Executive Connections LLC

Connecting organizations with the future of marketing

Connections E-Zine

Filed Under: Announcements, Connections E-Zine, Digital Proficiency, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Recommended Articles

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 71

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  Who Is Really Capitalizing on Big Data?
  • Blog Roundup:
    • Blog –  Highlights from MMA CEO/CMO Summit – July 14-15, 2014 – Hilton Head, SC
  • Special Announcement:
    • Harmony Outdoor Brands LLC – CEO, Jim Doyle
  • Career Opportunities:
    • Chief Lending Officer
    • VP, Digital Marketing – Global Financial Services
  • Article:
    • Data-Driven Marketing Is The New Imperative – by Lorraine Barber-Miller

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

Who Is Really Capitalizing on Big Data?

We had an abundance of replies to June’s article and we were offered a speaking engagement, so we decided to take this month and create a follow-on to the article in last month’s ezine,  “Where is Big Data Heading?“

So much is being written about Big Data, the Cloud, and the need for top global advertisers to create a Chief Data Officer position to create new business, services and revenue/profit opportunities, and this is done by making data a key strategic business priority.

Making Data a Key Strategic Priority

If this is not on your agenda presently, it will swiftly become an even hotter C-suite agenda topic given this week’s Apple and IBM news. The announcement to form a joint venture to develop 100 new apps for iPhone and Tablet users leveraging IBM’s enterprise data analytics capabilities…brings big data into more actionable decision making by business leaders.

How many of the top 100 global advertisers/marketers are ready for this move?

Still, how many companies are ready to move forward with an enterprise-wide big data initiative? Where are you in the process?

We think Thomas C. Redman hit it straight on in his HBR Blog when he said, “A company only needs a Chief Data Officer when it’s ready to fully consider how it wishes to compete with data over the long term and start to build the organizational capabilities to do so. You need to charge the CDO with fully exploring what it means to compete with data. To gain some real end-to-end experience – perhaps make a concerted effort to try out advanced analytics in the hiring process, improve content in financial reporting, bring more data to decisions made by the senior team, and improve the quality of data used in marketing.”

Only approx. 25% of Fortune 100 companies have established a CDO role.

Following the recent MIT Chief Data Officer Forum, Randy Bean, CEO of consultancy NewVantage Partners, wrote the summary article entitled “Chief Data Officers Blaze Uncharted Corporate Frontier.” In this article, Professor Yang Lee of Northeastern indicates, “The roles of CDOs are diverse and evolving. Traditional data practices were led by middle managers lacking executive collaboration. The emerging CDO practices are executive-led, accountable, and sustainable.” However, this is only a trend emerging in the past 3-4 years, and only approx. 25% of Fortune 100 companies have established a CDO role at the executive level.

Cutting across the entire business and IT ecosystem

Derek Strauss, CDO at TD Ameritrade, says he “has peer relationships” with the CIO, CTO, Head of Applications Development, as well as various business functions and operating units. This enables him to implement an enterprise  data and analytics program that cuts across the entire business and IT ecosystem.

Venkat Varadachary, CDO at American Express, echoed Strauss’ observations. “The CDO at American Express provides leadership and governance across the organization to continually nurture, enhance, and fully leverage our data assets in order to drive value for our customers. This role reports to the Chief Risk Officer and also has accountability to a broader set of senior leaders in the company.”

Data is an Enterprise Asset

As Randy Bean reports, terms used by CDOs to characterize their roles include “ambassador,” “reporter,” “experimenter,” and “coordinator.” The complexity of the CDO role is underscored by the recognition that data is an enterprise asset that crosses all lines of business and corporate functions. These terms underscore CDOs as “evangelists” helping business heads to think and approach data in fundamentally new ways. “I sometimes say CDO stands for Chief Diplomacy Officer,” says Jennifer Ippolitti, CDO for Raymond James Financial. “The CDO functions as a conduit among business, technology, and operations to ensure that the solutions we build are aligned with business strategies.”

The evolution and early stage of the CDO role are underscored by preliminary data gathered by Professor Lee which shows – 65% of CDO positions have only been established within the past 3 years; 64% of CDOs report to a business executive – CEO, COO, CRO or CMO; 36% of CDOs report to a technology executive – CIO or CTO.

“Democratization of Big Data involves ensuring transparency and access to data, but also a cultural transformation for our people to embed data in their daily thinking,” said Venkat Varadachary from American Express. And this is from a leading credit card organization with a rich history of database management, huge credit and purchase information on customers, and a heritage of direct and database marketing as part of their corporate culture.

What about consumer banks and other financial services organizations which are not already as committed to using data as a primary business asset? Who will bear the cost and be the executive sponsor for these initiatives and the corresponding investments?

Key challenges include:

  1. System limitations – Most large companies are still burdened by cumbersome, legacy information systems which are not integrated and do not speak to each other…sorting this out is a major technological challenge for any Chief Data Officer and it takes the ability to operate at the highest levels of the corporate ecosystem to define opportunities and changes.
  2. Organizational Boundaries – For the most part, each division of large companies operate independently, and corralling them to comply with an enterprise-wide Big Data initiative will be very challenging. Most divisional CEOs will resist making the investment unless this is mandated by the corporate CEO. That is why 65% of CDO positions report to a C-suite executive.
  3. Financial/Capital Investment – Who bears the cost of changing technology systems and priorities and building the new technology platforms for leveraging Big Data on a real-time basis? Most operating companies within a large holding company structure will not share in this investment since it adversely impacts the bottom line in the short-term. It is clear the mandate and executive sponsorship has to come from the CEO and financial resources need to be mandated by the CEO/CFO at the corporate level.

The MIT CDO Forum called the CDO a pioneer position. “Charting the uncharted corporate frontier, CDOs are 21st century ‘pathfinders’ forging the information and enterprise data frontier. Westward ho!”

Bottom Line: Clearly, with customers in control, it’s increasingly imperative for Fortune 100 companies to utilize data in increasingly smarter ways to offer exceptional customer engagement and experience at every touch point.

Where is your company on the uncharted corporate frontier? Have you created a CDO position or are you still considering this initiative?

We want to know
As always, we value and appreciate you feedback!   Connect with us — we want to hear your experiences and opinions.

Lola and Jeff

BLOG Roundup: Did you catch our recent blog posts?

