CIOLook is glad to introduce, Influential CMOs 2019, an impeccable leaders those beautifully depicted the role of a marketing leader and are inspiring many more buds to come.

4. An Ever-evolving Digital Aspect
i.e. ‘The Marketing’
he world has evolved more than it was ever
Texpected. Though the quote—“one small step for a
man, one giant leap for mankind” by Neil Armstrong, is
inherently subjected to space research accomplishment
but can be also related with the ever-evolving digital age
especially the marketing sector.
This referred giant leap or digital-based integrated
marketing holds digitalized practices such as search engine
optimization (SEO), social media marketing (SMM), content
marketing, email marketing and many others. Earlier,
various marketing leaders were striving with the marketing
traditional practices such as advertisement through
television, radio stream, and printed ads. But through
digitalization, marketers have easily achieved many
milestones en route to success.
Being a crucial aspect in business management, a job role as
a marketing leader has to be done without any flaws. An
individual should possess attributes like ability to intrigue,
sound communication, effective sales approach,
resourcefulness, flexibility, adaptability and accountability.
We cannot imagine running an organization without an
error-less strategic marketing structure. As marketing
helps every business to increase their reach and provide
clear approach of their vision, the need of implementing a
dedicated marketing team becomes a necessity rather than
a want. Marketing plays a crucial role in businesses, it acts
as a forefront of an organization deliberately presenting
products and solutions to the audience. This team reach
out to customers, prospects, investors or
community(depending on the products), whilst creating an
EDITOR’S NOTE

5. overarching portrayal representing a positive face of the company. Known as the founder of
modern management, Peter Drucker quotes, “because the purpose of business is to create a customer,
the business enterprise has two—and only two—basic functions: marketing and innovation. Marketing and
innovation produce results; all the rest are costs.” Through above statement, he tries to exemplify that
a perfect balancing of marketing with innovation could take businesses in creating customers
steadily. In addition, to makes sales easier for any business owner marketing plans and strategies
are quite important.
In this special issue, entitled “Influential CMOs 2019”, CIO LOOK tries to focus on some
impeccable leaders those beautifully depicted the role of a marketing leader and are inspiring
many more buds to come. Equipped by unique ideologies and traits, these featured leaders have
brought a revolution in the customary of business procedures. Their contribution have set many
examples and influence the modern era of brand as well as product marketing. The trade press
magazine admire such flagship bearers and takes pride to feature them in this edition.
Let’s unveil such alike, inspiring interviews and stories of many such significant women business
leaders in this special edition and spread a word about their contribution in making this world a
better place. Also, flip through the CXO standpoints presented by some of the leading industry
experts to taste the glimpse of industrial revolutions.
Enjoy the read…
Bhushan Ghate
Influential
CMOs
“Marketing is all about spreading and sharing
ideologies in the form of products.”

6. Articles
Mark Rees
Thoughts on AI “What shall we do with all this speed?”
Are we pursuing the right objective in operational efciency?
24
18 32
Contents
Bio Tech
Graphene: A Material
Marvel of the Century
Entrepreneur Echo System
Sustaining Entrepreneurial
Sprit in the Modern Era

7. 14
Carolmarie C. Brown
An Accomplished Leader
at Global Marketing
22
Gary Lyng
Trailblazing Market-Disrupting
Enterprise Solutions
28
Sammie Walker
An Energetic Leader
in Marketing
36
Scott Gainey
A Leader
of Opportunities
10
Aisling MacRunnels
Redening the Role
of a CMO

9. CONTENT
Senior Editor Alan Swann
Managing Editor Bhushan Ghate
Executive Editors Sourabh More
Alex Spellman
DESIGN
Visualizer Dave Bates
Art & Design Director Sanket Zirpe
Associate Designer Iresh Mathapati
SALES
Senior Sales Manager Kshitij S.
Customer Success Manager Jack Ryan
Sales Executives John, Kane, Shashikant
TECHNICAL
Technical Head Aditya K.
Technical Consultant Victor Collins
July, 2019
k.roy@ciolook.com
Copyright © 2019 CIOLOOK, All
rights reserved. The content
and images used in this
magazine should not be
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photocopying, recording or
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12. Aisling MacRunnels
Chief Marketing Officer
Synack
| JULY 2019 |
10

13. AislingMacRunnels
Redefining the Role of a CMO
arketing, being the integral part of
Mbusiness, demands skilled leaders with
certain attributes, who are good at their
work. The criteria also involve inspiring people and
smartly getting work done from the them in order to
achieve the desired goals of an organization. An avid
leader, Aisling MacRunnels, the Chief Marketing
Officer of Synack, understands these criteria very
well and effectively applies it into her practice.
For Aisling, it was never about a journey to become a
leader, but instead a journey to be really good at
whatever she was doing at the time and to learn
everything she could. To learn, she threw herself into
uncomfortable situations. In her early years, she
never said no to an opportunity to try something
challenging. She optimized for learning and made
sure she got exposure to the smartest people
around.
Aisling firmly believes that we have one mouth and
two ears and should use them accordingly. Hence,
she keeps asking lot of questions and listens intently.
Aisling always kept herself surrounded with smart
and passionate people. She always hired the
smartest and most passionate people she could find.
Even when they intimidated her, she pushed herself
to hire them. Some of the motivation to hire smart
people came from her desire to build a career and to
be a mother. Although at times hiring smart people is
threatening, but she also knew it was the only way
she could scale and be sure that her team was always
there for her as she went through maternity leave,
etc. She always believes that one should respect the
people they hire and should never be afraid to offer
an opinion. They should just learn how to do it in an
appropriate way.
Aisling learned long time ago that the best products
don’t always win. One must build a great product, but
by taking customer’s needs into consideration. Some
of those needs are product specific, and others are
about the program, the transition, the pacing, etc. It
is the role of a CMO to be able to pick or prioritize.
She mentions, “We as a CMO need to pick the target
customer (you can sell to lots of people but you need to
know what your target really is) and then fully
understand your customer - their goals and needs as well
as their challenges. Once we have developed our
products and company policies around that user, we can
add users (always make sure you don’t marginalize one
| JULY 2019 |
11
Synack

