Selling AI to the skeptics with Heidi Malden

Inside the CMO hiring process with Kate Bullis

The CMO hiring process has changed.  Boards and CEOs aren’t just looking for marketing operators anymore; they want leaders who can drive transformation and business growth. Kate Bullis [https://www.linkedin.com/in/katebullis/], Global Marketing Practice Leader and Managing Director at ZRG Partners [https://www.zrgpartners.com/], shares what boards, CEOs, and recruiters are looking for in modern marketing leaders — and why many highly experienced candidates still struggle to stand out. In this episode, you'll learn: * How CMO expectations have changed in recent years * What CEOs mean when they say they want “innovation.” * Why personal brand matters more than most executives realize Highlights: (00:00) Meet Kate Bullis, executive recruiter for CMOs  (02:55) What recruiters and CEOs actually look for when hiring a CMO  (06:41) Do you need AI experience to land a CMO role?  (12:48)How to identify your leadership superpower as a marketer  (19:03) How executive recruiters source and evaluate CMO candidates  (23:17) The personal brand exercise every aspiring CMO should do Resources: Kate's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katebullis/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/katebullis/]Gayle's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylekalvert/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylekalvert/]

Proving Event ROI with Stephanie Worthington

Your events aren’t failing. They’re just being evaluated the wrong way. Stephanie Worthington [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieworthington/], Head of Events and Field Marketing at Upstart [https://www.upstart.com/], has spent 30+ years turning trade shows into revenue drivers, not money pits. She breaks down the framework that actually makes an event program work – from how to decide which shows are worth the spend to why traditional ROI metrics miss the real impact.  If your events look “fine” on paper but still feel hard to justify, this is the conversation you’ve been missing. In this episode, you'll learn: * How to tell if an event is actually worth your budget before you commit * Why event leads stall after the show (and what to do about it) * What actually improves event ROI beyond cutting spend or chasing more leads Highlights:  (00:00) Meet Stephanie Worthington  (01:58) The three-lens framework for prioritizing events  (07:41) Where event teams waste the most money  (10:57) Why event ROI is so hard to prove  (15:14) Making events part of a full-funnel strategy  (20:28) Improving ROI without increasing budget  (22:43) How Stephanie is using AI in her event workflow Resources: Stephanie's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieworthington/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieworthington/]Club ITCHI: https://www.clubitchi.com/ [https://www.clubitchi.com/]Gayle's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylekalvert/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylekalvert/]

Marketing in Progress | The Conversations B2B Marketers Actually Need

B2B marketers are asked to do the impossible every single day. Be data-driven, but not too data-driven. Build pipeline, but also build brand. Prove ROI on a broken attribution model. Never miss a trend. Never need more headcount. And whatever you do — don't let them see you scrambling. We see you. And we made something for you. Marketing in Progress is a podcast where B2B marketers talk to B2B marketers — honestly, specifically, and without the polished-conference-talk version of the truth. Real practitioners. Real problems. Real conversations. New episodes dropping now. Link in comments.

Selling AI to the skeptics with Heidi Malden

Not long ago, companies resisted adopting analytics. Now it’s table stakes. AI is next, but we’re still in the messy middle. So how do you market when your audience isn’t fully ready yet? Heidi Malden [https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidimalden/], Head of Americas Marketing at Pigment [https://www.pigment.com/], gets real about what it takes to market an AI-driven company when your buyers are at very different stages of adoption. Heidi shares how she's building pipeline, stretching budgets, and keeping up with a market that changes every single month.  In this episode, you'll learn: * How to position AI without overwhelming or alienating your audience * The shift from SEO to AI-driven discovery (GEO) * Where to spend your time and budget as AI changes everything Highlights: (00:00) Meet Heidi Malden (04:52) Tailor your messaging for each persona (07:21) Adopt AI or get left behind (11:20) Brand awareness comes from GEO, not SEO (16:17) Keep a lean but efficient tech stack (21:06) Why relationships still close deals Resources: Heidi's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidimalden [https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidimalden] Pigment website: https://www.pigment.com [https://www.pigment.com] Letter AI website: https://www.letter.ai [https://www.letter.ai] Gayle's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylekalvert/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylekalvert/]

Why most AI outreach falls flat with Tal Peretz

Most B2B marketing teams are sitting on untapped data. The ones winning deals are actually using it. Tal Peretz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tal-peretz/], Co-Founder & CEO of Onfire AI [https://www.onfire.ai/], shares why generic AI outreach is failing marketers and what a smarter, data-first GTM strategy looks like. Tal breaks down the myths around AI adoption and how contextual intelligence is becoming the real differentiator in B2B. In this episode, you'll learn: * Why technical buyers' public communities are your most underused data source * How to turn buying signals into context that earns a response * How to train your AI outreach the way you'd train a new hire Highlights: (00:00) Meet Tal Peretz (02:40) Why AI made outreach harder, not easier (04:12) Mistakes in targeting technical buyers (10:31) Scaling AI outreach without losing data trust (14:19) The three levels of AI maturity (17:19) What Tal looks for when hiring in the AI era Resources: Tal’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tal-peretz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tal-peretz]Onfire AI website: https://onfire.ai [https://onfire.ai]Gayle’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylekalvert/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylekalvert/]