The 50 most innovative CMOs in the world in 2017
Marketing executives play a far more active role in the C-suite and the boardroom today than ever before. They wear business hats, chart out ways to use data and technology at scale, and drive actual, measurable business results.
With marketers' positions within their organizations becoming more important than ever, Business Insider is celebrating the global marketers rising to the occasion with the second installment of our annual ranking of the 50 most innovative CMOs in the world.
Scroll on to see which marketers made the cut.
Methodology
Our selection criteria are by no means scientific. We relied on our reporting and an advisory council. We also solicited nominations from our readers and included some of their picks. We tried to cast our net wider than most other similar lists, acknowledging leaders and companies from Europe, for instance, whose brands have increasingly been encroaching on the US and beyond in recent years.
Our ranking was compiled by Business Insider's advertising reporter Tanya Dua and advertising editor Mike Shields. We also drew on inputs by an advisory council of independent experts: BrandSimple Consulting founder Allen Adamson; Sleuth Brand Consulting founder Shireen Jiwan; Vivaldi Group founder and CEO Erich Joachimsthaler; MediaLink chairman and CEO Michael Kassan, and The Talent Business global CEO Gary Stolkin.
CMOs were ranked based on a number of different attributes, including:
- The Connectors. Marketing executives who have effectively married art, science, and technology in their campaigns.
- The Rebels. Executives who are taking their marketing efforts in a different direction than their peers.
- The Storytellers. Marketing executives who have mastered the art of storytelling across platforms.
- The Breakouts. Executives at the helm of newer brands who have demonstrated how to disrupt traditional companies.
Other factors we took into consideration included the size of the executive's brand and how much the brand footprint has grown over the past year, the extent of their role and responsibilities, their influence in the marketing and advertising industry beyond their own brand, and whether their marketing efforts have driven their company's performance.