We’re back with another episode of Listen In. This week, we’re featuring a conversation between Ayzenberg’s Matt Bretz and cultural expert, keynote speaker, author and CEO of Talk To Jess, Jess Weiner.
About Listen In: Each week on Listen In, Bretz and a rotating cast of hosts from Ayzenberg interview experts in the field of marketing and advertising to explore uncharted territory together. The goal is to provide the a.network audience with actionable insights, enabling them to excel in their field.
Chief marketing officers who own a specific set of activities like innovation road maps, customer experience and sales initiatives are more than twice as confident as the rest of their peers that they’re making an impact in the C-suite. That’s according to a new study by Deloitte and The CMO Club on the tasks that are best aligned with the CMO’s core competencies.
Growing expectations and evolving roles have changed the scope of the CMO. If CMO’s are going to be positioned for greater C-suite influence, the data suggest that the CMO role needs course correction given some are focused on owning the wrong things. For example, when asked which activities they wished to own, CMOs said business partnerships (69 percent), corporate strategy (67 percent) and public relations (56 percent). Yet the study found there’s a low correlation between ownership of these activities and CMO impact on organization.
CMOs who focus on the following four areas are twice as confident as the rest of their peers about impacting their company’s strategic direction: innovation road maps; company mission, vision and values; customer relationships and experiences; and sales processes and territories.
Although the study found that setting the innovation road map is strongly correlated with CMO impact, currently only 10 percent of respondents own this high-value activity, while just five percent want to own it in the future. One way CMOs can drive the innovation road map is to use their knowledge of the customer to create innovative offerings, design, partnerships and experimentation.
Crafting company mission, vision and values that are connected to a brand’s customers is another high-value activity correlated with CMO impact. Still, just seven percent of those surveyed wish to own this task.
While 41 percent of CMOs want to own customer experience, another brand building and growth-driving activity, in the future, only 21 percent of them own it today. The discrepancy is starker when it comes to owning customer relationships—16 percent of CMOs own the activity today and only five percent wish to add it to their purview.
Lastly, the study found that CMO impact and ownership of lower-funnel activities such as purchase behavior are strongly correlated. Despite this, few CMOs wish to own the sales process and sales territory, at four percent and three percent, respectively. Whereas currently, 50 percent of respondents are accountable for awareness as their core success metric.
To produce greater C-suite impact, the authors of the study suggest CMOs should lead discussions on the consumer, ensure the brand values and mission align with its messaging, collaborate with chief sales officers to define customer-oriented processes and focus on the results of their role instead of their title.
The findings are based on responses from 400 CMOs across the world with an average of nine years as CMO or head of marketing experience.
Flexible working may actually increase work and family-related conflict, reduce opportunities for face-to-face networking and increase a businesses’ bias for rewarding employees who are physically in the office.
Why it matters: Many believe that remote work will enable women to maintain full-time jobs and avoid losing traction in their careers during their caregiving years.
Experts believe that if the Facebook boycotts continue, media buyers will redistribute wealth to Google and Amazon, who are able to provide smaller businesses the targeting that they value from Facebook.
Why it matters: Over 1,000 advertisers have pulled spend from Facebook amid an uproar over its content policies.
San Francisco agency Traction permanently shut its doors and switched to working remotely after adopting behaviors and tools that eliminated the need for face-to-face interaction, such as Miro, an online collaborative whiteboard platform.
Why it matters:AdAge’s research shows that agency employees believe teleworking allows for cost savings and help with childcare.
As some states started to lift restrictions, the value of retail sales rebounded to about pre-pandemic levels but the trend may reverse amid a resurgence of cases and closures.
Why it matters: The Labor Department announced that first-time applications for unemployment insurance last week were higher than predicted and remain about double the peak in the 2008 recession.
For the first time, creators can enroll their personal Instagram accounts and use Instagram Shopping features to promote their own products as well as brands’ products.
Why it matters: Influencers who were part of the beta test of Instagram’s new shopping features are frustrated about the limited number of brands available to tag and the lack of affiliate links.
