AI as Your Creative Detective: Emily Ketchen on Leading Marketing in the Intelligence Era

Summary

Marketing Vanguard: AI as Your Creative Detective with Emily Ketchen

Episode Release Date: July 17, 2025
Host: Jenny Rooney, Adweek
Guest: Emily Ketchen, Chief Marketing Officer at Lenovo

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1. Introduction to Emily Ketchen and Lenovo’s Marketing Structure

The episode opens with Jenny Rooney welcoming Emily Ketchen to the Marketing Vanguard podcast from Cannes. Emily introduces herself as the Chief Marketing Officer for Lenovo’s Intelligent Devices Group, the company's largest division. This group oversees a diverse range of products, including PCs, consumer and business services, gaming, and the Motorola brand.

Notable Quote:
Emily Ketchen [02:08]: "We can have an ecosystem of devices together. So it really differentiates us, I think in terms of the competition."

2. Integrating Motorola into Lenovo’s Portfolio

Emily elaborates on how Motorola seamlessly fits into Lenovo’s broader strategy. She highlights recent innovations, such as the relaunched iconic Razor smartphone, emphasizing Motorola’s role in expanding Lenovo’s ecosystem from "the pocket to the cloud." This integration not only strengthens Lenovo’s product portfolio but also enhances its competitive edge.

Notable Quote:
Emily Ketchen [03:22]: "We see them as an incredibly important part of our portfolio. It's what takes us from the pocket to the cloud."

3. The Role of AI in Creativity and Marketing

A significant portion of the discussion centers on the intersection of AI and creativity. Emily describes AI as a "creative detective," assisting marketers by analyzing vast amounts of data to inspire and tailor creative solutions. She views AI not as a replacement but as an augmenting tool that enhances creative problem-solving and audience targeting.

Notable Quote:
Emily Ketchen [05:56]: "I think of AI as my own personal detective. It's got a magnifying glass and it's out there looking at all of the data and all of the information and serving it back to us."

4. Leading Teams in the AI Era

Emily shares her strategies for integrating AI into Lenovo’s marketing teams. She emphasizes the establishment of an AI governance council to ensure transparency and appropriate use of AI technologies. Additionally, she highlights the importance of upskilling her team through training modules and creating a prompt library to facilitate effective AI utilization.

Notable Quote:
Emily Ketchen [07:12]: "We have set up an AI governance council inside the organization where we believe it's incredibly important to be super transparent about what we're doing and how we're using it."

5. Fostering Purpose-Driven Marketing

The conversation shifts to the importance of purpose in marketing. Emily argues that brands can successfully merge purpose with commerce, particularly when targeting younger generations like Gen Z. She cites Lenovo’s "Work for Humankind" campaign, which leverages AI to make meaningful impacts, such as assisting a woman with ALS to regain her voice.

Notable Quote:
Emily Ketchen [12:35]: "We worked with our technologists and our AI organizations to bring her voice back. That matters to Gen Z. Making the world a better place."

6. Building and Managing a Global Brand

Discussing global branding, Emily introduces Lenovo’s "Global Fight" program, which fosters idea generation in a global framework and adapts these ideas locally through transcreation—not mere translation. This approach ensures that marketing messages resonate authentically across diverse cultures and regions.

Notable Quote:
Emily Ketchen [17:30]: "Transcreation keeps the integrity of the idea alive. Translation might just put it in a different language and that might fall flat."

7. Perspectives from Cannes Lions Festival

Emily shares insights from her experience at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. She identifies three key areas of focus: the evolving role of AI beyond creativity, the crucial impact of data in marketing, and the transformation of search engine optimization (SEO) into AI-optimized search (AEO). Additionally, she reflects on the diverse perspectives present at the festival and the importance of grounding marketing strategies in real-world expressions of creativity.

Notable Quotes:
Emily Ketchen [14:26]: "AI is taking a bit of a different shape than just the relationship between AI and creativity."
Emily Ketchen [20:35]: "I was in the Titanium room yesterday listening to the defense. It's so incredibly meaningful to themselves."

