Thea Hayden

As CMO, Thea Hayden is responsible for Cognizant's global marketing strategy and execution across brand, creative, digital, events and sponsorships, thought leadership, communications and field marketing. She leads an integrated team focused on connecting with clients and driving brand credibility and consideration to accelerate growth. Outcome-driven and people-focused, Hayden is passionate about storytelling and marketing that engages audiences, changes perception and generates demand and drives the sales pipeline. With over 25 years of marketing experience, she is known for her ability to solve problems, inspire top-performing teams and deliver award-winning work and translate business requirements into impactful communications strategies. Before joining Cognizant in 2020, Hayden held a variety of leadership positions at Dell Technologies, where she was part of the fast-growing enterprise technology team and a key member of the marketing integration team, following the EMC acquisition. Before joining Dell, Hayden was the director of marketing communications at Compellent, where she led the team through a successful IPO and acquisition. Prior to Compellent, Hayden was a consultant, working with marketing agencies, start-ups and large-scale technology companies where she perfected her ability to manage both the big picture and deliver down to the last detail. Hayden has a degree in English literature from the University of Utah and enjoys reading, skiing and spending time with her family.