Secrets from CMOs Who Beat the Odds

SPEAKER:
Greg Welch
Global Practice Leader,
Consumer Goods & Services Practice
SpencerStuart

 

 

 

INTRODUCING THE SPEAKER:
Don Schultz
Professor Emeritus-in-Service of Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University and President of Agora, Inc.

Business-to-business marketing is a demanding enough discipline in good times, let alone in the wake of a global economic crisis. Wouldn’t it be great to know what skills, tactics and best practices the world’s best marketers used during their careers to attain their lofty positions in today’s tough marketing environment?

Learn their secrets and more when SpencerStuart’s Greg Welch, one of the world’s top CMO recruiters, keynotes BMA’s MarketingMasters Luncheon Seminar on Wednesday, Dec. 3, at The Standard Club.

Welch is the global practice leader for the Consumer Goods & Services Practice at SpencerStuart, one of the leading executive search consulting firms in the world. He is also the founder of the firm’s Marketing Officer Practice, which in the last three years alone has conducted more than 1,600 senior-level marketing searches, including assignments for Caremark Rx, Con-way, DHL, Ecolab and Protection One, to name a few.

In his presentation, “Proven Secrets From CMOs Who Have Beaten the Odds,” Welch will tell marketing professionals at all levels of their careers—from managers to directors to vice presidents—the challenges that C-level marketers face today and how some of the best in the business overcame those hurdles and managed to thrive.

It would be difficult to find someone better equipped to talk about this subject than Welch, who launched SpencerStuart’s annual CMO Tenure Study in 2004. While tenure has increased from 24 months when the study began to about 28 months today, the bar of expectations for CMOs only continues to rise.

“Today’s CMOs are being challenged to navigate uncharted waters of organizational and market complexity, understand and take advantage of an array of new media options, and quantify marketing’s contribution to top- and bottom-line growth,” Welch explained. “Adding to these demands are the facts that CMOs face increased expectations from their CEOs and that nearly everyone has an opinion about what good marketing is and what the CMO should be doing.”

The pressure for CMOs to deliver results quickly and measurably is very real. Welch will share his firsthand experience working with many of the world’s top CMOs—C-level executives who have managed to excel in the role—and the attributes they all developed during the course of their careers.

“These leaders have the right combination of skills and competencies to navigate the internal and external pressures that come with the job,” Welch said.

Over the course of his interactive presentation, Welch will address:

• The tumultuous market and the issues facing today’s CMOs
• The skills most needed and most lacking among CMOs
• How to assess your own skills and competencies and truly understand what your company really needs from you
• How to build your own brand as a CMO for the benefit of your company
• How to build deep and trustworthy allies inside the company
• The top 10 steps to achieving success as a marketing leader

Note that this luncheon is being held on Dec. 3, the first Wednesday of the month, instead of the first Thursday, which is the usual timing. This event is expected to reach capacity early, so sign up soon. To register, go here, email Marla Schrager or call her at 312-943-8040.

About Greg Welch

Greg Welch serves as the global practice leader for Spencer Stuart’s Consumer Goods & Services Practice. He is also a member of the Marketing Officer Practice, which he helped to launch in 2002.

Welch joined Spencer Stuart in 1998 following a successful career in sales and marketing. In his last role prior to Spencer Stuart, he served as customer vice president for sales and integrated logistics at Nabisco Foods. Additionally, he brings previous experience in classic brand management, field sales and trade marketing with Colgate-Palmolive, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Nestle Foods Corporation.

Prior to assuming his current practice leadership role, Welch led Spencer Stuart’s 80-person Chicago office. He also has served as a member of the firm’s nominations committee and was a recipient of the firm’s annual Lou Rieger quality award. His personal areas of focus include consumer goods manufacturers, restaurants and a broad range of retailers. His diverse client list includes companies like Wal-Mart Stores, The Hershey Company, Diageo, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Con-way Transportation Services, Yahoo!, The Allstate Corporation, Pfizer and Novartis, to name a few.

Welch has performed more than 100 searches since joining the firm and is recognized as an expert in the recruitment of senior-level marketing executives. He co-founded the M50 marketing group, created Spencer Stuart’s annual “CMO Summit,” and has been featured on CNBC television and in The Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek. He is a member of the Association of Executive Search Consultants, the American Marketing Association and an active board director of Springboard, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of inner city youths, and TCG, a private organization that designs and implements non-qualified executive benefit plans.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University and completed the Cornell Food Executive Program. He and his wife, Sandy, reside in Winnetka, Ill., with their four children.

About Don Schultz

Don E. Schultz is presently Professor Emeritus-in-Service of Integrated Marketing Communications at The Medill School, Northwestern University. He is also President of the consulting firm, Agora, Inc. both in Evanston, Illinois. Additionally, he is a Visiting Professor at Cranfield School of Management, Bedfordshire, UK, Adjunct Professor at Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia. Additionally, he has served as a Visiting Professor at Tsinghua University and Cheong Kong University, both in Beijing, China, the Hanken School of Economics, Helsinki, Finland, and Hull University, Hull, United Kingdom.