Marketing Beyond with Alan B. Hart

Alan B. Hart
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Join Alan B. Hart as he dives into conversations with the world's leading chief marketing officers and business innovators. Tune in to get inspired by the stories and experiences of marketing visionaries—and stay ahead of the curve.

  1. 4 DAYS AGO

    39: How sales and marketing can grow together: Insights from Braze Chief Revenue Officer Ed McDonnell

    What can stronger sales and marketing alignment look like in practice?   In today's episode, Alan Hart talks with Braze Chief Revenue Officer Ed McDonnell about building a career by chasing experiences and skills instead of titles; why strong sales and marketing partnerships start with shared ownership of the customer journey, and how marketers can stay close enough to customers to understand where performance is really breaking down.  Drawing on leadership experience across high-growth software, Ed explains why alignment can improve when teams focus less on funnel labels and more on the full customer journey, from awareness to renewal and advocacy. He also talks about the role of data, regular review cadences and honest conversations about where pipeline performance is falling short.  Ed shares how Braze is using AI to support decision-making, campaign execution and marketer workflows, and why he believes AI will make shopping more curated, conversational and immediate. For marketers, his message is clear: Better tools matter but staying close to customers and evolving as quickly as they do matters more.    In this episode, you'll learn:  Why growth can happen faster when sales and marketing stay focused on the customer  What leaders can do to spot weak points early and keep teams moving together  Where AI can help make customer experiences more relevant and responsive    Key highlights:  [00:00] Introduction   [01:00] Inside fantasy baseball  [03:30] Ed's path to Braze  [09:15] Where Braze is today  [11:10] Bringing sales and marketing together  [15:30] Tips for creating a better customer experience   [16:45] Building internal trust  [19:30] The impact of AI  [23:20] An experience that defines you: Family ties and a health scare   [26:30] Advice to your younger self: Chase experiences and skills, not titles  [28:50] A topic marketers need to learn more about: AI applications for go to market   [30:50] What are you interested in right now: Fantasy books and golf   [32:30] Largest opportunity or potential threat to marketers today: Themselves    Resources mentioned:    Braze    Follow the podcast:    Listen on Apple Podcasts    Listen on Amazon Music   Listen on Audible   Listen on iHeart Radio  Listen on Spotify      Connect with Ed McDonnell and Braze  Ed McDonnell on LinkedIn  Braze on LinkedIn    Connect with Alan Hart and Deloitte Digital:     Connect with Alan Hart on X  Connect with Alan Hart on LinkedIn   Connect with Deloitte Digital on LinkedIn   Connect with Deloitte Digital on Instagram   Connect with Deloitte Digital on YouTube   Connect with Deloitte Digital on Threads

    39 min

  2. 29 APR

    38: Turning customer stories into growth: Insights from Shopify's head of Customer & Industry Marketing, Génesis Miranda Longo

    How can marketing leaders use AI to scale customer storytelling in ways that drive growth without losing the human connection that matters?  In today's episode, Alan Hart talks with Génesis Miranda Longo, Shopify's head of customer and industry marketing, about how customer stories can drive both growth and trust. Génesis explains that her role spans two priorities: helping new customers discover Shopify and helping existing customers grow by bringing their stories to market. She sees those stories as more than content because they help prospects to picture what success looks like, give sales teams stronger proof points, foster community, and build deeper customer relationships.  Génesis believes AI should accelerate the work around the conversation, not replace the conversation itself. She shares how she uses AI to research, prepare, and scale customer marketing, while emphasizing that valuable insights still come from talking directly with customers. She closes with a broader lesson for marketing leaders: don't wait for permission, build what's needed, and use automation to create more space for real human connection.    In this episode, you'll learn:  Why customer stories are more impactful when they build trust  Where AI adds value in Génesis's workstream;  Why lasting progress often depends on clarity, not just speed    Key highlights:  [00:00] Introduction   [01:05] Growing up in Mexico  [02:00] Génesis's path to Shopify and the scope of her role  [03:20] Symbiotic customer storytelling  [05:20] Scaling customer stories  [07:14] Revving the performance engine  [08:10] "Matchie" and her library of content  [08:55] Shopify Champions  [10:10] Tips for marketers  [12:00] An experience that defines you: Being raised in Sinaloa  [12:55] Advice to your younger self: Don't wait for permission  [13:35] A topic marketers need to learn more about: AI for decision-making  [14:45] What are you curious about: How new communities are being created  [17:10] Largest opportunity for marketers today: Becoming a "way maker"  [18:05] One-way agentic AI will fundamentally change how we shop in the next year    Follow the podcast:    Listen on Apple Podcasts    Listen on Amazon Music   Listen on Audible   Listen on iHeart Radio  Listen on Spotify      Connect with Génesis Miranda Longo and Shopify:  Génesis Miranda Longo on LinkedIn  Shopify on LinkedIn    Connect with Alan Hart and Deloitte Digital:  Connect with Alan Hart on X  Connect with Alan Hart on LinkedIn  Connect with Deloitte Digital on LinkedIn  Connect with Deloitte Digital on Instagram  Connect with Deloitte Digital on YouTube  Connect with Deloitte Digital on Threads

