The CMO Podcast

It is no surprise to any of you that the more meaningful your brand is to people, or customers, the more successful it will be. Well the good news is there is a company–Havas–who has been researching what makes a brand meaningful every year for the past 15 years. And this week Jim will talk with two leaders at Havas who oversee this annual research.

Jim's guests on The CMO Podcast are Mark Sinnock, the Global Chief Strategy, Data and Innovation Officer at the Havas Group, and Joanna Lawrence, the global chief strategy officer at the Havas Media Network. Havas is one of the oldest and largest global communications companies. Founded in 1835 in Paris by Charles Louis Havas, today the group does business in 100 plus countries, with roughly 23,000 people; annual revenues approach $3 billion Euros.

Each year since 2009 the Havas group has designed and fielded a massive research project called Meaningful Brands. The intent is to provide insights and guidance on how to build a brand that has deep meaning for its customers, thereby driving sustained growth and profitability. The scope is impressive: more than 1.5 million interviews, in 24 countries, with 41 categories and 2600 brands analyzed. Tune in as Jim chats with Mark and Joanna about learning from the latest Meaningful brands study.

Havas’ 2024 Meaningful Brands™ Global Report: https://meaningful-brands.com/reports/2024report/

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We have had a number of banking CMOs on this show over the years, and, perhaps counterintuitively, every one of them has been insightful and interesting. This week's show continues that trend. Jim's guest on The CMO Podcast is Michael Lacorazza, the Chief Marketing Officer of US Bank. Headquartered in Minneapolis, US Bank is the fifth largest commercial bank in the US, with revenue in the $40 billion range.

Michael has been CMO at US Bank for about a year–and in that year he and his team developed a new campaign for the brand, leveraging AI in creative development of the idea. Before US Bank, Michael worked in marketing at Lexus, Marriott, Digitas, TD Ameritrade, and Wells Fargo. And before taking the reins at US Bank, Michael worked as a CEO of a home security company, Frontpoint. Tune in for a conversation with a CMO who has been very thoughtful of his career path.

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The holiday season is in full swing, so this week Jim is paying a visit to one of the most loved retailers in the world. The guest this week on The CMO Podcast is Joe Cano, the Chief Marketing, Merchandising and Growth Officer for Zappos, the e-commerce company famous for its customer-obsessed culture. Zappos was founded in 1999 by Tony Hsieh, and sold to Amazon in 2009 for about $1.2 billion in an all-stock deal. Today, Zappos sells shoes of course, but also handbags, clothing, and accessories.

Joe has deep experience in fashion and retailing. He spent seven years at Saks Fifth Avenue, and four years at Walmart.com. Earlier in his career, he worked for a variety of youth fashion retailers, including Forever 21, Wet Seal, and Hot Topic. Joe joined Zappos in June 2022, and was promoted to Chief Marketing, Merchandising and growth Officer about 18 months ago. Tune in for a conversation celebrating 25 years of a successful brand with a guest who loves the holiday season.

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Many of you listeners here in the US are right now planning your Thanksgiving holiday weekend, and the centerpiece for most of you is a beautiful turkey dinner on Thanksgiving Thursday. Well today–to get you in the spirit–Jim welcomes two special guests on The CMO Podcast: Kyle Lock, the VP of Marketing for the Butterball Company, and Christa Leupen, the Director of Purpose and Consumer Communication for Butterball. Butterball is of course the best known and most loved turkey brand in the US. Their purpose is pure and simple–to help people pass love on.

Four years ago Jim welcomed Butterball's Head of Marketing and Sales, Al Jansen, on this show. It was that conversation that helped spark a fire in Al and his fellow team at Butterball to find a path to purpose. A path that Kyle and Christa share with Jim.

Kyle Lock is the Vice President of Retail Marketing for Butterball, and has has served in marketing leadership roles since joining the company in 2006. In his current role, Kyle oversees the Retail Marketing function, responsible for strategic planning, product management, innovation, insights, consumer communications, consumer affairs and the historic Butterball Turkey Talk-Line. Prior to Butterball, Kyle served in marketing roles for Tyson’s retail division and before then at Hillshire Farm and Kahn’s, a division of what was the Sara Lee Corporation. 

Christa Leupen is the Director of Purpose and Consumer Communications for Butterball. She came to Butterball with 15 years of public relations and communications expertise, spanning agency and in-house roles, with specialty in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors. At Butterball, Christa plays a pivotal role in shaping the company's purpose-driven strategy, developing initiatives that create positive change inside and outside the organization, and delivering impactful results that align with the company’s purpose and values.

As we all look to moments of gratitude and kindness this holiday season, tune in for a conversation around a company that looks to share that ideal inside and beyond.

