Gemma Craven, Chief Marketing Officer at Scribd, Inc., joins That’s What I Call Marketing to discuss her path to becoming a CMO, the value of building experience across different areas of marketing and what it takes to reshape brands, teams and reputations.
This episode explores how a varied career across PR, social media, technology, agencies, consultancy and in-house leadership gave Gemma the range required to lead marketing across Scribd, Everand, Fable and SlideShare. It is an honest conversation about career choices that did not always make immediate sense to other people.
In this episode, we cover:
– How moving between countries, disciplines and organisations shaped Gemma’s approach to marketing leadership
– Building Social@Ogilvy New York when many people still believed social media would not last
– Why Gemma deliberately moved beyond being known solely as a social media specialist
– How working with CMOs at McCann helped her see CMO leadership as a possible destination
– Why becoming a fractional CMO was initially viewed as a failure by some people
– Restructuring Scribd’s marketing organisation around its products, audiences and areas of expertise
– Managing a portfolio that includes Scribd, Everand, Fable and SlideShare
– Why brands must actively manage their reputations rather than leave customers, reviews and online communities to define them
– Connecting brand strategy more closely with product, engineering, design and customer experience
– The thinking behind Scribd’s “Connect the Docs” campaign and the enduring human satisfaction of figuring something out for yourself
Gemma Craven has more than 25 years of experience building and positioning global brands. Before joining Scribd, Inc., she led marketing at Melissa & Doug, advised senior leaders at companies including Spotify, Nike, Fiverr and Ford, and led digital brand strategy at McCann New York, where she helped make Fearless Girl a global phenomenon. She also built Social@Ogilvy New York into an award-winning, multi-practice division. A useful listen for marketers interested in marketing leadership, career development, brand strategy, organisational design, reputation management, customer experience and the path to becoming a CMO.
That’s What I Call Marketing is the podcast for marketers who care about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Follow the show for more conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, professors, authors, thinkers and practitioners.
Find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.com
This episode is brought to you in partnership with Tracksuit, the always-on brand-tracking platform that helps marketers monitor brand health and bring a clear, shared view of brand performance into the boardroom. Tracksuit tracks brands across more than 25 markets, making ongoing brand measurement more accessible, visible and useful for marketing teams and senior leaders. Find out more at: https://www.gotracksuit.com
The Big Marketing MeetUp Belfast, takes place at ICC Belfast on 5 November 2026, book tickets at: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/bmmubelfast/1935249
Chapters
04:15 – A career shaped by curiosity and working across cultures
06:30 – Moving from London to New York and experiencing culture shock
09:41 – Building Social@Ogilvy New York
16:42 – Why Gemma moved from agency life into technology
19:24 – When becoming a CMO started to feel possible
20:49 – Why varied experience creates better marketing leaders
23:13 – Too ambitious to work for Mick Jagger
24:01 – Choosing the fractional CMO path
28:11 – Restructuring marketing around products and audiences
29:17 – What happens when a brand leaves its story untold
29:48 – Leading teams through organisational change
32:16 – Refreshing the Scribd and SlideShare brands
32:24 – The strategy behind “Connect the Dots”
36:26 – Resisting the pressure to launch a campaign too quickly
38:06 – How brand discovery and reputation are changing