    20 min

  3. 15 APR

    37: Adapting to shifts in consumer behavior: Insights from Rich Honiball, retail executive and adjunct instructor at George Mason University

    How can marketers adapt when consumer behavior is shifting faster than traditional strategies can keep up?  In this episode Rich Honiball shares his perspective on navigating the fundamental transformation that's continuing to happen in how people buy and consume information. Drawing on his experience across retail and marketing leadership roles, Rich argues that today's rapid changes demand agile platforms where personalization becomes necessity rather than luxury, and that two-way communication with customers is critical to understanding what will make their lives easier. He challenges the assumption that economic factors alone explain changing purchase patterns, suggesting instead that consumers simply value different things now and seek expertise from different channels.  Rich emphasizes the importance of not abandoning core customers when chasing growth and studying how people actually take in information today. Throughout the conversation, Rich stresses that while the channels and methods are evolving rapidly, the fundamental work remains grounded in understanding and serving the people you are trying to reach.    In this episode, you'll learn:  Why your core customer should anchor your decisions even when everything else shifts  What it looks like to build agile platforms that serve complex needs—without losing focus  Where AI fits in marketing when human connection remains the priority    Key highlights:  [01:15] A man on the move  [02:10] Rich's path to the Navy Exchange  [03:55] Why does the military need a retail store?  [06:25] Meeting the needs of all patrons  [07:25] Staying competitive as retail options increase  [08:30] Balancing art and science  [09:55] The purpose of podcasting  [12:00] A humble expert is always a student  [12:55] An experience that defines you: Chicken gizzards and white rice  [15:30] Advice to your younger self: Failure is a part of the puzzle   [16:30] A topic marketers need to learn more about: Learn lessons from history  [17:50] Trends to follow: Sustainability and shifts in engagement   [19:30] Largest opportunity or threat to marketers today: AI is both     Resources mentioned:    George Mason University   Retail Relates Podcast     Follow the podcast:    Listen on Apple Podcasts    Listen on Amazon Music   Listen on Audible   Listen on iHeart Radio  Listen on Spotify      Connect with Rich Honiball and George Mason University:  Rich Honiball on LinkedIn  George Mason University on LinkedIn    Connect with Alan Hart and Deloitte Digital:     Connect with Alan Hart on X  Connect with Alan Hart on LinkedIn   Connect with Deloitte Digital on LinkedIn   Connect with Deloitte Digital on Instagram   Connect with Deloitte Digital on YouTube   Connect with Deloitte Digital on Threads

    21 min
  4. Rerelease: Unleashing growth with the 'yes, and' strategy with PNC Bank CMO, Jenn Garbach

    1 APR

    Rerelease: Unleashing growth with the 'yes, and' strategy with PNC Bank CMO, Jenn Garbach

