Ascendant Network
Ascendant Network is a private, invite-based professional community and events company founded in 2014 that convenes senior brand advertisers, agencies, retail media operators, and technology providers across its Digital Ascendant, RMN Americas, RMN Europe communities and the SHOWCASE retail media upfront.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersSan Mateo, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Ascendant Network does
Ascendant Network is a private, founder-owned professional community and events company founded in 2014 by Susan MacDermid and headquartered in San Mateo, California. It operates an invite-only, referral-based community platform serving senior executives across the commerce, media, and marketing ecosystem, organized around a proprietary 4-sided model that convenes brand advertisers, agencies and consultancies, retail media network (RMN) operators, and technology/data providers. The platform is delivered through three regional community brands — Digital Ascendant, RMN Americas Ascendant, and RMN Europe Ascendant — each running semi-annual boot camps with attendance deliberately capped between 90 and 130 participants, plus a new annual marketplace event called SHOWCASE launching September 2, 2026 in New York as the first Retail + Commerce Media Upfront. The SHOWCASE product extends the model into a curated buyer-seller marketplace that brings together 200+ pre-qualified buyers representing $12B in annual ad sales and $1T in annual retail sales, with platinum sponsors including Albertsons Media Collective, Chase Media Solutions, DoorDash, Orange Apron, and PayPal.
The company monetizes through two primary streams: annual council memberships (Digital Ascendant memberships starting at $5,000; solution provider council memberships starting at $21,000) and event sponsorships (starting at $15,000 with multi-tier structures including platinum and supporting levels), often packaged together as multi-year dual council + sponsorship contracts. The underlying platform is a proprietary community model rather than a software product — value is created through council governance, off-the-record Chatham House Rule-style gatherings, member-led case studies, and curated event programming. Membership quality is reinforced by reported metrics including an 81 NPS, 125 Fortune 500 companies represented, 76% of members at VP+ level, and 100% decision-maker composition, and the company maintains a stated commitment to 60% female and diverse speaker and member representation.
Go-to-market is exclusively community- and event-led with no traditional sales channel; new members are acquired through council nominations and sponsor referrals, and geographic coverage has expanded from a US-centric Digital Ascendant community to dedicated Americas and European RMN communities addressing the $193B / €193B projected global commerce media ad market in 2027. Strategic partnerships span categories including retail media operators (Albertsons, DoorDash, Instacart), holding companies (WPP, Omnicom, Publicis, Dentsu, Havas), technology platforms (Google, The Trade Desk, LiveRamp, Criteo, Koddi, Rokt, Epsilon), and consultancies (McKinsey, BCG), creating a multi-sided sponsorship engine. The company is privately held with no disclosed funding rounds, three named partners in leadership (Susan McDermid as Founder + CEO, Marti Funk as Partner + CMO, Karen Kirkwood as Partner + COO), and operating geographies spanning the United States, United Kingdom, and France.
Ascendant Network firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Ascendant Network
- Legal name
- Ascendant Network
- Website
- https://ascendantnetwork.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Ascendant Network is a private, invite-based professional community and events company founded in 2014 that convenes senior brand advertisers, agencies, retail media operators, and technology providers across its Digital Ascendant, RMN Americas, RMN Europe communities and the SHOWCASE retail media upfront.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Ascendant Network industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Professional Community & Industry Events
- NAICS
- Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920), Professional Organizations (81392)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Sponsorship, Exhibitor & Partnership Management Services (THAHACAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Training, Enablement & Talent Development Summits (THAHAMAH), Partner, Channel & Alliance Summits (THAHAMAC), Onsite Operations & Event Staffing Management (THAHACAL)
Keywords
Where Ascendant Network is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Mateo
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Ascendant Network business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Membership Fees: Annual council membership fees for solution providers, tech companies, and service providers seeking access to the Ascendant community. Membership includes access to events, private council meetings, and networking opportunities.
- Event Sponsorships: Companies sponsor boot camp events, summits, and the SHOWCASE upfront event to gain visibility and access to key decision-makers. Sponsorship tiers include branding, speaking opportunities, and client invites.
- Dual Council + Sponsorship Packages: Combined membership and sponsorship packages offering enhanced visibility, council participation, and event access. Sponsorships start at $15,000 USD; annual solution provider council memberships start at $21,000 USD.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Digital Ascendant annual council membership for brand advertisers and media investment leaders |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Event sponsorship for single or multiple company executives |
| Subscription | Annual | Annual solution provider council membership for tech, data, and service providers |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Council membership including dual council and sponsorship benefits |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
Ascendant Network product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Ascendant Network operates invitation-only professional community memberships and curated events (boot camps, summits, and the SHOWCASE upfront) that connect brand advertisers, media agencies, retail media networks, and technology providers in the commerce and advertising ecosystem. Members pay annual council fees starting at $5,000 (advertiser councils) or $21,000 (solution provider councils), gaining access to semi-annual events, private council meetings, and off-the-record networking with senior industry leaders.
