NetApp CIO and CMO Collaborate

CIO Cynthia Stoddard (middle) and CMO Julie Parrish (left) of NetApp talk about the importance of trust, transparency, and earnestness in their collaboration.  Not being territorial is crucial, because each function and staff must rely inviolably on one another.  For example, technology enables marketing efforts, and marketing guides technology.  Stoddard and Parrish work well together, precisely because they recognize and appreciate their mutual reliance.

Stoddard and Parrish emphasize that they're part of one NetApp team.  They have each other's best interests in mind, deliver on their commitment, and communicate transparently.  These under gird trust.  Stoddard speaks to the business point of view, not just technology.  Practically speaking, it means embedding themselves into the business, identifying its priorities, and grasping the reasons.  Not just for technology and marketing, but also for other functions in the company, such as HR.  In this regard, then, everyone comes to recognize the volume of data available and the complexity that is technology.

Going forward, Parrish speaks about getting back to basics, such as questions they should ask and work to answer.  She adds that having vision guides what technology her organization needs in regards to marketing.  That said, Stoddard's pulse on predictive analytics, as the future of technology, has context, purpose and direction.  Finally, making sure they grasp customer views, sentiments and needs, and they are clear on what questions or problems are on the table, help them identify that 'sweet spot' between human intuition and data analytics.

Thank you for reading, and let me know what you think!

Ron Villejo, PhD