8. Embracing Change and Continuous Learning

Emily emphasizes the necessity of continuous learning and adaptability in the fast-paced marketing landscape. She highlights her commitment to education within Lenovo, ensuring her team remains proficient with emerging technologies like AI. This proactive approach positions Lenovo to effectively leverage AI in their products and marketing strategies.

Notable Quote:
Emily Ketchen [07:54]: "We created a prompt library. Incredible, right? Which has been super, super helpful for a lot of our folks."

9. Conclusion and Key Takeaways

Jenny Rooney wraps up the conversation by commending Emily’s leadership and forward-thinking approach. Emily underscores the importance of diversity in perspectives and the value of active participation in industry conversations. She views the Cannes festival as both a platform to give back through industry organizations and a vital source of learning from global experts.

Notable Quote:
Emily Ketchen [19:07]: "The give is being a part of a lot of industry organizations... The get is just incredible. I am naturally curious and I'm listening and I'm asking questions all day long."

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Key Takeaways:

• AI as an Augmenting Tool: AI enhances creativity by providing data-driven insights and tailored solutions, acting as a "creative detective."

• Leadership in AI Integration: Establishing governance councils and continuous training are crucial for effective AI adoption within marketing teams.

• Purpose and Commerce: Successful marketing strategies can integrate meaningful purpose-driven campaigns without compromising commercial goals.

• Global Branding through Transcreation: Adapting marketing messages beyond translation ensures cultural relevancy and maintains the integrity of creative ideas.

• Continuous Learning and Adaptability: Staying abreast of technological advancements and diverse perspectives is essential for sustained growth and innovation in marketing.

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About the Podcast:

Marketing Vanguard by Adweek spotlights individuals driving the marketing industry forward. Hosted by Jenny Rooney, the podcast delves into leadership wisdom, strategic insights, and growth opportunities amidst complex industry dynamics. Subscribe to stay informed on the latest in marketing innovation.

Transcript

[Tracksuit Representative]

We know brand growth equals business growth, but do your stakeholders Tracksuit is an affordable, always on brand tracking dashboard that helps marketers and agencies prove the impact of their work on brand metrics over time. Benchmarked against competitors. Built from best in class methodology, the Tracksuit dashboard is accessible and easy to understand for everyone from CSOs and CMOs to CFOs and founders. Research shows that brand investment in good economic times and bad is essential to driving sustainable growth. The bottom line? Turning off the brand tap will cost you in the long run. Tracksuit gives marketers and agencies a common language to measure and communicate brands impact. Without the $100,000 price tag, their in house research experts will have your survey live and your full marketing funnel and brand perceptions visible in just 30 days. Check tracksuit [e-mail].

[Emily Ketchen]

We are accustomed to selling things that people can only dream about. Did you know that you needed the Internet 35 years ago? You didn't and today it's oxygen. So I think that's what's so exciting and what's so galvanizing about these brand new technologies. We believe deeply that we can make life better.

[Jenny Rooney]

Hi everyone and welcome to the Marketing Vanguard podcast. I'm Jenny Rooney with adweek coming to you live from Cannes. We're right along at Quasset that we're dealing with the heat, but that's okay. It makes for something quite a conversation starter. But I'm thrilled to be joined by Emily Ketchen. Emily, welcome.

[Emily Ketchen]

Thank you so much Jenny. It's great to be here with you again and it is definitely toasty in con this week.

[Jenny Rooney]

Listen, every year is a little bit different. I think this is the hottest that I've experienced.

[Emily Ketchen]

I'm right there with you.

[Jenny Rooney]

How many years have you been coming?

[Emily Ketchen]

This is my third year in a row so it's been a really, really great but very warm this week. Very. Yes. Testing our endurance.

[Jenny Rooney]

I know that's true. Emily, you're at Lenovo. I want you to start by sharing with everybody your title because I do think not only is it a mouthful, but it's actually an interesting reflection of the work that you do and I want to start there. Sure.

[Emily Ketchen]

So I am the chief Marketing officer for our Intelligent Devices group within Lenovo. It's our largest division and it encompasses all of our products on the PC side with services and solutions for consumers, for gamers and for businesses. And then also our Motorola business.

[Jenny Rooney]

That's the interesting part. So talk about how the Motorola business falls under you as well. Like how do you sort of think about them as, are they bifurcated? Are they very sort of part and parcel of your focus or how are you thinking about that?