Highlights from MMA CEO/CMO Summit – July 14-15, 2014 – Hilton Head, SC

Lola and I attended the 2014 MMA CEO/CMO Summit this week in Hilton Head, SC which included a keynote address by John Costello, President – Marketing & Innovation, Dunkin’ Brands. John is also Global Chairman of MMA and his perspective  included “We are seeing what will be the most profound change in marketing and e-commerce through mobile.” This is why approx. 150-200 people attended including senior marketers from American Express, Campbell’s, Chase, Coca-Cola, Cosi, GM, Heineken, Hilton, P&G, Perry Ellis, Reckitt Bensicker, and Sears.

Jeff Hasen was one of 60-70 CMOs in attendance and his conference highlights are below.

Read more…

Special Announcement

Harmony Outdoor Brands LLC – CEO, Jim Doyle

Executive Connections LLC is now pleased to announce Jim Doyle has joined Harmony Outdoor Brands LLC as CEO effective June 30, 2014.

Prior to accepting this new CEO role, Jim was Chief Marketing Officer & GM, Garden at Central Garden & Pet where he led the transformation of the $800M+ Garden business with P&L responsibility. Central is the second largest Lawn & Garden business and Jim consolidated 10+ acquisitions moving from a siloed Sales & Operations approach to a centralized, integrated, consumer-centric CPG model.

Prior to Central, Jim was SVP, Marketing & GM at Evercare and earlier he was VP/GM of Remington Products which was sold successfully to Spectrum Brands. As part of the sale to Spectrum, Jim relocated the business successfully from Bridgeport, CT to Madison, WI rebuilding the organization in the process.

Jeff Gundersen and Lola White of Executive Connections LLC led this exclusive retained search for Harmony Outdoor Brands LLC. EC will continue to provide support to Jim Doyle in his transition into the Harmony CEO role by providing Jim our unique, Blended Solutions approach for one year of confidential career transition support.

Career Opportunities

Chief Lending Officer
VP, Digital Marketing – Global Financial Services

Learn more…

Guest Author

Data-Driven Marketing Is The New Imperative — by Lorraine Barber-Miller

Marketers have always had the mission for building brands, creating demand, advancing sales and helping their companies earn customers’ loyalty. In the past decade, how marketers engage customers and what they do to drive advocacy has changed almost beyond recognition. Strategies based on intuition and engagement techniques that were once cutting-edge are fast becoming obsolete, with new methods emerging every day.

Read Complete Article…  Data-Driven Marketing Is The New Imperative

LBM Headshot for E-zine

About the Author:  Lorraine Barber-Miller is an accomplished international sales, marketing and communications leader.  Passionate about the customer experience, advancing the art and science of marketing, and establishing new businesses in global growth markets, Lorraine spans the globe evangelizing on modern marketing practices. (See Lorraine’s complete bio at end of article.)

 

Filed Under: Connections E-Zine, Digital Proficiency, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 70

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  Where Is (Big) Data Heading?
  • Blog Roundup:
    • Blog:  Meet The 2014 Marketing EDGE Rising Stars
  • Career Opportunities:
    • Chief Lending Officer – NEW
    • VP, Digital Marketing – Global Financial Services – NEW
    • Global Marketing Technology Strategist
    • Global Head of Branding & Communications

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

Where Is (Big) Data Heading?

In last month’s issue, we addressed the topic, Where is Digital Heading? and we reported to 25%+ of the top 100 global marketers will hire a Chief Digital Officer by the end of 2014.

This month’s topic is “Where is Big Data Heading?” and we see big data only getting bigger as large, global enterprises are challenged to harness prolific amounts of data in order to create new business opportunities, innovative new products and services, and deliver better customer engagement/experience. According to a recent study by Deloitte Consulting LLP, “in the last 5 years, as companies became aware of the value of data as an enterprise asset, the management of data has become more visible and crucial.”

And this is not just customer data, it’s all kinds of data including employee data…hiring, performance, retention data. Jane Griffin, a Principal at Deloitte, sums it up as follows, “Companies must better define strategic priorities for management and delivery of data, identify new business opportunities through analysis of data, and significantly improve revenue generation through effective use of enterprise data. It’s crucial to have a C-level person responsible for crafting and implementing data strategies, standards, procedures, and accountability policies at an enterprise level.”

Forrester agrees big data offers big business opportunities…”The attention on information comes from all the rich new data that simply did not exist before; sensor data from the internet of all things; social media, process data, resulting from the digitization of everything. Add to this technology the ability to handle big data in reasonable timeframes, user friendly mobile computing in the form of tablets, data virtualization software and data warehouse applications that significantly accelerate analysis, and predictive analytics, and there is plenty of cause for an information renaissance.”

We are seeing signs of this new information age everywhere — first and foremost through the eyes of Google — the #1 market capitalization company in the world…and they are only a teenager in terms of how long they have been in existence. Google is digitizing everything…and created a search (near) monopoly with imbedded digital and mobile advertising, which will assure its growth and success for the next few decades at a minimum.

Amazon is not far behind.  They recently beat out legacy technology laggard IBM in winning a $600M+ 10-year contract with the Defense Department…really? Could this be true? Isn’t Amazon the company that ships books and other merchandise to consumers? Amazon is exploiting their “state of the art” cloud technology capabilities to expand into Federal Government and other commercial business sectors…leaving companies like IBM in the dust behind them…and the Federal government paid a premium (+30% higher price compared to IBM’s bid).  How’s that for building a premier brand!

Large companies are paying attention. Wells Fargo, the best-run US bank, recently hired A. Charles Thomas from USAA as its first-ever Chief Data Officer at an enterprise-wide level. On this hire, Kevin Rhein (CIO and Thomas’ boss) commented, “Wells Fargo considers data management one of its technology priorities and with the emergence of new technologies and the exponential growth of data, we believe it represents a tremendous opportunity to use data in ways we’ve never been able to before.”

That sums it up very well.  The leading companies of the future in each business sector will be Google-like and Amazon-like…digitizing and analyzing data in real-time to deliver relevant and timely communications, products and services to their existing customers and best prospects.

Where do you stand on big data? Where is your big data heading? Are you an Amazon or an IBM?

We want to know
As always, we value and appreciate you input.  Connect with us — we want to hear your experiences and opinions.

Lola and Jeff

BLOG Roundup: Did you catch our recent blog posts?