To accurately measure responses to ads during COVID-19, marketers should couple brand metrics with other behavior signals and test first-party, second-party or third-party audiences prior to launching a campaign.
Why it matters: The IAB’s recent research revealed that less than one-third of marketers felt very confident in the key performance indicators (KPIs) they’re using to measure their success.
In addition to write-downs for unsold inventory and lower online profits, retailers like Macy’s and Target must deal with higher expenses related to ecommerce amid the pandemic.
Why it matters: RSR Research estimates that typical online orders cost retailers about 10 to 15 percent more than in-store purchases.
In honor of its 40th anniversary, Rubik’s launched a TikTok challenge called #CubeAtHome, which invited fans to share videos of themselves solving the puzzle and generated over 17 million views.
Why it matters: The brand has seen a resurgence in interest as people are stuck at home, leading Rubik’s to launch mobile-friendly solution guides on its website.
Ernst & Young CMO for the Americas, Toni Clayton-Hine, says the company pivoted its pre-pandemic ad campaign into a content series of five-minute soundbites featuring clients’ top-requested topics.
Why it matters: Over a three-week period, the video received 1.5 million views and moved people from awareness and eventually to Ernst & Young’s website for more information.
Brands are working hard to find a new way to buy media that doesn’t rely as heavily, or at all, on Facebook. Because the stakes are too high, brands probably won’t resume Facebook advertising until the company revises its hate speech policies.
Why it matters: Facebook’s hands-off approach has exposed the importance of contextual relevance, something many brands have long ignored on programmatic advertising.
Oliver Fuselier, managing director and executive producer at Great Guns USA, believes US advertisers suppress true creative production due to an inability to look beyond the American perspective and because they use the same talent to shoot ads.
Why it matters: Adobe research found that 61 percent of US consumers value diversity in advertising and that they put their trust and money behind that belief.
While navigating COVID, differentiators should not try to change strategies, but instead reduce costs quickly, to a point, and focus on their strengths.
Why it matters: A report from the Becker Friedman Institute of the University of Chicago found that 42 percent of jobs lost so far due to COVID could be permanent losses, which could lead to a demand crisis like in 2008 and therefore a much slower recovery.
People are spending more on products that keep them closer to home, and between March and April, 30 percent of new online buyers repeated their online purchase habit.
Why it matters: As per Nielsen, COVID-19 is one of the few times in history when much of the global consumer population is behaving alike.
Scared about brands getting burned, Facebook boycott organizers are demanding Facebook provide transparency about where ads run and provide refunds when content appears near controversial material.
Why it matters: Last week, Facebook released the results of an independent audit performed by the Media Rating Council, which confirmed that Facebook abides by industry-set content standards. Facebook also announced stricter rules against promoting white nationalism.
Different ways to apply gamification to initiatives include playable ad units, augmented reality-powered campaigns, incentivized in-app ads and interactive videos.
Why it matters: At a time when people are stuck inside, brands should leverage hard-wired human desires to compete and earn prizes as they pivot digital.
Conviva analyzed the 920 top Instagram accounts and over 28,700 stories and found that the most effective users of Instagram Stories were micro-influencers or those with 10,000 to 50,000 followers.
Why it matters: According to the report, having eight or more frames in your Instagram Stories and turning on replies help increase reach rates.
This week in leadership updates, Zendesk hires Chad Pearce as VP of Asia-Pacific marketing, McLaren Health Care appoints its first chief diversity officer, Geffen Records names Nicole Bilzerian executive VP, Warner Music UK promotes Victor Aroldoss to SVP of international marketing and more.
Zendesk Hires Chad Pearce As Vice President Of APAC Marketing
Zendesk has named Chad Pearce VP of APAC marketing. Pearce will be responsible for Zendesk’s regional marketing strategy for APAC’s commercial and enterprise businesses.
Pearce comes from Microsoft APAC, where he served as CMO for over two years. Prior to that, he held various leadership roles at Salesforce and Fuji Xerox.
