McDonald's and PepsiCo CMOs on the Power of a Simplicity Mindset

Marketing can get overcomplicated, fast. But, in this episode on Visionaries, Greg Lyons, CMO of PepsiCo Beverages North America (PBNA), and Morgan Flatley, Global CMO and Head of New Business Ventures at McDonald’s, came together to share their perspectives on the true driver of success: a simplicity mindset.

The two global leaders share how this mindset can have a tremendous internal and external impact. They unpack the importance of fostering a culture of collaboration among their marketing teams through a framework of authenticity, kindness, and bravery. 

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Transcript

[00:00:00] Nadine Dietz: Hello everyone. , I'm Na Dean Deets. I'm your host today. I'm the GM at Marketers at Matter, and also the Executive Vice President at our parent company 24 7. I'm gonna be joined here today by two very exciting guest. We have Morgan Flatley, who is the Global Chief Marketing Officer and head of new business ventures at McDonald's.

[00:01:00] And Greg Lyons, who is the Chief Marketing Officer at PepsiCo Beverages North America. We're gonna be talking about the power of a simplicity mindset in marketing, and they have a lot of great tips to share with you today. So I'm excited to dive in. Um, but before I do, just a couple of housekeeping notes.

. I wanna thank our partner, the Wall Street Journal, and our parent company 24 7 for supporting visionaries. For those of you who don't know, 24 7 or marketers that matter. Marketers that matter is a community marketers who come together to support one another and share best practices like we're doing here today.

And 24 7 is a talent company who helps build out great teams with marketers and creatives. So with that, let's get rolling. I'd like to welcome. Morgan and Greg to join me here on screen. Hi Greg. Hi Morgan. Happy to 

[00:01:52] Morgan Flatley: be here. Hi, Nadine. 

[00:01:53] Nadine Dietz: Hi. Happy Tuesday. Thank you so much for joining me today. I'm very excited about this session.

Um, so I hope you guys [00:02:00] are ready to roll. Let's do it. Ready? 

[00:02:02] Morgan Flatley: Let's 

[00:02:03] Nadine Dietz: do it. Okay, so before we go into the topic itself, Morgan, I'd love to hear a little bit about your background and your current focus. And then Greg, I'm gonna ask you the same thing. So 

[00:02:13] Morgan Flatley: Morgan. Great. Um, so quick on my background. I actually started my marketing career at the agency decades, I'll say decades ago.

Um, went from there, uh, to business school and then actually to PepsiCo, which I'm sure will come up, uh, on our discussion today. I was at PepsiCo in marketing for about. 13 or 14 years where I got to know your, um, very, uh, illustrious other guest, Greg. Um, and then about six years ago I moved from PepsiCo to McDonald's and I spent, um, gosh, the, the first four-ish years, uh, four and a half years working on our US business.

And then about. 18 months ago, I moved into the [00:03:00] role I'm in today, which is our global C M O, you know, over, you know, our business, which spans over a hundred markets, um, or a hundred countries I should say. And then, oh gosh, about five or six months ago I picked up new business ventures, which has been really fun, and I'm sure we'll touch on that today.

So that's my quick, my quick career journey in a nutshell. 

[00:03:23] Nadine Dietz: Wonderful. Thank you so much, Greg. How about you? 

[00:03:25] Greg Lyons: Yeah, I, uh, mine's not as exciting as Morgan's, but, uh, I, uh, I was in consulting after college and then I went to business school and then, uh, I've been at Pepsi ever since. So, um, I'll also say decades, um, and, uh, at least two.

And, uh, I've worked in the US on our snacks business, and then I worked in the UK on our snacks business. Then I worked in Canada on our beverage business. And then I've been in, uh, beverages in the US for over 10 years now. I think I've been C M O, uh, Um, I [00:04:00] think for six plus years now. I think the aver CMO is 2.2 years.

Is that right, Nadine? And so, um, it's 

[00:04:07] Nadine Dietz: a little bit higher than that, but you know, I think that's the consensus. 

[00:04:11] Greg Lyons: Lucky I'm still, uh, employed actively. And, um, what else? I, um, I just got married, uh, six months ago. Um, congratulations. Thanks. So I've gone from two kids to now four kids in the house and they're all home for the summer.

And so, um, Lots, lots of teenagers in my house at all times. 

