At THE BOARD we help brands figure out what to make, why it matters, and how it fits into people’s lives.

When product strategy leads without brand, the story gets lost.

When brand leads without product, the promise feels empty.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Allison Henry Aver and Katie Irving share what happens when teams operate in silos—and what changes when they don’t. If your identity system isn’t grounded in product truth, or your product roadmap keeps shifting with trends, it’s time to realign.

The strongest brands aren’t built in parts. They’re built in partnership.

Fractionals are finally being paid what they’re worth.
But that doesn’t mean they’re being paid in full.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Caroline Rothwell Gerstein shares why equity has become the real differentiator in the future of fractional work and what both founders and executives need to rethink about compensation, alignment, and upside.

If you’re a founder offering flat retainers, or a fractional taking them, this is the equity reset you need.

For most of history, medicine treated women as smaller men.
Shrink the dosage. Add pink. Call it a product.

In this BOARD BRIEFING, marketing exec and health tech advisor Cynthia Spitalny walks us through the quiet revolution of women no longer asking to be included—but rebuilding what never worked to begin with. From Frida and Respin Health to hormone mapping and tele-menopause platforms, this is what true innovation looks like when women lead.

If you’re a brand founder, operator, or health-tech leader building for women, this is for you.

“We plan for fires and floods—but not for birth, caregiving, or grief.”

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Erin Erenberg and Elizabeth Coppola explain why real business risk isn’t just operational—it’s human. From turnover and burnout to lost institutional knowledge, unplanned leave has a real cost. But it’s not inevitable.

They lay out how fractional talent, coverage systems, and cultural preparedness can turn life events into moments of trust, not turmoil.

If you care about your team and your bottom line, this one’s for you.

“You don’t need more people. You need more leverage.”

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Faheem Siddiqi breaks down why startup burnout isn’t about hustle—it’s about missing structure. From the revolving door problem to fractional flexibility, he maps out what real high-performance culture looks like and how to build it with fewer hires, more clarity, and better systems.

If your team feels like it’s doing everything and going nowhere, this is the reset you’ve been waiting for.

Paid is up. Performance is down. Audiences are tuning out.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Amy Kapolnek and Lacey Norton say what many marketers already feel: the Big 3 are broken. But connection isn’t dead—it’s evolving. From Reddit and Substack to TYB and OnlyFans, they map the new terrain of digital community, loyalty, and long-game storytelling.

If you're still pouring budget into broken channels, this one's your call to rethink and reallocate.

Tariffs were just the wake-up call. The real challenge? Thriving in a fashion industry where disruption never stops.

In Part Two of her BOARD BRIEFING series, Briana Swords outlines the new rules for fashion leaders—from managing micro-markets and dynamic pricing to building anti-fragile product portfolios. If you're still trying to plan 12 months out in a world that changes by the week, this is the reset you need.

The brands that will win next aren’t the biggest. They’re the ones bold enough to evolve.

Tariffs are hitting. Orders are being canceled. Customers are confused and fashion brands are in crisis.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Briana Swords shares what she’s seeing across showrooms, trade floors, and client conversations: a perfect storm of disruption. From Canada’s CUSMA fallout to SHEIN’s forced reinvention, she unpacks what’s happening behind the scenes and why fashion brands need sharp, specialized support now more than ever.

If you’re navigating uncertainty, this one’s not just a read—it’s a roadmap.

AI didn’t just make go-to-market strategy faster. It made it different.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Tina Eskridge outlines what the smartest teams are already doing to turn discovery, demand gen, and retention into an always-on growth loop. From Clearbit to HubSpot to Sephora, she shares what it means to GTM in an AI-first world—and why the winners won’t be the ones who shouted the loudest. They’ll be the ones who listened, learned, and closed the loop.

If your GTM still looks like a funnel, this is your wake-up call.

In uncertain markets, most brands cut their brand budgets. The best ones don’t.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, fractional CMOs Anna Bleers and Erika Weiss break down why brand equity is your most resilient asset—and how to build it without blowing your budget. From Mike’s Hot Honey to Starbucks and Bobbie, they share what the best brands are doing right now to grow trust, pricing power, and long-term value.

If you're marketing through chaos, read this first.

Substack. Reddit. OnlyFans.
Not your typical media plan—but maybe they should be.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Amy Kaplonek unpacks how forward-thinking brands are using unexpected platforms to drive real connection and conversion. From Rare Beauty’s heartfelt Substack to Urban Decay’s headline-making OnlyFans collab, this is a wake-up call for marketers still relying on Instagram and email blasts alone.

If you want to reach people where they actually are—not just where it’s “safe”—this one’s for you.

In this BOARD BRIEFING, April Uchitel announces a new partnership between THE BOARD and cultural intelligence platform Winnin. Learn how THE BLACK BOOK identifies high-ROI tech and why Winnin is poised to lead the next wave of culturally driven brand growth.

You don’t need a million people to like your product. You need the right people to love it.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, beauty execs Leslie Holmes and Jennifer Ritter explain why resonance—not reach—is the future of brand growth. Drawing from decades of experience and the latest Piping Hot session, they show how clarity builds connection, and connection drives conversion.

If you’re building a brand (or rebuilding one), this one’s for you.

Most M&A announcements speak to investors. Very few speak to the people who actually make the business run.

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Faye McCray breaks down the five communication gaps that derail even the strongest strategies—from the trust gap to the continuity gap—and makes a clear case that these aren’t messaging problems. They’re leadership ones.

The labor market we once knew is gone. In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Stephanie Dobbs Brown unpacks what’s replacing it—and why companies that cling to the old model will get left behind. From AI-native roles to the $9.2B rise of fractional work and the evolution of the office, she makes it clear: this isn’t just a hiring trend, it’s a work transformation.

“About 97% of clothes sold in the U.S. are imported—and that’s not changing anytime soon.”

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Sydney Badger goes deep on the reality behind all the “Made in America” talk. From tariffs to labor to logistics, she explains why fashion’s return to domestic manufacturing isn’t just unlikely—it’s uneconomic. But there is opportunity in recommerce, reverse logistics, and new manufacturing tech. If you’ve been wondering where production is headed, this one’s a must-read.

“People leverage is a form of capital allocation.”

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Faheem Siddiqi flips the script on HR—showing how the smartest founders treat talent like balance sheet assets. A-players aren’t just nice to have—they’re margin-expanding, risk-reducing force multipliers. If your org chart isn’t driving your P&L, you’re leaving money on the table.

“Absence of controversy is not the same as alignment.”

In this BOARD BRIEFING, Melissa Roth Mendez shows how treating brand, risk, and governance as separate domains creates confusion, fragmentation, and slow reputational erosion. This one’s for any leader who wants to move fast and stand for something.

“The industry didn’t fall—it calcified. The audience didn’t vanish—they migrated.”

In this BOARD BRIEFING, Adam Nelson cuts through the noise to expose the failures of legacy PR—and why fractional comms isn’t just a pivot, it’s a power move. If your coverage isn’t shifting reputation, revenue, or recognition, it’s camouflage, not strategy. Read now.

“The first model often fails to launch. The second often launches something forgettable.”

In this week’s BOARD BRIEFING, Rachel Roberts Mattox maps out the white space between startup chaos and incubator bloat—and introduces THE LAUNCH STUDIO: a flexible, founder-focused approach built to meet the moment. Forget end-to-end. This is edge-to-edge.