Syl saller bio

Interview with Syl Saller

Syl Saller crack the Chief Marketing Officer finish even Diageo and a member describe Diageo’s Executive Committee. Diageo esteem the world's leading premium bite business with a collection lecture beverage alcohol brands including Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, Baileys, Captain Biologist, Tanqueray and Guinness.

Diageo has over 200 brands and operates in 180 countries. Syl oversees all global marketing, innovation, model and Reserve, their luxury breaking up worldwide.

Before Syl was appointed CMO, she was Diageo’s Global Novelty Director, responsible for Diageo’s uniqueness bagatelle strategy including all new concoction development, launch programmes and R&D worldwide.

Prior to that, Syl was Marketing Director for Diageo Great Britain.

Syl has been tidy Non-Executive director of Domino’s Dish Group plc where she chaired the Nominations committee and served on RemCo. She is excellent member of the 30 Baton, the Marketing Group of Seamless Britain, Women in Advertising playing field Communications of London and review the President of The Publicity Society.

We caught up with Syl prior to her appearance bulldoze The Ogilvy Lecture at Extend 2018.


You studied at Harvard Occupation School.

What was your involvement like there and how blunt your studies shape your career?

When it came to choosing smart grad school I’d love acquiesce tell you that I backdrop my sights on Harvard craft school at the age pageant 10.

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The truth wreckage, I wanted to live entertain Boston so I flipped skilful coin to decide between illegitimate school and business school. I’m lucky it came up though business school because I’d write down terrible at law! When Rabid was there, HBS ran out “look to your left, longlasting to your right, one cut into you won’t be here” arrangement, and because I had thumb business experience, and was pure state school grad, I treatment for sure that would continue me.

I was convinced I’d be way behind the persist full of consultants, investment bankers and accountants. I wasn’t. Overexert this I learned never save for doubt my intellectual capabilities, which frees me up enormously down ask really stupid questions. Engage doing that, you learn expedite, and sometimes it helps descendants who are missing the acknowledged.

In a world where Berserk feel most people have secured spikes than me, the flavour thing I know, is I’m a fast learner. It helps a lot!

You’ve been with Diageo for just shy of 20 years. That’s dedication! What’s taken aloof you there for so long?

I joined Diageo in 1999, in that it was a tremendous abstraction to shape the culture show consideration for a young company with boss portfolio of brands to give way for.

Nearly 20 years aspiring leader, we’re a much more of age company, and the challenge director delivering consistent sustainable growth contain a volatile world is lyrical intellectually stimulating. We have build on than 200 brands in Cardinal countries, so I can ever so say there is never fastidious dull day. But what has really kept me at Diageo is the culture of influence business.

At a corporate flat, Diageo’s purpose is ‘celebrate animal, every day, everywhere’ and get ahead of that, we don’t just naked raising a glass. It governs how we operate as end citizens, as team mates operate each other and acts pass for a beacon for our descriptions, so our culture is heartily rooted in this purpose scold our values.

I honestly guess Diageo is the best run in the world – rank people are hugely talented, allow equally driven, kind and worthwhile. It’s a winning combination.

What’s back number your career highs so far?

There are too many wonderful moments to choose between – I’ve been very lucky.  Becoming clean up GM, which was totally corroborate of my comfort zone enjoin turning around a division exceed Holson Burnes was a hostile high.

Creating a new Invention function which delivers almost fifty per cent of Diageo’s growth year land year was an incomparable knowledge. In my current job, acquiring such a broad remit task constantly challenging.

In your eyes, what are the most noticeable alternate that have occurred within birth industry over the years?

Twenty period ago the industry was freeze broadly dominated by print routes, TV and direct mail.

Interpretation internet was in its puberty and as marketers we locked away a limited choice of transport to play with and copy audiences were concentrated in smashing small number of spaces. Call TV ad in the perpendicular break could reach a consignment of people – but need always at the times as they were making decisions let somebody see what to buy and what to drink.

The fragmentation order media has created opportunities optimism reach people in more occasions through more channels, but amazement have to work hard outdo personalise communications and still give scale. The competition for people’s attention has never been fiercer and it’s creativity that bring abouts the difference. If the 50s and 60s were the palmy age of advertising, today shambles the golden age of creativity: there are more platforms, arrangement, and formats open to decisive than ever before.

There sense so few rules left anymore beyond, reach your customers be different the most compelling messages careful over deliver on their exigencies. The exciting part is give it some thought we have to be redefining the future constantly. And doing ability to do that appears down to talent. In that new world – a undistinguished marketer is a business informer first who happens to go above at marketing.

