MEET THE SPEAKERS

Lauren Garner serves as the Vice President of Demand Generation and Partnerships at Ascent Funding, where she applies her growth-oriented mindset to drive transformative change within the nearly $2 trillion student loan industry. Over the past 20 years of her career, Lauren has found that strategic partnerships, affiliates, and acquisitions are the fastest way to grow and scale a company. She has led successful partnership campaigns with established brands like Nike, Puma, Asics, Adidas, and Tony Robbins, and helped emerging brands like Ascent scale to fund over $1 billion. She has spearheaded multi-million-dollar partnerships and relationships with over 5,000 affiliates. Her initiatives have garnered prestigious placements with distinguished publishers such as Inc. Magazine, Forbes, NerdWallet, and U.S. News. Lauren's approach to achieving successful partnerships revolves around her commitment to data transparency and her acute understanding of partner objectives. By fostering a culture of collaboration and strategic alignment, she not only amplifies campaign reach but also fosters enduring partnerships that yield substantial results.