The Rise of the Executive Creator: Why Every Company Is a Media Company

Having spent the last several years working at the intersection of events, media, partnerships, and brand storytelling, it’s become clear to me that we’re in the middle of a seismic shift in B2B. Companies are realizing they can no longer outsource their voice or rely solely on paid distribution and polished brand creative. Here’s what’s going on:

My controversial take of the hour is that every B2B business is (or ought to be) a media company, no matter what industry it’s in.

I started formalizing this belief during my time at Morning Brew, where I saw what happens when you put operators into creator roles: the point being that these weren’t traditional journalists, but people who deeply understood their working worlds as insiders. They were naturally curious, they had real takes, and they could explain their POVs in plain English. 

Lo and behold, audiences connected with that.

Workweek and Smooth Media soon built tactics on that same philosophy. Big media scapes were moving away from “writers who cover industries” toward “operators who tell the truth about how things actually work.” 

Now, looking at B2B, the next stage of this evolution is for executives to become creators in their own right.

The relevance of events and CXO content

You know why influencer marketing has taken off? It’s that people buy from people, not from brands.

This tracks in B2B, meaning the more you let executives be personalities, creators, and distribution mechanisms in and of themselves, the better. And as luck would have it, many executives already have 10,000 to 100,000 followers on LinkedIn; the beauty of B2B is that if these followers are the right cohort, the scale doesn’t matter. God bless. 

The key is that we’re at a moment in time when most executives don’t yet know how much value they inherently hold as creators, despite their experience, informed point of view, networks, or built-in credibility. But leveraging these factors is far smarter and more efficient than just relying on brand accounts.

When I joined The Female Quotient as Chief Commercial Officer, I knew I wanted to take this idea another step further. FQ had always been known for its incredible event presence. Leaders were coming through our studios with real insight, real presence, and real intimacy in their conversations. You didn’t need to script anything; you just had to capture and place authentic moments into formats the audience would appreciate. In combination with the great talent we had access to, a powerful media ecosystem lay dormant, ready to be activated.

So we did.

It wasn’t long until people came to me and said, “I see your content everywhere.” That was the point. The visibility built an enormous halo that didn’t just benefit us, but also our partners, clients, and sponsors, who recognized its quality and wanted proximity. I got to see firsthand executives and events become the engine of a larger content flywheel: content feeding awareness, awareness feeding partnerships, and partnerships feeding more content. And on and on.

Why B2B media is changing

Several forces are pushing this change in B2B media dynamics, and it’s helpful to understand them. The biggest ones are:

• Decision-making has become more distributed. You’re not selling to just one person but a group of people across different levels of influence, so you need to show up in more places.

• The buyer is younger and more digitally native. Social weighs heavily on decision-making, and authenticity is the new key currency to deal in.

• Events are changing. Firms are cutting back on giant expos in place of smaller gatherings with real conversation and intimacy. 

• Technology is making it easier to create and distribute content without massive production budgets.

• Measurement is catching up. CRMs and marketing automation systems are improving their ability to track engagement and to attribute what were historically considered top-of-funnel activities to new revenue.

Finally, but maybe most importantly, people are itching to be part of the content sphere. They want to speak, share, post, collaborate, be seen, and contribute. All of this spells opportunity for those who manage to build a media ecosystem that monetizes attention, expertise, and credibility.

The Dual Growth Flywheel and the ABCDE Framework

The Dual Growth Flywheel is a good example of an effective strategy for building just this type of revenue engine, so I’ll share it here.

One side of the flywheel is commercial growth, which comes from sponsorships, partners, and media monetization. The other side is brand growth, driven by organic visibility, content distribution, and community impact. A framework called ABCDE functions as an operating foundation for both sides of the equation. This is where you lay the groundwork that all reach and revenue-driving activities rest on.

Audience is about precision. Who specifically are you trying to reach? Who is the audience of the ideas you’re aiming to present?

Brand forces focus. What does your company stand for? What are the three things you want to be known for?

Content comes from the two points above, “audience” and “brand.” What topics, tone, and formats are you working with?

Distribution determines where it all goes. LinkedIn, organic, paid, executive profiles, partner channels, etc.

Experiences are the high-touch environments where audiences gather, from events to salons, dinners, and workshops. These are the spaces that create energy and moments that then turn into content.

When those five elements work together, you get a system that grows your brand and drives revenue in tandem.

Where to get started

Good strategy aside, if you even slightly believe that every business is a media business at heart, then the only way to test it is to participate. Capture your thoughts at an event, host a small dinner, or have your CXO film a short video on their phone. Here are a few pointers to help you on your way:

• A good event does not start with the budget or the venue. It starts with the reason for gathering. Why are these people coming together? What are they talking about? What is the energy in the room supposed to feel like?

• The mix of attendees matters, and seniority is less important than perspective. People need to feel comfortable sharing earnestly.

• Content capture matters, but it does not need to be cinematic. It just needs to be intentional and good enough to play well online.

• Topics have to feel fresh. People want real insight, vulnerability, honesty, and original thought. They want to say, “I have never heard that before.”

• Placing people just slightly outside their comfort zone does wonders for removing the corporate armor. If participants then settle in for the ride, it uplifts the whole experience.

The shift happening in B2B media is ultimately a shift toward humanity: People trust people. People follow people. People buy from people. Executives becoming creators, events becoming content engines, and companies building their own media ecosystems are part of that.

The point for you to take home right now is that brands that embrace this reality early will win the next phase of B2B growth. If you want to be part of that winning cohort, it’s time to get a move on.