CMO Moves

What’s a refreshing marketing cocktail consist of? “Equal parts brand truth and consumer truth,” shared Billy Paretti, CMO of Belvedere Vodka at Moët Hennessy. Shaken, not stirred. I sat down with Billy on the latest episode of CMO Moves to discuss how the premium vodka brand is “Made With Nature” and how this brand truth was the inspiration behind Belvedere’s new multilayered campaign platform that consists of striking cinematography, impactful CSR pledges, and an innovative new product reinforcing the brand’s new commitment. In between his sharing of brand learnings and consumer insights, Billy also shared his own tips of the trade regarding internal communications and how important it is to give people the benefit of the doubt.

“Football is a team sport” on and off the field and there is no better team player than Ronalee Zarate-Bayani, CMO of the LA Rams. I sat down with Ronalee to hear more about the years-long journey of opening the “$5 billion” LA Rams Stadium only to be pivoted by Covid-19, what it means to inspire Angelenos to shine bright from a long-term perspective, and how her mentors and immigrant parents gave her the courage to embrace opportunity. Before chatting with Ronalee, I was able to take a sneak peak at what is now deemed “the largest stadium in the world” measuring 3.1 million square feet (!). Kieran Hannon, CMO of Openpath Security and a dear friend of ours, took on a special assignment for us as extended Adweek family and went to meet with Ronalee, and CTO Skarpi Hedinsson, for a special tour of SoFi Stadium before the big opening on September 13th. Check out the stadium for yourself on her podcast page (https://www.adweek.com/inside-the-brand/cmo-moves/the-la-rams-cmo-bringing-the-sofi-stadium-to-the-fans/)and take a look around (thanks again Kieran!).

Almost three years ago, I published Episode 5 of CMO Moves, called The CMO Roadmap to Success, with Greg Welch, Senior Partner of Spencer Stuart. Having placed over 500 CMOs at the time, all ears tuned in to find out the secrets to landing the big job. Today, I bring back Greg to give us on update on the current CMO landscape, what’s changed this year (everything!) and what’s ahead for CMOs. In addition, Greg introduces us to the Spencer Stuart CMO Summit that just went live and is included in this episode. Three Global CMOs from New York to Brazil to Singapore weigh in on what’s changed in their world and what they look forward to: Janey Whiteside, CCO Walmart, Silvia Lagnado, Sustainable Growth Officer, Natura & Co, and Erica Kerner, Head of Marketing Strategies and Partnerships, ONE Championship.

Hispanic and Latino/Latina/Latinx business leaders came together for a live discussion on the community's biggest challenges and opportunities in today's environment, how they are leading their teams, and ways we can all drive meaningful and lasting change. Thank you to all our speakers for bringing their heart, knowledge, and power forward.

A creator at her core, Shelley Haus was excited to join Ulta Beauty in 2014, mainly for the opportunity to help a 30-year-old beauty retailer find out who it was as a brand. The company sought out to not only get to the heart of who they were and what they stood for, but to also co-create a purpose alongside 45,000 associates. Tune in to hear the behind-the-scenes story of Ulta’s journey to find its true brand purpose, how Shelley leans into it as the foundation to help the brand evolve and how she turned around what she once thought was the biggest mistake of her career.

What do stocks, toilet paper, hoodies and beer all have in common? In this episode…everything! IEX is setting all-new standards in stock trading with its innovative technology built to bring more transparency and fairness to the stock exchange scene. Since taking on the role of CMO two years ago, Kate Gunning has been able to unpack and convey the brand’s story in unique ways. From premium hoodies and socks to a custom-made IPA beer, Kate has embraced the power of experiential to build not only buzz and community but also education. Tune in to hear her impressive career journey that led her to where she is today and her career advice around trusting your gut, being brave and pushing forward.

Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing, joins us to share his perspective on the motor racing industry today, the future, and why he brought on the first CMO of McLaren Racing, Mark Waller, former CMO of the NFL. Zak, as CEO, has had to make some tough decisions these past few months, including having to furlough three-quarters of the staff, but he remains positive on the future as the learnings are pushing the technology sport to new levels that are in the fan’s best interest. “It’s easy to be a CEO when it’s easy, it’s hard to be a CEO when it’s hard, but the good CEOs, I think, thrive in that environment.”

Look around you. One in six households in America is currently food insecure, meaning they have little or no access to food. That could be your next-door neighbor or the house across the street. Now look closer. One in four children in America is food insecure. When schools were open, many would leave on a Friday afternoon and not get another meal until they came back to school on Monday morning. When the schools were asked to close, then what happened? Cathy Davis discusses America's growing hunger problem - now estimated 54 million people without food, up from 37 million pre-Covid, and ways brands and individuals can help drive awareness and action towards solving it.

After moving from Chicago to L.A. last year and taking the helm of the Snap Inc. brand, Kenny has been flexing his innovative storytelling master-skills for both users and partners in the Snap community. Tune in to hear what convinced Kenny to take on the role of Snap's CMO and how his team is growing users in target markets and driving awareness for new features like minis (mini utilities) and action bars. You'll also learn how this social media platform’s “pain in the ass” requirement to develop vertical content early on paid off as truly optimized for today’s mobile user and how it has evolved into a content platform, participating in the New Fronts for the first time this year.

Peter Giorgi, CMO of Celebrity Cruises, didn’t take his first flight until he was 24 years old, yet this serial travel executive is an avid adventurer who loves to embrace risk, evident by his recent birthday trip to Lake Placid for a 13-mile hike and a giant stack of pancakes. Peter is excited for the time when the ships will sail again, and he says they will be better than normal. He also shares why the cruise industry is much better positioned for a comeback than the airlines right now. Join us in this lively discussion about the current state of the travel industry, how to position a team for a comeback, how he grew in his career, where he finds inspiration and how he is always pushing the boundaries. And don’t miss the hysterical story on how he missed his flight to meet with his now CEO, who he didn’t think he’d ever work for.

What an honor to interview the Queen Interviewer of all time, Katie Couric, Award-Winning Journalist, Co-Founder, Stand Up To Cancer, and Founder, Katie Couric Media. In this unique episode of CMO Moves we cover a large range of topics that are top of mind for all marketers today, including social unrest, health and wellness, shift in media budgets, rise of social media importance and the power of brands working together. When Katie is not fighting social injustice, fighting cancer or fighting economic downturn, she’s busy fighting hunger. And today, on the 22nd anniversary of the 1998’s hit family movie The Parent Trap, she brought back the original cast (less Natasha Richardson, sadly) via her Instagram channel to raise funds for World Central Kitchen’s emergency relief and resiliency programs in the wake of Covid-19. For more information, please visit: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CC3RtRIFreN/

10 Asian American business leaders creating an impact in advertising, marketing, and culture, joined us today for a live discussion on how they are navigating today's heightened discussions on race and stereotypes amidst COVID-related bias, how they are leading their teams, and ways we can all drive meaningful and lasting change. Thank you to all our speakers for bringing their heart, knowledge, and power forward: (Moderator) Cynthia Chen, President, Consumer Health, North America, Reckitt Benckiser Marvin Chow, Vice President, Global Marketing, Google Brad Hiranaga, Chief Brand Officer, North America, General Mills Soyoung Kang, Chief Marketing Officer, eos Boon Lai, Vice President, Global Partner Marketing, Cisco Judy Lee, Global Head of Experiential Marketing, Pinterest Helen Loh, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Charles Schwab Minjae Ormes, Chief Marketing Officer, Visible Nick Tran, Head of Global Marketing, Tiktok US Kyle Wong, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder, Pixlee (host) Ko Im, Community Editor, Adweek

Almost two years ago I interviewed Jeff Jones, CEO of H&R Block, on CMO Moves and he was looking to hire a new CMO. A month later, Vinoo Vijay became the new CMO of H&R Block so it was an immense pleasure to meet Vinoo and find out more about all the great initiatives he’s been leading. First of all, timely, tax day deadline is a few days away amid the most unusual year on record. Vinoo takes us through how he and the team pivoted to serve their customers, as well as how he and his team pivoted in how they work together. Second, and most impressive, is how Vinoo is thinking about community, diversity and inclusion with “Make Every Block Better”. Third and final (for now), I hugely appreciated chatting with Vinoo about superpowers, dot connecting, the role of marketing as journalists, and his tips for success for marketers today. This episode is packed full of great advice, great perspective and great urgency. I hope you enjoy Vinoo as much as I did and stay tuned for his masterclass on Financial Acumen. He doesn’t realize I took this seriously, but help me convince to do it, because it is needed, and he is spot on!

10 Adweek Pride Stars and LGBTQ leaders creating an impact in advertising, marketing, and culture, joined us today for a live discussion on how they are personally and professionally navigating these turbulent times. Their voices shared how LGBTQ advocacy and dialogue have pushed the industry's diversity, inclusion and equity movement forward. Please join us for this very special version of CMO Moves featuring Adweek’s Pride Stars and listen to the immediate actions each of us can take to accelerate systemic change. Thank you to all our speakers for bringing their heart, knowledge, and power forward: (Moderator) Sarah Kate Ellis, President and Chief Executive Officer, GLAAD Rigel Cable, Director of Analytics and SEO, Astound Commerce; Social Media Influencer Kendra Freeman, Co-founder, Mendi Benjamin Lord, Chief Marketing Officer, Mira Beauty Shelly McNamara, Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer, Procter & Gamble Michaela Ivri Mendelsohn, Chief Executive Officer, Pollo West Corp. (El Pollo Loco); Founder, TransCanWork Rachael Rapinoe, Co-founder, Mendi Allyn Shaw, President and Chief Technology Officer, Recycle Track Systems Ryan Sides, Senior Director and Interim VP of Social Media, BET Networks Robyn Streisand, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, The Mixx and Titanium Worldwide Randall M. Tucker, Chief Inclusion Officer, Mastercard

As her father once told her, “You want to be slightly ahead of the curve. Not so far ahead that people don't understand what you're doing and you certainly don't want to be behind.” Stephanie McMahon, the first Chief Brand Officer of the WWE, is fourth-generation in the tremendous organization that is led by her father, Vince McMahon, CEO and Chairman, so she kind of has to listen to him for many reasons. But, that specific guidance has resonated with her and steered all her expansions that she’s brought forward which have evolved WWE from a live sport to a multi-media entertainment conglomerate who is heavily invested in supporting their diverse community. There is so much packed in this episode that blew my mind and my heart. I hope you find time to tune into this special episode all about heroes and villains!