McLaren Health Appoints Kimberly Keaton Williams As First Chief Diversity Officer
McLaren Health Care has named its VP of talent acquisition and development, Kimberly Keaton Williams, chief diversity officer, the first position of its kind at the company. Keaton Williams will hold both roles.
Keaton Williams has been with McLaren since 2018. Prior to McLaren, she worked in senior leadership roles at Kelly Services and Tata Technologies.
Geffen Records Names Nicole Bilzerian Executive Vice President
According to Variety, Universal Music Group-owned Geffen Records is bringing on Nicole Bilzerian in the newly created position of executive VP to expand the multi-genre label’s marketing operations.
Bilzerian joined Interscope Geffen A&M’s marketing department in 2013 and was later promoted to SVP, head of urban marketing.
Warner Music UK Promotes Victor Aroldoss To Senior Vice President Of International Marketing
Warner Music UK’s general manager of international marketing, Victor Aroldoss, has accepted a promotion as SVP of international marketing.
In his new role, Aroldoss will spearhead Warner Music UK’s international marketing and help break rising talent outside of the UK.
Mark Anthony Brands Senior Vice President Of Marketing Sanjiv Gajiwala Resigns
After six years of working with Mark Anthony Brands’ Mike’s Hard Lemonade and White Claw, senior VP of marketing Sanjiv Gajiwala is stepping down. In 2014, Gajiwala was named VP of marketing and thereafter promoted to his current position in 2016.
The marketing leadership team at Mark Anthony Brands will report to president Phil Rosse while the company finds a replacement.
CareFirst Hires Mack McGee As Vice President And Chief Marketing Officer
CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield is bringing on Mack McGee as VP and CMO to oversee the company’s communications, customer experience and media relations.
McGee comes from SC&H Group, where he served as VP and CMO for three years. Prior to SC&H, McGee was executive VP and principal at Groove Commerce.
Bed Bath & Beyond Appoints Neil Lick As Senior Vice President, Owned Brands
According to Forbes, Bed Bath & Beyond has named Neil Lick as senior VP of owned brands to lead a newly formed team responsible for developing and launching owned brands in 2021.
Lick has 22 years of experience in merchandising roles at Williams Sonoma.
Cartamundi Names Ann Viaene As First Global Chief Marketing Officer
Cartamundi has hired its first global CMO, Ann Viaene, former Kraft Foods’ director of chocolate brands in Benelux.
Prior to Kraft Foods, Viaene was CMO of Armonea.
WarnerMedia Promotes Jackie Gagne To Senior Vice President Of Multicultural Marketing
HBO VP of multicultural marketing, Jackie Gagne, has accepted a promotion as SVP of multicultural marketing for WarnerMedia. She will lead the launch of audience hubs on HBO Max.
As VP of multicultural marketing Gagne launched a variety of diversity initiatives through HBO POV, the HBO Asian Pacific American Visionaries short film competition and the “Our Stories to Tell” campaign.
Doritos is inviting consumers feeling quarantine fatigue to create the brand’s first television spot since the pandemic for a chance to win $150,000 and appear on television. The winning spot will be aired on the first Sunday of the NFL season in September.
Doritos announced the #CrashFromHome campaign on its social media channels with a 76-second video spot showcasing previous quirky user-generated content and incentives to participate.
Users can incorporate any of the 11 branded assets on the Crash From Home microsite including the Doritos logo, an image of Doritos and the Doritos crunch sound effect, then upload their video through a form on the site.
Doritos will form a compilation of the best entries into one television spot which will air during week one games of the NFL Kickoff, on September 13. Top entries will also be highlighted on Doritos social channels. The #CrashFromHome contest is open to US residents aged 18 and over from July 15 to July 28.
The campaign is an iteration of Doritos’ popular annual “Crash the Super Bowl” competition, which called on fans to create spots and upped the ante each subsequent year between 2006 and 2016. Since launching, the competition has seen over 36,000 entries and awarded over $7 million in prize money.
In May, Doritos partnered with Twitch Rivals to launch the Doritos Disruptor Series, an influencer-led series of 10 esports events across five different video games, giving streamers the chance to win $10,000 and free Doritos for a year. Call of Duty: Warzone streamer Tyler “TeePee” Polchow hosted the first two events on his channel.