Meet The 2014 Marketing EDGE Rising Stars

As an executive search and consulting firm positioned at the cutting-edge of marketing transformation and development, we continuously stay connected to the “next generation” marketing leaders who are changing the landscape of “best practices” in customer acquisition, engagement, retention, and loyalty/advocacy. One of our favorite events to find this talent is at the annual Marketing EDGE “Rising Stars Awards Dinner” which happened  Tuesday night  June 3rd in NYC.

Not surprisingly, this year’s best and brightest under 40YO come from backgrounds focused on new technologies, international/global markets, content strategies, social networks/business, and data analytics. We are pleased to offer a summary of the 2014 award recipients:

Read more…

Career Opportunities

Chief Lending Officer – NEW
VP, Digital Marketing – Global Financial Services – NEW
Global Marketing Technology Strategist
Global Head of Branding & Communications

Learn more…

Filed Under: Ask Our Coach, Connections E-Zine, Digital Proficiency, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, New Executive Search, Recommended Articles

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 69

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  The Age of the Customer – Where Are Digital and Data Heading?
  • Blog Roundup:
    • Blog:  Who’s Hot In Digital?
  • Career Opportunities:
    • President, Retail-Outdoor Lifestyle Brands
    •  Head of Global Corporate Communications
    • Global Marketing Technology Strategist
    • Global Head of Digital Marketing
    • Global Head of Branding & Communications
  • Event Highlight:
    • 2014 Rising Star Awards Dinner
  • Article:
    • “AARP’s Life Reimagined and Kaplan Launch LearningAdvisor to Help Millions of Americans Explore Learning Opportunities to Launch Encore Careers”

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

The Age of the Customer – Where Are Digital and Data Heading?

Where are Digital And Data Heading?
On the heels of the MMA conference last week in NYC, and Integrated Marketing Week coming up next week, we felt we should weigh in on this timely topic.

Since these are broad topics…this month we will focus on “Where is Digital Heading?” and next month we will devote a column to “Where is (Big) Data Heading?”

Digital advertising and media (including mobile) is the fastest growing segment and will surpass broadcast spending by 2018, according to a recent Price Waterhouse Coopers study. It’s clear Digital is heading to the top of the class…and the top of the advertising food chain; and accordingly, 25% of the top 100 global advertisers will have a Chief Digital Officer by 2014, as indicated by Forrester.

Who is hiring CDOs?
According to Forrester, “we have entered the ‘age of the customer’ in which the most successful enterprises will reinvent themselves to systematically understand and serve increasingly powerful customers.” This impacts B2B as well as B2C businesses.  The top three categories hiring CDOs are advertising agencies, publishers, and broadcasters, with the biggest growth seen in non-profits and state/local governments, according to the Chief Digital Officers Club.

Where should CDOs report?
Many of our clients are asking us where CDOs should report? The answer is…it depends. If their company is growing and expanding the brand which is transforming because of digital into new areas…then the CDO typically reports to the CMO (Chief Marketing Officer). This is the case in 60% of CDO hires, and is trending this way as digital marketing spending is forecasted to exceed 50% by 2016. If you play this out even further over the long run, the CMO and CDO positions in these firms will be consolidated. In a second scenario, if companies are seeing technology changing their operational structure, then the CDO typically reports to the CIO, COO or another C-level executive. From our experience to-date, healthcare, insurance and CPG tend to have CDOs reporting into the CMO (examples Abbott, Wellpoint, AIG, Travelers, Nestle, Mercer/MMC). In retail, telco, banking, travel/hospitality, CDOs report to a very senior C-level exec…CIO/COO (examples AT&T, Citibank, Ralph Lauren, Time Inc.).

Where to find the Best CDOs?
We also constantly get the question “where are the best CDOs found?” Top CDOs are coming from consulting firms, digital agencies, broadcast, and digital start-ups. For example: JPM Chase (Accenture), Time Inc. (IAB), Starbucks (Corbis/Play Network), Ralph Lauren (Ticketmaster/IAC) and Weather Channel (Search3.com).

The CDO profile is a strategic, big picture thinker; committed, results-driven; entrepreneurial, innovative; and relationship builder (inside & out). Critical skills include the ability to drive culture change across the enterprise; evangelizing, helping people see the big opportunity; effective change leader who is disruptive without destroying the base values.

We recently completed a Global Head of Social Media search for one of our clients and we are about to close a search by placing a CDO at another global client.  Please connect with us if you want to become part of the growing list of top advertisers who are gearing up to modernize marketing where CDOs are a vital component.

We want to know
As always, we value and appreciate you input.  Connect with us — we want to hear your experiences and opinions.

Lola and Jeff

BLOG Roundup: Did you catch our recent posts on our blog?

Who’s Hot In Digital?

One of the hottest, fastest-growing areas of Digital Marketing is Social Media…and the top 10 global advertisers are all investing in SM brand-building and business-building initiatives. There is a growing demand for leaders in Social Media which is morphing into a bigger platform…Social Business. Finding stellar talent in this area is challenging since Social Media is only 5-6 years old and there are not many senior-level marketers with experience driving significant change in this new field.

Robert HarlesOne of the hottest, most successful Social Media/Social Business leaders is Robert (“Rob”) Harles, the new Global Head of Social Media at AccentureDigital. Prior to joining Accenture, Rob was Global Head of Social Media at Bloomberg LP, where he influenced Bloomberg’s global viewpoint and strategy related to this new emerging marketing and media channel. For a company as conservative and private as Bloomberg to embrace Social Media/Social Business, and open up to its use and possibilities, speaks volumes for Rob’s vision and leadership abilities.        Read more…

Career Opportunities

President, Retail-Outdoor Lifestyle Brands
Head of Global Corporate Communications
Global Marketing Technology Strategist
Global Head of Digital Marketing
Global Head of Branding & Communications

Learn more…

Event Highlight

Bring a Mentee…They Could be the Next Generation of Rising Stars

Please join us at this year’s 2014 Rising Stars Awards Dinner sponsored by MarketingEDGE to be held on Tuesday, June 3, 2014 at 583 Park Avenue, New York City.  As a Board Trustee member of MarketingEDGE, Jeff Gundersen will be attending this event.

Article

Emilio Pardo, Chief Branding Officer, has helped AARP reimagine its brand, so its fitting he was selected as President, Life Reimagined to empower AARP’s members in their career transitions at 50+. Rock on, Emilio!”

