Podcast
CMO Journeys
Hosted by Christian Banach · EN
CMO Journeys is a podcast from NextBigWin featuring conversations with the marketing leaders behind today’s most recognizable brands, including Princess Cruises, White Castle, and Ruby Tuesday.
Hosted by Christian Banach, Founder and Chief Growth Officer of NextBigWin, each episode explores the personal and professional journeys that brought today’s CMOs to the C-suite — from the pivotal career decisions and mentors that shaped them to the lessons learned along the way.
The conversation then turns to the realities of leading modern marketing organizations, including the mandates CMOs are driving inside their companies and how they evaluate agencies and strategic partners.
Through candid discussions, CMO Journeys gives agency leaders, marketers, and industry professionals a behind-the-scenes look at how modern CMOs build teams, shape brands, drive growth, and partner with the organizations helping bring their strategies to life.
33episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Jeff Cato, CMO of JASCO: Leading Holistically Across Brand, Retail, and Digital
Mar 2500:35:32Tap to summarizeIn this episode of CMO Journeys, Christian Banach speaks with Jeff Cato, Chief Marketing Officer at Jasco, a consumer electronics and connected home company with products sold across major retail and digital channels. Jeff shares how a career spanning sales, operations, e-commerce, and digital transformation has shaped his approach to marketing leadership, growth, and agency partnership.What the Conversation Covers • Jeff’s path to the C-suite, including how early roles in sales and operations shaped his view of marketing as a growth function • What it means to lead as the CMO of the full business, not just a few priority brands or initiatives • How Jasco is navigating a changing retail landscape where private label growth and digital-first brands are reshaping competition • Where Jeff is increasing investment across influencers, paid social, AI discoverability, and new channels like CTV and TikTok Shop • How he evaluates agency partners, including the importance of specialization, proactive thinking, transparency, and asking the right questions before pitchingGuest BioJeff Cato is Chief Marketing Officer at Jasco, where he leads marketing across a portfolio that spans retail, e-commerce, digital, and brand growth. His background includes leadership roles in sales, operations, and digital commerce, giving him a broad view of how companies grow and how marketing can drive measurable business outcomes.About the PodcastCMO Journeys is a podcast from NextBigWin hosted by Christian Banach. The series features conversations with marketing leaders about the path to the C-suite, the challenges they are tackling inside their organizations, and how they evaluate agencies and strategic partners.
Transcribe →Tristan Pineiro, CMO of Grindr: Building Brand, Content, and Community at Scale
Mar 1900:32:31Tap to summarizeIn this episode of CMO Journeys, Christian Banach speaks with Tristan Pineiro, Chief Marketing Officer of Grindr, about leading brand, content, communications, and partnerships at one of the world’s most culturally significant platforms. His perspective is especially valuable because it blends storytelling, community understanding, and global brand building at a time when Grindr is expanding how it shows up for users beyond its original identity.What the Conversation Covers • Tristan’s unconventional path into marketing, from queer nightlife and communications to agency work and leadership across major brands • How early experiences in culture, language, and entertainment shaped his approach to storytelling, positioning, and emotional resonance • How Grindr is evolving its brand from a hookup app into a broader “global gayborhood” built around connection, safety, information, and community • What it takes to run a lean, content-forward marketing function that acts more like a studio, with strong internal creative direction and selective agency support • How Tristan evaluates agency partners, especially their ability to understand queer culture with depth, authenticity, and real listening rather than surface-level signalsGuest BioTristan Pineiro is Chief Marketing Officer of Grindr, where he leads brand, content, communications, and partnerships for the global LGBTQ+ social platform. He came to marketing through communications and has built a career across agencies, entertainment, and culturally driven brands, with a leadership style shaped by storytelling, audience insight, and community fluency.About the PodcastCMO Journeys is a podcast from NextBigWin hosted by Christian Banach. The series features conversations with marketing leaders about the path to the C-suite, the challenges they are tackling inside their organizations, and how they evaluate agencies and strategic partners.
Transcribe →Edithann Ramey, CMO of Ruby Tuesday: How She Brings Legacy Brands Back Into Focus
Mar 1900:32:35Tap to summarizeIn this episode of CMO Journeys, Christian Banach speaks with Edithann Ramey, Chief Marketing Officer of Ruby Tuesday, about leading a legacy restaurant brand through a new chapter of relevance and growth. Drawing on experience across restaurants, entertainment, and consumer marketing, she shares how she approaches traffic, value, loyalty, and brand positioning in a category under real pressure.What the Conversation Covers• How Edithann’s career evolved from public relations into senior marketing leadership across brands, including Pizza Hut, Chili’s, Topgolf, Six Flags, and Ruby Tuesday• What she had to unlearn as she moved from messaging and communications into roles accountable for traffic, sales, and business outcomes• How she is helping Ruby Tuesday reconnect with consumers by leaning into brand familiarity, core menu strengths, and a more focused value proposition• Why loyalty and CRM need to do more than drive discounts, and how she is thinking about using customer data in a more effective and profitable way• What makes agency relationships work, including responsiveness, specialization, collaboration, and the ability to manage transitions smoothlyGuest BioEdithann Ramey is Chief Marketing Officer of Ruby Tuesday. She leads the brand’s marketing efforts across positioning, value strategy, loyalty, and consumer engagement, bringing experience from restaurant, entertainment, and consumer-facing businesses. Earlier in her career, she worked agency side and in public relations, experiences that continue to shape how she leads teams and works with external partners.About the PodcastCMO Journeys is a podcast from NextBigWin hosted by Christian Banach. The series features conversations with marketing leaders about the path to the C-suite, the challenges they are tackling inside their organizations, and how they evaluate agencies and strategic partners.
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