Pipeline Visionaries

In this episode, Ian sits down with Henry Wagner, Chief Marketing Officer at Megaport, to explore how marketing teams can earn attention in increasingly crowded and skeptical B2B markets.Henry shares why Megaport invests in unconventional campaigns, like building an eight-bit video game to celebrate a major company milestone, and how smaller, calculated bets often outperform large, high-risk sponsorships. He breaks down his philosophy of “doing science, not alchemy” in marketing, emphasizing rigorous testing, learning, and iteration over narrative-driven guesswork.Key Takeaways:Creative risk is easier to justify when bets are small and frequent. Contained experiments often deliver outsized attention with limited downside.Great marketing teams run science, not alchemy. Measurement, iteration, and learning beat intuition and narrative.LLMs change discovery, but not the need for authority. Clear, structured, problem-focused content still wins—measurement just looks different.Episode Timestamps: *(14:16) The Trust Tree: *(17:56) The Playbook: *(46:32) Quick Hits: Sponsor:Pipeline Visionaries is brought to you by Qualified.com. Qualified helps you turn your website into a pipeline generation machine with PipelineAI. Engage and convert your most valuable website visitors with live chat, chatbots, meeting scheduling, intent data, and Piper, your AI SDR. Visit Qualified.com to learn more.Links:Connect with Ian on LinkedInConnect with Henry on LinkedInLearn more about MegaportLearn more about Caspian Studios Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Greer Lynch, VP of Marketing at Reprise and storytelling-led growth pro with ~20 years in tech, discusses building community as a primary growth lever. She covers storytelling as the backbone of marketing. She explains rebranding for enterprise credibility. She describes using AI to speed work and evolving SEO for an AI-first world.

In this episode, Ian sits down with Phyllis Fang, Head of Marketing at Transcend, where she leads go-to-market strategy for a data infrastructure platform powering compliant AI-driven experiences.Phyllis shares how she thinks about go-to-market strategy, building repeatable marketing systems, investing in thought leadership and IRL events, and creating the right culture for AI adoption inside marketing teams.Key TakeawaysThought leadership compounds over time. First-party research, executive voices, and clear points of view build trust long before buyers are in-market. Operational rigor matters, even in startups. Repeatable playbooks and clear ownership help marketing scale without breaking. AI adoption is as much a cultural challenge as a tooling one. Creating space to experiment is key to long-term impact. Quote“Slow down to speed up. Be best friends with sales. You’re there to help the business win.”Episode Timestamps00:27 Phyllis’s Path into Marketing02:03 What Transcend Does and Who It Serves03:53 Go-to-Market Strategy Overview05:58 Marketing Team Structure07:15 Lessons from Uber12:26 Uncuttable Marketing Investments14:57 Activating Executive Thought Leadership16:22 Running Effective IRL Events21:07 What’s Most Cuttable in the Budget26:04 Favorite Campaigns28:08 Building a Culture for AI Adoption36:27 Navigating Cross-Functional Tension41:21 Quick HitsSponsorPipeline Visionaries is brought to you by Qualified.com. Qualified helps you turn your website into a pipeline generation machine with PipelineAI. Engage and convert your most valuable website visitors with live chat, chatbots, meeting scheduling, intent data, and Piper, your AI SDR. Visit Qualified.com to learn more.LinksConnect with Ian on LinkedInConnect with Phyllis on LinkedInLearn more about TranscendLearn more about Caspian Studios Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Emily Kramer, founder of MKT1 and a recognized voice in B2B marketing, joins Ian Faison to explore the evolving landscape of marketing roles influenced by AI. They introduce the concept of the 'gen marketer'—a versatile generalist who seamlessly blends creativity with strategy. The discussion emphasizes the necessity for speed over perfect alignment, advocating for bold marketing bets that prioritize impactful campaigns. Emily also likens marketing to venture capital, stressing the importance of portfolio strategies and audience-centric creativity.