 “AARP’s Life Reimagined and Kaplan Launch LearningAdvisor to Help Millions of Americans Explore Learning Opportunities to Launch Encore Careers”

Kaplan named founding learning partner of AARP’s Life Reimagined

BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–AARP’s Life Reimagined has teamed up with Kaplan to create an important new online resource to help Americans find learning opportunities to enhance their current skills, realize their career aspirations, support life changes such as encore or second careers and build a better, more meaningful life.

Today, as part of the partnership, the two organizations unveiled LearningAdvisor, a suite of online resources and learning opportunities designed to help users address continuous learning issues that many Americans are facing as they explore and discover encore careers. The announcement was made at AARP’s Life@50+ National Event & Expo in Boston.

“Americans are living longer and juggling more competing responsibilities than ever before. That reality is especially true for trailing-edge Baby Boomers and members of Generation X approaching 50 who are often caring for their own parents as well as their own children while trying to manage, plan for and enjoy their careers and lives on their own terms,” said Emilio Pardo, AARP Executive Vice President and President of Life Reimagined. “At the same time, they’re also excited by ‘what’s next’ and see lifelong learning and ongoing education as being incredibly important and powerful as they reimagine their lives.”

Read more…

Filed Under: Connections E-Zine, Digital Proficiency, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, Spotlight On

Who’s Hot In Digital?

One of the hottest, fastest-growing areas of Digital Marketing is Social Media…and the top 10 global advertisers are all investing in SM brand-building and business-building initiatives. There is a growing demand for leaders in Social Media which is morphing into a bigger platform…Social Business. Finding stellar talent in this area is challenging since Social Media is only 5-6 years old and there are not many senior-level marketers with experience driving significant change in this new field.

Robert Harles
Robert Harles

One of the hottest, most successful Social Media/Social Business leaders is Robert (“Rob”) Harles, the new Global Head of Social Media at AccentureDigital. Prior to joining Accenture, Rob was Global Head of Social Media at Bloomberg LP, where he influenced Bloomberg’s global viewpoint and strategy related to this new emerging marketing and media channel. For a company as conservative and private as Bloomberg to embrace Social Media/Social Business, and open up to its use and possibilities, speaks volumes for Rob’s vision and leadership abilities.

Prior to Bloomberg, Rob was VP, Social Media at Sears Holdings, where he also evangelized the role of Social Media and developed the first platforms and programs across the entire Sears Holdings enterprise.

We congratulate Rob Harles on his latest career move and encourage top global brands seeking to establish a Social Media/Social Business strategy to connect with Rob Harles. Rob is one of the true revolutionaries in this rapidly emerging, important new marketing and media channel.

Filed Under: Connections E-Zine, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Personal Branding

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 68

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  CMOs Shifting to Revenue Centers and Sales Generators
  • NEW Executive Search:
    • President, Retail-Outdoor Lifestyle Brands
  • Event Highlight:  2014 Rising Star Awards Dinner
  • Career Opportunities:
    • President, Retail-Outdoor Lifestyle Brands – NEW
    •  Head of Global Corporate Communications – NEW
    • Global Marketing Technology Strategist
    • Global Head of Digital Marketing
    • Global Head of Branding & Communications

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

CMOs Shifting to Revenue Centers and Sales Generators

Fueled by the rapid shift to all things digital, the role of CMOs is rapidly shifting from a cost center mentality (i.e., spending corporate marketing budgets to build the corporate brand image through brand advertising and sponsorships) to a revenue center mindset focused on lead generation and closing sales in each of the company’s lines of business and distribution channels (online and offline).

lynnvojvodichheadshotcropIn a recent study produced by Salesforce Exact Target Marketing Cloud and Deloitte Research, Lynn Vojvodich (Salesforce CMO) reported half of CMOs today feel responsible for revenue growth. “When a customer comes through a device or store, they want one consistent brand experience with you. As marketers, we need to be the stewards of customer journey and the new CMO is about owning customer experience,” commented Vojvodich.

Ms. Vojvodich spoke at the recent AdAge Digital conference and noted that 25% of CMOs surveyed had an increasing role in customer service within their organizations. This report also noted the top 3 internal marketing priorities of CMOs included data acquisition, testing and optimization, and flexible and agile marketing processes. Overall, the top 5 expanding expectations of CMOs include top line growth, owning customer experience, data analytics/insights, operating in real-time, and metrics to prove marketing ROI.

This Deloitte-Salesforce study clearly underscores the modern age CMO needs to be well-grounded in multi-channel customer acquisition, customer engagement and experience, retention/loyalty, and other aspects of CRM. With the majority of marketing and commerce moving toward mobile and digital channels, the modern age CMO must be digitally savvy, have strong direct marketing skills, and be comfortable leading technology and data analytics teams, in addition to traditional branding and communications functions.

MBottomley photoMichelle Bottomley, Sr. Partner & Global Chief Marketing & Sales Officer at Mercer, is the embodiment of this new trend toward revenue building CMOs. Historically, B2B “sales cultures” in professional services firms like Mercer used Marketing only for tactical sales support. Michelle is transforming Marketing at Mercer and within the first 30 days onboard she was given the additional responsibility for Sales. Clearly, Mercer’s CEO Julio Portalatin sees her as a revenue driver.

The end-to-end responsibility for customer experience is indeed broadening the role and span of influence of CMOs. Are you prepared to handle this broader scope including being a revenue generator in your role as CMO? You need to become this if you are not there today…this is the way of the future of modern age marketing.

As always, we invite your views and comments.

Lola and Jeff

New Executive Search

President, Retail-Outdoor Lifestyle Brands

Executive Connections, LLC is happy to announce we have been awarded the exclusive assignment to recruit a President for a new start-up in Sarasota, Florida.

The new Retail – Outdoor Lifestyle Brands company is the brain child of a well-established and highly successful private (family-owned) company who is the nationwide leader and supplier of sod and turf grass products (including partnerships with Home Depot and Lowe’s).

We would appreciate if you could refer potential candidates or sources for this exciting start-up career opportunity. Here is the link for the President, Retail-Outdoor Lifestyle Brands  job specification.

This ideal leader will be an entrepreneurial President or General Manager who has successfully built an Outdoor Lifestyle business supplying major retailers (i.e., similar to Home Depot and Lowe’s) and expanded the business by adding new product lines and brand extensions.