[Emily Ketchen]

I think they're very much a part of our focus. We have spent quite a bit of time just working together as brands. Motorola is as you know, a very, very well known brand and have had a number of different innovations. In fact, we just relaunched in April our very iconic razor with extraordinary surround accessor and all kinds of different things. And so we see that as very much a part of the brands that Lenovo is a part of. Right. So we see them as an incredibly important part of our portfolio. It's what takes us from the pocket to the cloud. It is part of what brings smarter technology to all. We can have an ecosystem of devices together. So it really differentiates us, I think in terms of the competition, Jenny, which is what makes it so exciting.

[Jenny Rooney]

So Intelligent devices division, meanwhile, Lenovo is a multifaceted company. So other areas of Lenovo, for people.

[Emily Ketchen]

Who don't know other areas of Lenovo, would be our services and solutions group. And so they're very focused on services and solutions for all of our customers, I would say primarily on the B2B side as organizations are leaning more into that motion of what services and solutions can you bring to bear? And then we have an incredible infrastructure business. So that business is focused on servers and solution and kinds of cloud services and things like that. So I think that's another important part of our portfolio and it really allows us again to go from the consumer all the way through to businesses, enterprises, small and medium businesses, and it allows us to really offer surround sound services and solutions and products, hardware to all of our customers.

[Jenny Rooney]

I gotta ask this question. You are seeing things in a unique lens, you know what I mean? And I have to think that the data or the research or the perspective that you bring it almost, not just almost, but it positions you as a thought leader in terms of trend tracking. Lenovo is seeing it from very all the different angles. Do you think about how that might benefit your clients and prospects when you, you package up that research, you package up that perspective?

[Emily Ketchen]

Absolutely. We're always thinking about customer insights and how we deliver those insights to our customers. Right. So we're thinking about unique and different ways to share that, whether it's a customer advisory council, whether it's a different kind of experiential event where you're sharing deep insights that first of all come to us from our Insight center of excellence. Right. So we spend A lot of time mining, doing research, figuring out kind of what's happen. Also, I think, Jenny, you can never underestimate the power of listening. What are customers facing today? What are they trying to do for their organizations? And if they can focus on what they do as a business and we can help them with the technology, it makes it much more seamless and much easier for them. So I think that's an important part of what we do and how we add value to our customers worldwide.

[Jenny Rooney]

So listen, we're at Cannes. Cannes is known the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. And creativity is. That is the key word and that has always defined Cannes. Obviously it started as an awards a week celebrating agency creative ad campaigns. I mean, historically, that was the focus. And obviously this festival has expanded so dramatically since then in the many decades that it's existed. But from your vantage point, from Emily's vantage point, how do you define creativity in a marketing world increasingly shaped by data and AI? And I'm asking you that as a CMO of a tech company?

[Emily Ketchen]

I'll just reflect on your initial point. I remember the days, having worked for a good chunk of my career in the agency world, where this was the celebration of creativity, of the flame, the discussion and the creative was breakthrough and it was sensational. And it was something that I think agency partners and their clients really celebrated. And so when you think of it, that is sort of the seed of all of this particular festival. And it is a festival designed to really honor that, to honor creative ideas that break through time and time again. So I think that's exactly right. When you think about how data can influence creativity and specifically AI, I think of AI as my own personal detective. It's got a magnifying glass and it's out there looking at all of the data and all of the information and serving it back to us in a couple of ways. One where it can serve as a foil and it can condense the ideas and give us inspiration and ways of thinking about creative problem solving differently. And then it can also really help us to tailor ideas to different audiences. And that's where AI, I think, is going to be super helpful in the context of being able to get lots of information quickly and helping us to solve those creative problems. So I see it as an and to the process.

[Jenny Rooney]

How do you bring your team along with that line of thinking?

[Emily Ketchen]

We do that in a couple of different ways. I would share with you. One, we have set up an AI governance council inside the organization where we believe it's incredibly important to be super transparent about what we're doing and how we're using it. And also then of course guardrails. What are the right ways to use AI and what are the right ways to manage that? That council started in marketing. It has expanded into legal security, all kinds of. I know, I love that. Right. We were actually out there nudging and I think that's been. And we've had great partnership from those groups. The other thing that we did Jenny, is we went out to our team and we said what do you want to learn more about? And they said we'd like to learn a little bit more about ChatGPT and the implications of that to creativity.

