Uncensored CMO

Jim Olson, former communications leader at United Airlines and Starbucks and author of Tailwind, shares crisis lessons from aviation to corporate life. He explains the aviate-navigate-communicate framework. He discusses black box thinking, where crisis responses go wrong, managing culture during mergers, and his personal fight with cancer.

Dan Taylor, a senior Google executive with ~20 years shaping search and ads, shares fast-moving marketing shifts. He covers mobile, video, programmatic, AI-powered search, Circle to Search visual queries, and how product and commercial teams align. Expect stories about rapid pivots, changing search behaviors, and why experimenting quickly matters.

Zena Arnold, Sephora’s CMO and veteran marketer from CPG and tech, oversees brand, loyalty, partnerships and creator programs. She discusses Sephora’s standout branding, the record-breaking Rhode launch, the design and power of the 45M-member loyalty program, creator strategy like the Sephora Squad, and how tech and partnerships drive discovery and personalization.

Rachel Thornton, Enterprise CMO at Adobe with deep tech marketing experience, shares how AI is reshaping marketing at scale. She covers brand-building in B2B, the power of large events and storytelling, community and discoverability shifts, using AI internally, agentic orchestration for coordinated experiences, and why sports partnerships amplify emotional reach.

Nir Eyal, author and behavioral design expert, explains how beliefs shape behavior, attention, and culture. He discusses believing-is-seeing, the three powers of belief, brand anticipation like Liquid Death, and practical ways to reframe limiting beliefs. Short, sharp stories and studies make the case for deliberately changing what people believe to transform actions and organizations.

Kory Marchisotto, marketing and brand leader who scaled brands like e.l.f. Beauty, shares real-world tactics for agency partnerships. Short takes on treating agencies as team members, diagnosing and fixing broken relationships, integrated weekly collaboration, and building loyalty through inclusive rituals. Practical, candid, and focused on making agencies feel like part of the business.

Danny Alexander, co-founder of Who Gives A Crap, a mission-driven toilet paper brand that donates 50% of profits. He recounts the viral crowdfunding stunt, clever packaging-as-marketing, navigating the COVID surge, fundraising while giving half away, lessons from failed launches, and building hiring and culture systems that scale a challenger DTC brand.

Kory Marchisotto, marketing and brand expert who explores challenger brands and creative inspiration. He talks about finding ideas outside your company. He describes using nature, supermarkets, metros and travel to spark creativity. He explains changing context and staying curious to uncover unexpected inspiration.

Walter Susini, former Coca-Cola CMO for Europe and author of Bullsh*t Inc., shares candid memories from decades in global marketing. He unpacks the staying power of jingles and distinctive assets, lessons from Coke Zero and Coke Energy, and the messy reality of corporate politics. Short, sharp stories about advertising, innovation choices, and how decisions really get made.

Kory (K-Boss), a senior marketing leader known for leading major brand efforts and collaborations like Soul Care with Alicia Keys. He talks about the true cost of leadership: relentless travel, tracking hotel nights, and rituals to protect home life. Conversations cover managing jet lag, strategic laziness to prioritize, and soul care practices that keep leaders grounded.