14. customer while trying to appeal
to the other). Stick to your
convictions to the decisions made.
This usually takes resilience and
patience.”
A role of a CMO is dynamic. According
to Aisling, a CMO is a business executive that
happens to execute through marketing and hence,
should be a valuable part of the team. Like any of
their peers at the executive table, CMOs need to
fully know the business they are in and should work
to achieve the respect of their peers. They also
should have well-thought-out opinions backed up
with data and should be able to execute those
opinions with conviction.
Aisling has built her career in the heart of Silicon
Valley from a geographic and trend perspective. She
believes that it is CMO who helps create the trends.
CMOs refuse to become victim to their customers
but understand them and leverage them as they
need and want them. She describes this by saying, “If
I am in a market building stage, I’ll harness the tools and
trends needed for that stage and not get derailed by sexy,
but unimportant or irrelevant trends.”
Having built her career in Silicon Valley, and focusing
on startups or new technology and markets, Aisling
is usually driving the disruption, and believes that
the techniques to do this are simple. It goes back to
knowing consumer’s needs, knowing their challenges
and goals, being able to develop and champion a
strategy and then being patient and confident in
execution. It also involves refusing to be derailed and
setting the agenda instead of being put in a position
to just react to someone else’s agenda.
Aisling never feels short of
opportunities, instead she
believes that there is always a need
for a great CMO. Thus, she tends to
focus on the present, believing in what
she is doing is well. In the near future, she is
working on a goal to create a new category in
cybersecurity where Synack can find the perfect
balance augmenting humans with artificial
intelligence so that security can keep up with the
digital transformation. Since the inception of Synack,
she is working on this goal, a goal that the company is
making a reality.
When asked about the crucial traits every CMO
must possess, she emphasizes on three attributes.
One is inner confidence, in which she advises to be
self-motivated and committed. Second is maintaining
balance between strategic and tactical, in which one
must be able to have a strategic outlook yet execute
tactically. It can be hard to link every activity and
initiative to a greater goal, but a CMO must be able
to do that. Thirdly, she believes that CMOs are the
heartbeat of a company. They should be able to work
well with their other departments too such as
Engineering, Product, Sales and Operations.
Find passion and
belief in your job.
Approach it with
conviction and
enthusiasm. Respect
your customers, your
peers, your
subordinates and
yourself
“
“
| JULY 2019 |
12

16. Carolmarie C. Brown
Director Global Marketing,
Brand & Business Communications
| JULY 2019 |
14

17. Ashland
An Accomplished Leader
at Global Marketing
Carolmarie C. Brown
L
eadership can occur at any
age and within any level of
an organization. Scientific
Marketing Leaders are needed to
drive the integration of applied
chemistry into the broader world
in a way that places science in a
more influential position to help
change the world for the better.
From a diverse career in sales,
marketing, communications,
advertising, crisis & issues
management, public relations, new
business- and product-
development, brand strategy,
management and licensing,
broadcasting and copywriting,
Carolmarie C. Brown is the
Director Global Marketing, Brand
and Business Communications at
Ashland.
In 2015, Carolmarie successfully
convinced Executive Leadership
that Ashland needed a brand
transformation and that doing so
could significantly improve
Ashland’s competitiveness and
increase the value of the
company’s offer and enterprise. In
2016, she led the evolution of the
Ashland corporate brand strategy,
new positioning and creative
identity, post the IPO of Valvoline.
Following its launch, the portfolio
®
of work won a REBRAND 100
Award of Distinction in 2018, and
an Ashland Chairman’s Award in
2017. Some of the brand creative
has been featured on the covers of
industry trade magazines
combined with feature stories
within the publication.
Below is her story,
“Inspire, empower, and trust”, says
Carolmarie. The marketing leader
completed her education from
Ithaca College with a Bachelor of
Science in Communications and a
Bachelor of Arts in English
Literature. During her career, she
has held many roles and
experiences which afforded her
opportunities to lead. These
include executive producer,
account executive, copy
supervisor, extensive brand and
communications management,
consumer packaging manager and
market development sales
manager at DuPont, and
marketing manager at INVISTA.
Today, she leads a highly-talented
global, marketing and
communications team that
supports Ashland’s commercial
enterprise that includes
pharmaceuticals, personal care,
health & wellness, paints and
coatings, packaging and structural
adhesives, composites, industrial
chemicals, advanced materials,
and more. She often refers to her
team as “rock stars” because they
™
are always solving and they
outperform their previous
“record,” creating new ways to
satisfy a variety of stakeholders
including internal and external
customers and critics. They
support the company’s diverse
businesses and functions and
focus on building brand equity as
the organization solves customers’
most complex challenges through
revenue-generating opportunities.
They partner together and
collaborate on exciting marketing
programs. They are a high-
performance team and a “source
of inspiration” for her.
Interpersonal relationships, a
| JULY 2019 |
15