[00:04:33] Morgan Flatley: We should have posted. I love it. This, this 

[00:04:35] Nadine Dietz: session about Gen Z, but actually we're gonna, uh, I remember the first time I actually met you, Greg, I interviewed you and your daughter, so you were not married at the time, but we're, we're engaged. So congratulations.

Thanks so 

[00:04:50] Greg Lyons: much. 

[00:04:50] Nadine Dietz: Yeah. Excellent. Well, Greg, you know what's interesting is when I reached out to you to, to chat with you again, you said, if I'm gonna do this show, I'd need to do this with Morgan. And I [00:05:00] was like, okay. Uh, I I love that. Uh, so tell us what, what you were thinking and why. 

[00:05:06] Greg Lyons: , well, first of all, I don't get to see Morgan as much as I wish I, .

Could, , she's in Chicago, I'm in New York, , and she's just one of my favorite people in the world and, um, also one of the best marketers in the world. And so, , this was, , kind of a little indulgence for me to get, to spend some time with a good friend. And, and I'm confident I'm gonna learn something from her.

I always do. And yeah, it's just, it's nice to, to see old friends. We're, we're on the. One board together. , and we have some fun back and forth in that board, I guess we could say. And, , yeah, I just enjoy spending time with her. So, yes, thank you for letting me , have her as my partner 

[00:05:52] Nadine Dietz: here. Oh my gosh.

My pleasure and privilege. Morgan, it's so great to meet you. , and I've heard so many wonderful [00:06:00] things about you. I was really intrigued with the topic that the two of you picked together, the power of a simplicity mindset in marketing. Do you wanna share a little bit about how that came to be and, and why you and Greg are both so focused 

[00:06:12] Morgan Flatley: on that?

Sure. I mean, I, I'll just, I, I'll just echo Greg a little bit. , where, you know, when I got the text from him, if I would do this with him, I was like, sure, if it means I get to see you a little bit and talk to you, it sounds great. And. You know, I think probably for the marketers out there, there's real value in maintaining relationships with, with people you've crossed along your career.

Cuz there are a number of times when I've picked up the phone to Greg and vice versa just to ask for some advice. So, I definitely maintain those relationships and coming on here in Adine with you was a great excuse for us to reconnect again. , but it's interesting when, when Greg and I were talking, we both really gravitated to.

This idea or the power of simplicity in how you think about your career, you know, how you think about marketing. [00:07:00] I think it's very easy today to get, you know, have things, get overcomplicated quickly just given I. All the change that we're seeing in marketing and technology and you know, the world we're living in.

But, you know, I think Greg and I both embraced some of the fundamentals and at the end of the day, it comes down to just a few, I think, really simple things. And, you know, three that I think about maybe to guide some of our conversation today is, you know, one around being authentic. And Greg and I talk about that a bunch.

I think it's, you know, a quality we both are attracted to and embrace. And another is around being kind. And the third is, you know, around being brave. So, so those are a few that I think about, but I'm sure we can jump into others and kind of , riff from there, I'll say. 

[00:07:47] Nadine Dietz: Excellent. Well, I, I love those.

, and we're gonna go into each one of those and what that actually means for you, your teams, your brands, your career. , and I think, Greg, I'm gonna start with you. Around this concept of being [00:08:00] authentic. , this is one I know that resonates really well, , for you and has for your whole career. We wanna talk a little bit about what that means to be authentic.

Yeah. 

[00:08:09] Greg Lyons: , thanks. It is interesting. When I was growing up, my dad was in business and, I ended up working at his company for a while, , and consulting outta school. And the dad at work that I knew was not the same goofy dad that I knew at home. He had work life and then home life and, , he was very successful in both and a terrific father and, and, you know, business person.

But, I started my career that way and gosh, did that take a lot of energy from me. I like thinking about what do I say and what do I do and who am I with? And , I find that if you can truly be yourself and create an environment as a leader where everyone can be themselves, , at the office, , or wherever you're working from.

I feel like it is just a more enjoyable [00:09:00] experience for people and you get the best out of folks, and it's certainly, I am at my best when I don't have to spend any energy thinking about how I should be acting, and I just act the way that feels right in my heart. So being authentic is just something that I find that I'm better when I am, and I find that if you can set the right environment in your department or on your team or whatever it is that that.