Hear from Jill Wiltfong, CMO, Korn Ferry, Chris Bontempo, CMO, Johnson Controls, Shannon Sullivan Duffy, CMO, Asana, and Melton Littlepage, CMO, 1Password on their uncuttable budget items. Timestamps: (01:19) Jill Wiltfong, CMO, Korn Ferry,(08:03) Chris Bontempo, CMO, Johnson Controls(23:12) Shannon Sullivan Duffy, CMO, Asana(28:10) Melton Littlepage, CMO, 1Password  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ian sits down with Stacey Epstein, CEO of Magnetic, where she helps brands create clear positioning and go-to-market strategies that drive lasting demand. She talks about how to succeed in interacting with the board, outlining do’s and don’ts, and providing advice around defensiveness and preparation. Key Takeaways:The board is there to help you succeed. Treat them like advisors and go to them with questions and issues that you are trying to solve. Don’t try to hide problems, do demonstrate your wins.There is an art to defending yourself without being defensive. Defensiveness often results in a board member feeling unheard and pushing harder. Take the note, even if you can’t take the proposed solution. Ditch the slide decks and excel spreadsheets, and tell the story for board members. A unified board letter from the leadership team is a great way to do this and increases alignment before a meeting. Quote: “  We're all on the same team. We all wanna win. Like we're here together in this board meeting because we want the company to be successful and we want to win. And, . There should be no hiding of issues. In fact, that's what the board is there for. The board is there to help you get through the challenging times.”Episode Timestamps: 00:53 The Role of the Board in Marketing02:20 Navigating Board Interactions03:06 Performance and Authenticity in Board Meetings04:29 The Complexity of Marketing Roles08:51 Aligning Marketing and Sales16:56 The Importance of SDR Feedback19:13 AI and Marketing Technology Decisions21:44 Navigating Board Dynamics as a CMO21:59 Building Relationships and Credibility23:11 The Importance of Authenticity in Marketing24:22 Handling Investor Feedback Tactfully29:16 Defending Your Marketing Strategy36:03 Effective Board Communication Strategies39:10 The Value of Board LettersSponsor:Pipeline Visionaries is brought to you by Qualified.com. Qualified helps you turn your website into a pipeline generation machine with PipelineAI. Engage and convert your most valuable website visitors with live chat, chatbots, meeting scheduling, intent data, and Piper, your AI SDR. Visit Qualified.com to learn more.Links:Connect with Ian on LinkedInConnect with Stacey on LinkedInLearn more about MagneticLearn more about Caspian StudiosAI’ve Got Questions Podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2497617/episodes Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ian sits down with Shafqat Islam, President, Optimizely. They dive into AI, GEO, and the future role of websites. They also talk about how experimentation and creativity give companies the competitive edge in the current marketing landscape.Key Takeaways:Your content needs to provide scarcity value to stand out. People and LLMs want original ideas.Most CMOs are not experimenting enough, and are not being creative enough. Experimentation is key.Many SEO tactics will work for GEO, and the harsh truth is that a lot of SEO content did not move the needle anyway.Quote: “ Everyone should be testing. Testing allows you to be more creative.Take bigger bets, be bolder. If your bet is huge, and the return and the result is huge, it's totally disproportionate, upside uncapped. Frankly, most marketers are afraid.”Episode Timestamps: 01:56 The Role of Product and Marketing03:09 Origins and Evolution of Opal10:51 Creativity in Marketing and Software13:44 The Importance of Experimentation19:40 Storytelling and Risk-Taking in Marketing23:21 The Rise of AI and Podcasting28:03 Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)29:31 Websites' New Dual Role32:34 The Studio Head Approach to Marketing38:12 The Impact of AI on Creativity40:09 The Future of Search and MarketingSponsor:Pipeline Visionaries is brought to you by Qualified.com. Qualified helps you turn your website into a pipeline generation machine with PipelineAI. Engage and convert your most valuable website visitors with live chat, chatbots, meeting scheduling, intent data, and Piper, your AI SDR. Visit Qualified.com to learn more.Links:Connect with Ian on LinkedInConnect with Shaf on LinkedInLearn more about OptimizelyLearn more about  Caspian Studios Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This episode features an interview with Alex Halliday, the CEO at AirOps, an end-to-end content engineering platform that gives marketing teams the systems they need to win visibility across AI search and SEO with quality content. Alex gives the marketing masterclass on AI search, laying out the framework for what marketers need to be doing. Key Takeaways:Understand your current State of the Union: Audit how you are currently showing up across the AI models and what is driving those results. Pick