Sanja Partalo

Sanja Partalo is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of S4S Ventures.

A long-time WPP (NYSE: WPP, $17Bn in Rev) executive, Sanja has worked directly with WPP’s C-suite in a variety of roles focused on driving growth through development of new technology products & solutions, strategic partnerships & alliances, and venture investments.

Most recently, she served as Global Head of Strategic Development & Partnerships. In this role, she lead WPP’s channel strategy, product & solution development, and go-to-market with all major technology platforms that are transforming the value chain of marketing, media and consumer experience orchestration – Google, Meta, Adobe, Salesforce, Microsoft, Snap, ByteDance/TikTok and Amazon, among others – and oversaw a $$B+ strategic partnership portfolio. She spearheaded numerous market-leading partnerships at WPP, including the first global agency partnership with TikTok, Google’s Waze and augmented reality partnership with Snap.

Sanja is recognized for her ability to identify emerging trends in the industry and was instrumental in leading and driving success of numerous venture investments, including Gimlet (leader in podcasting, acquired by Spotify) and SuperAwesome (leader in kidtech, acquired by Epic Games). She has served as Board Director and Board Observer for numerous venture-backed companies, including YouEarnedIt (acquired by Vista Private Equity), Gimlet, Fatherly (acquired by SomeSpider) and the Mighty.

Sanja holds an MBA from Columbia Business School, where she serves as a Lecturer and Adjunct Professor of Marketing, Media & Technology.

She was born in Bosnia and came to the US as a teenager through a refugee resettlement program, having spent 3 years living in a war zone and two years in a refugee camp. Her story was captured in President George W. Bush’s book “Out of Many, One” and in accompanying exhibit of portraits painted by the President to inspire understanding and highlight contributions by refugees and immigrants to the United States.