    From the archives - orginally released March 2025 Episode Description Jenn Garbach is the chief marketing officer at PNC Bank, where she leads a team of approximately 200 marketing professionals. Her team focuses on brand and line-of-business marketing, paid and social media, direct marketing, and digital marketing strategies. She also helps oversee the bank's relationship with Arnold Worldwide, PNC's integrated marketing and advertising agency of record. With over 20 years of experience in financial and professional services, Jenn has worked across marketing, product management, strategy, technology, and customer experience. She began her career at Deloitte Consulting, and before joining PNC in June 2023, she held leadership roles at PayPal, Capital One, and Thomson Reuters.   On today's show, Alan and Jenn discuss her career journey, her initial goals upon joining PNC and the complexities of launching a new brand for a 160-year-old organization. They explore how marketing, often seen as "just pretty pictures," is actually a key growth driver, a concept they refer to as "The Big M." Jenn also breaks down the fundamental premise and strength of the "Yes, And" model and how it fuels innovation and collaboration. Looking ahead, they discuss AI preparedness and its impact on marketing.     Key quotes:  "You can't just go out with a really funny, creative ad campaign and hope that it's going to do the job. You have to live your brand every single day—and the products, services, experiences we are bringing to market." - Jenn Garbach, CMO at PNC Bank    In this episode, you'll learn:  Strategies to gain a competitive edge   Tips to enhance your marketing efforts using data-driven techniques  How to transform your team into powerful change agents    Key highlights:  [01:53] Jenn's first job as a cart pusher  [03:25] Jenn's career path  [06:45] Initial goal when joining PNC  [07:32] What is involved in launching a new brand  [09:10] "Brilliantly Boring" tagline  [13:20] Where does marketing go at PNC now?  [16:05] How people become a great change agent  [21:35] An experience from your past that defines you: studying abroad.  [24:20] Advice to your younger self   [25:30] A topic that you and other marketers need to learn more about: AI preparedness  [28:35] Trends or subcultures others should follow: Super Bowl   [30:50] Largest opportunity or threat to marketers today: pace of change     Resources mentioned:    Jenn Garbach   PNC Financial   Brilliantly Boring at PNC   Boring is Essential (Launch Video)     Follow the podcast:    Listen on Apple Podcasts    Listen on Amazon Music   Listen on Audible   Listen on iHeart Radio  Listen on Spotify      Connect with Jenn Garbach and PNC Bank:     Jenn Garbach on LinkedIn    PNC Bank on X    PNC Bank on Instagram      Connect with Alan Hart and Deloitte Digital:     Alan on X   Alan on LinkedIn   Deloitte Digital on LinkedIn   Deloitte Digital on Instagram   Deloitte Digital on YouTube   Deloitte Digital on Threads

    34 min
  5. 36: Marketing complexity into clarity: Insights from Synopsys CMO Ann Minooka

    18 MAR

    36: Marketing complexity into clarity: Insights from Synopsys CMO Ann Minooka

    As AI reshapes discovery, how do you make complex tech clear to buyers and demonstrate how marketing is driving growth? Synopsys CMO Ann Minooka shares what it takes to market a highly technical business with clarity, precision, and accountability for business outcomes. She views marketing as the bridge between engineering and the market. Technical product marketing translates capabilities into value propositions, while brand and communications tailor the message for different audiences based on what they care about and where they go for information. Ann explains that her team is moving away from broad product campaigns and vanity metrics like impressions. Instead, she advocates an outcome-led, data-driven approach that uses marketing technology, intent signals and analysis to improve targeting and connect programs to lead quality, pipeline creation and new customer growth. She also outlines how AI is changing planning and implementation, including using behavior signals to meet buyers where they are, building more personalized web experiences, and rethinking content for answer-based discovery across platforms. While AI can speed up first drafts and analysis, Ann believes the bigger unlock is integrating AI across the full workflow and evolving talent and habits.    In this episode, you'll learn:  Ways to make complex offerings clear and relevant to different audiences.  How outcome-focused measurement can help connect marketing to growth.  How AI is reshaping buyer discovery, and ways leaders can adapt.    Key highlights:  [00:30] Introduction   [01:30] A love for nature  [06:00] Ann's path to Synopsys  [09:35] What does Synopsys do?  [15:25] Marketing complex solutions   [20:05] Optimizing for outcomes  [23:40] AI's impact on marketing  [31:00] An experience that defines you: Gaining a global perspective  [34:40] Advice to your younger self: Learn an instrument, own your own career, and be curious  [37:20] A topic you're trying to learn more about: AI's impact on productivity and talent   [41:35] Trends or subcultures: The future of intelligence and space travel  [44:00] Largest potential threat: Resisting AI    Resources mentioned:    Synopsys  Ansys    Follow the podcast:    Listen on Apple Podcasts    Listen on Amazon Music   Listen on Audible   Listen on iHeart Radio  Listen on Spotify      Connect with Ann Minooka and Synopsys: Ann Minooka on LinkedIn  Synopsys on LinkedIn    Connect with Alan Hart and Deloitte Digital:     Connect with Alan Hart on X  Connect with Alan Hart on LinkedIn   Connect with Deloitte Digital on LinkedIn   Connect with Deloitte Digital on Instagram   Connect with Deloitte Digital on YouTube   Connect with Deloitte Digital on Threads

    46 min
  6. 35: Marketing as entertainment, built to perform: Insights from Chime Chief Growth and Marketing Officer, Vineet Mehra

    4 MAR

    35: Marketing as entertainment, built to perform: Insights from Chime Chief Growth and Marketing Officer, Vineet Mehra

