Superbrands 2004 - Brand Autopsy

Superbrands
THE
MERCENAR Y
First
(a.k.a. ‘SUPER’)
CMO CMOBy
Todd Wasserman Illustration by Peter Hoey
Call them mercenary, or Super, CMOs. They parachute in from company
to company, from industry to industry, firing and hiring ad agencies
and staff. They make noise. They launch memorable ad campaigns.
Some become brands in and of themselves.
In the marketing world, this is a relatively new phenomenon, spawning a small,
elite class. Though there are thousands of companies in the U.S. and even more
brands, there are only a handful of CMOs who fit that description.
The short list, based on those who have been a top marketer at three major
brands and in more than one industry, would include the likes of John Costello,
who introduced the previously unknown “Softer Side of Sears,” then briefly went
to Yahoo! and is now running marketing at The Home Depot; Jim Garrity, who
spent 20 years at IBM before taking over marketing at Compaq and then First
Union, which became Wachovia; Steve Wilhite, who was behind the 1998 reintroduction
of the Volkswagen Beetle, then went to Apple to help launch its iMac
before decamping to run marketing for Nissan; Janine Bousquette, who’s known
for reinvigorating Mountain Dew and Pepsi’s flagship brand before jumping
S6 JUNE 21, 2004
CEOs became celebrities.
Then, top marketers followed
suit. Is the culture of the star
CMO good for business—or do
they ride in, make a splash and
leave a mess in their wake?
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