The explosion of channels like social media is fundamentally changing the way customers* interact with each other, and how they interact with brands.
It’s a double-edged sword. On the one hand, there are unprecedented opportunities to reach, engage, and listen to customers at scale. On the other, it puts power firmly in the customers’ hands, making it much more difficult to shape and control the conversation.
Companies are working hard to meet the challenges (and harness the opportunities) of this new world – and leading the charge is the Chief Marketing Officer. No longer just the branding arm of the business – CMOs must now be the organization’s eyes and ears. They must serve as stewards of customer experience, and increasingly, a driver of company-wide transformation.
Partnering with Forbes and LinkedIn, we looked into what makes a highly effective marketing leader in today’s fascinating landscape.
The World’s Most Influential CMOs 2017 report identifies and recognizes the 50 CMOs defining the future of marketing – along with an instructive look at what brought them there.
*A customer is no longer the person paying for a product or a service. A customer is anyone who touches your brand – this includes your paying customers, but also your investors, your employees, your reporters, etc.
Given the pace of change in the world, nothing is guaranteed – even the survival of well established companies. Since 2000, 40% of the Fortune 500 have disappeared, and in another decade, 40% of those left will follow.
But no matter how quickly and drastically the business landscape changes, one truth will always remain: fortune favors the bold.
This year’s World’s Most Influential CMOs report recognizes some of the most creative and forward-thinking figures in marketing. The ones who dare to embrace change both on a personal and corporate level. The leaders unafraid to stand up for what they believe in.
We’re proud to partner with Forbes and LinkedIn to recognize these individuals and provide a blueprint for the marketing leaders of tomorrow.