18. programs. Personalization and customization add
another level to marketing and anything digital
magnifies the experience. Increasing the digital skills
of her team and constantly benchmarking and
watching analytics help further develop our digital
strategy.
Successful strategies come from a place of strength
and not from following competitors. She is a firm
believer in market research especially when
conducted "blind." The most successful companies,
marketers and branders clarify and amplify their
own "compelling truth" and they remain steadfast in
their positioning and identity developed directly
from their own research says Carolmarie. At Ashland,
it is particularly important that we focus on where we
add genuine value and deliver on the promises we make
in a thoughtful and consistent manner. Ashland is
comprised of passionate, tenacious solvers and our
brand associations are not accidental, rather they
are the result of a disciplined and strategic program.
Our plans are based on the true nature of what we do
unlike any other company and in demonstrating how we
advance the competitiveness of our customers, across
the diverse industries in which we compete. The
company’s plans are steeped in strategic work based
on research, and it uses proven processes, and
traditional and new methods of marketing. It
constantly monitors data and analytics.
positive culture, and strong business competencies
are important, says Carolmarie. In addition to
business skills, the role of a CMO includes managing
the internal as well as the external brand. It includes
fostering an environment of collaboration and true
teaming because great results come from individuals
and teams who feel empowered to share innovative
ideas. Planning, organizing, and systematizing
maximizes efficiencies, so systems and processes are
necessary. Clarity of communications supports this
effort. Decision making based on the best
information at the time is crucial to keep moving
forward. She says, “Uplift your team. Be their
“cheerleader” and hold yourself accountable and to the
same expectation of your organization”. The ability to
be decisive in managing conflict quickly also allows
an individual to remain focused on the priorities that
will be most impactful.
According to Carolmarie, as a creative visionary with a
passion for excellence and a drive to deliver great things,
I’ll seek challenges where I can continue to make an
impact, take risks, be approachable and demonstrate an
open-door policy. I really care. Maintaining an
unwavering commitment to champion your plan
especially when it is hard or you face challenges
which are certain to come, define strong leaders.
Technology is all the buzz today, and the landscape is
rapidly evolving. Technology, however, should make
things easier and not more stressful. There are levels
of complexity to consider. Is the reason for the
technology part of your strategy or just because it is "on
trend" or expected? Strategy and a clear
understanding of what you’re trying to accomplish
should come first. Carolmarie stays on top of trends
through networking and word of mouth. Animations,
drones, AR and other technological advances are
being used or considered as part of marketing
“ “
Love what you do. Operate from your
soul. Challenge the status quo. Magic is
possible when you listen to your inner
voice and have the courage to follow
your heart.
| JULY 2019 |
16

20. he simplest observations are
Tsometimes the greatest
discoveries. Watching an apple
falling from its branch, Isaac Newton
discovered the famous law of
universal gravitation. Almost three
centuries later, science could take
another leap forward with... a roll of
tape. There is a new wonder material
in town that might change our future.
Imagine a coffee cup that streams the
day’s headlines in real time. Or a
cooking pot that can detect the
presence of E. coli bacteria that could
make you sick. Or a television screen
that is as flexible and thin as a piece of
paper. All of these applications could
be a reality if the wonder material,
named Graphene, lives up to its hype.
A Complicated Narrative
The story begins in 2004 in the
laboratories of the University of
Manchester. Fascination with this
material stems from its remarkable
physical properties and the potential
applications they offer. Although
scientists knew one atom thick, two-
dimensional crystal graphene existed,
no-one had worked out how to
extract it from graphite.
That was until it was isolated in 2004
by two researchers at The University
of Manchester: Prof. Andre Geim and
Prof. Kostya Novoselov. This is the
story of how that stunning scientific
feat achieved while peeling layers of
graphite using adhesive tapes, and
why Andre-Kostya duo won the
Nobel Prize in Physics for their
pioneering work. This is the beginning
of a scientific and engineering
renaissance.
Unboxing Graphene
Graphene is a material that can be
perceived as a form of graphite, and
therefore a carbon allotrope that is
distinguished by its crystalline
organization. In simple terms
graphene is a sheet of a single layer
(monolayer) of carbon atoms, tightly
bound in a hexagonal honeycomb
lattice. It is the building-block of
Graphite but graphene is a
remarkable substance on its own -
with a multitude of astonishing
properties proving the title of
‘wonder material’.
Graphene is the thinnest compound
known to man having size equal to
one atom thick, the lightest material
known, the strongest compound
discovered surpassing diamond, the
best conductor of heat at room
temperature and also the best
conductor of electricity known to
exist.
The Material of the Future
Graphene is a disruptive
phenomenon; one which could open
up new markets and even replace
existing technologies or materials. It
is when graphene is used both to
improve an existing material and in a
transformational capacity its true
potential can be realised. The vast
number of products, processes and
industries for which graphene could
create a significant impact, all stems
from its amazing properties.
Ÿ Biomedical
Graphene’s unique properties allow
for ground-breaking biomedical
applications; Targeted drug delivery,
improved brain penetration, DIY
health-testing kits and ‘smart’
implants can be mentioned out of
many possibilities.
Ÿ Composite Materials
One of the simplest and most
effective ways of harnessing the
potential of graphene is to combine it
with existing products - so called
composite materials. By combining
with paints, a unique graphene
coating can be formed which could
signal the end of the deterioration of
ships and cars through rust.
Additionally, it can do wonders in the
field of weather-proofing, packaging,
sports equipment and creating
lightest, strongest, safest structures.
Ÿ Electronics
Graphene has the potential to create
A Material Marvel
of the Century
| JULY 2019 |
18