In May, some countries thought the worst of the pandemic was near as they proceeded to reopen. Now, as cases return to peak levels, restrictions are being reimposed, forcing many back into lockdowns. GlobalWebIndex set out to understand how this setback has shaped consumers’ outlook on the pandemic. Its fifth coronavirus research wave, conducted between June 29 and July 2, across 18 countries, reveals changes in purchasing decisions, travel plans and sentiments regarding the Black Lives Matter movement and non-COVID-related advertising.
Across all markets surveyed, 80 percent of people—particularly Gen Z, millennials and the higher income group—say they’re delaying big purchases because of COVID-19, likely due in part to 60 percent of respondents reporting that the pandemic has affected their job. For example, 27 percent have taken pay cuts and 24 percent have experienced a reduction in hours. Fewer than 10 percent say they’re not making any financial changes.
The number of people who say they’re spending more time consuming entertainment and social media content has sharply declined since the first two waves of GlobalWebIndex’s research. Yet 24 percent of respondents say that after the pandemic is over, they’ll watch more videos, 23 percent will watch more content on streaming services and 20 percent will use social media services and messaging apps more.
Other activities expected to continue post-pandemic include shopping online more often (50 percent), having more family time (29 percent), watching more news coverage (23 percent) and cooking more (23 percent).
Respondents are divided on the reopening of large indoor venues: 40 percent oppose it and the same amount supports it. In the US, 53 percent oppose it and in the UK, 55 percent oppose it.
Based on five activities GlobalWebIndex asked about—cinema, bars, fast-food, restaurants and gyms—nearly 70 percent expect to make changes to how they spend their time outside of the house. Forty-two percent say they’ll eat at restaurants less often and 38 percent will go to the movies less frequently.
Regarding vacations, consumers don’t expect to go anywhere far anytime soon. In the next 12 months, 48 percent of respondents said they’ll take a domestic vacation and 32 percent said they’ll plan a local staycation. Just nine percent would go on a long international trip and 13 percent on a short international trip.
When asked what brands should be doing to support the Black Lives Matter movement, 85 percent said a brand should be doing at least one of the eight initiatives GlobalWebIndex mentioned, with the strongest support for advocating for local and national community initiatives, taking a stand on social media and ensuring diversity in leadership teams. The protests have made racial justice a more important matter for around 20 percent.
Since the outbreak began, marketers have revised or canceled campaigns to avoid appearing tone-deaf. But the survey found that just 13 percent of consumers disapprove of brands advertising as normal. Thirty-six percent approve of brands running COVID-related ads.
A little over half of consumers expressed a strong interest in permanently teleworking. Remote learning is also appealing as 60 percent of Gen Z and millennials are extremely or very interested in enrolling in online learning courses.
Countries that have been able to flatten the curve, including Spain, France and the UK, are recording their lowest levels of concern about their own domestic crises. And despite a resurgence in cases, the US saw a five-point drop since May. Whereas concerns in Australia and China are starting to spike again.
The findings are based on a survey among 15,271 internet users aged 16-64.
TikTok’s highly intuitive algorithm produces a personalized video feed and its suite of creativity tools allows limitless originality and potential for videos to go viral.
Why it matters: 75 percent of Gen Z in the Midwest report feeling overlooked because of where they live, making TikTok a promising avenue for brands to build rapport with this audience.
With live sports canceled, the Jacksonville Jaguars started providing educational material for fans including video content featuring at-home workouts and actual players reading books to kids.
Why it matters: To promote their new content, the Jaguars sent out a weekly newsletter titled “Quarantine Content,” which saw an 8-12 percent lift on open rates.
Bozoma Saint John was offered a nearly $7 million payday to become CMO of Netflix. She came from Endeavor, where her contract was set to expire at the end of 2020.
Why it matters: Saint John’s move follows WME laying off or furloughing 20 percent of its workforce in May.
