In recent years headlines like ‘Men twice as likely to be CMOs than women’ were pretty common.
If you’ve worked in marketing for any length of time, you know that the role of CMO is already associated with high demands and turnover.
Some might argue that women in CMO roles face an even greater challenge given their underrepresentation in marketing leadership despite the marketing industry being overwhelmingly female.
While women are underrepresented as CMOs, there’s research that shows women in CMO roles are paid better (on average) than their male peers. Even more promising is that “Nearly half the marketing leadership hires in the first six months of 2019 were women“.
You might be wondering why am I writing about women marketing? For the past 10 years I have been tracking rising stars in the marketing world and recognizing social influencers in the marketing space with an annual list: Women Who Rock in Marketing.
That list started in 2010 when I was recognized on a list of social media rockstars with few if any women on it. That seemed strange.
So, I made a list of 25 women I knew in marketing that were rocking social media. Every year since, a list has been published recognizing women in marketing, inspiring many reactions, conversations and hopefully, even change.
While there have been a few variations on selection, sorting and author, (Ashley Zeckman published the list for 2 years), for the most part every year I’ve asked the previous year’s honorees to nominate a peer. Nominees were reviewed, sorted and the list published.
My goal for these lists is to shine a light on talent and create awareness amongst marketers.
It has been incredibly satisfying to learn about the impressive capabilities and accomplishments of these marketing leaders. Last year we had a CMO who was also an opera singer, a social media executive who once worked with Mother Theresa and an Olympic athlete who created a program to inspire thousands of young people.
It has been great to see that many of the women have been recognized by their companies and industry with several having advanced over the years to take on senior marketing roles like Chief Marketing Officer.
To honor women in senior marketing roles for this 10th anniversary of Women Who Rock in Marketing, the following list features 50 women in CMO roles making a difference and creating impact. They are leaders who represent the future of marketing and I highly recommend you follow them. (Note: This is not a comprehensive list and the list is alphabetical)
Before we get to the list, some special recognition: One woman that has been instrumental in the past few years at creating one of the most robust CMO communities and collections of content for senior marketing executives is Nadine Dietz @NadineDietz. Her company CMO Moves and podcast were acquired by Adweek and represents a cornucopia of knowledge for CMOs and inspiring CMOs alike. Thank you Nadine for your tremendous contribution and community building!
50 Top Women CMOs to Follow
Alicia Tillman @aliciatillman
Global CMO at SAP
/in/altillman/
Alison Wagonfeld @awagonfeld
CMO, VP, Marketing at Google Cloud
/in/alisonwagonfeld/
Allison Dew @alliedewsays
CMO, EVP at Dell
/in/allison-dew-45875035/
Alyson Griffin @alyson_griffin
Vice President Global Marketing at Intel
/in/alyson-griffin-2820514/
Amanda Jobbins @amandajobbins
CMO for EMEA, APAC and Japan at Oracle
/in/amandastljobbins/
Andrea Zahumensky @Andreazahumensk
CMO at KFC US
/in/andrea-zahumensky-aa70b65/
Ann Lewnes @alewnes
CMO, EVP at Adobe
/in/annlewnes/
Bozoma Saint John @badassboz
CMO at ENDEAVOR
/in/bozoma-saint-john-0305441/
Carolyn Everson @ceverson
VP, Global Marketing Solutions at Facebook
/in/carolyn-everson-8633479/
Danna Vetter @dannavetter
Chief Marketer at Milliken & Company
/in/danna-vetter-4065254/
Dara J Treseder @daratreseder
CMO at Carbon
/in/daratreseder/
Dawn T Keller @dawntv94
VP, Head of Digital at Krispy Kreme
/in/dawntevekeliankeller/
Dawna Olsen @DawnaOlsen
CMO at SYSPRO USA
/in/dawnaolsen/
Deborah Wahl @DeborahWahl
CMO, Global at Cadillac
/in/deborahlwahl/
Dee Mc Laughlin @deemclaughlin
SVP, Global Brand & Creative at Capital Group / American Funds
/in/deemclaughlin/
Deirdre Bigley @DeirdreBigley
CMO at Bloomberg LP
/in/deirdrebigley/
Denise Karkos @dckarkos
CMO at SiriusXM
/in/denise-karkos-b2ab973/
Diana O’Brien @DianaMOBrien
CMO, Global at Deloitte
/in/dianaobrien/
Ellie Mirman @ellieeille
CMO at Crayon
/in/elliemirman/
Jacqui Murphy @jacquimurphy
CMO at Auvik Networks Inc.
/in/jacquimurphy/
Jeanine Liburd @JeanineLiburd
CMO, Chief Commuications Officer at BET Networks (a subsidiary of Viacom Inc.)
