Ep. 571 | Marketing leadership in the age of AI: Building smarter teams and measurable growth

In this episode of OnBase, host Chris Moody sits down with Jasmeet Sawhney to explore what it means to lead marketing in an AI-driven world. Jasmeet shares his unconventional journey from engineer to marketing executive, emphasizing how technical fluency and creativity are now inseparable in leadership roles.

They dive deep into the evolving responsibilities of marketing leaders, how AI is reshaping strategy, execution, and team structures, and why the biggest risk is failing to evolve. From scaling personalization to rethinking attribution and ROI, Jasmeet offers a candid and forward-looking perspective on how leaders can guide their teams through this transformation.

This episode is a must-listen for marketing, sales, and business leaders navigating the AI revolution and seeking actionable insights for long-term success.

Key Takeaways

• AI is no longer optional:
   AI is no longer a buzzword, it’s a business necessity. Marketing leaders must integrate it across every function, from data analytics to customer engagement.
• Leadership must get technical:
   Future marketing leaders can’t avoid data or tech. Understanding AI, automation, and analytics is critical for setting effective goals and strategies.
• Don’t just hire AI experts, build internal fluency:
   Instead of creating isolated “AI teams,” leaders should train and empower existing staff to integrate AI into daily workflows.
• Personalization at scale is the new standard:
   AI enables hyper-personalization down to the stakeholder level, not just the account level. This is where real competitive advantage lies.
• Measure what matters:
   AI offers new opportunities to track touchpoints across the customer journey, finally making ROI and attribution measurable with greater accuracy.
• Change requires courage:
   Creativity, experimentation, and risk-taking are essential to unlocking AI’s potential, leaders must champion innovation even when outcomes are uncertain.

Quotes

“This is the biggest opportunity of our generation. If we don’t leverage AI, that’s what’s really at stake.”

Tech Recommendations

• Claude (Anthropic) – For content creation and ideation.
• Veo (Google LLM) – For AI-driven media and video content.
• Lovable – For AI-powered design support.
• Figma – For creating lightweight AI agents and workflows.

Resource Recommendations

Book:

• Nexus: The History of Information Networks by Yuval Noah Harari

Podcast:

• Marketing Against the Grain by HubSpot

Shout-Outs

• Mohanbir Sawhney, Northwestern University - Kellogg School of Management – mentor and thought leader in marketing innovation.
• Dharmesh Shah, Co-founder & CTO of HubSpot – admired for bridging strategy, culture, and technology.
• Gary Vaynerchuk, Chairman of VaynerX, CEO of VaynerMedia – inspiration for fearless creativity and constant evolution.

About the Guest

Jasmeet is a marketer with deep roots in technology, data analytics, and AI. He is currently Global Head of Marketing at Axtria. Earlier, Jasmeet was CEO of YibLab, which was one of the fastest growing marketing technology and solutions providers, ranked Top 50 among the fastest growing companies in NJ. Jasmeet has 20+ years of experience building and scaling marketing operations for both small and large companies. He is an investor, advisor, and mentor to multiple firms, and has received several company and individual awards - Inc. 500, Deloitte 500, Crain’s Fast 50, SmartCEO Future 50, Red Herring, NJBiz Business of the Year, Top CMO, and Forty Under 40, among others.

Connect with Jasmeet.