Since Google announced Chrome would stop supporting third-party cookies within two years, there’s been a lack of communication between the tech and marketing sides on how to reinvent audience planning practices.
Why it matters: A solution to retargeting without third-party cookies that’s co-designed by marketers and tech experts would ensure wider adoption and limited disruption.
Amazon said it’s removing products with the Washington Redskins’ name and logo from its stores, giving third-party sellers 48 hours to remove similar flagged products. Walmart, Target and Nike have also dropped Redskins apparel from their sites.
Why it matters: The decision to pull Redskins merchandise comes after the NFL began a review of its name, which has long been considered a racial slur.
Leaders can foster collaboration in times of uncertainty by involving people from a wide variety of backgrounds to help the group collectively see potential risks or solutions and making direct contact with people down the hierarchy to learn about their actions and states of mind.
Why it matters: Research shows that during a crisis, anxiety causes people to fall back on actions that have worked in the past, what researchers call “threat rigidity.”
Chinese brands are partnering with mega-influencers and eclectic media properties such as museums and gaming titles on co-branded products. For example, Vans China recently launched a shoe collection in partnership with National Geographic and Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty brand launched a limited-edition blush set with China’s popular bubble tea brand, Heytea.
Why it matters: These partnerships enable brands to connect with new young customer segments.
In April, COVID forced Essence to transform its 50th in-person festival, which typically draws over half a million people and contributes $300 million to the New Orleans economy, into a free virtual event in just two months.
Why it matters: The pivot required Essence to pre-record some content and incorporate interactive components such as a voting hub, offering attendees access to resources for amplifying their voices in local and national elections.
Harvard Business Review’s studied over 200 joint ventures across industries and markets and found that just 10 percent of joint venture directors are women. Whereas 26 percent of directors on S&P 500 corporate boards are women.
Why it matters: Joint venture boards aren’t subject to the same public scrutiny or quotas that have helped to encourage greater gender diversity on public company boards. Yet studies show that companies with female board directors have higher average operating profits and returns on equity compared to companies with all-male boards.
Uber is acquiring Postmates for $2.65 billion in an all-stock transaction, according to a company press release.
Why it matters: The deal will give Uber Eats the largest market share in Los Angeles and 35 percent of US food delivery market share. Uber estimates it will issue about 84 million shares of common stock for 100 percent of Postmate’s fully diluted equity.
The Harvard Business Review examined 153 academic articles on how working a nonstandard schedule affects employee attitudes and well-being. They found that irregular work schedules can lead to irregular habits and put a strain on family relationships and that certain employees are better suited to work certain hours.
Why it matters: Employers considering implementing nonstandard work schedules should find employees who, based on their personality, needs or life circumstances, want to work them.
Lockdowns have led to a resurgence of interest in services that evoke nostalgia, like milk and frozen-food delivery services and drive-in theaters.
Why it matters: Social distancing presents an opportunity for brands to identify new value propositions including a shift from a self-service to a full-service model and the transcendence of a brand’s physical location to reach new markets.
Coltrane Curtis, founder of marketing agency Team Epiphany, whose clients include Audi, BET and HBO, says females and/or minorities represent over 50 percent of his staff.
Why it matters: To sell a visionary idea, Curtis suggests giving a client what they want, and something that they’re not paying for. “The first one is on you but, when you prove that it works, they’ll pay the second time and beyond.”
The grocery store of the future will focus more on experience than things, such as offering cooking classes and wine tastings and will utilize artificial intelligence to answer routine questions and facilitate the checkout process.
Why it matters: Customers use their experiences to differentiate between brands.
When it comes to digital fluency, one generation trumps all others: Gen Z. To understand the group’s expectations of the internet, the Center for Generational Kinetics and WP Engine conducted its third annual study, “Generation Influence.” Though responses were recorded before the pandemic, the findings are still very much relevant as brands are thrust into rapid digital transformation.
Understanding Gen Z’s digital-first world is key to reaching the group. So it should come as no surprise that 58 percent of Gen Z said they couldn’t go more than four hours without internet access before becoming uncomfortable, up three percent since last year. On the other hand, 27 percent of boomers reported being able to go up to 24 hours without the internet.