    How can you create marketing that feels like entertainment and drives measurable growth?  Chime Chief Growth and Marketing Officer Vineet Mehra breaks down the product and marketing choices he sees fueling Chime's momentum, including being named Time magazine's No. 1 banking brand. He frames Chime as "not a bank" but a "financial technology company" built for "everyday Americans." And he attributes its traction to showing up in the channels and subcultures where many people spend time, while building products and features designed to meet real needs.   Vineet also shares what other marketing leaders can take from Chime's approach: Start with a differentiated product. Treat attention as the ultimate currency. And use social-first, episodic entertainment to make financial topics more relatable.  At Chime, brand building looks more like running a streaming platform or magazine, where the job is to consistently earn attention with programming people choose to watch.    To ensure that entertainment-driven attention translates into growth, he leans on "performance storytelling" that connects brand-building, direct response and customer lifetime value. He also explains how Chime is applying AI by mapping tools to "jobs to be done" across customer service, creative workflows and talent development. Vineet closes with his view that the biggest potential threat to marketers is resisting change—that leaders should encourage hands-on experimentation while staying anchored to commercial outcomes.    In this episode, you'll learn:  Ways attention can be earned through entertainment-style brand storytelling   Practical lessons for applying AI to specific high-impact work inside marketing and customer operations   How marketing leaders can earn more influence in executive and boardroom conversations    Key highlights:  [00:00] Introduction  [01:30] CMO by day, pizza maker by night  [03:15] Vineet's path to Chime  [08:00] Success in the banking industry  [11:15] Marketing that punches above its weight  [14:15] Showing up where people willingly spend time  [16:50] A brief history of marketing leading to performance storytelling  [23:10] Chime's AI journey  [29:30] How AI is impacting talent conversations  [32:40] Marketing and the boardroom  [36:25] An experience that defines you: Growing up as an immigrant in a blue-collar town  [38:25] Advice to your younger self: Bloom where you're planted  [40:15] A topic you're trying to learn more about: The platform shift  [41:30] Trends or subcultures: Hyper-personalized algorithms  [43:10] Largest potential threat: The innovator's dilemma    Resources mentioned:    Chime  "Mama, I Made It" interview series  Ball On A Budget    Follow the podcast:    Listen on Apple Podcasts    Listen on Amazon Music   Listen on Audible   Listen on iHeart Radio  Listen on Spotify      Connect with Vineet Mehra and Chime:  Vineet on LinkedIn  Chime on LinkedIn    Connect with Alan Hart and Deloitte Digital:     Connect with Alan Hart on X  Connect with Alan Hart on LinkedIn   Connect with Deloitte Digital on LinkedIn   Connect with Deloitte Digital on Instagram   Connect with Deloitte Digital on YouTube   Connect with Deloitte Digital on Threads

    46 min
  7. 34: Reaching patients directly in medtech: Insights from Medtronic's Senior Director of Global Integrated Communications, Neuromodulation, Naomi Rodiles

    18 FEB

    34: Reaching patients directly in medtech: Insights from Medtronic's Senior Director of Global Integrated Communications, Neuromodulation, Naomi Rodiles