Product overview
Ascendant Network is a professional community and events platform that operates a unified portfolio of three distinct community-event offerings (Digital Ascendant, RMN Americas Ascendant, and RMN Europe Ascendant Boot Camps) plus a new annual marketplace event called SHOWCASE. The communities are built around a 4-sided model bringing together brand advertisers, agencies/consultancies, RMNs/commerce media leaders, and tech/data/service providers. SHOWCASE (launching September 2026) is the first Retail + Commerce Media Upfront, a curated marketplace providing early access to retail media network roadmaps. The communities focus on knowledge sharing, relationship building, and professional development for commerce, media, and marketing leaders.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Digital Ascendant: Community focused on prominent, progressive brand advertisers and media leaders championing digital transformation
- RMN Europe Ascendant
- RMN Americas Ascendant
- SHOWCASE
Products and services
- Digital Ascendant Community A peer-driven community of 130+ marketing and media leaders with deep digital expertise from Ad Age Leading National 200 Advertisers, controlling $122B+ in advertising spend. Focused on navigating marketing frontiers, knowledge sharing, relationship building, and executive development through semi-annual events and council membership.
- RMN Americas Ascendant Boot Camp A boot camp community bringing together 85+ Retail and Commerce Media Networks and 80+ advertisers and industry players across the Americas. Represents $193B in global commerce media ad sales (2027 MAGNA projection). Features events in Silicon Valley with council-led content addressing RMN scaling, measurement standardization, and cross-network collaboration.
- RMN Europe Ascendant Boot Camp A boot camp community for industry trailblazers shaping commerce media across Europe, representing €193B in global commerce media ad sales (2027 MAGNA projection). Features events in Paris (June) and London (November), bringing together RMN operators, advertisers, agencies, and technology providers.
- SHOWCASE Retail + Commerce Media Upfront A curated marketplace event where 200+ buyers representing $12B in annual ad sales and $1T in annual retail sales get early looks at retail and commerce media network roadmaps. Platinum sponsors include Albertsons Media Collective, Chase Media Solutions, DoorDash, Orange Apron, and PayPal. Featured advertising buyers include Dentsu, Havas, Omnicom, Publicis Media, and WPP Media.
- Council Memberships Annual council membership programs offering access to Ascendant Network's professional communities. Digital Ascendant council membership for brand advertisers starts at $5,000 USD annually; solution provider council memberships for tech, data, and service providers start at $21,000 USD annually. Includes access to two tentpole events, private council meetings, and community mixers.
Quantifiable outcome
- 81 NPS (world-class member satisfaction score)
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Ascendant Network
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Ascendant Network technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Ascendant Network partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
38 partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and platinum.
- CriteocoreCriteo is a platinum sponsor of SHOWCASE and participates across multiple Ascendant communities (Digital, RMN Americas, RMN Europe) as a leading commerce media technology provider.
- LiveRampcoreLiveRamp is a strategic partner across Digital Ascendant and RMN communities, providing identity resolution and data connectivity for commerce media.
- McKinsey & CompanycoreMcKinsey serves as a thought leadership partner, with executives participating in council and speaking at Ascendant events on commerce media strategy.
- The Trade DeskcoreThe Trade Desk participates as a council member across Digital Ascendant and RMN Americas, contributing expertise on programmatic advertising and commerce media platforms.
- KoddicoreKoddi is a strategic partner across RMN Americas and RMN Europe, providing retail media network solutions and executive leadership on councils.
- RoktcoreRokt participates as a partner across RMN Americas and RMN Europe communities, providing commerce media and e-commerce technology solutions.
- SMG (Strategic Media Group)coreSMG serves as an interim CEO partner and thought leadership contributor across RMN Europe community.
- MaterialsupportingMaterial is a marketing and media partner across Digital Ascendant and main Ascendant communities.
- Transparent PartnerssupportingTransparent Partners participates as a council member contributing expertise on media strategy and transparency in advertising.
- Zeta GlobalsupportingZeta Global is listed as a strategic partner across the main Ascendant community network.
- GooglecoreGoogle is a strategic partner in Digital Ascendant community, providing advertising technology and platform expertise.
- TracersupportingTracer is a partner in Digital Ascendant community, providing advertising measurement and analytics technology.
- TransUnionsupportingTransUnion is a partner in Digital Ascendant community, providing data and identity solutions for marketing.
- Albertsons Media CollectiveplatinumPlatinum sponsor of SHOWCASE inaugural event, representing major retail media network in the commerce media upfront marketplace.
- Chase Media SolutionsplatinumPlatinum sponsor of SHOWCASE, JPMorgan Chase's retail media network showcasing advertising solutions.
- DoorDashplatinumPlatinum sponsor of SHOWCASE, representing the intersection of delivery commerce and advertising media.
- Orange ApronplatinumPlatinum sponsor of SHOWCASE, Home Depot's retail media network brand.
- PayPalplatinumPlatinum sponsor of SHOWCASE, representing commerce and payments company's media ambitions.
- AholdsupportingSupporting sponsor of SHOWCASE, representing European retail media networks.
- ChewysupportingSupporting sponsor of SHOWCASE, representing pet e-commerce retail media.
