Happy New Year! For our first LinkUnite V Interview Series episode of 2026, we sat down with Telsa Sudano, VP of Operations at Boardwalk Marketing, whose path into the industry began on Upwork just before COVID, only to turn into a rapid rise through multiple leadership roles. Telsa shares how she unexpectedly found her place in performance marketing, moving from executive assistant to VP of Operations in under two years, and why she wishes she’d discovered the space earlier in her career.
She opens up about what her early years in the industry looked like, often being the only woman in the room, navigating late-night contract signings in environments that catered almost entirely to men, and not even knowing that women-focused communities existed. That all changed when she met Ashleigh Arnaud at a conference, was introduced to Amanda and Sara, and attended her first LinkUnite retreat. Now, she says she finally has a “crew of ladies,” a sense of belonging, and a space where professional growth and genuine support coexist.
Telsa also reflects on learning more about compliance, optimizing call centers and offer walls, and discovering how much she didn’t know, simply because no one had ever included her in those conversations before. We close with two pieces of advice she has received in her career (the worst and the best). The worst was to “always wear heels and a tight skirt,” which she had a colorful response to. LOL! And the best being to “surround yourself with people who share your values and support your success without ego or competition”. We agree!
To watch more interviews from LinkUnite V, along with other videos from across the email marketing industry, check out our full Video Library or YouTube channel.
