Human Centricity: Businesses need to prioritize human needs in their products. Mediocre offerings cannot thrive based on marketing alone, thus integrating a human-centric design approach is vital for sustainable growth and success in today's market.
For businesses to thrive today, a genuine focus on human needs and authentic value creation is essential. Mediocre products can no longer rely solely on marketing for success; true connection with customers and deep understanding of their wants lead to lasting growth. Companies must integrate a design mindset—centered on empathy and innovation—across all teams, ensuring every product truly serves people. This human-centric approach should be seen as a core value, not merely a strategy for profit. In turn, the alignment of financial success with the creation of meaningful solutions will help firms stand out in a competitive marketplace, especially against agile startups. Emphasizing real product quality and long-term relationships rather than short-term marketing tactics fosters a sustainable business model that resonates with the broader community's needs.
Innovation Mindset: To succeed in innovation, organizations must embrace experimentation, foster an entrepreneurial mindset, and align incentives to motivate long-term thinking, focusing on both breakthrough and incremental innovations.
Innovation often fails due to a lack of understanding and support within organizations. It’s essential to view these moments not as failures but as valuable experiments. Companies should create a culture that encourages experimentation and embraces long-term thinking. By fostering an entrepreneurial mindset and providing appropriate incentives, businesses can motivate teams to pursue breakthrough innovations while balancing short-term returns. This requires a commitment to gathering insights from experiments and designing visions for the future, focusing on societal trends. Ultimately, cultivating passionate, innovative teams can lead to transformative changes within industries and a better understanding of their consumers' needs.
Key Traits for Success: Success in innovation stems from balancing dreaming big with execution, emphasizing kindness, optimism, and curiosity to foster collaboration and learning in teams.
Success in business is not just about following processes; it's about embracing people and fostering creativity. Innovation requires a balance of dreaming big and executing ideas. Essential characteristics for success include kindness, which encourages trust and collaboration, optimism to persevere through failures, and curiosity to embrace diverse perspectives. When kindness prevails in a culture, individuals support one another, contributing to a productive and innovative environment. Optimism helps maintain focus on progress despite setbacks, while curiosity drives individuals to learn from various viewpoints, leading to innovative solutions. Ultimately, combining these traits cultivates an atmosphere where ideas thrive and everyone works together towards a common goal.
Embracing Failure: Failure should be viewed as a learning opportunity, promoting growth and innovation. Engaging with diverse perspectives and maintaining a balance in skills can inspire creativity and lead to great successes.
Embracing failure leads to growth and innovation in businesses. When employees try, fail, and learn, it creates valuable experiences that pave the way for future successes. Additionally, stepping outside the usual work environment and connecting with diverse ideas and cultures can inspire fresh perspectives. Achieving balance in skills and viewpoints, from analytical to intuitive thinking, helps navigate challenges while fostering creativity. Companies should encourage this exploration, as it energizes individuals and can lead to breakthrough ideas that greatly benefit the organization’s progress.
Growth Mindset: Awareness, continuous learning, and surrounding yourself with talented people are key to personal and professional growth. Balance innovation and familiarity, and love for others fosters resilience and success.
Awareness and continuous learning are crucial for personal and professional growth. Surrounding yourself with skilled individuals helps fill knowledge gaps and fosters team success. Balancing familiarity with innovation is essential in creating impactful products. Love for others, your work, and your team drives resilience and inspires motivation. Embrace humility, practice regularly, and aim high while enjoying the journey, as each achievement lays the groundwork for new dreams ahead.
Team Dynamics: Diverse skills and strong relationships in teams foster workplace happiness, enabling innovation and courage in change like Pepsi's successful rebranding.
Building a successful team requires diverse skills and a culture that fosters relationships, self-identity, and purpose. Happiness at work comes from strong connections with colleagues, which can lead to loyalty even in challenging conditions. Additionally, innovation must break free from the constraints of normalcy, allowing organizations to adapt and evolve with changing times. A recent rebranding effort, like Pepsi's, exemplifies the importance of courage in pursuing necessary changes while respecting a brand's heritage. Ultimately, fostering an environment of positivity not only enhances individual satisfaction but also creates a ripple effect that contributes to broader societal happiness.
