Snap, with CMO Kenny Mitchell

Episode Summary

What’s it like to work at the top levels of marketing in major companies? Kenny Mitchell – an Emmy Award nominated leader who combines creativity with business smarts – describes his move to Big Tech, life at Snapchat (he's the CMO there), augmented reality, and what he wished he knew when he was 20 years old that he knows now.

Sydney Finkelstein 

Syd Finkelstein is the Steven Roth Professor of Management at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. He holds a Master’s degree from the London School of Economics and a Ph.D. from Columbia University. Professor Finkelstein has published 25 books and 90 articles, including the bestsellers Why Smart Executives Fail and Superbosses: How Exceptional Leaders Master the Flow of Talent, which LinkedIn Chairman Reid Hoffman calls the “leadership guide for the Networked Age.” He is also a Fellow of the Academy of Management, a consultant and speaker to leading companies around the world, and a top 25 on the Global Thinkers 50 list of top management gurus. Professor Finkelstein’s research and consulting work often relies on in-depth and personal interviews with hundreds of people, an experience that led him to create and host his own podcast, The Sydcast, to uncover and share the stories of all sorts of fascinating people in business, sports, entertainment, politics, academia, and everyday life.

Kenny Mitchell

Kenny Mitchell is the Chief Marketing Officer of Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat. He guides the brand and business marketing efforts, focusing on driving the growth of the global Snapchat community and the base of advertising and developer partners. Previously, Mitchell was an accomplished leader at McDonald's U.S., Gatorade, and NASCAR, where he oversaw the marketing efforts related to key consumer touch-points – creative, digital, design, retail and experiential. Over his 20-year career, Mitchell has received numerous awards and recognitions, including being named one of “The Most Creative People in Business” by Fast Company, Forbes CMO NEXT, AdWeek 50, Business Insider: 25 Most Innovative CMOs, and Campaign Power 100. He has also won numerous creative awards, including multiple Cannes Lions, film festival selections, Tribeca, and two Emmy nominations. Mitchell also is a Member of the Board of Directors for e.l.f. Beauty. Mitchell holds a B.A. from Dartmouth College and an M.B.A. from Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business. He was inducted into Dartmouth’s Sports Hall of Fame as a men’s basketball team member. He and his wife, Heather, live in Los Angeles and have a daughter, Carter.

Insights from this episode: 

• Details about Snap
• Kenny’s career journey
• Developing new apps
• Kenny’s biggest competitor
• Details about augmented reality and the metaverse
• The future of the metaverse
• The role of AR in the real world
• The role of marketing in an organization
• Kenny’s nomination for an Emmy Award
• Kenny’s hiring process

Quotes from the show:

• “At its core, Snapchat is a kind of visual communication app or platform that helps to enhance relationships between your friends and family and give you a connection to the world with augmented reality (AR)” —Kenny Mitchell [5:53]
• “Wha