Listen to Jim's previous episode with Butterball's EVP of Sales & Marketing, Al Jansen: https://tinyurl.com/bde22wtp

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The growth and popularity of Formula 1 racing is one of the great marketing stories of the past five years, and on this week's episode Jim is going behind the scenes to understand why. His guest this week on The CMO Podcast is Louise McEwen, the Chief Marketing Officer of McLaren Racing, the global leader in high-performance supercar production, and elite motorsports. Founded in 1963 by racer, engineer and entrepreneur Bruce McLaren, the company is formed of McLaren Automotive, which hand-builds lightweight supercars; and a majority stake in McLaren Racing which competes in the Formula 1 World Championship and INDYCAR in the US. McLaren is based in the UK, and is one of the top independent companies in the world. The McLaren team is currently in first place in the 2024 Formula 1 series.

Louise has known for a long time that she wanted a career in sports & entertainment; Louise studied Sports Science and Social Science at Loughborough University in the UK, before joining sports marketing firm Octagon in 1999. Following Octagon, Louise spent nine years at Vodafone, where she worked with McLaren, before eventually joining the racing company in 2017. Louise was appointed CMO in March 2024. As the racing world eagerly anticipates the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 23rd, Louise welcomes Jim on the track to talk about how storytelling can reshape a brand.

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This week Jim is joined on The CMO Podcast by Greg Lyons, the Chief Marketing Officer for Pepsico Beverages North America. Greg looks over about $28 billion in revenue, with 10 Billion dollar brands, including Pepsi-Cola, Gatorade, Mountain Dew and Bubly. PepsiCo Beverages North America is part of PepsiCo, a $91 billion food and beverage global powerhouse.

Greg has been with PepsiCo for over 25 years, and CMO since 2017. He was a guest on the show in May 2020–in the early days of the pandemic. Still, to this day, almost five years later, that episode is one of Jim's absolute favorites. In this episode, they return to many of the themes from that recording, and hear Greg’s perspective on empathy, kindness and having fun.

Listen to Greg previous episode from May 2020: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/greg-lyons-pepsico-serving-empathy-at-pepsico/id1460604334?i=1000475927049

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With the holidays nearly upon us, this episode of The CMO Podcast offers some insight and perspective on this year’s holiday season. Joining Jim this week is Claudine Cheever, the VP and Global Head of Brand and Marketing at Amazon. Since its founding in 1994 by Jeff Bezos, Amazon has profoundly changed life and business. Thirty years later–Amazon’s revenue is nearly $600 billion, with a market cap of about $2 trillion. It's among the few brands that people just cannot imagine living without.

Claudine forged an unlikely path to becoming the Head of Global Brand and Marketing at Amazon. She earned a Bachelors Degree at Colorado State University in Liberal Arts, and later acquired a Masters Degree from the University of North Carolina in American Studies. Claudine started her career as an editor at a publishing company, and eventually had a 20-year run at some of the most famous ad agencies in the world–including McCann, Saatchi & Saatchi, and Ogilvy. About eight years ago, Claudine went from agency to client and joined Amazon. Tune in for a conversation with a leader who joined a brand for the opportunity, but stayed for the creativity and culture.

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It’s election season in the U.S., with some brands taking on a special responsibility and role at this time. Among them is The Wall Street Journal, and this week Jim speaks to Sherry Weiss, the Chief Marketing Officer of Dow Jones–the parent company of The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, MarketWatch, Investor’s Business Daily, and a portfolio of business intelligence assets, including Factiva. 

Sherry has worked as CMO of Dow Jones for about two years, following a career path seemingly built for her current role. With a double degree from Georgetown University, a Bachelors in Foreign Affairs, and a Masters in Business, Sherry worked at Citi at two different times in her career, for a total of about 12 years. With just two weeks until the United States Presidential election, tune in for a conversation with a leader who is ready to lead her team through and beyond.

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It's the spookiest time of the year! For this Halloween-themed episode of The CMO Podcast, Jim welcomes Gabrielle Dallas Wesley, the Chief Marketing Officer of Mars Wrigley North America. Privately held since its founding in 1911, Mars Wrigley is a giant in the consumer goods industry. The company boasts about $50 billion in sales and includes famous brands like M&Ms, Snickers, Orbit, Pedigree, Whiskas, Ben’s Original, and MasterFoods. In August 2024, Mars Wrigley announced the purchase of Kellanova–the Kellogg’s spinoff–with brands such as Pringles, Pop Tarts, and Nutrigrain.

Gabrielle has worked with Mars Wrigley for about seven years and stepped into the North America CMO role about fifteen months ago. Before Mars Wrigley, Gabrielle worked at Conagra for three years, and General Mills for eleven years. Before she became a food and snack marketer, she spent eight years in financial services before jumping to CPG, using her MBA from Michigan Ross. Tune in for Jim's Halloween Trick or Treat chat with a CMO who is all about a united team!

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