[Jenny Rooney]

I love that as well that you're actually going to your folks and asking.

[Emily Ketchen]

Them and asking them and it's not hard to do that. Right. So we worked with the organization to get a series of enterprise licenses. We figured out how to distribute those and amazingly brought in a trainer who did 11 modules for the organization spaced out so people could process and practice, which I think is really important. But I'm a CMO who is in an era that is unprecedented. Jenny. This is a once in a 30 year opportunity to drive something like AI and our products, AI PCs and AI phones. So you have to have knowledge in your marketing organization in order to be able to do that. So that's been really the focus on the education. So I think between the council and this program to upskill people and to bring them along and to engender the conversations has been super exciting. And our team, I just have to brag for one tiny beat which is they took all this a step further by themselves and created a prompt library. Incredible, right? Which has been super, super helpful for a lot of our folks.

[Jenny Rooney]

I think that's fantastic. Yeah, I mean.

[Tracksuit Representative]

We know brand growth equals business growth, but do your stakeholders. Tracksuit is an affordable always on brand tracking dashboard that helps marketers and agencies prove the impact of their work on brand metrics over time. Benchmarked against competitors. Built from best in class methodology, the Tracksuit dashboard is accessible and easy to understand for everyone from CSOs and CMOs to CFOs and founders. Research shows that brand investment in good economic times and bad is essential to driving sustainable growth. The bottom line, turning off the brand tap will cost you in the long run. Tracksuit gives marketers and agencies a common language to measure and communicate brands impact without the $100,000 price tag. Their in house research experts will have your survey live and your full marketing funnel and brand perceptions visible in just 30 days. Check tracksuit [e-mail].

[Jenny Rooney]

There'S so much in what you just said because I love that you get excited about this era that we're in. It excites you. You're a cmo. You have to take on that leadership role, leading the team forward. But you're also a receptor to what they need and they want as they seek to do their jobs better. You're taking that, internalizing it, you're learning from that even as they're learning from the opportunities that you're affording them. It's just cyclical. And the reality of this, all this AI stuff is nobody really has all the answers yet. So we have to get answers from all different aspects and groups within an organization. So I love your approach, I guess is what I'm saying to. It's very different than I think the way we've had other technologies come.

[Emily Ketchen]

It's possible. I mean, I think it's super important. I think, look, it's really important to model openness and understanding of new technologies. We are a technology company. I love the fact that things change all the time. The challenges change, the technologies change. We are accustomed to selling things that people can only dream about. Did you know that you needed the Internet 35 years ago? You didn't. And today day it's oxygen. So I think that's what's so exciting and what's so galvanizing about these brand new technologies. We believe deeply that we can make life better. You know, we are the company whose vision is smarter technology for all. Lenovo stands for that democratization of technology and it's super important. So I think modeling that as a leader, you have to model it.

[Jenny Rooney]

And that's what I mean. There's so many levels to this. There's something meta about it. Little M. You know, like there's the levels. You're an AI driven technology provider and you have to obviously set the agenda, respond to market forces, consumer preferences, customer needs, et cetera. How are you thinking about, you know, especially here in Cannes is also where we think about next generation right of consumers. How are you thinking about Gen Z and Gen Alpha changing the creative mandates for global brands?

[Emily Ketchen]

With regard to Gen Z, it's incredibly important to be in the conversation from an authenticity perspective and from a purpose perspective. You have to act as a brand in a way that is going to intersect with their expectations. They have significant expectations about what is important to them and what is not important to them. And we have done a lot of work for example, our Work for Humankind campaign. We have just launched another story. It's a great one. I'll share it with you. That, I think is a great example of how we are using AI to make life better, which I think is very important to Gen Z. Right. How is it making life better? So story of focused on the end.

[Jenny Rooney]

Not that means necessarily.