/in/jeanine-liburd-7b654a156/
Jeanne Hopkins @jeannehopkins
CMO at Lola
/in/jeannehopkins/
Jeanniey Mullen @jeanniey_
Chief Innovation and Marketing Officer at DailyPay
/in/jeanniey/
Jenn Steele @jennsteele
CMO at Madison Logic
/in/jennsteele/
Jennifer Johnson @jj_cmo
CMO at Tenable
/in/jjcmo/
Jennifer Sey @JenniferSey
CMO, Global Brands at Levi Strauss & Co.
/in/jennifer-sey-6516731/
Jill Gregory @jillgregory6
CMO, EVP at NASCAR
/in/jill-gregory-b32581a/
Karen Walker @KarMWalker
SVP and CMO at Intel
/in/karenmwalker/
Kathy Button Bell @Emerson_KathyBB
Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer at Emerson
/in/kathybuttonbell/
Kellyn Smith Kenny @KellynKenny
CMO at Hilton
/in/kellyn/
Kim Salem-Jackson @ksalem09
Global VP, Marketing at Akamai Technologies
/in/kimsalem/
Kristin Lemkau @klemkau
CMO at JPMorgan Chase
/in/kristin-lemkau-ab8b4b88/
Lauren Mead @LaurLeMe
CMO at TimeTrade
/in/laurenmead/
Lauren Wagner Boyman @lboymanms
CMO at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
/in/laurenboyman/
Leslie Berland @leslieberland
CMO, Head of People at Twitter
/in/leslie-berland-1741781/
Linda Boff @lindaboff
CMO at GE
/in/lindaboff/
Lorraine Twohill @LorraineTwohill
CMO at Google
/in/lorraine-twohill-ba3a56185/
Lynne Biggar @LynneBiggar
CMO, Chief Communications Officer at Visa
/in/lynnebiggar/
Lynne Jarman-Johnson @MoJoCMO
CMO at Consumers Credit Union
/in/lynnejjohnson/
Maria Winans @MariaWinans
CMO, North America Marketing at IBM
/in/maria-bartolome-winans-41008014/
Marisa Thalberg @executivemoms
Global Chief Brand Officer at Taco Bell
/in/marisathalberg/
Mary Beech @MaryBeech1
EVP and CMO at Kate Spade New York
/in/maryrennerbeech/
Meg Goldthwaite @MegZGold
CMO at National Public Radio
/in/meg-galloway-goldthwaite-she-her-87a80b3/
Monique Bonner @mobonner
CMO at Akamai Technologies
/in/mobonner/
Morgan Flatley @morgsf
CMO, US at McDonald’s
/in/morgan-flatley-a36b273a/
Paige ONeill @paige_oneill
CMO at Sitecore
/in/paigeoneill/
Penny Baldwin @pennyrbaldwin
CMO, SVP at Qualcomm
/in/pennybaldwin/
Sarah Kennedy Ellis @saykay
CMO at Marketo, An Adobe Company
/in/saykay/
Shannon Sullivan Duffy @sullytoduffy
SVP, Product Marketing at Salesforce
/in/shannonduffy/
Tifenn Dano Kwan @danokwan
CMO at SAP Ariba
/in/tifenndano/
Thank you to Lane Ellis for providing some research help with this list.
We can do better. Despite gains in hiring and compensation of women in senior marketing roles, the ANA CMO scorecard reports that “companies remain woefully behind when it comes to promoting people of color to top marketing jobs. Only 13 percent of the top jobs are held by people of color, including 5 percent Asian, 5 percent Hispanic/Latin and 3 percent black.”
There is some progress but much more to be made. Whatever companies can do to remove barriers to marketing talent rising into leadership positions is an investment in the success of the business.
I am thankful for the incredible contributions this group of marketing leaders has made to move our industry forward and am optimistic about continued momentum into the new year.
Who would you add to this list for 2020?
To see the past 9 years of Women Who Rock in Marketing lists, visit the posts below:
- 25 Women That Rock Social Media – 2010
- 25 Women Who Rock Social Media – 2011
- 25 Women Who Rock Social Media – 2012
- 25 Women That Rocked Social Media – 2013
- 25 Women Who Rock Social Media – 2014
- 50 Influential Women in Digital Marketing – 2015
- 50 Influential Women in Digital Marketing: North Stars & Rising Stars – 2016
- 25 Women Who Rock at Digital Marketing – 2017
- 25 Influential Women in Digital Marketing Who Rocked and Inspired – 2018
Thank you to all who have inspired us to be better as marketers and a better marketing industry!
