Top 20 CMOs to Follow for Inspiration in 2026

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The best CMOs aren't hard to find—but the ones who'll actually sharpen your thinking are rare. I've pulled together the marketing leaders who consistently lead by example and share their ideas: real strategy, honest takes, and the kind of insight that helps you move faster and think bigger.

Top 20 CMOs

Below are the profiles of the top CMOs, covering who they are and the impact they've made in this space.

Marian Lee profile picture

Marian Lee

Chief Marketing Officer at Netflix

United States

Focus area:

#Brand strategy#Entertainment marketing#Fandom#Global marketing#Creator marketing

Marian Lee is Chief Marketing Officer at Netflix, where she leads global marketing after senior roles at Spotify, handling consumer marketing, creator marketing, music, and artist services.

Lee's marketing treats fandom as…

Marcel Marcondes profile picture.

Marcel Marcondes

Chief Marketing Officer at AB InBev

New York, United States

Focus area:

#Global brand strategy#Consumer marketing#Portfolio marketing#Cultural relevance#Brand growth

Marcel Marcondes is Chief Marketing Officer at AB InBev, where he has held senior roles since 2005, including CMO of Anheuser-Busch and Global President of the company's Beyond Beer business.

His experience…

Frank Cooper profile picture

Frank Cooper III

Chief Marketing Officer at Visa

United States

Focus area:

#Brand purpose#Culture#Global marketing#Sponsorships#Digital commerce

Frank Cooper III is Chief Marketing Officer at Visa, leading global marketing after executive roles at BlackRock, BuzzFeed, PepsiCo, Motown, and Def Jam across finance, media, consumer goods.

At Visa, Cooper oversees…

Asad Ayaz profile picture

Asad Ayaz

Chief Marketing and Brand Officer at The Walt Disney Company

Los Angeles, United States

Focus area:

#Entertainment marketing#Brand strategy#Franchise marketing#Fandom#Global campaigns

Asad Ayaz is Chief Marketing and Brand Officer of The Walt Disney Company, leading enterprise-wide marketing and brand strategy after more than two decades shaping Disney's entertainment marketing.

Ayaz coordinates marketing across…

Julia White profile picture

Julia White

Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer at AWS

Seattle, United States

Focus area:

#Cloud marketing#Enterprise technology#AI#Digital transformation#Global marketing

Julia White is Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at AWS, leading worldwide marketing after senior technology roles at SAP and a two-decade career at Microsoft focused on enterprise software.

White brings…

Cristina Diezhandino profile picture

Cristina Diezhandino

Chief Marketing Officer at Diageo

London, United Kingdom

Focus area:

#Brand building#Consumer insights#Portfolio strategy#Innovation#Cultural marketing

Cristina Diezhandino is Chief Marketing Officer at Diageo and an Executive Committee member, with a career covering global brand, category, innovation, and general management roles across the company.

Diezhandino has led brands…

William White profile picture

William White

SVP & Chief Marketing Officer at Walmart U.S.

Bentonville, United States

Focus area:

#Retail marketing#Customer insights#Brand strategy#Omnichannel commerce#Customer loyalty

William White is Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Walmart U.S., leading customer insights, marketing strategy, planning, and experiences after roles at Target and Coca-Cola.

White connects brand building with…

Lorraine Twohill profile picture

Lorraine Twohill

Chief Marketing Officer at Google

San Francisco Bay Area, United States

Focus area:

#Technology marketing#Brand strategy#Product marketing#Accessibility#Global marketing

Lorraine Twohill is Google’s Chief Marketing Officer, leading its global marketing team after two decades at the company and earlier heading marketing across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Twohill has steered…

Connect with Lorraine:

Kenny Mitchell profile picture

Kenny Mitchell

SVP & Chief Marketing Officer at Levi Strauss & Co.

United States

Focus area:

#Brand strategy#Cultural marketing#Lifestyle brands#Consumer marketing#Global growth

Kenny Mitchell is Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of the Levi's brand at Levi Strauss & Co., following marketing leadership roles at Snap, McDonald's, Gatorade, and NASCAR.

Mitchell leads global…

Emmanuel Orssaud profile picture

Emmanuel Orssaud

Chief Marketing Officer at Duolingo

London, United Kingdom

Focus area:

#Organic growth#Social media#Brand creativity#Creator marketing#Product marketing

Emmanuel Orssaud is Chief Marketing Officer at Duolingo, where he leads a creativity-first marketing organization after earlier work at Spotify and PlayStation.

Orssaud has helped build a marketing model that prizes earned…

Connect with Emmanuel:

Melody Lee profile picture

Melody Lee

Chief Marketing Officer at Mercedes-Benz USA

Atlanta, United States

Focus area:

#Luxury marketing#Brand transformation#Cultural relevance#Customer experience#Automotive marketing

Melody Lee is Chief Marketing Officer at Mercedes-Benz USA, leading U.S. marketing for the luxury automaker after senior brand and marketing roles at Cadillac, MillerKnoll, and global agencies.