Balancing Past and Future: Respecting history while looking to the future creates a clever balance in conversations. Engaging dialogue fosters inspiration and encourages a deeper exploration of ideas. The importance of community connection through subscriptions and reviews enhances the podcast experience.
In the conversation, there was an emphasis on finding a balance between honoring the past and looking towards the future. This approach is seen as clever and thoughtful, showing respect for history while also paving the way for innovation. It’s clear that both speakers enjoyed their dialogue and felt inspired by it. They acknowledged the depth of the topics discussed, hinting that there is so much more to explore and understand. The host encouraged listeners to engage with the content by subscribing and leaving reviews, highlighting the importance of connecting with the audience and fostering a community around the podcast. Ultimately, the exchange reflects a shared appreciation for dialogue that is enriching and energizing, with a clear invitation to keep the conversation going beyond this one discussion.
An innovation masterclass; how Mauro Porcini created a culture of innovation at Pepsi
Uncensored CMO
154 Episodes
Recent Episodes from Uncensored CMO
An emotional business: how the NFL harnesses the power of emotion to drive record audiences - Tim Ellis & Glenn Cole
The NFL is one of the biggest sporting entities in the world and it's reaching the biggest audiences it ever has. So in this episode, I'm joined by their CMO Tim Ellis, and Glenn Cole, co-founder of 72andSunny, their agency partner. We talk about the secrets behind a successful 7 year agency-client relationship, how to consistently make groundbreaking, emotional work, and what it takes to create a leading Super Bowl campaign.
Timestamps
00:00 - Intro
00:43 - Tim Ellis career journey
01:51 - How Tim met Glenn from 72andSunny
04:20 - Secret to a successful client agency relationship
08:21 - The compounding effect of a long term agency relationship
11:51 - Helmets off strategy
15:09 - You can’t make this stuff up campaign
17:40 - This is Football Country campaign
24:41 - Growing the audience for the NFL
27:22 - The Taylor Swift effect
34:32 - The growth of flag Football
39:30 - Growing the sport internationally
42:35 - How to make a great Super Bowl ad
49:07 - The power of emotion in advertising
An innovation masterclass; how Mauro Porcini created a culture of innovation at Pepsi
In this episode, we're talking about one of my favourite subjects; innovation. And who better to talk about it with than Mauro Porcini, who's the Chief Design Officer at PepsiCo, who is also the author of “The Human Side of Innovation”. We talk about what it takes to make innovation that succeeds, and importantly, what characteristics of people can make innovation that works, (and he really knows, because if you've read the book, there are 24 characteristics that he talks about that are essential).
Timestamps
00:00 - Intro
00:56 - The office of Pepsi’s Chief Design Officer
02:56 - How Mauro got into design
07:01 - Why you need to focus on people when innovating
16:29 - Why so many innovations fail
23:17 - Hiring the right people to foster innovation
25:42 - Key characteristics of successful innovators
33:50 - How to inspire kindness, optimism and curiosity
40:27 - Finding the balance in character traits
47:58 - The ideal recipe for innovation
51:26 - How to cultivate happiness at work
55:10 - Fighting the dictatorship of normal
57:00 - Pepsi Rebrand
David Droga on fearless creativity, founding Droga5 and becoming CEO of Accenture Song
Today I'm speaking with one of the most awarded creatives on the planet, David Droga, founder of iconic agency Droga5, and now CEO of Accenture Song, one of the largest creative groups in the world. Described by David himself as "therapy", this conversation spans topics from his start as life as a copywriter, how he created some of the most creative work on the planet and what it's like to transition from a creative to a CEO.
00:00 - Intro
01:58 - How David Droga got into advertising
07:36 - Working at Saatchi and Saatchi Singapore
12:19 - Pushing boundaries and making yourself uncomfortable
14:29 - Moving to Saatchi London
20:32 - Why David Droga started Droga5
25:55 - Droga5’s first campaign for Marc Ecko
31:23 - The first idea Droga5 presented: GE Olympics Campaign
38:30 - Droga’s Unicef campaign
43:25 - Droga’s Newcastle Brown Ale work
46:25 - Huggies Super Bowl Ad
48:44 - The Coinbase QR Code Super Bowl ad
52:22 - Characteristics of the best CMO’s Droga has worked with
56:23 - What it’s like being CEO of Accenture Song
Jon Evans Uncensored; what makes a great CMO and other lessons from 150 episodes with guest host Antonia Wade
In this episode, Antonia Wade, CMO of PwC, turns the tables and interviews our usual host, Jon Evans. From tax intern to marketing podcast host, we delve into Jon's journey through entrepreneurial endeavours at Britvic, through to being fired at Lucozade to finding a successful role in B2B at System1. We also discuss lessons Jon has learned from 150 podcast episodes with CMO's, agency creatives, founders and more.