- DICK'S Sporting GoodssupportingSupporting sponsor of SHOWCASE, representing specialty retail media network.
- Dollar GeneralsupportingSupporting sponsor of SHOWCASE, representing value retail media network.
- InstacartsupportingSupporting sponsor of SHOWCASE, representing grocery delivery commerce media.
- AppsFlyersupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing mobile attribution and analytics technology.
- KevelsupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing retail media infrastructure technology.
- Mirakl AdssupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing e-commerce platform advertising solutions.
- MolocosupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing machine learning advertising technology.
- Particular AudiencesupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing retail media technology solutions.
- TopsortsupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing advertising technology for retail media.
- VantagesupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing media optimization technology.
- VudoosupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing video commerce technology.
- ZitchasupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing retail media platform technology.
- AdjoesupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing mobile advertising technology.
- OSMOSsupportingPartner in RMN Europe community, providing data intelligence solutions.
- EpsiloncorePartner in RMN Americas community, providing data and identity solutions for commerce media.
- InmarsupportingPartner in RMN Americas community, providing retail media and commerce technology solutions.
- NiftsupportingPartner in RMN Americas community, providing commerce media solutions.
- TinuitisupportingPartner in Digital Ascendant community, providing performance marketing and media services.
Scale indicators15 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Ascendant Network competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Advertising Week: Global conference and content platform for the marketing, advertising, and media industry. Operates multi-day events in NYC, London, Tokyo, and other hubs — directly comparable event-led GTM model serving overlapping buyer personas.
- Cannes Lions (Lions Festivals / Ascential): The flagship global advertising and creative industry festival. Directly comparable as a high-profile, premium industry event organizer serving the same advertiser/agency/tech ecosystem that Ascendant targets.
- Shoptalk: Large-scale retail and e-commerce conference organizer (Shoptalk, Shoptalk Spring, Groceryshop). Comparable as a curated B2B event business serving retail media, brand, and technology buyers with premium sponsorship revenue.
Broad incumbents
- Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB): Trade association for digital advertising and marketing. Comparable as a membership organization with events, councils, and working groups convening the digital advertising ecosystem across advertisers, agencies, publishers, and tech.
- Association of National Advertisers (ANA): The largest U.S. trade association for brand marketers, offering events, training, and member services. Comparable as a membership-based industry organization serving brand advertisers with educational and networking programs.
- 4A's (American Association of Advertising Agencies): Trade association representing advertising agencies in the U.S. Comparable as a membership organization providing events, training, and member services to the agency-side of the advertising ecosystem.
- Web Summit: One of the world's largest tech conference operators (Web Summit, Collision, Web Summit Rio). Comparable as a scaled event business with enterprise sponsorship revenue, though serving a broader tech audience than Ascendant's commerce media niche.
Emerging players
- Retail Media Summit (organized by industry media): Conferences and events focused specifically on retail media networks. Comparable emerging event organizer with overlapping sponsor and attendee base in the RMN space — direct competitor for Ascendant's RMN Americas and RMN Europe audiences.
- CommerceNext: Conference and community platform focused on commerce media, retail media networks, and digital marketing. Directly comparable emerging event organizer with overlapping buyer and sponsor base in commerce media.
Regional players
- DMEXCO: Major European digital marketing and tech conference held annually in Cologne. Comparable as a curated event platform with premium sponsorship, serving advertisers, agencies, and tech providers — primarily outside North America.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Ascendant Network social profiles
Digital presenceAscendant Network financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Ascendant Network leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Ascendant Network funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Ascendant Network M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Ascendant Network
What does Ascendant Network do?
Ascendant Network operates invitation-only professional community memberships and curated events (boot camps, summits, and the SHOWCASE upfront) that connect brand advertisers, media agencies, retail media networks, and technology providers in the commerce and advertising ecosystem. Members pay annual council fees starting at $5,000 (advertiser councils) or $21,000 (solution provider councils), gaining access to semi-annual events, private council meetings, and off-the-record networking with senior industry leaders.
Is Ascendant Network a public or private company?
Ascendant Network is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Ascendant Network founded?
Ascendant Network was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Ascendant Network based?
Ascendant Network is headquartered in San Mateo, United States, in the North America region.
How does Ascendant Network make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Membership Fees are the primary driver. The others are event Sponsorships and dual Council + Sponsorship Packages.
Who are Ascendant Network's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Advertising Week, Cannes Lions (Lions Festivals / Ascential) and Shoptalk. Broad incumbents are Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), Association of National Advertisers (ANA), 4A's (American Association of Advertising Agencies) and Web Summit. Emerging players are Retail Media Summit (organized by industry media) and CommerceNext. DMEXCO is listed as a regional player.
Does Ascendant Network have an API?
No public API is recorded for Ascendant Network.
What industry is Ascendant Network in?
Ascendant Network's product category is Professional Community & Industry Events. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAHACAK, Sponsorship, Exhibitor & Partnership Management Services, with a secondary code of THAHAMAH, Training, Enablement & Talent Development Summits. Its NAICS code is 561920 and its SIC code is 8600.