The changing global brandscape is nothing if not a double-edged sword. It confers unheard-of opportunities on companies, while at the same time bringing in unimagined challenges.

Top executives and CEOs should actively manage such a volatile environment by following some fundamental features of any corporate strategy.

Here are 10 crucial aspects CEOs should focus on in 2015 in order to create winning strategies and build global brands.

Develop a customer-centric organisation

One of the biggest recent challenges faced by CEOs has been to develop organisations that are focused on serving the customer. Given the penetration of the Internet and the ensuing barrage of options for customers to choose from, their loyalty to any given brand can never be assumed.

More important, they are empowered by access to information about possible alternatives. In such a scenario, a CEO and his/her top leadership must create an organisation that puts the needs and preferences of the customers at the centre of their strategising.

Invest, nurture and build resonating brands

Brands and brand equity have emerged as companies’ most important strategic asset. They not only facilitate gaining long-term loyalty of customers, but also directly contribute to the bottom line by allowing companies to charge premium prices. Given that, CEOs will have to actively invest in, constantly nurture and proactively grow their brands in order to remain competitive and successful.

Harness emerging markets

Some of the biggest opportunities remain to be found in Africa, Asia and South America. In their quest to establish global brands, CEOs tend to overlook these markets, which can be more lucrative than the mature, developed markets. One of the priorities of a CEO in 2015 should be to actively focus on learning about these emerging markets and establishing a strong foothold with appealing brands.

Move beyond the silos

However much external market factors influence strategising, internal factors and potential synergies among them tend to be as important, or even more important, in effective implementation.

The CEO and his/her executive team should bring about transformational changes in the way their organisations are structured.

Breaking the silos to create and leverage synergies among functional departments should be a priority for a CEO in the coming years. Results still get lost in corporate silos, so this is an easy win for ambitious organisations.

Be the chief brand ambassador

In addition to actively guiding their organisations, today’s CEOs must be the chief ambassador for their brands. One of the most important factors in the success of any brand is the continued support and investment of top management, and of the CEO in particular. The CEO should develop a strategic plan to actively promote his/her brands and achieve better results.

Bring marketing into the boardroom

Managing customers across diverse cultures and regulatory environments requires a dedicated top executive who has overall responsibility for marketing and branding activities. The chief marketing officer is an important link that is largely missing in many global companies, including the emerging Asian multinationals.

A forward-looking CEO should put a CMO in the boardroom and elevate marketing to sit at the table, not only for marketing-specific meetings, but as a permanent executive member.

Collaborate with customers and competitors alike

Collaboration is poised to emerge as one of the pillars of the global-brand status. Global brands should learn about and actively involve their customers and competitors alike in co-creating value.

Such active collaboration enables companies not only to ward off unseen threats from new competitors but also to sustain their market advantage for a longer time.

“Glocalize” for base-of-the-pyramid markets

More than a billion people in the emerging markets are gradually integrating into the mainstream to create a massive new middle class.

As companies chase these new market opportunities, they should not neglect an equally important emerging phenomenon: base-of-pyramid markets. Companies should actively invest in learning about and capturing these markets by achieving a balance between globalising and localising: “glocalising.”

Learn and develop strategic agility

Developing the ability to be nimble while growing at the same time will prove extremely important in years to come. Competitors are increasing, customers’ preferences are rapidly changing and new technologies are reframing the business landscapes overnight, so it’s important that companies be able to adapt rapidly and strategically.

The CEO should focus on creating an organisation with the speed to competitively react.

Innovate, innovate and innovate

One of the defining features of the new globalisation is the overwhelming focus on innovation. Given technological advances and the pioneering effort of companies such as Apple, B.M.W., Google and L’Oreal, customers and companies crave innovative products. CEOs should prioritise research-and-development investment and constantly innovate in order to build their global brands.

© — Insead Knowledge

The writer is author, "Asian Brand Strategy: How Asia Builds Strong Brands."

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