How an Engineer Leveraged Brand Experience to Head Up Crown Media

A former brand manager of Clorox might not seem the likely choice to head up Crown Media Family Networks. But president and CEO Wonya Lucas worked her way from becoming a process engineer to heading up some of cable television’s most recognizable networks, with a particular focus on increasing diversity. “I describe myself as a process engineer, brand marketer. A brand builder,” Lucas said. “I think one of the things that distinguishes me as a marketer in entertainment in the media space is being able to sell processes that made us more efficient and enhanced collaboration.” Lucas spent five years as an engineer before pursuing her MBA, then worked her way from engineering to packaged goods to Coca-Cola. “I went back and forth between COO type of positions where I was leveraging a lot of those skill sets, to CMO type of marketing positions where the traditional packaged goods background really helped distinguish me from others at the time,” Lucas said. But Lucas knew she hadn’t yet found the right role, reflecting back on a prior internship at Turner (now part of WarnerMedia, soon to be Warner Bros. Discovery, pending a merger). “I knew my heart was going into the entertainment industry.” After 37 first-round interviews over the course of a year and a half, Lucas cut her salary in half and landed back at Turner in roles at CNN and Turner Broadcasting before making the jump to The Weather Channel. Lucas then helped Discovery launch the ID brand, describing Discovery as “the best example of a traditional brand I’ve seen.” Regarding the pending merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery, “both my retirement accounts will now be one,” she excitedly shared. Lucas joined Crown Media in August 2020, following Bill Abbott’s January 2020 departure after Hallmark Channel was embroiled in controversy because of the removal of a commercial featuring a same-sex couple. She pledged a focus on increasing diversity and inclusion in the company’s slate of programming across its cable and streaming networks, starting with the February debut of the film Mix Up in the Mediterranean, featuring Hallmark’s first gay lead character in a movie. Expect to see even more progress in DEI moving into this year’s holiday slate. “We’re building on opening the aperture of inclusivity as it relates to the biggest time of year for us. Everything from more diversity to more cultural authenticity,” she said. Big mistake “[It’s] been when I have been in an environment that really wasn’t a great cultural fit for me. I’ve been in a few environments where people just didn’t care about brands. Brand is like a part of life.” Lesson learned “I love to be in a consumer-centric organization,” Lucas said. “I believe very strongly in bringing the consumer’s voice and those insights into the room and understanding to whom we are developing for. Culture matters a lot in terms of the ability for someone to be successful.” How she got the gig For Lucas, the Crown Media Family Networks is a natural fit. “It’s a brand that has been in my life, my entire life. It meant a lot to me,” she said. Pro tip “Just be yourself. It sounds simple, but it’s hard for people to do, and I think a lot of times people are told to adapt to the culture. I think that people should understand that they are uniquely and distinctly themselves, and that by being yourself, you’re more than enough,” she said.