledge. They shape judgment, perspective, and the ability to connect marketing decisions to broader business priorities.
Cathy reached that point. She was not looking to start over or move into another similar role. She was looking for a way to apply what she already knew in a more direct and strategic way.
WSI offered a path to do that through a consulting business she could lead, supported by established systems, trusted delivery partners, and a global network.
For those considering a similar shift, the decision is less about leaving marketing behind and more about how to use that experience differently. A conversation with WSI can help determine whether that path aligns with the kind of work and practice you want to build.