Most people are better. And , I do think that part of being authentic, a lot of these leadership lessons and life lessons apply to marketing, , and your home life and your work life. And so if you're a brand, , if you're running a brand and you're trying to do something that does not feel authentic to your brand consumers, Can pretty much call you out on that pretty, or they will call you out very quickly on that.

And so this whole idea of knowing who you are and what you stand for [00:10:00] and as a brand and as a person, and then just, you know, consistently acting that way, , I think is a, is a good idea in life and, and in marketing. And I think some of the best brands, , Right now have very consistent campaigns and that I'll take a B campaign that is consistent over six a plus campaigns that keep changing what the brand is about.

And so, you know, think about Corona, like how long has Corona done the beach? Um, great campaign. So simple, um, and authentic and, you know, they do little different takes on it, but it's always that same what the brand stands for and, and consistent and powerful. Um, and lots of marketers like to come and put their.

You know, 2 cents in and change something, change the packaging, whatever it is. And , I do think that just really being authentic to yourself and to your [00:11:00] brand and being consistent is a good principle to, to live by and to market by. 

[00:11:05] Nadine Dietz: Yeah, that's a great example too. I remember when Corona came out with Corona Island, you know, even with new technology, they kept their brand very stable, , in how they presented themselves.

So that's a good example, especially Morgan. Now with new ventures in, in your purview, I mean, it, it must be hard to navigate when you're trying to do lots of different things, but also remain authentic. 

[00:11:29] Morgan Flatley: Well, it's interesting and I, I do wanna come back to something Greg sent, but, but just Nadine on that, like part of the, the remit or the scope for new ventures is actually recognizing the strength of our brand today.

How do we think about where it can stretch? So it's, it's actually like, and, and I should say, you know, for the long term to, to kind of bring future revenue streams for the brand. So it's very much grounded in. What is authentic for [00:12:00] brand McDonald's? So it's helped because it puts like, , some framework around it, but it also requires like really knowing what's the heart of our brand and where could we stretch that we might not be thinking about naturally today with our, with our current restaurant estate.

But I just, I, I'll go, I wanna go back to what Greg said. Because just as he was talking, I mean, I remember and I will say having sat in board meetings and , lots of leadership tables with Greg, he is totally authentic to himself and, and I remember really well in my career. It was actually when I was at PepsiCo when I made that switch also.

And I realized like I didn't have to bring a different version of myself to work and. Part of it was I worked for a woman, , who was totally authentic. She was exactly the same person in the office as she was outside of the office. And , she had three young children and the chaos of it and who she was authentically spread, , into the office.

And it was such a game changer for me to [00:13:00] realize that you could be a successful executive. And be exactly true to who you are at your core in the office. And I mean, I, I do think it's part of what's made it much easier for me to kind of continue working while having a family, because you bridge it all and they're not going through these separate identities between the two.

So it was, it was really vivid to me when I started to realize that that was okay. , in, in a big company, a big corporation like PepsiCo, Yeah, so we could, 

[00:13:36] Nadine Dietz: we could spend so much time on this morning because I think that, , And forgive me, Greg, but I'll just say especially for women who tend to be the primary caregivers, it, it is hard to learn how to juggle career and family.

, but I, I would say though, Greg now with four teenagers in the house, you probably have your fair share of that too. So 

[00:13:56] Greg Lyons: All good. I, I do help at home now, but I [00:14:00] was a single parent before and that, that's true. It's just so hard. And you do need to, without question. Um, Balance, uh, in the right way. And, you know, with all due respect to work home is more important, right?

And so if you can just be your same all over the place, that that's just so much more doable. Um, and, and less exhausting too. Like you just, yeah. The extra energy that takes to separate your lives is hard. 

[00:14:29] Nadine Dietz: Yeah, absolutely. So Morgan, let's, let's go to the second. Uh, Truth, which is all about be kind.

Can you give us some context around why that's a second truth for you? What that means and how you apply that, uh, within career teams? 

[00:14:48] Morgan Flatley: Yeah. I mean, I think it ties a little bit to being authentic. , but, but I also, , I ultimately believe, and I, you know, I won't put words in Greg's mouth, but I, I think he does [00:15:00] too.

Um, At the end of the day, it all comes down to people. , my success, McDonald's success, the brand strength is all tied to the people who work on this business. And I'd say for me, the ability to surround myself with great, great people, , has always been, you know, part of why I've enjoyed work. You know, what's kept me going, but also why we've had a lot of success.