Please e-mail Jeff Gundersen with your availability for a call in the next week to discuss this exciting career opportunity and provide us your input.

Event Highlight

Please join us at this year’s 2014 Rising Stars Awards Dinner sponsored by MarketingEDGE to be held on Tuesday, June 3, 2014 at 583 Park Avenue, New York City.  As a Board Trustee member of MarketingEDGE, Jeff Gundersen will be attending this event.

Career Opportunities

President, Retail-Outdoor Lifestyle Brands – NEW
Head of Global Corporate Communications – NEW
Global Marketing Technology Strategist
Global Head of Digital Marketing
Global Head of Branding & Communications

Learn more.

Filed Under: Connections E-Zine, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Personal Branding

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 67

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  MMA Needs to Create a Mobile Talent Task Force
  • Career Opportunities:
    • Head of Marketing – AMEA
    • Global Marketing Technology Strategist
    • Global Head of Digital Marketing
    • Global Head of Branding & Communications
    • Managing Director, Social Media
  • Blog Roundup:
    • Blog – Mobile Marketing Talent Gap is Growing

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

MMA Needs to Create a Mobile Talent Task Force

Introduction
Executive Connections LLC became a member of The Mobile Marketing Association (“MMA) in 2013 since we are concerned about a widening “talent gap” in marketers hiring and developing the full-time marketing and m-commerce resources to keep up with consumers rapid adoption of mobile technologies.  We are utilizing this month’s column to publish our views on the need for MMA to launch a Mobile Talent Task Force. As interested members of MMA, EC has offered to play a leadership role in organizing and developing this important MMA task force.

Background
Marketers know that consumers’ attention is increasingly being drawn to their mobile devices (smartphones, tablets, etc.), but most marketers are still in the early stages of mobile marketing strategy development — and as a result, they are falling behind in evolving beyond basic mobile marketing campaigns to building the dedicated mobile marketing organizations and recruiting/developing the mobile talent required for sustained future mobile marketing and m-commerce growth and success.

The Mobile Marketing Association (“MMA”) needs to create a Mobile Talent Task Force to further the conversation (including all constituencies – marketers, media companies, agencies, mobile technology providers, non-profits, educators) regarding the current and future mobile talent needs (and gaps) and to develop future industry standards and “best practices” related to education, hiring, training and development, and recognition of the mobile marketing and m-commerce talent needed for enterprises to sustain success in this new, connected mobile marketing age.

Current Industry Landscape – Mobile Talent Needs Gap Is Widening

  • Consumer mobile adoption is outpacing mobile marketing talent investments.
  • Consumers are rapidly flocking to sophisticated mobile devices and behaviors.
  • Marketers are slowly evolving to support wider mobile programs, however, the vast majority (80%+) do not yet have a mobile marketing strategy so efforts are predominantly standalone.
  • Companies are using a variety of talent resourcing approaches (contractors, freelance, agencies) as most are in the first 1-2 years of developing mobile marketing strategies and programs.
  • Demonstrating the ROI of mobile marketing is the biggest challenge facing companies who want to hire, acquire, and build full-time in-house mobile resources.
  • The majority of companies are working with their traditional brand and digital agencies to help them integrate mobile into their overall marketing campaigns/plans.
  • There are no clear organizational models or set of responsibilities yet established for mobile marketing employees further compounding the mobile talent acquisition and development processes.

Proposed Mission Statement – MMA Talent Task Force
The MMA North America Mobile Talent Task Force mission will be to support all MMA constituencies in proving the ROI of mobile marketing to enable acceleration of the hiring/building of permanent mobile marketing and m-commerce infrastructures and the talent pipeline needed to assure sustained member growth and success. MMA will also share mobile talent acquisition, development, compensation, and organizational “best practices,” across all industry sectors and categories of constituents, enabling mobile marketers, agencies, media partners, and technology providers to identify, hire or acquire, and develop the talent pipeline needed to support both immediate and long-term mobile marketing needs.

MMA Talent Task Force – Goals and Objectives

  • Assist in surveying and defining current and future mobile marketing and m-commerce organizational models, position/role descriptions, educational/training requirements, undergraduate/graduate curriculums, and other mobile talent-related requirements, and share these findings in MMA publications, white papers, and conferences.
  • Assist all MMA constituencies in building the ROI case for creating a mobile marketing strategy and hiring the full-time in-house mobile resources (in both the Marketing and IT areas) required to support the immediate and long-term mobile marketing and m-commerce needs.
  • Promote mobile marketing hiring and training/development “best practices” among marketers, media companies, agencies, technology enablers, and other MMA constituencies. Develop job board and resource center on MMA website for temporary and permanent mobile marketing positions.
  • Assess mobile marketing education, training and certification standards and guidelines.
  • Collaborate with universities, other educational providers, and non-profit organizations (i.e., Marketing EDGE), to develop, distribute, and promote the mobile marketing educational curriculum and certifications required to educate the next generation of mobile marketing talent needed for sustained growth.
  • Promote mobile talent acquisition, and education/training as a powerful new mobile marketing resource strategy across all constituencies.
  • Assist in surveying and reporting “best practices” in compensation and benefits policies and practices across various constituencies.
  • Promote and recognize “Rising Stars” in the mobile marketing and m-commerce sector in conjunction with MMA awards, conferences, and events.

Participants
MMA Talent Task Force to recruit leading companies in every sector including:

  • Marketers:
  • Media Companies:
  • Agencies:
  • Technology Enablers:
  • Executive Search/Talent Acquisition: Executive Connections LLC
  • Colleges, Universities, Non-profits, Education Providers: Marketing EDGE

Next Steps

  • EC has a call scheduled with Greg Stuart, CEO of MMA to discuss the need for this task force
  • Recruit Initial Task Force Participants – March – June 2014
  • Hold MMA Talent Task Force session at upcoming MMA conference – May 2014

As always, we invite your views and comments. Please let us know how your company is doing in scaling mobile resources and your view/interest in joining this proposed MMA Mobile Talent Task Force.

Lola and Jeff

Event Highlight

Please join us at this year’s 2014 Rising Stars Awards Dinner sponsored by MarketingEDGE to be held on Tuesday, June 3, 2014 at 583 Park Avenue, New York City.  As a Board Trustee member of MarketingEDGE, Jeff Gundersen will be attending this event.