One belief that separates Gen Z from other groups is that personalization isn’t creepy. In fact, 41 percent said they’ll leave a website if it doesn’t predict what they like, want or need and 75 percent are more likely to buy a product if they can customize it.
Other factors that influence Gen Z’s buying behavior include online feedback and purpose-driven messaging. For example, 55 percent said positive online ratings and reviews build their trust in a brand while 33 percent believe the opinions of online influencers more than their friends or family. Plus, 72 percent said they’re more likely to buy from a company that contributes to social causes.
Gen Z’s bond with the web runs so deep that 64 percent believe the internet will be so predictive it will determine what they do on a daily basis. Likewise, 41 percent of Gen Z will forgo security/privacy concerns and provide their data in return for a personalized experience.
When asked about ads, 82 percent of Gen Z said they trust a company more if their ads feature images of actual customers, while just 45 percent said they trust a company if the images in their ad are aspirational. These preferences reflect Gen Z’s appreciation for authenticity, one of the reasons social media is so appealing to them.
The ways which generations use the internet differ as well. Whereas Gen Z primarily uses the internet for entertainment and socializing, millennials, Gen X and boomers use it to access information. Fifty-six percent of Gen Z said they have friends online that they’ve never met in real life and 23 percent said they trust someone they meet online more than a person they meet in real life.
What all groups can agree on is the increasingly important role video will play in the future. Over 70 percent of each generation believe video rather than text-based content will dominate the internet in the next five years, implicating video experiences will be paramount if brands want to engage these groups.
Gen Z’s view of the internet is less skeptical than other generations: 79 percent of Gen Z compared to 70 percent of boomers think the internet has made people more connected. This openness towards the web also signals the likelihood that Gen Z will be early adopters of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, which 64 percent of Gen Z think will have a positive impact on the world—compared to 46 percent of boomers. In addition, 77 percent of Gen Z believe virtual reality will see increased adoption in the next five years.
The findings are based on an online survey distributed to 1,252 US respondents ages 14-59 including a 250-person oversample of Gen Z, from September 2019 to October 2019.
On the show today, we talk about Piñeyro Sublett’s background. She started at Dell, then became CMO at Rack Space. We also talk about the year she took off to find ubuntu. Our conversation covers renewal within ourselves and how to bring our work and personal lives together.
Piñeyro Sublett’s begins by talking about her year of finding ubuntu when she took a year off from work and focused on reconnecting with the things and people that mattered most to her. She reflects, “I had to figure out who I was without work.” We talk about Piñeyro Sublett’s career journey and her long tenure at Dell. Then we dive into her current role at NI and its relaunch, which focuses on the impact of the engineer. She says, “We are setting out to elevate the role of the engineer in society and tell their stories.” Piñeyro Sublett reflects on how her year off made her more of a heart-led leader. She shares about her approach to organizational change, her passion for bringing more diversity to her industry, and NI’s social impact investing. Piñeyro Sublett reminds us that “work and the work that we do is one of our greatest platforms to do good.” This an inspiring conversation about valuing connection and leading with a bold vision.
Highlights from this week’s “Marketing Today”:
Carla’s year of finding ubuntu. 01:29
Carla’s blog about her year traveling the world with her family. 02:56
How the year off changed Carla. 03:46
How Carla’s career journey prepared her to be a CMO. 05:16
Dell’s culture when Carla worked there. 06:34
Carla’s role as the first CMO at NI. 07:53
The relaunch and rebrand of NI. 08:46
What NI does. 10:34
The changes Carla is making to the marketing organization. 11:19
Carla reflects on her roots in sales. 12:53
How Carla’s year off led to her focus on connection. 14:02
Carla’s approach to getting everyone on board with organizational change. 15:01
Carla’s passion for bringing more diversity to her industry. 15:57
NI’s social impact investing in the local community. 18:35
The Henry Crown Fellowship at the Aspen Institute. 20:11
Is there an experience in her past that defines who she is today? 21:12
Carla’s go-to drink. 22:12
What is the advice Carla would give to her younger self? 22:30
The most impactful purchase she has made in the last 6-12 months of $100 or less. 22:56
Are there any brands, companies, or causes that Carla follows that she thinks other people should take notice of? 23:28
Carla’s take on the top opportunity and threat facing marketers today. 25:38
Alan B. Hart is the creator and host of “Marketing Today with Alan Hart,” a weekly podcast where he interviews leading global marketing professionals and business leaders. Alan advises leading executives and marketing teams on opportunities around brand, customer experience, innovation, and growth. He has consulted with Fortune 100 companies, but he is an entrepreneur at his core, having founded or served as an executive for nine startups.