Timestamps
- 00:00 - Intro
- 00:43 - Jon’s journey from tax to marketing
- 10:18 - Deciding if you’re more suited to corporate or entrepreneurial life
- 12:35 - Why Jon got fired at Lucozade
- 17:15 - Traits of a confident CMO
- 18:35 - How do you go from tax to research?
- 25:21 - Why Jon chose Richard Shotton as his first guest
- 27:10 - Lesson’s we can take from COVID times
- 30:20 - What makes a great CMO
- 36:49 - Do emotional ads really work?
- 39:44 - Favourite campaign that didn’t perform well with System1
- 41:19 - Is winning a Cannes Lion worth it or not?
- 44:42 - How important is purpose in advertising?
- 48:37 - Is AI the saviour of creativity?
- 52:35 - What has Jon learned about leadership from Uncensored CMO guests?
- 56:25 - Who would Jon love to have on the podcast?
- 57:34 - Happy 50th Birthday Jon!
Sir John Hegarty & Orlando Wood on the next creative revolution
Welcome to the 150th edition of the Uncensored CMO podcast. To celebrate, I'm joined by Orlando Wood, my colleague at System1 and author of Lemon and Look Out, with the legend that is Sir John Hegarty, iconic founder of BBH. Today we're talking about why they believe a creative revolution is necessary for the industry and why they are collaborating on a new course "Advertising Principles Explained" as the antidote.
Timestamps
00:00:00 - Intro
00:02:22 - Have Oasis created the most effective ad of all time?
00:16:13 - What can we learn from the history of advertising?
00:22:43 - The advertising landscape when John started BBH
00:28:04 - The next creative revolution - Advertising Principles Explained
00:32:32 - The scientific evidence for emotional advertising
00:38:38 - Who is doing the best, most effective advertising today?
00:41:58 - BBH work with Lynx / Axe
00:44:55 - Why we need more humour in advertising
00:49:32 - Advice to CMOs for selling in this approach
00:51:44 - When does Advertising Principles Explained launch?
00:54:42 - Campaigns that didn’t go well for Sir John Hegarty
00:57:11 - What role do planners have in the success of the creative
00:57:33 - How did they sell in flat Eric to Levi’s
00:58:34 - How to challenge clients to think differently
00:59:13 - What emerging trends will shape the future of advertising
01:00:05 - What skills will the CMO of the future need?
01:02:58 - What trend needs breaking today?
A Challenger Brand Workout with Gymbox Brand Director Rory McEntee
Regular listeners of the podcast will know how much I love challenger brands, and Gymbox are one of the best examples of a challenger brand really shaping up their industry. Rory McEntee is the Brand and Marketing Director for the challenger Gym brand, and is responsible for some of the most creative campaigns (which have often come along with a side helping of legal letters) that have really put Gymbox on the map.
Timestamps
00:00 - Intro
00:45 - Rory’s marketing background
02:27 - Rory’s time at Paddy Power
08:18 - Why Rory joined Gymbox
10:11 - The Gymbox founding story
14:01 - Reframing how people see the gym
16:05 - Using your constraints to your advantage
25:15 - Using every touch point as media
35:11 - Being obsessed with execution
39:27 - Forgiveness not permission with your marketing
46:43 - Dealing with taking risks
48:56 - Why the Gymbox culture is so important
53:44 - How does the business of a challenger gym work
Brand of the year CMO on Innovation, TED talks and what B2B can learn from B2C - Rebecca Hirst
Rebecca Hirst is the Chief Marketing Officer of EY UK, a TEDx Speaker and a winner of Campaign's 40 over 40. Before joining EY and making the switch to B2B, Rebecca was Marketing Director at Samsung and working on brands including Coca-Cola, Schweppes, Kellogg’s, Kleenex, Microsoft, IBM, United Airlines, Lufthansa and Star Alliance.