Career Opportunities

Head of Marketing – AMEA
Global Marketing Technology Strategist
Global Head of Digital Marketing
Global Head of Branding & Communications
Managing Director, Social Media

Learn more.

Blog Roundup: Did you catch our recent posts on our blog?

BLOG: Mobile Marketing Talent Gap is Growing

Overview
Organizations (marketers, media companies, agencies, and marketing technology providers) know that consumers’ attention is increasingly being drawn to their mobile devices (smartphones, tablets, etc.), but most companies are still in the early stages of mobile marketing strategy development — and they face an uphill climb to evolve beyond basic mobile marketing campaigns to building the dedicated mobile marketing organizations and recruiting/developing the talent required for sustained future mobile marketing growth and success.

Central Issues – Mobile Adoption Outpacing Talent Acquisition

Consumer mobile adoption is outpacing mobile marketing talent investment. The central issue facing marketers is the rapid pace of consumer mobile adoption which is outpacing mobile marketing talent investment, as marketers are still at an early stage in proving ROI of mobile marketing investments. Only 16% of marketers out of 250 global marketers surveyed have developed a mobile strategy, according to a 2013 report from the CMO Council.  46% of marketers surveyed in the CMO Council study said they are either evaluating or reviewing the role of mobile in their organizations.

Read more…

 

Filed Under: Announcements, Connections E-Zine, Executive Talent, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Personal Branding, Recommended Articles

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 66

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  The Succession Planning Dilemma
  • Career Opportunities:
    • Head of Global Corporate Communications – NEW
    • Global Marketing Technology Strategist – NEW
    • Head of Marketing – Growth Markets – REVISED
    • CMO – Start-up Mobile Advertising/M-Commerce
    • Managing Director, Social Media
  • Blog Roundup:
    • Blog – “8 Pearls of Marketing” by Marty Homlish | ANA Spring 2013
  • Announcements:
    • Michelle Bottomley Joins Mercer as Chief Marketing Officer

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

The Succession Planning Dilemma As a boutique firm specialized in recruiting CEOs and Presidents of marketing and marketing services businesses, we have had many experiences assisting incumbent CEOs in succession planning and subsequent executive search assignments to recruit a new company leader. We have seen the good, bad, and ugly play out in these scenarios and here are three things to watch out for if your company is approaching the “Succession Planning Dilemma:”

  1. Choosing A Caretaker Instead Of A Hunter/Builder – particularly for smaller private companies, and middle market companies, sustained growth and innovation are essential to long-term survival and prosperity. In spite of this, we have seen several clients choose the CFO or a Chief Administrative Officer to take over running the business. As these executives are neither customer-facing or marketing oriented, they frequently lack the vision and bold marketing chops to position the business for aggressive growth. While they may tighten up costs and produce an initial bottom line growth which looks impressive, the company quickly begins to atrophy as the focus on innovation  dwindles. In our CEO succession assignments we always emphasize finding a “hunter” instead of a farmer as growing a profitable company is the best way to motivate and retain key employees.
  2. CEOs Can’t or Won’t Give Up Control – we have seen dozens of case histories, and been involved with several, where the outgoing CEO talks a good game about ceding control to the new President/CEO and then hangs around too long and sabotages the new leader by interfering in day-to-day management or insisting on remaining in a protracted transition period (18 months) when a much shorter transition period would yield a superior result. We have had to intermediate between incoming and outgoing CEOs to renegotiate and shorten the transition period as well as limiting the number of days/times the outgoing CEO can be on premises.
  3. Outgoing CEOs Too Protective Of Executive Team Members – it’s understandable when CEOs leave especially after a long period of incumbency, they leave behind a loyal C-level team. Many times these same CEOs will intervene on behalf of these senior staff members trying to force the new CEO to keep these team members in place. Our counsel is always simple…the new CEO’s most important job is to form their own senior leadership team and this needs to include complete freedom to assess the strengths/weaknesses of incumbent C-suite members and make changes they feel appropriate. This is why you so frequently see in large companies incoming CEOs broom the entire prior team and bring in their own people so they know where the loyalties will be when times get tough.

Particularly in today’s business environment where digital and mobile media and marketing innovations are developing rapidly, smaller and middle market companies are at a disadvantage compared to the likes of Google, Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Samsung, Lenovo, SAP, Accenture and other larger innovation leaders and drivers. This even further accentuates the need to select a marketing-oriented, customer-facing executive as CEO…someone with a modern marketing vision who can create a drive a bold vision for sustained growth and profitability. As always, we welcome your comments, Lola and Jeff

Career Opportunities

Head of Global Corporate Communications – NEW
Global Marketing Technology Strategist – NEW
Head of Marketing – Growth Markets – REVISED
CMO – Mobile Advertising/M-Commerce Start-up
Managing Director, Social Media

Learn more.

Blog Roundup: Did you catch our recent posts on our blog?

BLOG:  “8 Pearls of Marketing” by Marty Homlish | ANA | Spring 2013 We are always looking to share Marketing “best practices” and highlight CMOs who are stars and game changers in the companies and industry sectors. Marty Homlish, CCO at HP and former global CMO at SAP, is a marketing star and we are pleased to include a link to his 2013 ANA article and highlight Marty’s “8 Pearls of Marketing.” Read more…

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Michelle Bottomley Joins Mercer as Chief Marketing Officer Executive Connections LLC is pleased to announce the recent placement of Michelle Bottomley as global CMO for Mercer. In her new roMBottomley photole, Michelle will oversee a number of corporate functions, including Marketing, Public Relations, Media, Digital Marketing, and Alternative Distribution. In this role, Michelle will focus on expanding the Mercer brand globally through innovative, direct, and digital marketing channels to support and drive the mission, operating imperatives, and values. Prior to accepting the role with Mercer, Michelle served as President of Zinio, LLC, the world’s largest digital magazine newsstand; CMO of Barclaycard, where she built a global marketing organization focused on results, innovation, and customer experience; President of Kite Flying, Inc., a boutique global marketing consulting practice; and Co-President and Chief Operating Officer of Ogilvy New York for Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, an advertising, marketing, and public relations agency.