[Emily Ketchen]

That's right. And we'll come to Alpha in just a second. But I think with regards to that. But you know, there's a wonderful story about a woman named Erin Taylor who has ALS and who lost her voice. And so we worked together with our technologists and our AI organizations to work with her family to bring her voice back. And she was able to say I love you to her family members. That's meaningful. That's being a part of the conversation that uses AI for good and shows use cases of how that can be used to make the world a better place. That matters to Gen Z. Making the world a better place. It's a significant unifier for them. So I think that's a great example. With regards to, regards to Alpha, we're just starting the research there, right. So we're thinking about them very thoughtfully, very deeply, but we're just starting to understand what's important to them. And you know, the generation Zig and zag, right? Millennials are very different than Z. Z will be very different than Alpha, I think. I predict that they will not be the same. And so it'll be a great journey to learn what's important to them and how they're thinking. I mean, imagine, Jenny, they're the first generation for whom AI will be native. Think about that.

[Jenny Rooney]

That's crazy. My kids are 18 and 16, so I think that puts them on the.

[Emily Ketchen]

They're still Z.

[Jenny Rooney]

They're still Z.

[Emily Ketchen]

The alphas are about 13 or 14 today. And the betas people will be born in 2025. The betas are six months old. Is that crazy?

[Jenny Rooney]

That's crazy.

[Emily Ketchen]

I know.

[Jenny Rooney]

Yeah. That's a little mind blowing. What are you hearing? You've been here actually since Friday, so you've actually had the benefit of hearing and listening to the conversations that are being had here in Cannes this week. What do you feel like is bubbling up as so headline of Cannes. And by the way, it's only Wednesday, so we still have a couple days left. But either through the lens of a specifically AI conversation or more broadly, some of the conversations around creativity, purpose, a lot's going on in the world right now. What are you hearing? What have you been paying attention to?

[Emily Ketchen]

I would say there's sort of three areas that have bubbled up for me just in the conversations that I've been having this week. The first one, clearly AI, and I would say it's taking a bit of a different shape than just the relationship between AI and creativity, which I think is what we expect at the festival. Creativity. So that's been very interesting, the role of IT in the world, in products, in how it's shaping the way that people work and the way that people define new eras for how work will look and how that will come together. So that's one. Another one that's been very interesting is data and the role of data and what is that starting to look like and what is going to happen to data as things become a little bit more influenced by AI, let's say, for example. But again, data, I would say, is a pillar right on that one. And then the other thing that we're hearing an awful lot about is search, and it's been SEO for a very long time. People are talking about aeo, so the AI optimized search. Right. Which is going to be very, very interesting. And when you think about it, something like 59 to 60% of search in the United States today begins on Amazon because people are interested in products. That's very interesting. What about asking an LLM? What will be the implications of marketers who will market to AI to market to LLMs? I mean, it's really interesting. And so I think it's a very intellectually stimulating discussion here in Khan that's happening and unfolding, but I don't think we have the answers yet. So that's been super fascinating to watch. What is the role of all of that in the context of how search will move itself forward?

[Jenny Rooney]

Yeah, no, fascinating. Great points. I want to touch on the global aspect. You are a global brand, and here, this is a global festival. And I think we forget that there's a huge presence of US brand and US marketers, Europe and beyond. But this is one of those few places where the industry can get together and actually really directly have conversation with folks from other countries and other regions and how they're thinking about marketing. How are you thinking about the challenge and opportunity of building a global brand in this day and age, as opposed to 15, 20 years ago? What's the same? What's different?

[Emily Ketchen]

First of all, I'd say you're exactly right. I think this is the most geographically diverse con there has ever been. I heard that statistic this morning in one of the meetings that I was in. So I'm with you all the way. Lenovo is in 180 markets around the world. So we have to be able to create something at the global level and bring it to life locally. So Jenny, we have a program called Global Fight and the way that comes together is the ideas are generated in a global frame with our marketing leaders that are CMOs from around the world that lead their GEOs and they help us to create those creative ideas, those messages, whether they're digital, whatever they may be. And then we take them into the local, local markets and we see what needs to change. I'm a big believer in transcreation. That's very different than translation. Certainly you can translate when it's offers and tactics, but they're very different. Right. The actual.

[Jenny Rooney]

I love that the difference between transcreation and translation, that's very different.