Lee's work sits at…

Jane Wakely profile picture

Jane Wakely

EVP, Chief Consumer & Marketing Officer at PepsiCo

United States

Focus area:

#Consumer insights#Brand building#Category growth#Innovation#Portfolio strategy

Jane Wakely is PepsiCo's Executive Vice President, Chief Consumer and Marketing Officer and Chief Growth Officer, International Foods.

Wakely approaches growth through a combination of consumer understanding, category science, creativity, and brand…

Dara Treseder profile picture

Dara Treseder

Chief Marketing Officer at Autodesk

Silicon Valley, United States

Focus area:

#B2B marketing#Digital commerce#Brand transformation#Growth#AI

Dara Treseder is Chief Marketing Officer at Autodesk, leading worldwide marketing and e-commerce after senior marketing roles at Peloton, Carbon, GE, Apple, and Goldman Sachs.

Treseder's reaches beyond communications into e-commerce, product,…

Carrie Palin profile picture

Carrie Palin

SVP & Chief Marketing Officer at Cisco

Focus area:

#B2B marketing#Brand transformation#Demand generation#Digital experience#AI

Carrie Palin is Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Cisco, leading global marketing after senior technology roles at Splunk, Box, IBM, Dell, and other enterprise companies.

At Cisco, Palin's remit…

Alison Wagonfeld profile picture

Alison Wagonfeld

Chief Marketing Officer at NVIDIA

San Francisco Bay Area, United States

Focus area:

#AI marketing#Technology marketing#Cloud computing#Brand strategy#Communications

Alison Wagonfeld is Chief Marketing Officer at NVIDIA, leading marketing and communications after nearly a decade heading Google Cloud marketing and earlier leadership roles in technology and finance.

Wagonfeld stepped into NVIDIA's…

Tim Castree profile picture

Tim Castree

Chief Marketing Officer at DoorDash

Gates Mills, United States

Focus area:

#Global brand strategy#Growth marketing#Local relevance#Media#Customer acquisition

Tim Castree is Chief Marketing Officer at DoorDash, bringing senior leadership experience from Amazon, GroupM, and Wavemaker across growth marketing, brand building, media, and global markets.

Castree joined DoorDash as its ambitions…

Ranjan Goswami profile picture

Ranjan Goswami

Chief Marketing & Product Officer at Delta Air Lines

Atlanta, United States

Focus area:

#Customer experience#Brand strategy#Product strategy#Travel marketing#Personalization

Ranjan Goswami is Chief Marketing and Product Officer at Delta Air Lines, leading global marketing and customer experience design after nearly two decades in commercial and operational roles.

Goswami combines stewardship of…

Andy Crestodina profile picure

Andy Crestodina

Co-Founder & Chief Marketing Officer at Orbit Media Studios

Chicago, United States

Focus area:

#Content marketing#SEO#Web strategy#Analytics#AI

Andy Crestodina is co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Orbit Media Studios, where he has spent more than two decades working across web strategy, content marketing, SEO, analytics, and AI.

Crestodina turns…

Carla Zakhem-Hassan profile photo

Carla Zakhem-Hassan

Chief Marketing Officer at JPMorgan Chase

New York, United States

Focus area:

#Brand strategy#Financial services marketing#Customer insights#Integrated marketing#Marketing leadership

Carla Zakhem-Hassan is Chief Marketing Officer at JPMorgan Chase, overseeing marketing across Chase, J.P. Morgan, Sapphire, and the corporate brand after prior CMO roles at Citi and Toys “R” Us.

Hassan leads…

Morgan Flatley profile picture

Morgan Flatley

EVP, Global Chief Marketing Officer and New Business Ventures at McDonald’s

Chicago, United States

Focus area:

#Global brand strategy#Consumer insights#Digital engagement#Cultural marketing#Brand innovation

Morgan Flatley is EVP, Global Chief Marketing Officer and New Business Ventures at McDonald’s, where she oversees global brand building and ventures after earlier marketing leadership at PepsiCo.

Flatley has helped McDonald’s…

Selection Methodology

I selected the leaders on this list based on their relevance, demonstrated expertise and impact, professional credibility, and ongoing contributions to the field.

I look for evidence such as leading meaningful initiatives or delivering notable results within their organizations, developing influential ideas or practices, publishing research or educational resources, speaking or teaching, and other contributions that demonstrate impact within their work or the broader field.

Further Reading

Explore our city-specific guides to discover fractional CMOs offering flexible marketing leadership beyond traditional executive roles:

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Shriya Ghate

I'm an SEO Content Manager at Black & White Zebra with 15+ years scaling content and SEO strategy across startups and media brands. I lead AI-driven workflows and large-scale SEO testing. Previously, I grew content production 10x and revenue 193% as Editor of The CMO. I hold an MA in Writing from the University of Warwick and am a certified Product Marketer. My expertise spans content systems, AI operations, and performance analytics.

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