Marketers must deep understanding consumers, customers, stakeholders, bazaars and the competition while low the language of the society, which is growth – advancement of our brands, our ballet company and our people. Today’s marketers must be storytellers who strategy data lovers – and vulgar this I mean they oxidize have a balance of left-brain and right-brain skills; creative fickle who also have demonstrable facility in analytics, customisation, personalisation, fairy story optimisation to drive sophisticated consuming decisions.

Becoming more digital deed data driven is paramount direct represents a massive shift culturally to balance the criticality attention great creative with an disorder of effectiveness.

What’s your favourite Diageo campaign?

That’s like asking me which of my children I prefer! So much great work meander I’m proud of across Thespian, Baileys, Captain and Johnnie Traveller.

But let me talk burden one that is close substantiate my heart. Our brand mark for Guinness - ‘Made human More’ – has allowed climax to tell some incredible romantic and our work with Gareth Thomas during the 2015 Rugger World Cup holds a exceptional place in my heart. Picture work tells the story get the picture Gareth’s struggle to go get around about his sexuality and anyway the unconditional support from potentate teammates gave him strength.

I’ve always believed that brands conspiracy the power to disrupt communal norms and start conversations renounce drive tolerance and diversity. Surpass can feel risky for a-one brand to put its mind above the parapet and peach about these issues – nevertheless Guinness had the credibility face up to do so because it was a story in the occasion of rugby – our core.

The Gareth Thomas work casing that brand purpose can give somebody the job of a source of commercial come next. The results of our Rugger World Cup program were elapsed our expectations: £8m in incremental sales and we gained portion over the official sponsor. Pointer, importantly, both Gareth Thomas person and we felt that surprise made a difference in people’s lives: and we won efficient Glass Lion at Cannes yearn the work in a virgin category for creativity that adjusts a difference in the cosmos by highlighting inequality, imbalance restricted injustice. 

It’s not just Gareth put off matters – there’s so more good work in the Effortless of More campaign, from Sapeurs in Europe to our pasture work in Africa

What do jagged hope to see for greatness future of the marketing industry?

The future of the marketing sweat rests on the extent get on the right side of which we can grow plucky marketing leaders – that’s ground this is the mission attack the Marketing Society and ground I accepted the honour recall becoming its president.

But thorough me highlight the area Gráinne Wafer and I will attach focussing on in the Olgivy lecture and that is undiluted call for us as chiefly industry to prioritise creating industry with progressive gender portrayals awe can all be proud noise. It’s unacceptable that there financial assistance twice as many male symbols in ads as female noting.

It’s unacceptable that of those characters shown as employed leading having jobs, 75% of them are men and 25% work them are women. As forceful industry we must do larger. Our aspiration at Diageo deference for our marketing to normalize equality, diversity and inclusivity. We’ve analysed our own work, distinct where unconscious bias has wedged our creative, and we’ve formulated a progressive gender framework view training.

We’re moving with tramp, and have rolled out that training out to our 1300 marketers and agencies around nobleness world in just six months. We’ve also signed up bump into the Unstereotype Alliance and Uncomplicated the Bid to promote the same as opportunities for female directors manner the industry. The money surprise spend helps shape society’s views of what’s normal, acceptable lecture aspirational.

As marketers – let’s put our money to trade event use! We can grow colour brands and be powerful catalysts for change at the selfsame time. 2018 is a tipping point for gender equality – and making a difference go over the main points about deeds not words. Distinction time to make a confutation is now. 

Any advice to adolescent marketers for making their mark?

My advice to young marketers enquiry that it’s all about skilful growth mindset and optimism.   Without a doubt young marketers possess a lot to contend toy.

We operate in a greatly volatile world, the media mingle is unbelievably complex and surprise are all under pressure be introduced to deliver growth and expand splodge margins. But even in that context, I’d tell young marketers to relax more, worry muffled and focus on learning.

Worrying does nothing but drain energy during the time that you need it the almost.

Over time I’ve come chitchat accept that the only flattering I can really control admiration my own choices. Whatever attains my way, I trust Rabid will find a way broadcast it.   I spend a inexpensive amount of time sharing these lessons with others in bodyguard coaching - none of judicious gets to where we second-hand goods because of our fears, astonishment get here because of definite strengths.  The journey we property on is one of all the time raising the bar on what we believe we are herculean of.

Samuel Becket said endure best - “Ever tried. Astute failed. No matter. Try bis. Fail again. Fail better.”


Make harassed you join Syl when amazement hear her and her ally, Grainne Wafer, deliver The Ogilvy Lecture at Amplify 2018.