21. the next-generation of electronics exploring spheres of
Sci-Fi technology, faster transistors, semiconductors,
bendable phones, wearable gadgets and other electronics.
Ÿ Energy
With its influential properties and capabilities, graphene
is surely an innovation with distinct future prospects.
Bearing this in mind, one might be surprised to know that
carbon is the second most abundant mass within the
human body and the fourth most abundant element in the
universe by mass, after hydrogen, helium and oxygen. This
makes carbon the chemical basis for all known life on
earth, so therefore graphene could well be an ecologically
friendly, sustainable solution for astronomical energy
demands. Imagine fully charging a smartphone in seconds
or an electric car in minutes. That’s the power of graphene
batteries and super-capacitors.
Ÿ Filtration Membranes
Imagine clean drinking water for millions in developing
countries. A global toll of 3.4 million deaths each year is a
serious concern which underlines the gravity of clean
water requirement. The development of graphene-based
membranes has brought that possibility closer like never
before.
Ÿ Sensors
Ultra-sensitive sensors made from graphene could detect
minute dangerous particles helping to protect potentially
dangerous environments. Its inherently micro-sized
structure allows for the creation of hair thin like sensors
which can be incorporated to detect biological agents like
drugs in our body, stresses and strain levels, atmospheric
changes caused by decaying food, and many more.
Future
It must be a wondering question that despite of
graphene’s prodigious abilities why it has not hit the
ground reality. The problem that prevented it from
initially being unavailable for commercial uses was that
the creation of high quality graphene was a very
expensive and complex process. “Its industrial production
is not yet based on reliable methods to obtain large
quantities,” claims Alberto Bianco, a researcher at the
CNRS and the University of Strasbourg. It was estimated
in 2008 that the production of a square meter of this
miracle material cost a whopping amount of 600 billion
euros.
However, studies in 2012 found that by analysing its
interfacial adhesive energy, it is possible to effectually
separate graphene from the metallic board on which it is
grown. As the techniques continue to evolve in nearby
future, on the account of its high productivity, a sharp
decline in price is expected to be achieved.
The range of industries where graphene research is
making an impact is substantial. And this is only the
beginning. These are only the baby steps. Although, it’s
important to consider the span within which it is likely to
exist in customary life, one simply cannot overlook the
inconceivable and endless potential of this supernatural
material. With continuously growing necessities and
depleting resources of the contemporary world, graphene
will certainly turn out to be a panacea of all remedies.
Bio Tech
| JULY 2019 |
19

24. Trailblazing Market-Disrupting Enterprise Solutions
Gary Lyng
Comprehending capricious
fluctua on in the markets and
implemen ng necessary
changes in business endeavors, defines
an impeccable market leader. One
such proven change-agent and
evangelist is Gary Lyng, Chief
Marke ng Officer at VIOLIN SYSTEMS.
His charisma c leadership in defining
the compelling vision, strategy with
the execu on of 360-degree go-to-
market, and accelera ng revenue has
propelled him to achieve many
milestones en route to his current
stature.
CIO Look admires such prominent
leaders and takes pride in featuring
them in its latest issue, en tled
“Influen al CMOs 2019".
Below are some of the highlights of an
interview conducted between CIO Look
and Gary:
Kindly take us through your journey
on becoming a leader.
Star ng life off as a programmer and
eventually leading many different
products to consumers, B2B and the
enterprise in roles of product
management and overall marke ng
has taught me to always be conscious
of the “whole product,” which includes
go-to-market. I am curious, adaptable
and, most of all, passionate about
making a difference for the customer.
Bea ng the compe on and
trailblazing has always fueled me but I
have never, ever looked down on
anyone. I'm not afraid to make
difficult, mely decisions and remain
accountable for the outcome. I toot
the horn of my team and let their
successes toot my success. I feel that
being humble but confident is the best
way to have my passion shine through.
My favorite quote that I try to live is
from President John Quincy Adams “If
your ac ons inspire others to dream
more, learn more, do more and
become more, you are a leader.”
How do you diversify your
organiza on's offerings to appeal to
the target audience?
In technology marke ng, many
gravitate to the latest buzzword or
technical claims and o en are unable
to connect the dots to a real-world
business, their applica ons and their
customers and, of course, their
challenges.
As an example, when marke ng and
selling a product into the data center
of a hospital, remember that the
hospital is also a business and has
customers (pa ents) as well as
budgets. I try to ar culate value that
not only impacts the data center but
the overall business and their
customers as well. In this case, the
bigger picture becomes “How does it
impact a pa ent at the hospital?” It
isn't just about speeds and feeds but
making a difference.
What are the crucial traits which
every CMO must possess?
A en on to Detail: It is clear that
managing mul ple elements, func ons
and ini a ves requires a certain level
of juggling. However, as a leader, you
must understand how all these points
intertwine while keeping the focus on
the big picture to deploy the
appropriate strategies needed to
achieve success.
Technical Ap tude: With MarTech
innova on rapidly growing, it is
impera ve that a leader understand
the capabili es of evolving technology
to scale, automate with both insight
and adjustments. All too o en, in my
opinion, marke ng leaders coming
through branding or public rela ons
can some mes be challenging with all
the other cri cal elements of go-to-
market and working closely with
product groups and development
organiza ons.
Passion: A CMO should have a passion
for making a difference; a passion for
inspiring others. It's impera ve that
when building a marke ng team, that
you share your vision, thoughts and
proposed projects with each and every
member so that they become
passionate about what they are doing
for the company as well.
As per your opinion, what roadblocks
or challenges are faced by CMOs in a
corporate business? And what is your
advice to overcome them?
Ÿ Always remember that everyone
believes they know what marke ng
is and has an opinion on the
subject, whether you like it or not,
though very few fully understand
the depth and breadth of
marke ng. You have to listen to
these opinions but be firm in
| JULY 2019 |
22

