The topic of brand management is becoming increasingly complicated in the
contemporary brand management space. Increasingly there are different ideas
and research put forward to argue for who drives the success of a brand. Is it the
customer, the employees, the management, or the CEO?
At the 2013 Brand Finance Toronto Forum, these and complimentary topics will
be raised to help organizations better understand where they should be looking
internally to drive financially sustainable brand success for the foreseeable future.
KEYNOTE: BRAND: THE ROLE OF THE CEO
Dr. Donald Schulz, Professor Emeritus, Northwestern University, Chicago
The keynote presentation will explore the unique position brand management
that the CEO of an organization is responsible for. Leading edge research will be
referenced to showcase how the role of the CEO differs from that of other executives
in the organisation. Attention will also be given to some significant shifts in brand.
THE NEED FOR REAL-TIME BRAND MANAGEMENT
Edgar Baum, Managing Director, Brand Finance Canada
This presentation will explore the challenges faced in managing mature brands,
especially a common misunderstanding as to the size-of-market that the Brand
actually competes in. Furthermore, the annual brand management cycle will be
explored from both a qualitative and quantitative perspective with a focus on
managing brand return on investment (ROI) throughout the year.
THE CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGE OF BRAND MANAGEMENT: ENVIRONMENTAL
& SOCIAL GOVERNANCE
Darby Hobbs, former VP-Marketing of Brown Brothers Harriman
Darby will be speaking about the challenge of Environmental and Social Governance
for brands and how it is increasingly becoming a table stake for many brands to
manage properly. Contemporary examples will be used from financial services and
consumer retail.
BRAND OPTIMIZATION THROUGH SMART DATA
Ted Langschmidt, President, Hotspex Research
Organizations are often keen to embrace advancements in technology, especially
when it provides a competitive advantage. The same is often not the case in the
data and analytic sources being used for brand management. With the rapid growth
in ‘big data’ and substantial evolution in market research, brand managers may be
at a disadvantage in understanding how their customer truly behaves and why. The
presentation will highlight some advancements in both areas and how organizations
are benefiting from understanding their customers better
PANEL DISCUSSION
Moderator: Susan Krashinsky, The Globe and Mail
Topic: Who is leading your brand?
A panel discussion regarding the forum topic with input from from leaders in industry,
academia, and brand strategy.
Panelists:
Alan Middleton, York University
Edgar Baum, Brand Finance
Ian Madell, LEVEL5 Strategy Group
Brian Cusick, Co-founder, CalibraxKPI
Edgar Baum has an extensive background over 15 years in entrepreneurial and consulting environments with extensive experience in developing adaptable financial forecasting programs.
Previously Edgar ran his own data analytics and financial consulting practice and has previously been a Partner and Vice President for a Toronto based financing consultancy firm. Edgar has worked with companies ranging from start-ups to multinationals across a range of industries including manufacturing, logistics, education, food, and security. Edgar was also the founding partner for a software company that developed a risk and valuation model for domestic and global businesses.
Prior to these roles Edgar has worked at Procter & Gamble, Merrill Lynch and Nesbitt Burns.
Edgar is a graduate of the University of Toronto. He has been a guest at Seneca’s Graduate School delivering a lecture on confidentiality protocols in M&A transactions. Edgar is the Managing Director of Brand Finance North America.
Don E. Schultz is presently Professor of Integrated Marketing Communications at the Medill School of Journalism,Northwestern University. Don has consulted, lectured and held seminars on integrated marketing communication,marketing, advertising, sales promotion, and communication management at an international level.
In 1998, Don was named one of the ’80 Most Influential People’ in sales and marketing in the world by ‘Sales &Marketing Management Magazine’. Don works with Brand Finance Inc. as an Executive Director and has been withBrand Finance since 2000.