The 2020 Women Leaders in Technology: Mary Martin

"I was then able to bring everything I knew from the business world, from client industry business value drivers and CEO's perspective, and connect that with the CIO's perspective," she says. "So while my recent projects deploying this combination of work is by design, I absolutely stumbled on it by accident!"

Today Martin is a Managing Director and Partner and leader in BCG's Consumer practice, which includes the firm's work in travel and tourism, consumer products, and retail. She is a core member of BCG's Marketing & Sales practice, with a focus on primary consumer insights and consumer-driven strategy formation, and also a key member of the North American DigitalBCG leadership team, bringing her expertise on digital strategy and growth opportunities to clients. 

When you ask consultants what they enjoy about their work, she says, they typically like solving hard problems and working with business leaders on issues that are fundamentally top of mind. "Digital, or in my experience AI, any kind of scaled AI transformation, puts all of that on steroids," Martin says. "The work we do in Digital and Tech drives multiple points of value creation, whether it is margin growth, efficiency gains, or scalability at a pace that only technological advancements can sustain. It is incredibly rewarding to be a part of creating tangible value for clients and helping them unlock that opportunity."

From a professional standpoint, Martin says she's never happier than when she's doing something that benefits her clients, and bringing along more teams of people within BCG to be able to continue to have that impact. "It feels quite an achievement to be at a place like BCG, where you can grasp both depth sufficiently to really understand the problem, and couple that with the breadth of value created through products and solutions we're delivering to our clients."

Martin says she has often been the only woman in the room, but says it's never really mattered if you have a point of view grounded in the data. "I would frame it differently—you certainly have to be willing to be under-represented in the room and in the discussion, but once you create that space at the table that is deserving of a voice, your gender is less relevant," she says. 

Over the next 12 months, Martin says she is looking forward to scaling the capabilities, technology, and solutions in the digital space. "I'm excited to discover where those innovations create unique and disruptive opportunities to drive value, and to continue building a team that can be part of the excitement of what I've experienced over many years at BCG," she says. 

What does the Women Leaders in Technology award mean to you?

Martin: "It's a great honor and I am completely stunned. On a professional level it is validating because it recognizes the innovation that we as Digital BCG are bringing to the table, as a team, across our global organization. And for our clients, it is validating to recognize the trust and teamwork that they have placed in us, as we continue to move forward."