25. championing the ac vi es that will achieve the best
impact on all aspects of the company—from the market
to the customer and the employees as well.
Ÿ Transparency is paramount and overcommunica on is
be er than saying too li le but be sure that the
informa on you convey is both relevant and useful.
Keep the management team involved and commit to
sharing their vision internally and par cipa ng
externally when needed.
Ÿ Educate the CFO on spend and ROI and trust that he or
she understands their importance.
Ÿ Be joined at the hip with head of sales and sales
leadership.
How do you upgrade yourself with the vola le
technological trends to boost your personal growth?
Through being open to new ways to achieve results, trying
new technologies and helping vendors to gain insight or
automa on. Never walk away form a try-buy, but don't let
it suck your me. This is your primary Achilles heel,
protect it.
How do you strategize your game plans to tackle the
cu ng-edge compe on in the marke ng?
Become the compe tors' target audience. Ensure you are
well ed into their social pla orms, webinars, blogs,
analyst engagement and media. These will provide a
sampling of their strategy. Regular engagement with sales
teams, but more so be an on-going, open channel for
feedback and adjustment with the teams in the field.
Always look for new technologies or resources that
efficiently handle communica ons, social media and
compe ve informa on gathering to be er help create
content that effec vely spread our marke ng messages.
What will be your future endeavors and/or where do you
see yourself in the near future?
My passion is inspiring others while disrup ng the status
quo. There is always a be er way. And if you can connect
your value back to real-world impact, it touches the
emo onal side of your target customer, partner and overall
ecosystem. Being aware of the balance of EQ versus IQ has
served me well to balance between marke ng the product
versus the truly memorable element of “Why” as Simon
Sinek has done so well communica ng to many of us.
This being said, where do I see myself? Well, perhaps truly
in a role touching many lives and making a difference. We
will see.
You can’t inspire others
to be passionate about
your organization and
its solutions if you
don't lead by example
and fully communicate
your passion for these
project yourself.
—Gary Lyng
Chief Marketing Ofcer
“
VIOLIN SYSTEMS
“
| JULY 2019 |
23

27. Are we pursuing the right objective in operational efficiency?
Thoughts on AI
“What shall we do with all this speed?”
t a DevOps conference in Helsinki, a very
Alearned university Professor gave a great
retrospective about how DevOps has
transformed the IT-space into a high velocity,
continuously improving environment for development,
deployment and operations of digital products and
services. He presented a whole bunch of empirical data,
industry insights and backed it up with solid academic
knowledge. It was by far the best keynote at the
conference. But what made it stand out above all, was
his closing remarks and question to the auditorium,
with which he casted a searching question on the
concept of automated, AI based systems and how we
perceive them. It is perhaps the single question that
challenges us the most on this subject. “What shall we
do with all this speed?”
Exactly! Should we be pursuing speed and if so for what
reason? To have “speed” in your operations is to have an
extra competitive advantage which is a means not an
end. And means need utility, otherwise they are
pointless. When we take the perspective from the late
1990´s it is truly amazing that products and services
are now so well supported by IT-processes. Daily – even
hourly –deployments, continuous integration etc. are
now the norm and in retrospect this is an awesome
achievement. Who doesn´t remember yearly releases,
endless QA cycles, never ending rescoping of massive
project plans, two thirds of investment locked into
processes with low to zero market value? We are all
glad to have left all that behind and yet we still
fanatically push – myself included – for more process
efficiency, faster time to market, more automation etc.
Now we are expecting AI to enhance automation even
further than we ever dreamed of 20 years ago. All this
velocity is awesome!
Which brings me back to my Professor in Helsinki, I
believe he was implicitly asking the audience to self-
reflect on the question of do we know when enough is
enough? I don´t believe we are even conscious of this
question, let alone able to answer it. We just don´t we
even think about it?
Fortunately there are people who do think about the
question. Professor Kevin Warwick stated in his book
“In the Mind of the Machine” (published in 1998)
“within the next 10 to 50 years artificial intelligence
systems will have been developed, that will not only be
more intelligent than humans but also exhibit a
significant number of advantages; they will be faster,
more reliable, quicker to learn and more robust.” Within
10 years of that prediction stock market High
Frequency Trading (HFT) was so fast that humans were
no longer capable of monitoring the processes. We now
know the consequences of uncontrolled speed in HFT
in financial markets. Our pursuit of speed seems not to
have considered social and ecological aspects. All that
speed benefitted a few and all but destroyed much for
the many.
The Professor in Helsinki too, was questioning the
motives for our continuous drive for velocity and by
doing so he was subtely planting the thought in the
minds of those who should be reflecting upon the
question. Is speed the ultimate objective of DevOps and
the like? If we can´t answer the question “what shall we
do with all this speed?” – And I did not hear any answers
from the auditorium – then velocity can´t really be the
main goal. I believe “all this speed" is but a secondary
benefit of what Lean Manufacturing states as “waste
reduction”. If we instead switch our main focus of
automation to the term “efficiency”, then the Professor
Mark Rees
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25

28. could have phrased the question as “what shall we do
with all this efficiency?” then I am sure that answers
would have been abundant.
Efficiency has many factors, of which speed is just one
and, in my opinion, secondary to waste reduction
factors. When humans define objectives for the good of
the many, then social and ecological factors – usually –
inform those decisions, thus making them future
oriented and sustainable. Reduction of waste, in a
manufacturing context pays dividends in terms of
reduction of time as a social factor and reduction of
material as an ecological factor. The resulting strategies
are in general preventative i.e. error avoidance and
protection against anomalies. Combining the ecological
and social factors into the decision-making process
requires our unique form of emotional intelligence
which is a significant driver of our behavior. Can this be
said of AI neural networks running automated systems
at speeds beyond our comprehension? Maybe someday,
but I am a doubter and critic until fully convinced of the
opposite.
Lean Manufacturing focuses on waste reduction. Benefits
such as just in time supply chains, automation of
repetitive tasks etc., all fall into the social ecological
framework suggested above whereby is velocity a
secondary benefit, not the central objective. We
currently hype machine learning and assume it to be
“intelligence”. But what if these systems also learn to be
stupid and irresponsible, such as the HFT systems that
triggered massive sell offs that tanked stock markets. Is
that intelligent in a social and ecological context? If
humans were to behave this way on such a scale, we
would all cry out stupidity and ignorance as suitable
words to describe such behavior. We must adopt a
critical approach as to where, when and how to utilize
AI. I maintain it should not be just pure speed that we
pursue, but waste reduction which applies a qualitative
meaning to the extra velocity we might generate.
If you identify an automation-case for waste reduction,
i.e. error prevention, protection against outside
influences, then proceed proceed cautiously with AI. If
velocity is the only apparent benefit, then before you
implement, honestly ask yourself the question – and
answer it – what are you going to do with all this speed?
About the Author
In his last position, Mark Rees was
Managing Director of E-POST
Development GmbH in Berlin, a
subsidiary of Deutsche Post. There, he led
an international team comprised of
several hundred employees in agile
DevOps development teams, and was
responsible for employee direction, as
well as the entire budget in the areas of
IT security, DevOps, quality assurance,
operations and user experience. In his
work as COO at Secucloud, Rees applies
his expertise in agile leadership and his
many years of experience in
interdisciplinary IT organizations in the
Media and IT security industries.
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26