[Emily Ketchen]

Right. And so the transcreation keeps the integrity of the idea alive. Translation might just put it in a different language and that might fall flat. You might actually offend somebody. So I think the question is a really good one because it's super important as a brand to be able to communicate in a way that your customers can hear you and want to understand more about your products and services. Which by the way, Jenny, is what a great marketer does. I don't see myself as a marketer. I'm a chief growth officer. If I'm not growing the business and selling our products, there's a problem for sure.

[Jenny Rooney]

I want to talk about the purpose piece real quick because I had Mark Ritson up here a minute ago and he actually, he Poo Poo's purpose as a true direct growth driver. Obviously he has spicy takes and that's up for debate. From your vantage point though, how do you think that your brand's purpose translates into action and not just messaging?

[Emily Ketchen]

I think the Aaron example is a great one. Right. Just going back to that for half a beat, which is it's the fusion of purpose around making the world a better place, but not at the expense of selling your products. I think you can do both. And I think purpose certainly has a role. If you're looking to work with Gen Zs, they see beyond commerce. Things matter to them and certainly that's a very important place for marketers to be a part of that conversation. So I think you can actually do both. And it's interesting because it's one of the four themes, as you know here at Comm this year, which is performance versus purpose. It's really an interesting dialogue that's been happening.

[Jenny Rooney]

Last quick question. You talk a lot about, I have to think that as a cmo you come here to give as much as to get. You've talked, I think, a lot about what you give, but I want you to. I'd love for you to articulate sort of how you think about what. How do you define your give and how do you define your get? What do you take away from this festival?

[Emily Ketchen]

The give is being a part of a lot of industry organizations that are important in the context of giving back, whether that's through education and in my case it's the ana. So I'm involved there and working to kind of help address those macro issues as an organization organization and to move the ball forward there. The get is just incredible. I am naturally curious and I'm listening and I'm asking questions all day long of people who I think are experts, people who I think have information I don't have. I think you have to be very open. Change is the constant and so the more that I can learn from others and in a very positive way, the better. And so I think that's the huge opportunity and it's really a gift to be here. It really is. It's such a great experience to be here.

[Jenny Rooney]

Anything particularly surprising to you about this?

[Emily Ketchen]

I think the variety of perspectives probably linked back to what you talked about in the context of so many different countries and cultures and it's such a great gathering. Right. One of the things that I always do is I go into the jury rooms, Jenny, and I listen. And so I was in the Titanium room yesterday listening to the defense. So you have an agency person and a brand person and they're talking about something so incredibly meaningful to themselves. It's up for a titanium. I want to hear from firsthand the craft and the joy of expressing some of those ideas. So I think that's something that CMOs and marketers have to ground themselves in. I want to go back to I walk the work. I want to hear about it, I want to see it. So I'm passionate about that.

[Jenny Rooney]

So, so insightful. Great advice for anybody either a first time can go or somebody who's been coming here for years. So Emily, thank you so much. I appreciate your being with me, sharing your insights and I look forward to.

[Emily Ketchen]

Talking to you again. It is great to be here. Jenny, as always, thank you so much for having me. I appreciate you. Appreciate it.

[Podcast Host]

Thank you for listening to Marketing Vanguard, part of the Adweek Podcast Network and Acast Creator Network. You can listen and subscribe to all of Adweek's podcast by visiting Adweek.com podcasts. Stay updated on all things Adweek Podcast Network by following us on Twitter dweek Podcast and if you have a question or suggestion for the show, send us an [e-mail] thanks for listening.

[Tracksuit Representative]

We know brand growth equals business growth, but do your stakeholders Tracksuit is an affordable, always on brand tracking dashboard that helps marketers and agencies prove the impact of their work on brand metrics over time. Benchmarked against competitors. Built from best in class methodology, the Tracksuit dashboard is accessible and easy to understand for everyone from CSOs and circumstances, CMOs to CFOs and founders. Research shows that brand investment in good economic times and bad is essential to driving sustainable growth. The bottom line? Turning off the brand tap will cost you in the long run. Tracksuit gives marketers and agencies a common language to measure and communicate brands impact without the hundred thousand dollar price tag. Their in house research experts will have your survey live and your full marketing funnel and brand procedure visible in just 30 days. Check tracksuit [e-mail].