Mattel Chief Followed Her Instincts and Found Success

Jill Barad is president of Mattel USA. During the last decade, Barad worked her way up from product manager to Mattel's senior ranks largely by launching a series of innovative and highly successful new products, mainly dolls, for young girls. Barad believes that following one's instincts is most important to marketing success. The biggest strategic change for Mattel in recent years was to focus on core brands. The company's large doll business was less than $40 million before Barad and her managers employed a focused strategy. Today, 3 major brands of large dolls represent $220 million in revenue. Barad says that Mattel has capitalized on long-lasting niches that will persist because they are based on fundamental play patterns that children have.