    How do you raise awareness for complex, highly regulated medical therapies when most eligible patients do not even know it exists? At CES 2026, Alan Hart spoke with Naomi Rodiles, senior director of Global Integrated Communications, Neuromodulation, at Medtronic, about the patient communication required to grow adoption of therapies like deep brain stimulation that can support management of movement disorders like Parkinson's. Naomi explains that the challenge is not clinical efficacy or provider trust, but rather awareness. Even proven therapies can sometimes remain invisible to patients until late in their journey. She outlines how her team is evolving from primarily health care provider-centered messaging to a multichannel, digital-first communications model designed to directly reach patients and caregivers to help them discover, understand and evaluate options earlier. Naomi emphasizes that effective patient marketing in medtech is less about promotion and more about credible education that empowers better conversations in the clinician's office, while strengthening provider partnerships. She also shares practical leadership lessons from the transformation: design for modern consumer expectations, build integrated channel presence so information is findable when people search, and adopt AI carefully to scale content and storytelling within a regulated environment.    In this episode, you'll learn:  Why awareness, not efficacy, is often the real growth constraint for complex offerings and strategies to navigate it  Ways to win trust by prioritizing education over promotion  Practical lessons for scaling content in regulated, high-stakes categories using AI    Key highlights:  [00:00] Introduction  [01:00] Starting out at BET's Rap City  [02:15] Naomi's path to Medtronic  [02:50] The scope of Medtronic  [03:50] Medtronic's neuromodulation therapies  [05:55] Marketing life-changing solutions  [07:50] Evolving the messaging  [10:15] Lessons learned  [11:45] Symbiotic relationships with health care providers  [13:10] An experience that defines you: Falling in love with journalism  [14:40] Advice to your younger self: Be mindful of burnout  [15:05] A topic marketers need to learn more about: AI  [16:00] What are you curious about: AI for equity  [16:50] Largest potential threat to marketers today: Resisting change  [18:10] CES trends: AI becoming helpful in everyday life    Resources mentioned:    Medtronic  CES  Medtronic Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) therapy   Medtronic Percept DBS system  Actualize Impact  BET's "Rap City: Tha Basement"     Follow the podcast:    Listen on Apple Podcasts    Listen on Amazon Music   Listen on Audible   Listen on iHeart Radio  Listen on Spotify      Connect with Naomi Rodiles and Medtronic:  Naomi Rodiles on LinkedIn  Medtronic on LinkedIn  Medtronic on YouTube    Connect with Alan Hart and Deloitte Digital:     Alan Hart on X  Alan Hart on LinkedIn   Deloitte Digital on LinkedIn   Deloitte Digital on Instagram   Deloitte Digital on YouTube   Deloitte Digital on Threads

    20 min

  8. 4 FEB

    33: Rethink customer experience orchestration with AI: Insights from Adobe Enterprise CMO Rachel Thornton

    How can marketing leaders deliver personalization at scale as content demands surge? How do brands protect discoverability as customers shift their search focus from SEO to answer engines and AI agents?   At CES 2026, Alan Hart sat down with Rachel Thornton, Enterprise CMO at Adobe, to unpack the ways AI is reshaping customer experience orchestration and the content supply chain. Rachel explains that real personalization drives a major increase in content needs, and that AI can compress production cycles so teams can create, test and optimize large volumes of campaign assets faster than humans alone while staying consistent and on-brand across channels. The conversation then turns to generative engine optimization (GEO) and answer engine optimization (AEO) where Rachel notes discoverability is increasingly dependent on how brands show up in AI-driven search results and in the broader ecosystem of content beyond their own websites.   Throughout the conversation, Rachel reinforces that making AI work requires coordinated change across data foundations, processes and skills, not just new tools. She also offers practical lessons for other CMOs on centering customer needs and building a culture of curiosity and experimentation, so teams keep learning as the marketing playbook evolves.    In this episode, you'll learn:  Ways AI enables personalization at scale   Strategies to modernize the content supply chain   How AI is shifting marketing and the adjustments marketers can make to stay discoverable     Key highlights:  [00:00] Introduction   [01:00] A love of reading  [01:40] Rachel's career path  [02:50] Life as the Enterprise CMO  [03:55] How AI is changing the marketing role  [06:05] Content supply chain at its best  [07:45] Using AI to its full potential   [09:20] Discoverability in the AI era  [11:45] Lessons for CMOs  [13:20] Examples of companies doing marketing well   [14:15] An experience that defines you: Customer face time  [16:05] Advice to your younger self: It's not linear. Try new things!  [16:45] A topic marketers need to learn more about: AI   [17:40] What are you curious about: Robots  [18:30] Largest opportunity to marketers today: "Everybody is a creator at heart"  [19:50] CES trends: Embedded AI    Resources mentioned:    The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese  Adobe Creative Cloud  Adobe Marketo Engage  Adobe GenStudio for Performance Marketing   Adobe LLM Optimizer   Adobe Digital Academy   Project Fizzion (Coca-Cola x Adobe)  Adobe x NFL partnership  CES    Follow the podcast:    Listen on Apple Podcasts    Listen on Amazon Music   Listen on Audible   Listen on iHeart Radio  Listen on Spotify      Connect with Rachel Thornton and Adobe:  Rachel Thornton on LinkedIn  Adobe on LinkedIn  Adobe on Instagram    Connect with Alan Hart and Deloitte Digital:     Alan Hart on X  Alan Hart on LinkedIn   Deloitte Digital on LinkedIn   Deloitte Digital on Instagram   Deloitte Digital on YouTube   Deloitte Digital on Threads

    21 min
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Join Alan B. Hart as he dives into conversations with the world's leading chief marketing officers and business innovators. Tune in to get inspired by the stories and experiences of marketing visionaries—and stay ahead of the curve.

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