30. Sammie Walker
owadays, organizations are
Nevolving with proper
planning and marketing
strategies. To formulate these
procedures the role of the
marketing officer comes into the
picture. To promote the company
globally, the job of marketing officer
becomes crucial. The marketing
officer represents the organization
with activities like campaigns,
advertisements, conferences,
technology trends, communication
with customers and others. It proves
as a motivation for a marketing
officer to work with these
responsibilities, as they are involved
with people’s demands and needs.
One such inspiration, Sammie
Walker, Executive Vice President,
and Chief Marketing Officer at
Infoblox oversees the company’s
global marketing organization. She
joined Infoblox in April 2016,
bringing 20 years of industry
marketing experience in defining,
launching and growing companies in
the Networking, Analytics, Security,
Digital Advertising, Telecom, and
Collaboration markets. Previously,
Sammie held senior management
roles at Aerospike, Actian, Vidyo,
Zenprise, and Transera
Communications.
CIO LOOK admires such leaders
and takes pride in featuring Sammie
in its special issue.
Below is her story,
Sammie’s first managerial role was
at a start-up where she had to wear
many hats and cover a wide variety
of responsibilities. In the beginning,
she was the only person in
Marketing and was tasked with
building the Marketing team. She
had to think beyond her role and
responsibilities and instead be more
strategic about what the
organization needed in a Marketing
team and then go and bring on those
people who could execute upon the
vision. Shortly, after building the
Marketing team, the start-up was
acquired by a publicly held company
which gave her the opportunity to
expand her role even further. She
was promoted and took on
additional responsibilities of
overseeing a large global team. It
was during a meeting with the CEO
of another company that she later
joined, where they were discussing
her career aspirations and decided
her goal to become a VP of
Marketing. She earned an MBA from
the School of Economics & Business
An Energetic Leader in Marketing
Sammie Walker
Executive Vice President,
& Chief Marketing Officer
Infoblox
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28

31. Infoblox
At the heart of
everything
Marketing does is
the customer.
Whether it’s the
products we
deliver or the
content we
provide –
everything must
be from the
customer
perspective.
”
| JULY 2019 |
29

32. Administration from St. Mary’s
College and began the journey to
accomplishing her goal. From there,
she had a mentor who believed in
her and gave her opportunities to
try new roles and expand her
learnings and responsibilities in
order to grow her career.
In the new hyper-connected world,
opportunities are coming faster
than before with smart apps, IoT,
machine learning, blockchain, and
more. To keep up with these
changes, creativity, innovation,
vision, collaboration, effective
communication among
stakeholders/customers, and the
ability to break down barriers to
gain cross-functional alignment is
essential. According to her, as a
leader, it’s crucial to have a team
rallied behind you so that everyone
is aligned and feels they have a
purpose and are inspired to reach a
mutual goal. “It’s really important to
focus on the WHY”, says Sammie. Too
often we get lost in the company
message, or the product features
that we forget what is most
important; “Why is your
product/service important to the
customer?” The ‘why’ is critical
when it comes to reaching your
target audience.
One of the CMO's primary
challenges is getting strong
alignment between sales and
marketing. It is essential to have
aligned goals and execute against a
common strategy. A lot of
Marketing’s work is in the
background, which means every
marketer needs to be a data jockey
for their business. Sammie is
regularly learning, whether it’s from
her peers, attending conferences, or
reading the latest market trends.
And staying abreast of how to
communicate with customers and
About Infoblox
As technology is rapidly evolving
with the introduction of Cloud, IoT,
machine learning and more –
organizations are faced with a
hyperconnected world that requires
next level networking and
cybersecurity. Infoblox solutions
allow organizations to strengthen
and optimize their security posture
from the foundation up with highly
accurate threat intelligence and
advanced analytics based on
machine learning. Network Security
Solutions from Infoblox, secures
every connection to the Internet,
regardless of network, device or
location, while improving the
effectiveness of the company’s
entire security ecosystem. Infoblox
empowers organizations to securely
manage their on-prem, cloud and
hybrid networks through a single
pane of glass. The networking
company delivers the next level of
DDI to 8,000 customers around the
world, including 350 of the Fortune
500. It operates in more than 25
countries and counts as its
customers some of the world’s
largest businesses, including more
than 74% of the Forbes 1000..
target audience as well as across
different generations is critical You
need to understand the
demographics of the customer and
how they want to engage. It’s all
about how customers want to
receive information. “If anything,
technology trends have created an
opportunity for marketers to have
more channels to better
communicate with customers and
reach target audiences,” says
Sammie.
When it comes to strategizing game
plans, she considers the sales,
product, and engineering teams to
be her key partners in developing a
strategic game plan. The sales team
engages directly with customers and
can provide valuable feedback on
how the company’s offerings are
meeting customer needs. The
product and the engineering teams
are a wealth of knowledge when it
comes to understanding the
competitive landscape and the
organization’s unique product
differentiators and capabilities.
Additionally, getting third-party
feedback from customers
themselves and industry analysts
helps to validate the message is
resonating with them. Sammie’s
mission is successfully executing on
Infoblox’s vision and strategy.
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30

