CMO job moves and hiring trends to watch

Ad Age partners with executive search firm Taligence for a monthly look at the biggest CMO hires and employment trends available to Ad Age All Access subscribers. The data tracks all titles with CMO in the name globally and includes companies with a significant presence sourced from English-language announcements and reports. Companies hired 44 chief marketing officers in March, slightly up from 42 in February. Below, a look at some of the March hiring trends. Tech and financial services remain hot The two sectors continue to drive the CMO job market. Software, telecom and related sectors accounted for 21 of the new hires, followed by financial services with seven. Professional services and hotel and travel each added three CMOs. Global demand In the U.S., 28 CMOs were hired across 13 states, with California leading the pack at nine, followed by New York with six. Hiring picked up internationally, led by England, which accounted for eight CMOs, mostly in the finance and tech sectors. Southwark, England-based restaurant chain Wagamama—whose menu is inspired by fast-paced Japanese ramen bars—hired former Krispy Kreme marketer Emma Colquhoun as its chief marketing and commercial officer, who comes aboard after the chain last year took full control of eight U.S. locations. “They’re going hard on the U.S. market and need marketing firepower to make it happen,” said Michael Wright, managing partner at Taligence. “While competition for top roles in the U.S. is still fierce, foreign companies expanding stateside need leaders who understand the American landscape inside and out,” he added, advising marketing leaders that “it might be time to think beyond home turf.” Three CMO hires were made in Canada, and there was one each in the Philippines, Germany and Sweden. Promotions Only seven CMOs were promoted from within, and three of them moved up in the travel industry. American Airlines promoted Caroline Clayton to CMO after she had served as VP of communications and marketing. “Promoting Clayton, a PR and communications pro, instead of an external growth marketer is telling,” Wright said. “Expect AA to lean into reputation management and double down on loyalty marketing as travel demand fluctuates.” Michal Maguire earned the CMO title at California-based AmaWaterways River Cruises after serving as VP of marketing, while tour operator Intrepid Travel promoted U.K.-based Hazel McGuire from Director U.K. and Ireland to CMO. Gender breakdown Women accounted for 27 of the CMO hires, one more than in February, continuing a streak of female CMO hires outpacing men. In 2024, 58% of the 310 CMO hires made were women. Key hires Genesis The Hyundai-owned luxury auto brand hired Circana executive Amy Marentic as CMO, replacing Drew Slaven, who left the company in January after joining as CMO in March 2024. At Circana, Marentic’s duties included leading a team that helped clients with media, e-commerce, analytics and software solutions. She also worked at Google and is familiar with the auto industry, having worked at Ford Motor Co. for more than 25 years. “Marentic’s career blends engineering expertise with marketing leadership,” said Wright. At Genesis, he expects “a focus on experiential marketing, exclusivity tactics, and influencer-driven storytelling. In our view, Genesis will need huge paid media budgets to help raise their profile and perception among established [luxury] autos,” including BMW and Mercedes. McAfee The cybersecurity firm hired Stephanie Fried as CMO. Her resume includes stints at Fandom, Condé Nast, and Discovery Communications. McAfee has been controlled by an investor group led by Advent International Corporation since 2022. “Cybersecurity is now a crowded, high-stakes industry, and McAfee isn’t just battling hackers but perception,” Wright said. “They need to stop feeling like a relic and start acting like a market leader.” He pointed out that the hiring of Fried, who comes from outside the cybersecurity industry, marks a rarity, as only 12% of new CMOs came from unrelated industries in 2024. But “cross-industry hiring is a welcome trend,” he said, noting that job seekers often feel “real frustration at being pigeonholed based on their sector experience.” As for Fried, he asked: “Will her unique industry-traveler background inject more culture into cybersecurity marketing, steering McAfee toward consumer-friendly, lifestyle-adjacent positioning?” Verizon The telecom hired Mary Sagripanti as CMO of Verizon Value, which Verizon created in 2022 to house its pre-paid brands such as Visible, Total by Verizon and others. Sagripanti came from Amazon’s Ring, where she led marketing for the Ring and Blink smart security businesses. At Verizon she replaces Cheryl Gresham, who left in February to become senior VP marketing for North America at Starbucks, which is attempting a brand transformation under a new chief brand officer and agency. “Sagripanti now inherits a battleground where Mint Mobile (now T-Mobile’s pet project), Boost and Cricket are throwing elbows for prepaid market share. And while Verizon Value is on the up, the space is fiercely contested,” Wright said. Wagestream The London-based financial technology company hired Prelini Udayan-Chiechi as CMO. She was previously senior VP of global marketing at customer relations software firm Zendesk. Wagestream operates in the earned wage access (EWA) industry, whose products allow workers to access money in paychecks early. “Prelini has her work cut out for her,” Wright said. “The EWA space is fiercely competitive, especially in the U.S., and we will be watching as she expands this mission-led fintech globally as CMO as she scales the business.” Check out Ad Age Career Development for more on employment trends and job tips in the marketing industry

CMO job moves and hiring trends to watch

Featured Stories