Meet Pauline Malcolm-Thornton, Chief Revenue Officer at Essence Ventures. In early 2022, Pauline joined Essence Ventures (“ESSENCE”) as Chief Revenue Officer. Since joining, Pauline has made an immediate impact, driving the highest revenue in ESSENCE’s history.

Pauline is a leading Senior Media & Tech Advertising Sales Executive and Entrepreneur. At ESSENCE, Pauline leads Sales, Sales Development & Strategy, Account Management and Sales Operations.

Prior to joining ESSENCE, Pauline was Senior Vice President of Global Sales at BEN where she led a team of managers and individual contributors to double revenue year over year. Prior to BEN, Pauline held senior sales leadership positions at top media companies such as The Walt Disney Company, Conde Nast and Quibi. Pauline is a graduate of Baruch College with a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree in Marketing and a Minor in Computer Science. Pauline also earned her Executive Management Certificate from Harvard Business School. She also serves as a board member at the Cayton Museum, the only children’s museum in Los Angeles. Pauline resides in Los Angeles with her husband and two daughters.

Q: What does a Chief Revenue Officer do?

As a chief revenue officer, I am responsible for driving and cultivating the strategy for growth, partnerships and revenue streams for the company.

Q: How have you impacted ESSENCE Ventures since you joined?

Since joining Essence in 2022, I made immediate impact in driving the highest revenue in the companies, 50+ year history, and created new revenue streams, and drove innovation. What I do is also very purpose-driven, in which, through revenue partnerships, we help drive funding to emerging female entrepreneurs of Color, and I’m incredibly proud of that work.

Q: How have previous positions prepared you for your new role?

I have been in advertising sales for the past 20 years in both sales and sales leadership roles at startups and large companies and those roles have been at world class companies like the Walt Disney company which truly prepared me on how to bring in structure and innovation. These experiences have allowed me to help elevate my organization and talent and future proof my company for the next several years.

‍Q: Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I really enjoy being a CRO AND SEE MYSELF CONTINUING TO HELP COMPANIES, BUILD, AND GROW THEIR REVENUE.

Q: What advice would you give someone who is interested in Media Sales?

I was very intentional about getting into media sales within the advertising industry, and I encourage folks looking to get into the industry to research leading organizations like she runs it, the advertising club, and other local organizations, depending upon your region, to learn more about the media industry, as well as these organizations have networking opportunities to connect with mid to senior level executives that can help you navigate the industry and career paths.

Q: How do you balance it all?

I am a wife and a mother of two girls and I have a team & "Village" that helps me balance it all. I also think it’s really important to take time for yourself and be kind to yourself and give yourself self-care to recharge and be present for your business team, as well as for your loved ones.

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