Timestamps
00:00 - Intro
00:54 - Winning Campaign’s 40 over 40
04:33 - Being a Ted Talk speaker
08:01 - Rebecca’s time at Samsung
13:08 - Why Jon loves being a challenger brand
17:08 - Working at Coca Cola vs Pepsi
23:00 - How Rebecca transitioned into a B2B role
25:46 - The power of compounding
32:03 - How is B2B marketing different to B2C?
37:36 - How to influence change at a large organisation
46:12 - How EY became UK’s strongest brand
52:14 - Rebecca’s advice to young marketers
Characters, humour & disasters: how GEICO changed the insurance game
Michelle Moscone is the VP of Brand and Content at GEICO, one of the most famous insurance brands in the US. Michele's career has spanned from project management at some of the biggest agencies in the world to leading creative at an organisation where creativity is at its core. In this episode we talk about why humour is so important for advertising and why we're so afraid to use it.
Timestamps
00:00 - Intro
01:08 - Michelle Moscone background and career
08:18 - How Michelle landed at GEICO
11:20 - Why are there so many characters in insurance?
21:42 - When insurance goes wrong
32:34 - Why humour is so important
36:37 - Why are we afraid of humour?
41:16 - GEICO’s greatest hits
49:51 - How to get the best out of your agency
55:43 - Michelle’s favourite GEICO campaigns
The Mischief mindset behind the most creative agency in the US with Greg Hahn
Greg Hahn is the Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer of Mischief. One of the hottest agencies in the world doing work for the likes of Tinder, Tubi and Coors Light. Previous to Mischief, Greg was the CCO of BBDO NY. During that time BBDO was recognized as the most awarded agency in the world by the Gunn Report. It was also named Agency of the Year at The One Show, ADC and The Webbys multiple times.
Timestamps
- 00:00:00 - Intro
- 00:01:10 - How did Greg Hahn get into the advertising industry?
- 00:02:42 - 14 years at BBDO
- 00:03:52 - Getting fired from BBDO
- 00:06:24 - From being fired to creating Mischief
- 00:11:08 - The extraordinary cost of being dull
- 00:14:11 - Why do so many companies play it safe?
- 00:16:36 - Winning a Grand Effie with Tubi
- 00:19:29 - The Mischief mindset
- 00:26:21 - The opposite of a good idea can also be a good idea
- 00:26:59 - How can you use you disadvantage as your advantage?
- 00:30:50 - How can you change the context and reframe things
- 00:34:10 - What would you do if you weren’t afraid
- 00:38:14 - How to make the best out of being fired
- 00:49:24 - What Mischief believes in
- 00:53:49 - How Mischief hires great people
- 00:55:29 - How does Mischief stay sharp as they grow?
- 00:56:29 - Choosing the right clients to work with
- 00:58:55 - What’s next for Mischief?
- 01:00:10 - Hardest part of growing and scaling Mischief
- 01:03:27 - Advice for starting an agency from scratch
How DoorDash built a $40 billion business in 10 years with Kofi Amoo Gottfried, CMO
Kofi Amoo-Gottfried is the CMO of DoorDash, a delivery service valued at over $40 billion and dominates over 65% of the market for restaurant delivery. Prior to DoorDash, Kofi was VP of Brand & Consumer Marketing at Facebook, having previously served as the company’s Head of Consumer Marketing for internet.org.
Timestamps
00:00 - Intro
01:03 - What it’s like judging a Cannes lion
02:34 - DoorDash Valentines Day Campaign
04:54 - Kofi’s background
08:56 - Starting an agency in Africa for Publicis
13:41 - From agency to brand side
15:13 - Kofi’s role at Facebook/Meta
18:11 - From Facebook to DoorDash
28:10 - Navigating through COVID at DoorDash
33:24 - How DoorDash prepared to IPO
37:23 - How successful have DoorDash been post IPO?
39:12 - How DoorDash stay on top of innovation
44:41 - DoorDash’s Sesame Street Super Bowl ad
48:40 - DoorDash’s most recent Super Bowl campaign
54:00 - In house vs external agencies
55:51 - The culture at DoorDash