- I think all companies that, you know,
really are future-forward are building
their own data agility but
also democratizing their data.
That's what creates an
empowered, enabled organization.
- Hey, I'm Sarah Franklin,
and welcome to "Connections."
I'm here in Davos, Switzerland
at the World Economic Forum
to chat with Jane Wakely.
She's the Chief Consumer
and Marketing Officer
for PepsiCo, so there's lots to discuss
about how she is approaching 2023.
for being here today on "Connections."
- The role of the CMO, what is it now
and how's it been changing?
- That's a great question.
I would say, I always start with,
there's one thing that's stayed the same,
and that's the role of the
CMO is to bring the consumer,
the people we serve, to the
heart of everything we do.
But I think there's three things
which have evolved
considerably in my 30 years
The first is that growth is no longer
just about sales and profit.
Growth is about making a difference
to the planet and to
the society we live in.
The second is, of course, the
digital and data environment
enables us as marketeers
to achieve amazing things.
Because you know, reach,
content, and conversion
have all come together in
this digital sweet spot.
The third is the battle for talent.
when I was first an
assistant brand manager
you could be master of all
the things that you purveyed.
These days, there's so many specialisms.
There's such a fragmented
media and data world
that you need a much more
specialist array of talent.
So those are the three key things
which I think have evolved.
- Zooming in on the first one
and how you make an impact,
let's talk about a brand for good.
- At PepsiCo, we have
a corporate strategy,
a company strategy, is to win with pep+.
And pep+ is an end-to-end transformation
from our agriculture, to our value chain,
to the positive choices for the consumer,
and we're looking at some
very audacious goals.
And it's our job as
marketeers, as innovators,
as designers, to find the link
between those corporate
commitments and our brands
and make them relevant
for the consumer, right?
As storytellers, as innovators,
I think, you know, we have
a very exciting opportunity
to not only meet consumer needs
but create consumer movements of change
by making our stories relatable,
making our actions relatable
to the consumers we serve.
- Here in Davos, a big
topic is sustainability,
and it's something that
you've really championed.
you reach, I think, a
billion people every day
in over 200 countries, that's insane.
That's right.
- So how important
is that message of sustainability
in engaging all of those people?
- Our consumers all over
the world are telling us
they expect more from brands,
they want more from brands,
and they want to understand and trust
the people behind the brands.
But what we know is
there's a considerable gap,
between what people would like to do
And I think it's our job as innovators,
as marketeers, to help
bridge that say-do gap.
So for example, at PepsiCo,
we've got incredible
brands like SodaStream,
where we're actually personalizing
and gamifying, you know,
creating your own flavor
of fizzy drink, carbonated drink.
And completely removing, for example,
plastics in the value chain.
- You're making a big impact.
How does that also surface
in your leadership as a CMO?
- So I think impact as a CMO comes
as partly being a, what I
call a growth architect,
someone that helps vision to the future,
bring the outside in,
bring the future back.
And the second part is really
being a great connector,
having that vision that
you're aiming towards
and empowering teams to
go deliver their best.
That's what a CMO's job is.
- So when you're architecting the future,
what do you see ahead of us in 2023?
- I mean, the one thing
that we always know
is that our predictions
are likely to be wrong.
We need to build in resilience.
And I think there's
four, I have the four Ps
that I have as insights and
learnings on how to do that.
and putting people and humans
at the heart of what you do.
I think a lot of agility can
come from not defining things
by rules and governance
but by having a purpose,
a bigger set of values that
enables you to empower others.
The third is pivot and performance.
And there, I think we all
learned through COVID,
you know, you have to really
look at things real-time.
You have to pivot resources
very quickly towards tailwinds,
towards the future-facing
growth opportunities.
And finally, I would
say, make it real-time.
Make it, have a pulse to it.
So, you know, again,
through COVID and through
the various crises we've faced,
I think we've all had to up our game
in terms of real-time
consumer feedback, listening,
social listening, and you know,
it's evident on anyone
in a consumer department
to have that real-time connection
with the people they serve.
- You've talked a lot about
the science of growth.
Tell me about what that is
and how it helps you
understand consumer behavior.
- I think with the access,
the amazing access we have to data now,
if you can look at billions of
behavioral patterns in data,
you can see repeatable patterns.
And if you can distill
those repeatable patterns,
it means that you're creating
patterns you can produce again
so you can create more sustainable growth.
I also think that there's many, many forms
of behavioral science that
can inform the way we think.
So at PepsiCo, we use system one thinking.
We believe that consumers
essentially take most
of their decisions
emotionally, not rationally,
and therefore, neuroscience
has been incredible
at unlocking our ability to understand
how people react to what we're showing,
whether it's a full consumer proposition
or an advert, for example.
You know, understanding, does it move you?
Does it break through the clutter
by creating an emotional response?
That's what I mean by
the science of growth.
We don't need to just use our
own intuition and judgment.
That's an important part of the job,
but we can match it with science
that helps us be even better marketeers.
- And how much of that
is dependent on data?
All of us are talking about that
- Building that first-party data.
- Well, data is everything.
in the machine, isn't it?
- Data's the new black, right?
So, of course, there are
many, many data sources.
First-party data is the
ultimate source of data.
And I think all companies that, you know,
really are future-forward
and thinking future-back are building
their own data agility but
also democratizing their data.
You know, it's no good just
the exec co having access
You need every single
person in your front line
to have their finger on the pulse
in terms of the real-time
data that they can learn from
and connect the dots with.
That's what creates an
empowered, enabled organization.
- What is your take on
that from a standpoint
of organizing your teams
and having global data,
global campaigns, but everything
being very effective and efficient?
What's that balance between
efficiency and effectiveness?
- PepsiCo products and brands range
to, of course, Pepsi, Gatorade, Quaker.
We have a very, very large portfolio.
We also operate in 200
countries around the world.
And I would say, there is no such thing
There's only local consumers,
and ultimately, you're
there to win locally
with the consumer and
customer that you're serving.
But there are universal
truths that bind us together.
And actually, if you can find
one of those universal truths,
often it crosses generations, cultures.
You know, then you can
ladder up to something
that can then travel more.
- Where do you find time for innovation?
How do you find these
pockets of innovation
where things are really effective
as far as marketing tactics?
- Innovation is everywhere.
And I think when organizations, you know,
it's because they've connected the dots.
They've connected communities
to learn from each other.
I'm a big believer that
in a global company,
you know, no one's facing
an issue for the first time.
Somebody has faced that issue before.
There's all sorts of learning and insight
that if you can connect the dots and start
with that incredible foundation,
it gives you a great springboard forward.
- Thanks for tuning in on Salesforce+.
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