Filed Under: Connections E-Zine, Digital Proficiency, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Recommended Articles

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 65

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  How Can 2014 Top Last Year?
  • Career Opportunities:
    • CMO – Growth Markets
    • CMO – Start-up Mobile Advertising/M-Commerce
    • Managing Director, Social Media
  • Articles:
    • Mobile Goes Mainstream: Consumers Lead the Way– Gridley & Company LLC

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

How Can 2014 Top Last Year?

I attended the 13th annual Gridley & Company conference in NYC last week to hear 60-75 CEOs across the Media, Ad Tech, Payments & Financial Technologies, and Marketing Services sectors talk about their company’s 2013 performance and future expectations in 2014 and beyond.

Incredible Performance of Equity Markets in 2013
Linda Gridley opened the conference by highlighting the incredible performance of equity markets in 2013…”the S&P 500 rose 29.6%, the largest annual jump in 16 years…and the Dow rose 26.5%, its largest gain in 18 years…despite macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds.”  As stocks rose steadily higher, P/E ratios grew from 14x to17x, fueled by $349B which poured into stock-based mutual funds and exchange funds, the highest annual inflow ever recorded. It’s clear investors have moved off the sidelines and back into equity investments. Not surprisingly, Gridley indicated “internet giants eBay, Amazon, Google and Facebook were up an average of 57.6% in 2013, outperforming the equity market as a whole.”

We see CEOs doing the same thing…moving off the sidelines into action to grow their businesses by investing in marketing, new product development, and opening new markets. I had lunch with Claude Gallello, a senior global business development leader at Willis (global insurance brokerage firm) and he indicated Willis has recently completed an expansion from 115 to 130 countries globally. We are seeing other companies including Abbott, AIG, Accenture, Apple, Lenovo, Mercer, MetLife, and Prudential plc investing in acquisitions and strategic hires in Growth Markets (Brazil, China, India, Middle East) to expand their businesses in these countries and other emerging economies.

2014 Expected To Be Even Bigger in Terms of Digital and Mobile Media
Many of the keynote panelists at the Gridley conference confirmed they expect 2014 to be even bigger and more transformative in terms of digital and mobile media, marketing, and e-commerce. Tony Uzan (Advisory Director at PwC) indicated “digital advertising (including mobile) is on pace to surpass broadcast advertising by 2018” (www.pwc.com/outlook). Martin Nisenholtz (Senior Advisor – NY times) predicted Google will become the #1 market capitalization company and voice recognition technology will enable us to “liberate ourselves from the screens.” Jim Moran (General Partner at North Bridge) predicted “2014 will be the year mobile commerce hits main street…and mobile payment companies will be big winners in the equity markets in 2015-16.” Moran also indicated he “sees a day when Google will be serving us ads in our dreams.”

While the overall outlook is positive, there are some storm clouds on the horizon. Many VC experts including Alan Patricof (Managing Director, Greycroft Partners) indicated there are too many start-up companies without profitable business plans and many will not be funded in 2014 and will perish. Brian O’Kelley (CEO, AppNexus) and a leader in the AdTech space predicted 2014 would see a lot of action in the AdTech space. “Companies need to exit, be bought, or raise capital…and it will be a busy year for the investment bankers.” O’Kelley also indicated he “sees a bubble and a lot of AdTech companies will hit a wall in ’14…especially those without revenue and/or profitability.”

Also, while digital advertising in all forms is expected to grow dramatically faster than all other media, most CEOs expect to see Google and Facebook (which transitioned itself quickly to a mobile company) dominating 80+% of this media category leaving all other competitors fighting over the scraps.

New Digital Economy vs. Old Line Media and Marketing Services
While attending 10-15 of the individual CEO/company presentations at Gridley, I was struck by the contrast between new digital economy CEOs/companies and old line media and marketing services CEOs/companies. Change is happening so quickly, and the pace of change is accelerating through mobile advertising and commerce, you can almost see the writing on the wall for many old world companies and industries that are vulnerable to game-changing innovations by an Amazon, Google or Facebook.

While the equity markets are unlikely to achieve last year’s growth rates in 2014, many companies (especially leaders like Apple, Amazon, Google, and Facebook) are expected to ride the wave of mobile/digital explosion to continue aggressive growth. In light of these prognostications, it should be an interesting year and we expect continued action in all areas related to digital and mobile marketing, media and commerce.

As always, we welcome your comments and input, so please write in and let us know your viewpoints.

Happy New Year!
Jeff and Lola

Career Opportunities

CMO – Growth Markets
CMO – Mobile Advertising/M-Commerce Start-up
Managing Director, Social Media

Learn more.

ARTICLES:

Mobile Goes Mainstream: Consumers Lead the Way — January 2014 – Gridley & Company LLC
Comprehensive Industry Overview – – – Key Trends and Investment Opportunities
Mobile Industry Overview_1.10.14

 

Filed Under: Connections E-Zine, Executive Coaching, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Recommended Articles

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 64

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  The Age of Smart Everything is Here
  • Career Opportunities:
    • CMO – Growth Markets
    • CMO – Start-up Mobile Advertising/M-Commerce
    • Managing Director, Social Media
  • Blog Roundup:
    • Blog – Social Media Has Gone Mainstream
  • Articles:
    • The Dangerous Tension Between CMOs and CIOs – Harvard Business Review
    • How the “internet of things” Will Replace the Web – by Christopher Mims

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

The Age of Smart Everything is Here

As we arrive at year end 2013, the horizon ahead is full of promise as both Wall Street and Main Street continue to exceed expectations.  Consumers and businesses are spending and investing, CEO confidence is rising, and these factors have led to companies hiring, acquiring, and expanding into new products, markets and services.  Advertising & Media projections call for growth in excess of 5 % in 2014, a growth level in spending that marketing services and media companies have not seen since 2007.  This is accompanied by a greater level of CMO hiring than we have seen since the financial crash in ’08-’09…and this is being driven by overall economic growth and the arrival of innovative new digital marketing technologies. The rapid growth of digital, mobile and “the rise of tablets” are clearly contributing strongly to overall growth in consumer spending.  Just check the recent results of Cyber Monday…the single largest internet shopping day of all-time.  Cyber sales increased +19% vs. prior year and 35% of all internet commerce came from mobile devices.

We are reprinting an article from Quartz, written by Christopher Mims (@MIMS), titled “How the ‘internet of things’ Will Replace the Web.”  Consumers are now  connected 24×7 (not only via mobile smartphones and tables, but also various mobile apps and performance systems – i.e., Nike Fuel).  We are entering a new era of technology-driven marketing, social business and technology-enhanced home appliances which are enabling enhanced customer engagement and experience at unprecedented high levels.  People have been saying “this is the year for mobile” for a decade and history will prove 2013 was indeed mobile’s “coming out party.”

