Once the world of marketing communications sunk its talons into Naeran Rubio, it was a fait accompli that she would spend her career dedicated to advancing the business persona of her employer. Not that she didn’t look elsewhere, at least initially. After all, Rubio changed majors five times while in college before landing in communications/journalism, a profession that has infected many a well-intended career seeker. It’s a major that tends not to lose many students.
All joshing aside, Rubio—like many J majors and marketing professionals—are drawn to the communications-induced endorphins that accompany articles, press releases, social media posts and other outreach vehicles. The feedback is tangible, measurable and sometimes instantaneous. Job satisfaction can often be immense, which is what keeps Rubio coming back for more.
“I love working within our marketing tech stacks, because there is a sense of immediate gratification when using these tools,” said Rubio, a 2024 ENX Magazine Difference Maker. “For instance, when posting content directly to the web, you can see your published creation come to fruition for millions to see, and on social, you can see your posts’ impact on your audience in real-time through the reactions, comments and engagement.
“It is also exciting to troubleshoot and figure out the best way to communicate with our various audiences because understanding what drives them drives us to create good content,” she added. “Whether through an ad, a press release, email or social, we constantly review our channels to understand which messages resonate the most and craft our communications accordingly.”
Rubio may have kept the academic advisors at her alma mater Manhattan College busy, but marcom was certainly her destiny. It spoke to her passion for learning new things and broadening her horizons. She test-drove more than a few industries: legal, banking, not-for-profit, politics, defense tech, advertising and fashion before landing at Konica Minolta Business Solutions in 2012 as its communications manager.
Ideal Match
She continued her foray into the imaging channel two years later by joining Sharp, and if the past 10 years are any indication, Rubio has found a home. She was particularly drawn to the manufacturer’s constant quest to evolve with the needs of dealers and end-users. The company’s willingness to reinvent itself and not pay heed to sacred cows is indicative of a company that’s in business for all the right reasons.
“Being in the marketing group has ensured that I and my team members need to not only keep up with what is trending in marketing, but also apply those trends to this specific industry, so there is never a dull moment,” Rubio added.
Her calling card is the ability to problem solve and weigh whether a given project or initiative is to the benefit (or detriment) of Sharp. Once she devises a solution, Rubio is passionate about seeing it become a reality, which has enhanced her reputation as a finisher who gets the job done. This dogged determination has sired a number of initiatives at Sharp, from the launch of its co-branding site to the creation of the company blog and the establishment of Sharp’s internal content approval process.
She’s found a kindred spirit in Bob Madaio, Sharp’s vice president of marketing. Madaio is outgoing and gregarious while Rubio is quiet and reserved, yet they intersect at the point of devising bona fide solutions to challenges and supporting team members in their professional growth.
“His support in this regard makes it very easy for me to follow my conscience in my role as a manager of my team,” she said. “I believe this support contributes to a healthy working environment where my team feels supported and encouraged to bring their best selves to work every day.”
Rubio and her team are coming off a stellar 2023 that saw them, among other things, work with the web team to consolidate the content for two of Sharp’s websites into a single site. She quarterbacked the company’s recognition applications, resulting in 10 honors including Best Places to Work from Fortune and Best Women in Business from NJBIZ. Rubio also took great strides to thoroughly communicate with media and analysts attending the National Dealer Meeting—placating the press corps is no small matter.
Gaining Speed
That momentum is continuing in 2024 as Rubio and her team is tasked with making it easier for dealers to market Sharp products. And with the NEC display brand officially folded into Sharp in the U.S., the marcom team will be busy developing new content pieces to showcase its complete menu of products.
Rubio believes the road to improvement begins with approaching everything from various angles. “I like to put myself in different audience’s shoes to see what they would see if they were seeing our content. From there on, it’s easy to figure out what needs to change and how to communicate a message that is relevant to each audience,” she added.
Next month, Rubio and her husband, Luis, will celebrate 29 years of wedded bliss. They have a son, Daniel, 19, and a daughter, Lara, 15. Road trips are a family affair, with a recent journey taking them to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. When not spending time with her brood, Rubio enjoys a newer hobby, woodworking, which has yielded bookshelves, step stools, tables, trays, and benches for family and friends. An avid gardener, she enjoys growing leafy greens, tomatoes, peppers and green beans, as well as strawberries and blueberries.
Another newer interest is overnight backpacking on the Appalachian Trail. “I love the feeling of being out in nature on an adventure, and I always have a story to tell whenever I go on these excursions,” Rubio noted. “I plan to complete both the New York and New Jersey trails before I move on to other states.”
