Class of CMO50 2015: Where are they now?
- 08 July, 2019 07:24
As we make the call for nominations for the 5th edition of our annual CMO50 list of Australia’s most innovative and effective marketing leaders, it’s clear the movement of local marketing leaders over the years has been nothing short of explosive. And nowhere is this more blatant than in our inaugural 2015 CMO50 list.
With an average tenure of 2 years and 8 months (according to our 2019 State of the CMO research), marketing chiefs are regularly on the move. There are some obvious reasons why.
One is a lack of maturity around the analytical and commercial aspects of marketing, laid strikingly bare in a world of real-time digital accountability. Another is the rapid transformation of what it means to undertake marketing off the back of technology and digital innovation. It’s this second game-changer arguably to blame for the subsequent lack of clarity around what ‘marketing’ encompasses in an experience economy, resulting in disconnects between CEO and CMO.
Technology and innovation are also a root cause for marketers struggling to meet the transformation remit of their executive leaders. While many CMOs are asked to spearhead change (in the name of digital or customer experience for instance), they often don’t control parts of the business requiring a shake-up and find efforts frustrated as a result.
It’s for all the above reasons so many CMOs move on, or see their roles restructured out of the executive team.
Of course, it’s not all negative. Several CMOs have succeeded in fulfilling modern expectations of what a marketing chief can achieve. These individuals have been rewarded for their excellence with broader remits, elevation into operational and chief roles locally, regionally and internationally, or have been enticed to bigger and better opportunities elsewhere.
Then there are the CMOs who simply fulfil the transformation brief and want to move on to do it all over again. That’s because they’re ultimately at their best when they’re acting as instruments of change.
Whatever the reason, shake-up has been significant. And our CMO50 list has borne witness to it. So as we call for nominations for the 2019 edition of the CMO50, CMO takes a look back at those who featured in our first-ever list and where they are now.
And there are a bunch of statistics from our inaugural CMO50 2015 list to now that are nothing short of extraordinary.
Details for nominating for the 2019 edition of our CMO50 list are available here.
1. 9 of the 2015 top 10 left their jobs
Of the marketing leaders listed in our inaugural 2015 list, nine of our top 10 have either left the organisation they worked for, been promoted to CEO positions, or relocated overseas for broader regional and global remits.
2. 23 of our top 25 CMOs aren’t in those roles either
All but two of the top 25 listed marketing chiefs in our CMO50 2015 have either been promoted locally, regionally or globally, or left the organisation entirely.
3. Consulting became a popular option
Five of our top 25 from 2015 are now actively working in a consulting capacity to other CMOs and organisations around marketing strategy.
4. Several made it to CEO
Rising up the leadership ranks is another pleasing trend from our CMO50 ranks. Six of our top 25 from 2015 are currently in CEO/managing director positions:
- Barni Evans (CEO, Sportsbet)
- Vittoria Shortt (CEO, ASB Bank)
- Kim Portrate (CEO, ThinkTV)
- Kent Davidson (managing director, Cross Hotels & Resorts)
- Richard Burns (managing director, CommSec)
- Cameron Pearson (founder and CEO, Virgil Assist).
- Allan Collins (global CMO, Domino’s)
5. CMOs gained broader remits
Across the 2015 list, five of our top 25 retain marketing leadership but are in expanded regional or international roles for the same or a different organisation today:
- Nick Reynolds (global VP and CMO, Hitachi Air Conditioning)
- Linda Duncombe (EVP marketing and product strategy, Citi New York)
- David Redhill ( Global CMO, Deloitte)
- Ed Smith (GM, integrated marketing, Amazon Europe)
6. Local CMOs switched around too
Then there are several from our top 25 in 2015 who’ve retained marketing leadership in new organisations. For example:
- Steve Brennen: Former senior director of marketing and retail innovation at eBay; now director of marketing A/NZ at Uber and Uber Eats
- Trisca-Scott Branagan: Former executive director of marketing at Deakin University; now head of marketing, institutional banking, at ANZ Bank
- Mark Reinke left Suncorp after a 14-year tenure that saw him elevated to chief customer experience officer. After a short stint with PwC’s CMO Advisory Board, he’s now managing director of consumer at News Corp. The role includes the CMO remit as well as driving wider audience engagement and growth.
7. 44 of the top 50 switched jobs
Looking across the entire 2015 CMO50 alumni, 44 of the CMOs listed are no longer in the roles they held at the time of our inaugural list.
8. 13 of the top 50 stayed with their company
Across the top 50, 13 remain at the same companies they worked for at the time of our inaugural CMO50 list. As previously noted, many have been elevated into other types of roles, including CEO, regional and global positions.
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