Insights From a Trifecta of (Female) CMOs -- Part 1: Alicia Tillman – SAP

I had the good fortune to spontaneously interview one of the keynoters, Eric Reynolds, then chief marketing officer of The Clorox Company, at the ANA's Masters of Marketing conference last year. I thought it would be interesting to speak with the new chief marketing officer (CMO) — Reynolds was recently appointed executive vice president — to get an update at this year's event.

As it turns out, the new CMO is a woman — one of the many speaking at or attending the conference. Reflective of its remit to be more gender-balanced, ANA was successful in drawing female senior marketers to this year's Masters of Marketing confluence. While not quite yet an embarrassment of riches, it did give me the opportunity to make this episode of Insider InSites a curation of three great leaders across tech, media, and CPG, who happen to be female chief marketing officers. Each is impressive in her own right, with tremendous takeaways to share. But the added layer they offered was advice on how to achieve these heights while — reminiscent of Bob Thaves' quote on Ginger Rogers dancing with Fred Astaire — moving "backward and in high heels."

In this three-part companion topline to the one podcast (which you can listen to in its entirety here), you'll first hear from SAP's Alicia Tillman (pictured below), cited by Forbes in 2019 as the world's 14th most influential CMO — and who keynoted at the conference; next, our Clorox Company legend for this year, Stacey Grier; and, finally, Alysia Borsa, who upped the ante as CDMO (chief marketing and data officer), speaking on the marriage of data and marketing for Meredith Corporation.

The following has been edited for clarity and length. Subscribe to MediaVillage's Insider InSites (just named a top podcast for digital advertising professionals!) everywhere: Stitcher, Spotify, iHeartRadio, GooglePodcasts, Apple, TuneIn... and YouTube.