She leads marketing for one of the most recognized brands in her sector, but don’t expect Deborah Wahl to be looking for advice from her peers at other fast food chains – or even other marketers.
In a series of video clips taken during the 2016 CMO Summit produced by executive search firm Spencer Stuart, the CMO of McDonald’s provided some candid and personal stories about her journey to the top. For example, she said what she looked for in a mentor were new perspectives rather than a set career path she could emulate.
“I’ve always sought out people who are different than I am,” she said during a panel discussion with CMOs from Emerson and MetLife. “In formal mentoring they often talk about being mentored by someone who’s really so much like them. I’ve actually found the opposite to be useful.”
Perhaps no mentoring, however, is as useful as simply mustering up the gumption to make yourself heard by senior leaders. This was a lesson Wahl said she learned early on in her career.
“I was in San Paolo, Brazil. I was the only woman working there, with all these guys who had mostly engineering backgrounds,” she recalled. “I didn’t know that, only if you were at a certain level [of management] that you got a ‘seat at the table.’ I came in early one day, plopped down at the table and got a lot done.”
As Marketing reported back in March, Wahl and her team had recently gone through a major revamp of the firm’s digital strategy, including an app and social media activity. Though that led to major staffing additions, she said McDonald’s had learned to step back occasionally and reassess what its marketing department needed to look like.
“Things are changing so fast that I don’t know if anyone has the true skill set for everything we know we need to do going forward,” she said. “Even that’s not enough. It’s really the process, structure, really rethinking it all. Sometimes I think we’re getting too caught up on the skill set and we’re losing a little sight of what strategy are we all following that we could use these skills for?”
From a leadership perspective, Wahl said articulating a vision for turning around an iconic brand was key to attracting the right team, no matter what skills they possessed.
“We’ve seen a lot of people really engage and want to be part of that – that’s what keeps people on the late nights, all day. It also gives you that tenacity,” she said.
Though there’s no secret trick to keeping that team motivated, Wahl said her motto remained a simple one.
“I always go back to this – and I probably don’t practice it as well as I should – but to always be kind, generous and inclusive,” she said.
