Omnichannel Retail Leadership with Coca-Cola's Pamela Stewart
Nov 18, 2023
auto_awesome
Pamela Stewart, Chief Customer Officer for North America Retail at Coca-Cola, discusses her career journey and leadership attributes. She talks about adjusting organizational strategy during the pandemic and the importance of building a strong team. The chapter also touches on the role of finance training, effective leadership attributes, and the significance of digital and e-commerce in retail.
Resilience, curiosity, and empathy are vital leadership attributes for success in the CPG industry.
Assembling collaborative teams and prioritizing people-first leadership are crucial for driving growth and development.
Adaptability, technology adoption, and innovation are essential for navigating changing market dynamics and consumer behaviors.
Deep dives
The Importance of Resilience, Curiosity, and Empathy in Leadership
Pam Stewart highlights the significance of resilience, curiosity, and empathy as key leadership attributes. She emphasizes the need for leaders to adapt to changing circumstances and remain agile in order to drive success. Stewart also encourages leaders to be passionate about their work and to always seek opportunities for growth and development.
Building Successful Teams
Stewart emphasizes the importance of assembling teams that are focused on collaboration and influencing others. She highlights the need for leaders who prioritize people-first leadership and are committed to supporting the growth and development of their team members. Additionally, Stewart values leaders who demonstrate curiosity and hunger for continuous learning.
Navigating the Pandemic and Embracing Digital Transformation
Stewart discusses how Coca-Cola adapted to the challenges posed by the pandemic, leveraging their DSD network and focusing on digitization. She highlights the importance of technology in simplifying processes and improving decision-making. Stewart also acknowledges the significance of limited time offers and innovation in meeting consumer needs.
Adapting to Changes and Consumer Behaviors
Stewart acknowledges the shift in consumer purchasing and consumption behaviors and the resulting impact on the industry. She emphasizes the need for companies to be agile, segment their consumer base, and focus on delivering premium and affordable products. Stewart underlines the importance of resilience and adapting to changing market dynamics.
Advice for Women Pursuing a Career in CPG Retail
Stewart offers guidance to women, particularly women of color, interested in a corporate career in CPG retail. She encourages them to embrace the possibility of being the first and emphasizes the importance of technical skills, leadership qualities, and a strong enterprise mindset. Stewart also highlights the significance of mentorship, sponsorship, and creating opportunities for others as they progress in their careers.
It’s women's month on the CPGGGUYS. Every year in November we feature only female executives, startup founders and leaders from CPG brands and retail on the podcast. This is episode one for the cpg guys women’s month 2023.
The CPG Guys speak to our seventh guest to come from the iconic CPG manufacturer the Coca-Cola Company Pamela Stewart is the Chief Customer Officer for North America Retail.
Take us through your career journey from Georgia state university to entering retail sales, to foodservice and then to run a region to now CCO for NA retail at the world's most beloved beverage Coca-Cola?
What leadership attributes have served you well over the years and championed your career success?
A successful leader builds a good team around them. What do you look for in a team and how do you help build teams?
It's an omnichannel world - how did you adjust your organizational strategy as the pandemic arrived and have things changed for ever, returned to normal, or something else?
If Coca-Cola wasn’t enough, you have quite a number of leadership activities. Talk to us about your involvement over the years as a member of the board of directors of so many organizations such as Utz, National restaurant association, FMI, save the children and black women in boards?
The role you have in retail leadership is anchored on refreshing beverage satisfaction for consumers at the end of the day. How do you help drive this to deliver for your consumers and retail partners by partnering with the brand teams and business units and your CMO?
Business in 2023 looks very different than the last 3 years as consumer retail purchase and consumption seems to have slowed down significantly. How are you coaching your teams to adapt?
What advice do you have for other women wishing to pursue a corporate career in the CPG/Retail industry?
DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.
CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast.
Get the Snipd podcast app
Unlock the knowledge in podcasts with the podcast player of the future.
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode
Save any moment
Hear something you like? Tap your headphones to save it with AI-generated key takeaways
Share & Export
Send highlights to Twitter, WhatsApp or export them to Notion, Readwise & more
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode