In this episode of Time for a Reset: Insights from Global Brand Marketers, brought to you by Overline, host Fiona Davis speaks with Raja Rajamannar, Senior Fellow and former CMO of Mastercard and one of the most influential voices in modern marketing, about the urgent need to reset the marketing function.

Raja argues that marketing has not just lost influence, it has lost credibility. He traces this back to a fundamental disconnect between marketing and business outcomes, where marketers failed to understand financial drivers, revenue models, and the language of the C-suite. As a result, CEOs have lost trust, new roles like Chief Growth Officer have emerged, and marketing has been pushed out of strategic decision-making.

Drawing on his experience leading Mastercard’s transformation into one of the world’s fastest-growing brands, Raja introduces the idea of “Quantum Marketing”, a reimagining of the entire marketing value chain, from insights to customer engagement. He shares how shifting from traditional advertising to immersive, multisensory experiences helped reposition marketing as a growth engine rather than a cost centre.

From redefining the capabilities of modern marketers to rethinking how marketing is taught in business schools, this episode offers a candid and forward-looking perspective for leaders navigating a rapidly changing landscape.

Raja Rajamannar spent over a decade at Mastercard, transforming the brand into one of the fastest-growing and most valuable in the world. He is currently a Senior Fellow and former CMO at Mastercard and an Executive Fellow at both Harvard Business School and Yale School of Management, where he is focused on reimagining the future of marketing. With a career spanning leadership roles across companies like Unilever, Citibank, and Mastercard, Raja is widely recognised for pioneering the concept of “Quantum Marketing” and for bringing a deeply commercial, data-driven, and innovation-led approach to modern marketing.

Topics Covered:

• Why marketing has lost credibility and influence in the C-suite
• The disconnect between marketing activity and business outcomes
• The rise of performance marketing and its limitations
• Why marketers must become general managers, not specialists
• The concept of “Quantum Marketing” and resetting the value chain
• How Mastercard transformed marketing into a growth driver
• The shift from advertising to experiential and multisensory marketing
• Why AI and technology level the playing field for companies
• Creativity and human connection as the next competitive advantage
• The future role of marketing as a cross-functional, strategic driver
• The evolving skillset required for modern marketing leaders

Episode Chapters:

• 00:00 Intro and meet Raja Rajamannar
• 02:08 Resetting the Entire Marketing Function
• 06:13 Why Marketing Has Lost Its Influence
• 10:41 Capabilities of a Strategic Marketer
• 17:59 AI, Technology, and the Future of Differentiation
• 20:28 Transforming Marketing at Mastercard
• 27:09 A Defining Career Moment in Sales
• 31:16 The Future of Marketing as a Function
• 33:40 Skills for the Marketer of Tomorrow
• 36:07 Staying Relevant in a Changing Industry

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In this episode of Time for a Reset: Insights from Global Brand Marketers, brought to you by Overline, host Nick King speaks with Pardeep Duggal, Global Marketing Director at Bupa Global, about why marketing must sit at the heart of business transformation, not on its sidelines. Drawing on decades of cross-industry experience, Pardeep shares practical frameworks for earning boardroom credibility, building high-performing teams, and embedding marketing into the core business strategy. From leading with data before creativity to adopting AI through real-world use cases, she outlines how modern marketing leaders can balance rigour with bold thinking. It’s a candid, opportunity-focused conversation for CMOs ready to shape strategy, not simply defend spend.

Topics Covered:

• How to reframe marketing's role from communications-only to business transformation by positioning marketing as integral to customer strategy, digital ubiquity, and business outcomes, not as a separate function.
• The three non-negotiable qualities that define high-performing marketing leaders. Intellectual capability to understand business dynamics, relentless work ethic, and learning agility trump tenure or pedigree.
• The "Swoosh" methodology for delivering marketing transformation. Start by fixing operational basics and earning credibility, then paint a three-year vision of progressive change.
• Why credibility precedes creativity in the boardroom. Lead with a data-driven understanding of business models, revenue drivers, and digital impact before deploying your creative superpower. Numbers open doors; creativity changes minds.
• The winning team composition is a mix of industry veterans with fresh talent from other sectors. Pair people who understand organizational unwritten rules with outsiders who bring new perspectives.
• How to connect with the C-suite through emotional immersion, not just dashboards. Use theatrical, real-world experiences, hotel room customer simulations, unfiltered customer sessions, and live store visits to make customer insights visceral and memorable for executives.

Pardeep Duggal is the Global Marketing and Digital Director at Bupa Global. She brings three decades of experience transforming customer experiences across heavily regulated industries, including banking, energy, insurance, and healthcare. Known for embedding marketing into enterprise-wide business transformation strategies, she has built high-performing teams at leading organizations, including E.ON, CVS, Santander, and Barclaycard.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Instructions on how to do this are available here.

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In this episode of Time for a Reset: Insights from Global Brand Marketers, brought to you by Overline, host Fiona Davis sits down with Andrew Smith, Senior Director of Brand at Vinted, to unpack why radical honesty and not polished purpose statements are the real engine of modern brand growth. Andrew shares lessons from leading marketing at Booking.com, VanMoof, and now Europe’s fastest-growing secondhand marketplace, revealing how functional truth creates authentic distinction, sharper creative work, and deeper trust. From navigating AI-generated content to scaling globally without compromising authenticity, this conversation provides practical, grounded frameworks to help marketers build brands that resonate with consumers and hence endure.

Topics Covered:

• How to identify your brand's functional truth before building a creative narrative
• Why utility-driven positioning is not unsexy; it's the most powerful competitive moat
• The performance paradox: How constraints and mandatory brand elements actually unlock creative freedom
• How to balance AI-driven efficiency with long-term brand distinctiveness
• Why transparency and proof-of-impact matter more than purpose promises
• How to maintain authenticity and cultural relevance while scaling globally
• The leadership skill senior marketers must develop next

Andrew Smith is Senior Director of Brand at Vinted, Europe's leading secondhand marketplace platform, where he leads a talented team overseeing brand positioning, messaging strategy, product marketing, creative production, and campaign operations. With over 20 years of experience spanning creative agencies, consulting, global tech companies (including Booking.com), and scaling ventures (including VanMoof), Smith has built deep expertise in bridging creativity, data, and technology to drive measurable brand and business impact.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Instructions on how to do this are available here.

Support the show