CMO Confidential – "Brand U: Building Your Personal Brand as a Marketing Leader"

Host: Mike Linton
Guest: Kip Knight, Founder of CMO Coaches
Date: November 18, 2025

Episode Overview

In this insightful episode, host Mike Linton sits down with veteran marketer and executive coach Kip Knight to explore the art and strategy of building a personal brand as a marketing leader. They dig into the heightened importance of personal brand in the age of AI, break down the critical framework for brand development, discuss the nuances of executive presence and vulnerability, and offer tactical networking and career advice for CMOs (both aspiring and established). Rich with real-world stories, leadership principles, and immediately actionable tips, this episode demystifies what it takes to become— and remain— a respected, trusted marketing leader.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Critical Importance of Personal Branding for CMOs

• Intentionality Matters: "Great brands are never accidental. And I think great personal brands are also never accidental." – Kip Knight (03:13)
• Trust and Authenticity: The two core pillars of an enduring brand—personal or corporate.
• Amplification in the Digital Era: Social media, podcasts, and AI-driven recruitment have made personal branding more visible and more essential than ever before.
  • "In that crowded space, it's both an opportunity and frankly, a threat. Because if you're a shrinking violet as a CMO...they've got to know your brand." – Kip Knight (05:56)
• The "Elizabeth Holmes Syndrome": Warning against trying to be something you're not. Authenticity and uniqueness are more sustainable than mimicry. (04:23)

Timestamps

• [03:09] – Why personal branding is critical
• [05:27] – Personal branding in the age of AI and digital visibility

2. Personal Brand Development Framework

A. Self-Assessment

• Use objective feedback: 360 reviews, team feedback, assessment tools (e.g., Working Genius, Myers-Briggs).
• "You can't read the label from inside the bottle." – Kip Knight (07:44)
• Push beyond self-delusion: "That lack of objectivity will likely not help them at all." – Mike Linton (10:11)
• Be honest about ambition and proof points—are you actually developing new skills, or just scaling the same tasks?

B. Brand Positioning

• Synthesize feedback to clarify your "superpowers" and what makes you unique on the executive market.
• "I'm really good at generating new ideas... What I'm lousy at is filtering those ideas." – Kip Knight (15:05)
• Recognize both strengths and weaknesses and seek complementary partners.

C. Brand Activation

• Bring your strategy to life through consistent actions, leadership style, and communication.

Timestamps

• [07:39] – Brand framework introduction
• [08:09] – Tools and approaches for honest self-assessment
• [14:30] – Translating self-assessment into brand positioning

3. Executive Presence & Leadership Mandate

• Executive presence is the #1 coaching request Knight receives—often from bosses of CMOs.
• Leadership is about confidence, clarity, and the willingness to make tough calls.
  • "Who wants to follow somebody into battle and they're going, 'Well, I guess we gotta do this.'" – Kip Knight (16:55)
• IQ, EQ, and CQ:
  • IQ: Table stakes for CMOs.
  • EQ: Emotional Intelligence—reading the room, empathy, resolving conflict.
  • CQ (Curiosity Quotient): The relentless drive to learn and adapt.
    • "If you can show some vulnerability, you will be amazed at the loyalty of your team..." – Kip Knight (19:25)
• Emphasize both confidence and vulnerability (truth-telling), especially in crisis.

Timestamps

• [14:21] – Executive presence and imposter syndrome
• [16:31] – Executive presence and what bosses really want
• [19:11] – The role of vulnerability vs. truth-telling

4. Crisis Leadership & Personal Brand Resilience

• People remember how leaders act during crisis, more than day-to-day actions.
  • "Your team will not remember a lot of specific things. They will remember the crises moments very clearly and that will follow your brand around." – Kip Knight (21:27)
• Lasting impressions are formed by authenticity and trust during tough times.

Timestamps

• [19:50] – Handling difficult situations and the impact on personal brand
• [21:27] – The legacy of crisis management

5. Role Models, Principles & Company Culture

• As you ascend in leadership, people study not just your words, but your behavior, mood, and consistency.
  • "You are the role model now. And that is something as a leader that you've got to constantly keep in mind because they are studying not only everything you say and write, but everything you do." – Kip Knight (23:11)
• Company culture is shaped by stories told about leaders when they’re not present.
• Find positive and negative role models both inside and outside the company. Learning from bad bosses is just as instructive as learning from the good ones.
  • "Crises does not build character, it reveals it." – Kip Knight (26:38)
• Memorable leaders and their core principles stick with teams well beyond their tenure ("disagree and commit," "stay in your lane", "show me the math").