a strategy based on what truly matters to you as a brand and ruthlessly prioritize. Execute through content engineering, a combination of brand taste, technical skills and strategy. Quote:   The future of, we think, content and AI search is this new role that we're pushing and championing. It's called content engineering. And content engineering is a blend of three things. It's brand taste, which you absolutely need. It's enough technical skills to use this technology well. It's strategy. It's like really a really good strategic mind of the kinds of plays that you want to put out into the world.”Episode Timestamps: *(04:26) The Trust Tree: Education- and Evidence-led go-to-market*(10:19) The Influence of YouTube on AI Search Results *(18:10) The Masterclass on AI Search: Step-by-step*(25:35) What do LLMs actually like? *(40:04) How should marketers be investing in content? Sponsor:Pipeline Visionaries is brought to you by Qualified.com. Qualified helps you turn your website into a pipeline generation machine with PipelineAI. Engage and convert your most valuable website visitors with live chat, chatbots, meeting scheduling, intent data, and Piper, your AI SDR. Visit Qualified.com to learn more.Links:Connect with Ian on LinkedInConnect with Alex on LinkedInLearn more about AirOpsLearn more about Caspian Studios Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This episode features an interview with Kady Srinivasan, Chief Marketing Officer at You.com, the enterprise AI productivity platform redefining knowledge work with trusted, customizable AI agents. She breaks down GEO, storytelling in an infinite-content world, and why content now must serve both humans and LLMs.Key TakeawaysDemand generation has changed: Google Ads don’t work, while newsletters, advertorials, and events perform better.Marketing teams must operate as multithreaded groups built around outcomes rather than traditional functional silos.Imperfection and speed are essential to stay competitive in fast-moving AI markets. Quote “I just want everything to be on time and running properly… And so, particularly in AI and to your point in 2025, that is, you could just get killed if you're like that. So you need to know when to be fine with imperfection and when to, and in some cases you have to double down and really take your time.”Episode Timestamps03:23 Demand Generation Changes04:56 Google Ads and New Marketing Channels05:51 Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)07:44 Importance of Original Content25:12 Exploring the Future of Marketing Roles28:10 Balancing Speed and Perfection in MarketingSponsorPipeline Visionaries is brought to you by Qualified.com — the pipeline generation platform for revenue teams.Turn your website into a pipeline machine with PipelineAI. Engage and convert your most valuable visitors with live chat, chatbots, meeting scheduling, and intent data.Visit Qualified.com to learn more.LinksConnect with Ian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianfaison/Connect with Kady on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kadysrinivasan/ Learn more about You.com Learn more about Caspian Studios: https://caspianstudios.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This episode features an interview with Dario Ambrosini, CMO at Propel Software, a product value management platform that connects commercial and product teams to help product companies grow revenue and increase business value.Dario talks about merging three categories into one, selling to very different buying committees and leveraging changes in your competitors to get new business. Key Takeaways:When buyers still search old categories, your job as CMO is to clarify the bigger story and guide them from familiar entry points into a new, more valuable category.In a world where LLMs now shape discovery, your content and ABM strategy must shift from chasing clicks to shaping the algorithms your future buyers trust.Competitor shifts—like an end-of-life announcement—can become high-intent pipeline moments when paired with precise ABM and deep understanding of the displaced product’s shortcomings.Quote: “We’re doing a category creation because we’re rolling up three different categories and saying it’s an entirely new thing… Most of the people searching are still looking at those individual categories that make up a portion of the new thing that we’re creating.”Episode Timestamps: *(02:37) The Trust Tree: Merging categories to create something new *(12:18) The Playbook: Selling to many different buying committees *(45:08) Quick Hits: Dario’s Quick HitsSponsor:Pipeline Visionaries is brought to you by Qualified.com. Qualified helps you turn your website into a pipeline generation machine with PipelineAI. Engage and convert your most valuable website visitors with live chat, chatbots, meeting scheduling, intent data, and Piper, your AI SDR. Visit Qualified.com to learn more.Links: Connect with Ian on LinkedIn Connect with Dario on LinkedIn Learn more about Propel Software Learn more about Caspian Studios Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.