As we approach the holiday season, we send our best holiday greetings to all our clients and friends.  We wish each of you a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2014!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Lola and Jeff

THE WORLD IS YOUR BROWSER

As always, we welcome your input and comments.  Contact us.

Career Opportunities

CMO – Growth Markets
CMO – Mobile Advertising/M-Commerce Start-up
Managing Director, Social Media

Learn more.

Blog Roundup: Did you catch our recent posts on our blog?

BLOG:  Social Media Has Gone Mainstream

I can remember attending a B2B magazine CMO Awards luncheon late in 2012 when the moderator asked the panel of 15 CMOs for their 2013 business outlook and top marketing priorities. Almost every CMO said their top 2013 marketing priority was investing in Social Media, however, none of them knew what this would look like for their companies. So in effect, this was a “leap of faith” CMOs knew they had to take to catch up with consumers who were connecting through social media channels including Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and YouTube to share their brand likes, dislikes, and reviews.

Fast forward to year-end 2013 and Chief Marketer magazine (www.ChiefMarketer.com) announces “Social Marketing has gone mainstream.” According to Chief Marketer’s 2013 Annual Social Media Survey, 77% of marketers are integrating Social Media into their annual marketing strategies, plans and campaigns. In addition to coupons and discounts, marketers are offering unique content as a reward for engaging with the brand socially, and over half of marketers are including Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest links in all marketing messages.

Read more…

ARTICLES:

The Dangerous Tension Between CMOs and CIOs – Harvard Business Review

Business is largely about competition and, even within organizations, a healthy dose of rivalry between colleagues can be a good thing. However, a survey just conducted by Accenture Interactive (see The CMO-CIO Disconnect) points to a downright unhealthy relationship in many C-Suites which can do nothing but damage to firms.

At a time when many executives say that improving digital reach will be a significant differentiator for their companies, our research shows that two of the most important digital leaders — the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and the Chief Information Officer (CIO) — do not trust each other, understand each other, or collaborate with each other. Thus, even though both marketing and IT professionals say they want to be more collaborative, meaningful collaboration is unlikely to occur.

Read more…

How the “internet of things” Will Replace the Web by Christopher Mims

We’ve already written about why 2014 is really, finally the year that the “internet of things”—that effort to remotely control every object on earth—becomes visible in our everyday lives.

But most of us don’t recognize just how far the internet of things will go, from souped-up gadgets that track our every move to a world that predicts our actions and emotions. In this way, the internet of things will become more central to society than the internet as we know it today. The web will survive, just as email survived the arrival of the web. But its role will be reduced to that of a language for displaying content on screens, which are likely to be more ubiquitous but less necessary. Here’s a closer look at the internet of things that’s already here, and where it’s headed.

Read more…

Filed Under: Connections E-Zine, Executive Coaching, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Personal Branding

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 63

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion:  Spending Political Capital
  • Career Opportunities:
    • Global CMO
    • CMO – Growth Markets
    • CMO – Start-up Mobile Advertising/M-Commerce
    • Managing Director, Social Media
  • Blog Roundup:
    • Blog – Short-Form Content Is A New Media and Entertainment Priority
    • Blog – Disruptive Marketing Technologies

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

Spending Political Capital

We were inspired by a recent article in the Sunday NY Times on spending political capital.

In our opinion, C-level executives need to be bold, courageous…and go for it…especially once they have earned the trust and respect of the Board and C-suite leaders. It is simply not enough to perform exceptionally well in the current role…it’s about risk-taking to identify and champion innovative business building ideas and programs.

“You need to spend political capital — be unafraid to introduce people, compliment somebody when it’s deserved and stand up for something you really believe in, rather than just go with the flow. I don’t mean being a perennial troublemaker, but it’s about having conviction and courage. Spend that political capital you earn by being intellectually credible, by being a fighter for the people on your team when appropriate, and by arguing for principles that matter. Those are qualities that give you credit. If you’re waiting for the perfect moment to spend that capital, you’re going to be sidelined your whole career waiting for the right time to enter the ring.”

The status-quo today is simply not enough…and playing it safe is a recipe for disaster as so many businesses and category sectors have leveled off, which is the beginning of atrophy.

In this fast-moving “customer” era, innovation and exceptional customer engagement and experience are the keys to success and growth. Leaders in this area include Amazon.com (continuing to grow/expand into new product categories), Coca-Cola (outperforming sector competitors), Prudential Corporation Asia (leveraging branded content and social media to grow at 20% CAGR), Samsung (gaining share on Apple with each quarter), Lenovo (taken over global PC leadership), Unilever (leveraging social purpose and brand/business building), and Walmart (leading retailer innovation in social/mobile).

Have you built political capital in your current business and functional role? What are the opportunities for you to spend that political capital currently to identify/drive important new initiatives within your company and further advance your personal brand/career?

As always, we welcome your input and comments.  Contact us.

Career Opportunities

Global CMO
CMO – Growth Markets
CMO – Mobile Advertising/M-Commerce Start-up
Managing Director, Social Media

Learn more.

Blog Roundup: Did you catch our recent posts on our blog?

BLOG:  Short-Form Content Is A New Media and Entertainment Priority

One of the most interesting conversations during Advertising Week 2013 was Michael Kassan, CEO of Media Link, interviewing Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks Co-Founder & CEO of DreamWorks Animation regarding the future of media and entertainment in the face of the current technology changes.

Creating New Opportunities in the Content Creation Business
Rather than feeling media and entertainment companies are facing a diminishing and fractured market, Katzenberg indicated there has never been a better time to be in the content creation business.  …Read more

BLOG:  Disruptive Marketing Technologies

Leading edge marketers and agency leaders agree advances in new, disruptive marketing technologies have created new global media and marketing experiments as marketers race to infuse digital media and mobile commerce into their arsenal of marketing programs.

“Mobile is the first screen, the screen of today,” according to Bob Bowman, CEO of MLB Advanced Media. Mobile is Word of Mouth on steroids, and for MLB over 50% of their traffic is mobile and they expect 80-90% of traffic via mobile devices within 2 years.  …Read more