SARAh
durkin
SVP Growth @hardrockbet
CAREER
svp growth
Hard Rock is one of the most recognized brands on earth. As Senior Vice President of Growth at Hard Rock Digital, I oversee SEO and content on hardrock.bet, optimizing for visibility in AI, communications + PR, social media, influencer, media partnerships, app store optimization, and affiliate. Additionally, we are building out our community presence and expanding into international markets. Hard Rock Digital is in an aggressive growth phase, and my team is building the engine behind it.
Right now, one of my biggest focuses is AI enablement: equipping my team with the tools, workflows, and confidence to actually use AI in their day-to-day — not just understand it in theory. The culture I architect is simple: calculated risks are non-negotiable, ideas get pressure-tested without ego, and failure is just intelligence we haven't acted on yet.
Hard Rock is one of the most recognized brands on earth. As Senior Vice President of Growth at Hard Rock Digital, I oversee SEO and content on hardrock.bet, optimizing for visibility in AI, communications + PR, social media, influencer, media partnerships, app store optimization, and affiliate. Additionally, we are building out our community presence and expanding into international markets. Hard Rock Digital is in an aggressive growth phase, and my team is building the engine behind it.
Right now, one of my biggest focuses is AI enablement: equipping my team with the tools, workflows, and confidence to actually use AI in their day-to-day — not just understand it in theory. The culture I architect is simple: calculated risks are non-negotiable, ideas get pressure-tested without ego, and failure is just intelligence we haven't acted on yet.
SVP Organic Growth
+
Chief Growth Officer
I stepped into a broader leadership role across the North American portfolio (including sites like ActionNetwork.com), ultimately serving as Chief Growth Officer BC US.
In this role, I expanded beyond search to oversee a holistic growth strategy—aligning content, media, and cross-functional teams to drive sustained regional growth within a global organization.
I stepped into a broader leadership role across the North American portfolio (including sites like ActionNetwork.com), ultimately serving as Chief Growth Officer BC US.
In this role, I expanded beyond search to oversee a holistic growth strategy—aligning content, media, and cross-functional teams to drive sustained regional growth within a global organization.
Head of Search
+
Vp of Search
I joined The Action Network, where I moved in-house and took on leadership roles in search. As Head of Search and later VP of Search, I built and scaled organic growth programs that enabled the conversion from a subscription model to an affiliate model and fueled audience expansion.
This contributed to the $240 Million Dollar acquisition of The Action Network by Better Collective. I oversaw content and editorial and directly partnered with the product teams (including functioning as a Product Manager) to integrate SEO into the core of the business.
I joined The Action Network, where I moved in-house and took on leadership roles in search. As Head of Search and later VP of Search, I built and scaled organic growth programs that enabled the conversion from a subscription model to an affiliate model and fueled audience expansion.
This contributed to the $240 Million Dollar acquisition of The Action Network by Better Collective. I oversaw content and editorial and directly partnered with the product teams (including functioning as a Product Manager) to integrate SEO into the core of the business.
DIrector of SEO
+
Senior DIrector of SEO
I got an early start at Wpromote, where I developed a strong foundation in SEO and digital marketing, advancing from Director to Senior Director while leading strategies for a diverse set of clients (a 1:1 consulting relationship with Adobe and competitive forensic SEO investigations were personal favorites).
I also supported the Enterprise sales team and served as a core marketing content creator, helping the agency win “The #1 Leader In Performance Marketing Agency Wave” In 2019. We also scored a 5/5 in SEO and Vision.
I got an early start at Wpromote, where I developed a strong foundation in SEO and digital marketing, advancing from Director to Senior Director while leading strategies for a diverse set of clients (a 1:1 consulting relationship with Adobe and competitive forensic SEO investigations were personal favorites).
I also supported the Enterprise sales team and served as a core marketing content creator, helping the agency win “The #1 Leader In Performance Marketing Agency Wave” In 2019. We also scored a 5/5 in SEO and Vision.
PERSONAL
I’m usually juggling a few things at once—building my AI community SarahBrain.ai, reading, and showing up to the gym even when I really don’t feel like it.
Some days it’s all discipline and structure, other days it’s an AI fiendom session when I have time for it.
I’m usually juggling a few things at once—building my AI community SarahBrain.ai, reading, and showing up to the gym even when I really don’t feel like it.
Some days it’s all discipline and structure, other days it’s an AI fiendom session when I have time for it.
Outside of that, life’s a bit more grounded. My dog Harold is my constant sidekick and probably the only one who can reliably pull me away from my laptop.
I’m also the type to fall into random history rabbit holes late at night—anything from ancient empires to overlooked turning points in old political structures—just because I like connecting dots and seeing how patterns repeat themselves.
Outside of that, life’s a bit more grounded. My dog Harold is my constant sidekick and probably the only one who can reliably pull me away from my laptop.
I’m also the type to fall into random history rabbit holes late at night—anything from ancient empires to overlooked turning points in old political structures—just because I like connecting dots and seeing how patterns repeat themselves.
My favorite books (currently) are:
My favorite books (currently) are:
Viktor Frankl, 1946
David Goggins, 2018
Robert Greene, 1998