34. B
usinesses operate, survive and progress in a highly
dynamic economy, where change is the rule, not
the exception. The change may be slow, sudden or
almost extensive. One of the important forces of change is
the change in technology. Most of these changes are used
to enhance human capabilities to accomplish meaningful
work. These changes are sometimes thriving on the
entrepreneur. A successful entrepreneur works to
visualize these future changes rather than waiting for it
and create a more desirable environment in the
organization.
Technological breakthroughs do occur and it takes
courage for an entrepreneur to accept the change and its
implication. Technology breakthroughs like computers,
colortelevisionsets,electronicsets,fuel-efficientvehicles,
etc.haveencouragedentrepreneurstomanufacturethese
products. Thus changes in technology from time to time
pose several alternatives before the entrepreneur. This is
an ongoing process in which the entrepreneur sets goals
and strategies to meet changes in technology. But for
strategies like marketing, human resource, supply chain,
financialandlegalstrategies,etc.connectionwithpeopleis
important. Entrepreneurs define the formal relationships
among people and specify both their roles and
responsibilities. Because the end product is an integrated
system of people & technology and to administer these
systems,entrepreneurisrequired.
Technology is helping us solve problems where human
power alone is not enough. Different types of businesses
requiredifferenttechnologies,butagain,itisimpossibleto
solve all integration needs with a single technology. This
articlewillhelpyouunderstand,thattechnologyisonlythe
part of the original solution and how in different sectors
theentrepreneur’ssurroundingreallymatters.
Ÿ Accounting
Technology allows us to complete tasks faster. It replaces
the tiresome tasks of manually storing, compiling, sorting,
etc.andtheabilitytousedatawithasimpledigitalsolution.
For example, Sales ledger in the early days was time-
consuming, expensive and all paper-based process.
Technology helped increase productivity with the
development of spreadsheet software like Microsoft
Excel. Employees today are far better at finding what they
need when they need it. Though only this will not achieve
the outcome. Here, let’s take a clear look at how the
entrepreneur’s spirit is really helping to achieve the
desiredgoal.
Technologyisgoodforbringingthechangenotforcingit.It
cannot make employees more efficient. Yes, the right
technology can help to make the work easier, but if an
employee is truly falling behind or is just inefficient, all the
technology in the world will not solve this situation. The
truth is such employees can be sometimes inefficient due
in the Modern Era
Entrepreneurial Spirit
Sustaining
| JULY 2019 |
32

35. to either inexperience or laziness. An entrepreneur can
identify this problem by improving communication in such
departments. This explains why human interference is
important to address this situation, where technology is
justabandage,fixtheproblemforashorttime.Addingnew
and faster technology will not fix the problem. While a
better solution is sitting the departments down together
and talking about the problem with the entrepreneur will
bearealsolution.
Ÿ Retail
Technology allows retailers to be available day and night
interacting with customers how, when and where they are
ready to shop. Retailers depend on technology to manage
inventory, track customer-purchasing habits, predict
trends and deliver goods and services. Wireless
communication, QR codes and Augmented Reality are
some of the changes in technology to the retail industry.
Ultimately, the entrepreneurship element remains central
even if it is embedded within AI, advanced analytics, etc.
Because a customer’s shopping experience is more
important than price and product quality.
Entrepreneur encourages employees to use
their creativity to ensure every customer experience is
memorable. Entrepreneur's human interaction adds the
valuetothecompanyandmaintainsloyalcustomers.
Ÿ Communication
In virtual workplaces, employees can interact and develop
ideasbyconnectingthroughtheuseofvideoconferencing.
This may include training and important meetings from far
places to the employees. Technology can also be used as
real-time feedback from the employees which allows the
entrepreneur to improve the needs of the employees.
Entrepreneur’s good communication is necessary to allow
efficient flow both internally (among employees) and
externally(usingtechnology).
Ÿ Automation
The robots are coming and can actually help us, to be more
productive, freeing us from most of the time-consuming
and repetitive tasks. One of the most important areas of
application of automation is computer-aided
manufacturing. Today CAD/CAM technology has been
appliedinmanyindustriesincludingmachinecomponents,
electronics products, and equipment design. Even banking
Entrepreneur Echo System
| JULY 2019 |
33