As social distancing orders went into effect, Walgreen’s retail sales sank nearly 11 percent on the previous year, leading to a huge increase in its e-commerce business.
Why it matters: Patrick McLean, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Walgreens, says the brand quickly turned pilots around curbside pick-up, online ordering and free delivery into a national rollout. Post-pandemic, McLean promises a lot of aggressive investments in online shopping and omni-channel experiences. Recently the brand appointed Adobe and Microsoft to create personalized experiences for the 100 million members in its US and UK loyalty programs.
Goodr’s conversion rates grew by 32 percent among mobile shoppers after it launched an augmented reality experience that lets people virtually try on its sunglasses for runners.
Why it matters: Goodr’s AR experience helped increase consumer satisfaction at a time when shoppers aren’t able to visit stores during coronavirus,
In a survey of over 800 US-based employees, McKinsey found that teleworking positively affected employees’ daily work, made them more engaged and created a stronger sense of well-being than those in non-remote jobs.
Why it matters: As some parts of the country reopen, the return phase of COVID presents an opportunity for employers to rethink the worker experience in ways that respect individual differences such as skills, home lives and personal attributes.
Of the 100 global CEOs on Harvard Business Review’s 2019 Top CEOs list, only four were women while HBR China’s list included a total of just five female CEOs.
Why it matters: During her experience researching China’s leading CEOs, K.C. Wong chair professor at Peking University’s National School of Development, Chen Chunhua, has observed that the traits that often hold female leaders back include having more non-work-related life goals than men do, the desire to achieve perfectionism, an unwillingness to face conflict and having to bear a heavier load of domestic and emotional labor.
The Drum’s latest installment of its “Consumer Insight” series found that the influencer market provides brands with an opportunity in the current climate as people spend more time on social platforms.
Why it matters: Influencers can produce crowd-sourced insights and feedback via comments and interactions, a helpful tool to understand consumer sentiment in the pandemic quickly and honestly.
CVS is betting big on men’s makeup as it plans to roll out men’s cosmetics brand Stryx to 2,000 stores.
Why it matters: In April, search queries for “male makeup looks” surged nearly 80 percent year-over-year. Men’s grooming in the US has evolved out of a two-product routine of only shaving cream and after-shave to embracing fashion and skincare; the market has grown about 13 percent over the past five years.
Experience marketers of events postponed until the fall have either taken a “wait and see” approach or a multi-channel approach that includes digital and the redeployment of event teams to other areas like research and training.
Why it matters: For many companies, the only way to come out on the other side of the pandemic is to wipe the slate clean given business goals will be so different this year.
Principal and founder of RARE Coaching & Consulting Aiko Bethea says organizations should start compensating leaders of black employee resource groups (ERGs), which are currently largely volunteer led, invest in black employees’ success and provide racial trauma support.
Why it matters: Black ERGs have helped increase inclusivity and retainment at companies like AT&T, whose black ERG, The NETwork has over 11,000 members. In 2015, AT&T reported an 85.6 percent retention rate for its black employees.
Jackie Glenn, former chief diversity officer for Dell EMC and founder of Glenn Diversity and HR Solutions, recommends workers boldly call out micro-aggressions and bias as they see them occur.
Why it matters: As per Glenn: “If you have turned a blind eye, ignored the cries for justice, and kept on with your normal life, you are part of the problem. Let me be clear — silence is supporting the violence.”
