Chrystelle Sanchez James (EXEC ED 2025), reinventing herself without changing course: 17 years of marketing evolution at PMU

From mass-market retail to digital, and from day-to-day operations to strategy, Chrystelle Sanchez James has built a career that has evolved in step with the changing landscape of marketing. As Head of Digital Activations at PMU, she currently oversees campaign execution and coordinates expert resources. In 2024, she enrolled in the Marketing, Communication, and Innovation MBA program at De Vinci Executive Education while continuing her professional work. She reflects on a career marked by adaptation, learning, and skill development.

Turning Experience into a Career Path

Chrystelle began her career in the consumer goods sector, a field in which she spent nearly ten years at Sara Lee Household and Body Care. There, she held various roles, ranging from sales to marketing, eventually taking charge of trade marketing promotions. This experience gave her firsthand exposure to distribution challenges, in a context marked by the globalization of buying groups, the consolidation of retail chains, and the rise of hard discounters.

She then joined PMU, where her career evolved alongside major shifts in marketing and digital technology. She began in trade marketing roles, working closely with the field and a network of over 13,000 retail locations, where she managed promotional campaigns, engaged the network, and contributed to sales performance.

Over the years, she transitioned into Product Manager roles, where she worked on launching new offerings, designing customer journeys, and orchestrating 360° marketing campaigns. She then shifted toward a more digital focus, specializing in content and customer relations: producing educational and relationship-building content, managing CRM communications, tracking performance… eventually leading the Digital Studio and coordinating the production of marketing assets.

A Long-Term Commitment

Today, as Digital Activations Manager at PMU, Chrystelle plays a central role in the execution of digital campaigns: defining campaign briefs, coordinating creative teams and agencies, and overseeing the production of assets. 

She pays particular attention to the quality of the content produced, ensuring its readability, consistency, and impact on users, in collaboration with the teams responsible for performance.

What I like most is the very tangible aspect of digital work, because you can quickly see the impact of what you put in place. 

I also love being at the intersection of various areas of expertise: marketing, creative, content, data, and customer experience. You have to understand very different challenges and make them work together.

Her role is also deeply cross-functional. It involves understanding everyone’s needs and addressing them as effectively as possible, while navigating constraints related to deadlines, resources, and sometimes technical complexity.

Above all, I love teamwork. A successful campaign is rarely the work of a single person, but rather the result of creative, technical, and marketing professionals working together toward a common goal.

Campaigns That Leave a Lasting Impression

Chrystelle works at the intersection of strategy and operations, where every detail matters in turning an idea into a tangible customer experience. After all, the difference between effectiveness and impact can be decisive.

An activation that works is one that achieves its objectives, whether they relate to brand awareness, consideration, engagement, or conversion. But an activation that truly leaves a mark on users goes further. It is relevant, consistent, and well-executed. It arrives at the right moment, with the right message, within a seamless journey.

How? According to her, the key lies in a deep understanding of the customer—their expectations, habits, and context—particularly through the use of data.

She also emphasizes the need to approach activations from a holistic perspective, rather than in isolation. They are part of a comprehensive, full-funnel journey where every touchpoint must align with the others.

From my perspective, the difference lies largely in the quality of execution. A message may be accurate in substance, but it loses its impact if it isn’t clear enough, readable, or suited to the channel. It’s also a matter of alignment between the initial brief, the creative, the formats, and the final experience offered to the user. These are often details, but they’re what determines whether an activation is merely seen or truly remembered.

Gaining perspective… without losing touch with the field

In 2024, Chrystelle enrolled in the MBA in Marketing, Communication, and Innovation (now Digital Marketing and Artificial Intelligence) at De Vinci Executive Education. 

What I took away most from this program was, above all, the ability to step back and gain perspective. When you’re in a role, you’re often caught up in day-to-day operations. The MBA allowed me to take a step back and view my actions within a broader marketing perspective. 

There, she explored all the levers of digital marketing—from acquisition to retention, including data, automation, and artificial intelligence—which gave her a better understanding of how all these elements fit together.

Working on my thesis was also particularly rewarding. By delving deeper into topics such as retail media, omnichannel marketing, the full funnel, data, and regulatory issues, I developed a more comprehensive view of the marketing ecosystem and its evolution.

But beyond the theory, this experience—which she describes as particularly enriching—is also an opportunity to return to a more active role and develop a marketing approach that is both more comprehensive and more practical.

What I also particularly appreciated was the opportunity to take action. In my day-to-day work, I tend to have a coordinating role, where I oversee experts. The MBA allowed me to get back into a “doing” mindset: speaking up, testing ideas, and experimenting. Whether through LinkedIn posts, videos, interviews, or creating podcasts and content, we were encouraged to step outside our comfort zones (#notafraught).

Finding the Right Balance

Alongside her full-time job, Chrystelle is taking on the challenge of balancing her professional and personal life while returning to school.

The first key factor is organization. You have to be able to plan, anticipate, and above all, prioritize, because you can’t do everything at once.

But beyond organization, it’s consistency in effort that really makes the difference. She describes the MBA as a long-term commitment that requires sustained motivation.

Enrolling in an MBA is a major decision, often driven by initial enthusiasm. But then you have to stick with it over the long haul. It’s a real marathon.

In this context, managing time and attention becomes crucial, especially when faced with the temptation to try to keep up with everything.

I also struggled with a form of “FOMO”: the fear of missing out on a constantly evolving topic like retail media. You quickly find yourself with a massive amount of content to process, and you have to learn to make choices so you don’t get overwhelmed.

Beyond adapting to this new pace, the professional environment also plays a decisive role.

Having your company’s support, being able to take time off regularly for classes, and coordinating with your team are essential conditions.

This dynamic extends into personal life as well, where adjustments become necessary—but not impossible.

On a personal level, you also have to accept that not everything will be perfectly balanced. During that time, my husband was living abroad, and I had to manage daily life at home on my own, even though my children were already grown. That inevitably meant making sacrifices, especially when it came to personal time, exercise, and going out with friends.

Ultimately, it’s a balance that develops over time, with constant adjustments. Nothing is perfectly under control, but it’s this ability to adapt that allows you to see it through to the end."

A demanding choice, but always the right one

To those wondering about going back to school mid-career, Chrystelle is clear.

Without hesitation, I’d tell them to go for it. But they need to be aware of the commitment it requires!

She emphasizes: going back to school mid-career is a very rewarding decision, but also a demanding one. The key is to just get started, because waiting for the right moment often means putting off the project indefinitely.

You shouldn’t wait for the right moment, because it never really exists. Instead, you have to be ready to commit for the long haul, with consistency. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.

My advice would also be not to hesitate too much at the start and to get moving quickly. It’s often taking action that makes the difference.

She describes this experience as a true break from her career, allowing her to step back, escape the daily grind, and stay up to date on constantly evolving topics. 

It’s an investment in the future. It’s also genuine “me time.” You shouldn’t underestimate everything you gain from it beyond just skills, such as the connections you make and the ability to step outside your comfort zone.

Finally, she highlights a fundamental point:

Continuing education throughout one’s career has become essential. An MBA is just one step, but learning doesn’t stop there. You have to stay curious, challenge yourself, and keep learning. It’s demanding, but it’s definitely worth it.

An alumna to follow!

Find all the information here about the MBA programs offered by De Vinci Executive Education