This week I’ve had the pleasure of speaking to Joanne Pearson – Global Customer Insight Director at Jaguar Land Rover. Jo and I both worked at Barclaycard many moons ago, but our paths crossed again when our children started at the same school and we formed a friendship. She’s always inspired me by her capability to juggle such a demanding job alongside motherhood, a keen tennis player and a full social life. So she was an ideal person to delve into her Marketing Mind!

The Marketing Minds series delves into the minds of some inspirational people involved in the wonderful world of Marketing and asks them to answer a set of questions that probe into their career journey and what inspires them. This is what Joanne Pearson had to say.

1. What’s your name?

Joanne Pearson

2. Where do you work and what do you do?

At Jaguar Land Rover as Global Customer Insight Director. My role is to bring the voice of the customer into the company.

3. What’s your career path been like and how did you end up where you are?

After a degree in Technology & Management Science with work experience in the Clothing Industry & Food Industry I decided that it would be more interesting in the Service Sector and joined Barclaycard on their graduate scheme. 10 years on with roles in Product Development, Product Management and Customer Insight I left to join Vodafone as Head of Customer Insight. 10 years and 2 children later I left to join Jaguar Land Rove4 and back to the world of Manufacturing where my working life began!

4. What elements of your job do you dislike?

Budgets, Approvals and admin! 

5. What’s your favourite brand and why?

The White Company because their products are beautiful and simple and the brand image is chic and consistent. They are reliable, high quality and easy to deal with. I use them a lot for gifts because everything is beautifully packaged and thoughtful and occasionally treat myself!

6. What’s your favourite advert of all time?

That’s difficult, I have lots so I’m going to choose 3:

 a) The Barclaycard Rowan Atkinson series of ads where he played the bungalling British spy were classic, very funny ads which told engaging stories but communicated a great product benefit.

b) The Maltesers ad with the actor with cerebal palsy because it embraces diversity with humour and sensitivity.

c) The current Land Rover Rugby World Cup ads for the ‘We Deal in Real’ campaign showing grass roots rugby.

7. What advice would you give your 20 year old self if you could go back in time?

Don’t keep doing the type of roles you enjoy at the expense broadening your experiences because you can become a specialist quite quickly and too senior to take on broader roles without the breadth of experience. 

8. What makes you get out of bed in the morning?

The alarm clock and the children in the first instance and then the recollection that I have any combination of a full day of meetings, a very early meeting or a very important presentation to give. However if the question was really about what motivates me, its the opportunity I have to make a difference for customers through insight – generating great insights and convincing others to take action on them. 

9. What is the creative idea or innovation that you wish you’d thought of first?

Too many to mention including: 3D Printing, smartphones, online grocery shopping, Persil’s Dirt is Good and the Impossible Burger – Beyond Meat which looks, smells and tastes like meat but is purely plant based and the IPO has been over subscribed many times over.

10. What’s your favourite way to spend a day off?

Doing something active with my children if its school holidays otherwise a spa day with friends.

11. What was the last thing you learned?

That unless you have a connection with someone its very difficult to build trust and without trust you’ll struggle to collaborate.

12. Which blog or podcast are you currently listening to / would recommend? 

‘Amazing Women’ which challenges stereotypes and established views about a world designed by men for men.

13. What 3 words sum you up?

Positive, empathetic and sociable.

14. Who do you most admire and why?

Richard Branson for his entrepreneurial spirit, challenger mindset, customer focus, longevity and tenacity in establishing so many successful businesses with great values and results. I personally use Virgin Airlines, gyms and wines. 

15. Do you think technology is killing creativity in marketing or helping it?

Helping it most definitely. With every aspect of marketing technology enables greater insights through social media and digital platforms; CGI to create images and content which would have otherwise been reliant on a physical shoot and many more media channels for additional formats delivered in context.

16. What’s the work you are most proud of?

The work I’m currently doing on Diversity and Inclusion both from a customer and a colleague perspective because I passionately believe that there is a very strong commercial case for a diverse and inclusive organisation and that an organisation should reflect and represent its customer base. We have recently signed up to The Stonewall Equality Index, The Race at Work Charter and the Valuable 500 and we’ve committed to researching our products to be inclusive.

17. What are you going to do now?

Go to bed! Too much to do and too little time. 

If you’ve enjoyed my interview with Joanne Pearson, then why not read the other interviews in the Marketing Minds series here and if you want to find out more about GingerTree then visit my homepage here.