Timestamps

• [22:43] – Role models, personal principles, and culture
• [23:11] – Being observed as a leader
• [26:38] – Role models, setbacks, and character

6. Marketers as Business Integrators

• Marketing leaders should act as connectors within organizations, integrating functions to respond holistically to new challenges (e.g., GenAI adoption).
  • "Make sure if you're doing a big initiative...that the company has a chance to join it versus just execute it." – Mike Linton (30:50)

Timestamps

• [29:16] – Marketers as business integrators

7. Practical Networking Advice

• "It's not what you know, it's who you know"—but you need both.
• Three key tips:
  1. Start every call with, 'How can I help you today?'—get to the point and save everyone’s time.
  2. Warm introductions only: Never introduce someone without checking with the recipient first. Responding to warm intros is core to professional trustworthiness.
  3. Be a giver as you rise: Senior leaders should expect that networking becomes less transactional and more about helping the next generation.
  • "Those people that are authentic and trustworthy answer their emails if they get a warm introduction." – Kip Knight (33:06)

Timestamps

• [31:20] – Networking best practices

8. Actionable Final Advice: The Handwritten Note

• Never underestimate the impact of a handwritten note on high-quality stationery.
  • "Never underestimate the power of a handwritten note on high quality stationery." – Kip Knight (34:19)
• Much more meaningful than an email—people remember and display them.
• "[Email] is nowhere close [in impact]." – Kip Knight (35:21)

Timestamps

• [34:15] – Final tip: handwritten notes
• [35:35] – The memorable effect of personal notes

Notable Quotes

• Kip Knight:

  • "Great brands are never accidental. And I think great personal brands are also never accidental." [03:13]
  • "You can't read the label from inside the bottle." [07:44]
  • "As you age, as you get to more and more senior positions, obviously you're going to have to be selective in terms of how much this you're going to want to do for others. But you have to accept the fact that you're going to be much more of a giver and less of a taker." [33:13]
  • "Crises does not build character, it reveals it." [26:38]
  • "Never underestimate the power of a handwritten note on high quality stationery." [34:19]

• Mike Linton:

  • "That lack of objectivity will likely not help them at all." [10:11]
  • "People aren't going to hire you based on your belief. They're going to hire you based on the proof point of what you've done." [13:47]
  • "Make sure if you're doing a big initiative in particular, that the company has a chance to join it versus just execute it." [30:50]

Memorable Moments

• Kip’s metaphor of “reading the label from inside the bottle” to illustrate the blind spots in self-perception (07:44).
• The discussion about the enduring impact of leadership actions during company crises, and how it “follows your brand around” (21:27).
• Humorous yet spot-on examples showing why marketing leaders need to “be on” at all times—even at the grocery store (24:34).
• The impassioned plug for handwritten thank-you notes, including anecdotes of people displaying such notes years later (34:15–35:45).

Segment Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamp | |------------------------------------------------|------------------| | The importance of personal branding | 03:09 – 06:44 | | Brand development framework | 07:39 – 14:14 | | Executive presence, vulnerability, & leadership| 14:21 – 22:27 | | Role models & culture | 22:43 – 29:04 | | Marketers as business integrators | 29:16 – 31:07 | | Networking advice | 31:10 – 33:55 | | Handwritten notes & final advice | 34:15 – 35:57 |

Final Thoughts

Mike and Kip’s candid conversation makes clear that being a successful CMO goes far beyond numbers and campaigns. It’s about being deliberate with your personal brand, investing in self-awareness, acting with integrity during tough times, and consistently building connections and goodwill. Whether you’re already in the C-suite or aiming for it, their advice is as actionable as it is authentic: own your story, seek the hard truths, act as a role model, and always—ALWAYS—send the handwritten note.

For marketing leaders, this episode is a masterclass in leadership, brand, and legacy.