36. and financial institutions have embraced automation
technology in financial transactions. But just because
technology is advancing it does not mean it will replace
human. Technology can do an adequate job, but we still
need humans. It is certain that people to people
communication remains fundamental where the
entrepreneur’scontactinthevariousstagesisrequired.
Ÿ Security
Technology becomes even more critical when operating
the business online. It is important to protect the
businesses from cybercriminals who could steal data or
lead to website downtime. Encryption and decryption
protect information from being accessed by a third party
or cybercriminals. It takes only about a minute without
slowingdownanyfileordocument.
Ÿ Storage
Technologyhasledtothedevelopmentofcloudcomputing
to store business information and has been accepted by
many in the world of business. Cloud Computing is cost
effectiveandconvenienttothecompanymanagementand
employees can access data from anywhere by just using a
device that can access the internet. It helps entrepreneurs
to trust these technologies and build a strong trust among
internalmanagementofthecompany.
Overall Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain technology,
Cloud Computing, Internet of Things, 3D printing, etc.
today are helping entrepreneurs to use this technology in
every field to grow their businesses. But technology alone
cannot create a company culture, where human
interactions are valued. Because it is people who are
assigned to work on this technology and to encourage
them the entrepreneurs keeps their spirit alive. By
creating an interested working environment, interactive
dialogues among employees, support and motivation to
the employees, reward system, etc. reflects the culture of
the company. It is an entrepreneur who understands what
the needs of the company are, by creating a connection
with all the stages of management that brings the desired
output. Hence, entrepreneurial spirit and technology
should go hand in hand. Therefore we need evolving
technology as well as intelligent humans. We need guided
missilesaswellasguidedmentocreatethebetterworld.
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38. Scott Gainey
CMO
Cherwell
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39. Cherwell
Scott Gainey
A Leader of Opportunities
C
urrently holding the
position of Chief
Marketing Officer at
Cherwell, Scott Gainey earned his
first leadership opportunity while
working at NetApp in a
combination product
management/solutions marketing
role. At the time, Scott was
working within a small incubation
team tasked with navigating
NetApp’s entrance into a new
market adjacency around data
protection. Like many new leaders,
he entered the role with little
formal leadership training. That
came a few years later at Cisco,
which backed Scott’s desire to
attend the executive education
program at Stanford’s Graduate
School of Business.
It was at Cisco, where he was
given his first significant
opportunity to lead a marketing
organization, responsible for
Cisco’s new cloud computing and
data center networking portfolio.
Scott took on that role pre-
revenue and remained with the
team until they achieved a billion-
dollar revenue run rate, that
fastest growing portfolio in Cisco’s
history. Later he moved over to
take on Cisco’s multibillion-dollar
security business and played a
vital role in the $2.7 billion
acquisition of SourceFire.
After the integration, Scott
decided to take on a new
leadership challenge at Palo Alto
Networks where they were
evolving the marketing
organization to support explosive
55-60 percent year over year
growth demands. His first CMO
role came at SentinelOne then
continued on to Cherwell
Software.
Expanding Focus
Scott asserts that Cherwell has
developed a unique service
management architecture that
allows the company to deliver
broad service experiences for both
employees and customers of mid
to large enterprises. Since its early
history, however, Cherwell
primarily focused its go to market
efforts strictly on IT operations,
delivering IT Service Management
(ITSM) solutions. Under
marketing’s leadership, it has since
expanded that position and
extended Cherwell’s focus to
include the much larger enterprise
service management market, a
market estimated to be four times
the size of ITSM. These efforts
resulted in a strong
acknowledgment from Forrester
who named Cherwell, a leader in
its 2018 Wave for Enterprise
Service Management.
Hire smart,
give your team
space to innovate,
be bold.
“
“
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37

40. What Defines a CMO?
According to Scott, the role of CMO has expanded
dramatically over the last 6-7 years. Today more than
ever, CMOs must deliver on a comprehensive,
investor-visible, strategy that defines and builds the
company’s brand, creates efficient and qualified
demand, and drives high productivity across the
field. He states, “To succeed a CMO must have
command of its target market, key buyers, and
influencers. She/he must have command of what makes
the company genuinely unique.” These capabilities
must inform every decision CMOs make. Today’s
CMO must have a thirst for intelligence. She/he must
have the means to organize data across different
team and system sources into meaningful
information so she/he can use unobstructed
retrospective views to drive sound, forward-looking
decisions.
Moreover, CMOs must be inherently curious about
technology, but also have the capability to look at
choices through an architectural level lens. Like CIOs
at a company level, they must think more holistically
about building a marketing technology platform and
how that platform must come together to deliver
connected experiences for the broader marketing
team and ultimately, their customers. The
technology available to CMOs today is incredibly
vast. Hence, a CMO must be able to navigate
through sound decisions so as not to compromise the
continuity of their technology platform.
Alignment of Expectations
Scott believes that the most common challenge is the
alignment of expectations. As a CMO, one is
beholden to the expectations of the board, her/his
CEO, and the needs of the field as she/he aligns
closely with her/his company’s CRO. Among fellow
CMOs, Scott often laments over the short tenures of
his peers, typically the shortest within the executive
leadership team. He believes the primary reason for
these short tenures is a misalignment of
expectations. In many regards, marketing serves as
the tip of the spear for the business. The first contact
before sales engages one to one with a prospective
customer.
As a CMO if you’re also responsible for the Business
Development Representative organization, sales are
also looking to you for highly qualified discovery
meetings, which further increase the expectations.
Having a command of the business goals and aligned
expectation of marketing’s contribution to those
goals goes a long way in overcoming that challenge.
Knowing the Competition
Scott asserts that he wouldn’t characterize the
competition as cutting-edge. According to him, they
are larger than Cherwell by orders of magnitude;
they are well entrenched in the market; and have a
marketing budget that he could only dream of having
right now. Despite this, Cherwell secured a strong #2
position in the market by staying true to its
strengths. It holds its values closely – heart, hunger,
humility, and honesty. It keeps these values central to
its game plan and believes actively these values are
changing the rules of the game for its competitor and
will allow the company to continue to break market
share away despite their size.
Future Endeavors
Scott asserts that there is a massive opportunity for
continued growth within Cherwell. Last year the
company took on a $172 million investment from
KKR who have proven to be an incredibly valuable
partner. Recently it launched partnerships with AWS
and HCL. Cherwell has more exciting go to market
partnerships that it will be announcing soon. Future
endeavors for the overall marketing team and Scott
is to continue to be a significant part of the
company’s ongoing success, including contributing in
excess of 50 percent of the overall pipeline. Scott
has confidently agreed to loft stretch goals with the
board knowing he has one of the best marketing
organizations behind him.
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