Now What?

As the world spins faster and faster, brands are rapidly evolving to meet the new table stakes requirements that customers and employees demand. This season of Now What? podcast, took us on a journey from the metaverse to crypto, radically inclusive leadership to communities of purpose, and featured some of the most consequential companies of our time. Meta, Spotify, The New York Times, Stripe, and so many more shared lessons you and your teams can apply today to reimagine work and support your customers like never before. In this episode, we’re looking back on the season with insights about what’s next in eCommerce from Meta, culture hunting with Chipotle, and building a brand with Crypto.com.

A new world calls for new ways of thinking and doing good as a brand. Christopher Nurko, Chief Innovation and Growth Officer at Interbrand Group, the world’s leading brand consultancy, joins the show to discuss the power of purpose-driven innovation. With over 30 years of experience, Christopher has worked with countless iconic brands and Fortune 500 companies like Microsoft, Nissan, and Verizon. He has advised World Health Organization, Malaria No More, Safe Kids International, Human Rights Campaign, and led the branding for New York City Pride / Stonewall 50. You’ll hear why doing good is good for business, the reason to reconsider customers as citizens, and how radical inclusivity is the key to unlocking brand innovation. 

The future of business is in subscriptions and the future of teams is built like an operating system. That’s according to our guest, Krystal Plomatos, Executive Director of Marketing for standalone products at​ The New York Times. Krystal oversees marketing for Cooking, Games, Wirecutter, Audio, Kids, Events, and TV & Film businesses for the iconic media brand. In this episode, you’ll hear about the value and challenges of building subscription-based businesses, talk context switching as a full-funnel marketer, learn how to communicate better across teams, and get tips on redefining your career at any stage.

Agencies are rethinking the ways they support brands of tomorrow. Sean DallasKidd, Partner and Chief Creative Officer at Demonstrate, an award-winning integrated marketing and communications agency, is rolling up his sleeves to embrace today’s emerging technologies to help clients deliver breakthrough customer experiences. In this episode, we talk innovative campaigns, putting Web3, NFT, and metaverse technology to good use, and discuss the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusivity in design and business.

The path from discovery to purchase may soon happen instantly. Vice President of Commerce Business at Meta, Benji Shomair joins the show to talk about how Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp, and Messenger are working with businesses to drive word of mouth and connect social to sales like never before. In this episode, you’ll get a front seat view of the future of social eCommerce, hear why content is the new front door to your store, get macro trends in customer behavior, and learn why no matter the platform –– IRL, AR, VR or metaverse –– it all comes down to how you treat your customers. 

Today brands have an opportunity to authentically fuel communities to make a real business impact. And our guest this episode, Adam Katz, CEO of Imprint Projects, has dedicated his work to helping companies like Google, Lego, Levi’s, and Sonos do just that. Imprint Projects has been named Best Small Agency, Best Agency Culture, and Best Experiential Agency by AdAge. Adam shares how brands can credibly support communities of purpose, the importance of community-funded creator economies, and what's next for branded experiences in Web3, the metaverse and beyond. 

The restaurant world is evolving, fast. And Tressie Lieberman, Chipotle’s Vice President of Digital Marketing and Off-Premise, is helping to shape a bold future for the industry that responds to culture and customer needs nearly instantaneously. In this episode, Tressie goes deep on bringing customers closer to your brand, culture hunting, meeting fans in the Metaverse, and frictionless experiences for every kind of guest.

When design systems venture into the metaverse and beyond, the sky's the limit. We’re talking about the intersection of design and code and the future of design systems with Adekunle Oduye, Design Engineer at the FinTech company Plaid. Adekunle previously built products for NASDAQ, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and Mailchimp. In this episode, we talk about the hybrid role of the design engineer, share lessons for any leader working across disciplines, and discuss the power of prototyping.

The next phase in audio advertising is coming. Global Head of Design for Ads at Spotify, Leonardo De La Rocha, who previously led design teams at Intuit, Facebook, and Yahoo!, discusses how brands can connect with consumers like never before using audio, what’s next in podcasting, and the impact of designing for enterprise.

The great resignation is only one part of the story. Today’s leaders are finding bold new ways to unite teams of all kinds to create something better at work. Rachel Gogel is an independent Chief Creative and Culture Officer who runs her own consultancy and currently supports internal brand initiatives at Airbnb. She serves as Chair of Women in Leadership & Design and is an active member of Queer Design Club. Her work has taken her from Departures magazine and Godfrey Dadich Partners to The New York Times’s award-winning T Brand Studio, GQ, and Meta. Rachel dives into the future of independent work, eight essential skills to manage teams today, and the principles of inclusive leadership.