Harish Bhat is ranked 10 on Forbes list of top 50 global CMOs

For the second consecutive year, Forbes has ranked Tata group’s brand custodian Harish Bhat as among the top ten most influential CMOs (chief marketing officers). Bhat is ranked 10th on the latest list. He was at the ninth position last year.

The 2023 list of the top 50 CMOs was announced in Cannes on Thursday at a special luncheon event held at the Carlton hotel.

Topping the Forbes list of most influential CMOs 2023 in order of ranking is William White, CMO, Walmart (who was second last year); Marcel Marcones, Global CMO, AB InBev; Conny Braams, Chief Digital & Commercial Officer, Unilever; Greg Joswiak, SVP Worldwide Marketing, Apple; Dirk-Jan van Hameren, CMO, Nike; Marian Lee, CMO, Netfliz; Asad Ayaz, Chief Brand Officer, The Walt Disney Co; Mathilde Delhoume-Debreu, Global Brand Officer, LVMH, and number nine is Tim Ellis, CMO, National Football League. At 21 is Indian origin Asmita Dubey, Chief Digital & Marketing Officer, L’Oreal.

Writing about Bhat, Forbes says, “The long-time Brand Custodian and de facto Chief Brand Officer for India’s largest conglomerate, Bhat leads brand strategy for the Tata brand, which is utilised by the parent company’s thirty-plus subsidiaries, including those in motors, consulting services, steel and coffee, to name a few. As brand custodian, Bhat plays a critical role in building and strengthening the Tata brand both within India, and globally. His deep understanding of the Indian consumer landscape and his years of building successful new brands like Titan and Tata Tea for the Group make him a highly influential figure in the marketing industry. As an author and columnist, Bhat is also committed to sharing his expertise to inspire the next generation of marketers.”

Writing about the role of CMOs, Forbes says, “Today’s chief-marketers are expected to separate signals from an unprecedented explosion in noise, to adapt to changing attitudes, behaviours and events in real-time, to react to the hijacking of their brand narratives in a moment by consumers, employees and, sometimes, their C-suite colleagues; to provide absolute certainty that every dollar invested will deliver a 1:1 return (also in real-time), when no such certainty exists but is still, often, the expectation of those for whom their understanding of marketing is (often) limited to the fact that they have been marketed to.”