, and I think that comes down to being a leader that people wanna follow. , and , that's one about authenticity and kind of being who you are, but it's also about being kind and treating people with respect, , and creating an environment where people wanna sit around the table and work really hard against kind of common goals for the business and for the brand.

And, I went to this like, I can't remember seminar at some point. And, , one of the, one of the professors who was teaching [00:16:00] it talked about this leadership quality of high expectations and deep devotion. And it's, it's been kind of a real mantra of mine, where you set really high expectations of people, you're clear on what they are, but then ultimately you support them with deep devotion and kindness to help them get there.

And I think ultimately that's what leads to, , great teams, successful teams and strong healthy brands and businesses. 

[00:16:29] Nadine Dietz: Yeah, that's, that's a great mantra to have. You immediately reminded me many, many years ago in my career now, when we had a UK consultancy come in on team building. There were these posters of magical thinking and heroic action, and it was like Mickey Mouse and, you know, but it, it does take really that true connection with team.

And Greg, I know you've invested a lot of time in your teams being kind, creating safe spaces. Providing opportunities to lend a hand. Do [00:17:00] you wanna talk a little bit about that? 

[00:17:02] Greg Lyons: Sure. Well, I'm, I, I think most leaders do, so that's nothing, um, that's nothing different. But I, I do think that, um, I'll, I'll take kind in a little bit of a different direction, like in, , In leaning into relationships, you'll be way more successful in life and at work if you, again, authentically are kind to people and really care about them.

, to Morgan's Po point there, , think about not just. Oh, it's a, it's a, it's my insights partner and I need to be nice to them so I can work with 'em. It's like, no, really get to know them as a human being. Really invest in the relationship and you know how like your best friends when you see them, , like my best friend in the world, he's great.

 I saw him. Six months, , between visits and he lives in Florida and he, he put on like 40 pounds. [00:18:00] Um, and so, you know, I, um, I called him out on it in a way that a friend would and um, and made fun of him a little bit cuz you know, that's how our relationship is. But he knew it's cuz I cared and because I'm worried about him and I want to be healthy for his wife and his three beautiful girls.

And. , it's because, , we're such good friends. He knew my intention was good. And so think about if you've leaned into relationships at work or with your agency partners, or with your customers or whoever it is. , he, you can say anything and there's a trust level and there's a speed there, and there's, , There's just, it's more fun to work with people who you're friends with, who you know at a personal level.

Like when Morgan tells me something of like, Greg, that marketing was crap, I'm not gonna get upset cuz I know that it's coming from a good place for Morgan. Right. And that we're friends. So I do think that kindness, like use that to, to lean into folks. And [00:19:00] then I took a leadership class too, which I rarely do anymore, but I, I did.

At this place called the Aspen Institute, and it had only C levels, and we all talked in separate groups about what leadership quality is gonna be most important to lead Gen Z in the future. And each separate group, uh, came out with the word kindness, which I loved and I couldn't believe. But, , I think it's gonna be a mandate.

Now that doesn't mean softness. And to Morgan's point, like make sure you have the expectations high and you hold people accountable. Sometimes it's the most kind thing to do, to give difficult feedback to someone. But I do think, , it is a new leadership quality that is so important. And why not be that way?

You everyone knows how to be kind. You just have to make the choice in the morning that that's how you're gonna roll that day. And, , I promise you, you'll be [00:20:00] happier if you do it in all aspects of your life. Yeah. 

[00:20:04] Nadine Dietz: , I have so many places to go from this, , but I will say I totally agree. , I've heard nothing but amazing things about the Aspen Institute.

Know many people have been there, so kudos for you for going. , but, but b yes. We just published our report on Gen Z. , Last week from the forum, which was all about motivating Gen Z inside and and out, and you couldn't be more right? , this notion of authenticity, kindness, care, compassion is core. , and I would argue it isn't a choice anymore.

Leaders who don't learn those behaviors probably aren't gonna have much success with our next generation. So, um, but let's talk about also. It's not only being kind, but when Morgan tells you your marketing is crap, that also requires bravery. So, , let's talk about being brave. , Greg, we have about five minutes left.

Uh, so let's, let's talk about bravery. How do you define bravery? Yeah, 

[00:20:58] Greg Lyons: it's really good in your [00:21:00] career to take risks, of course. , easier said than done. , a couple risks I took, I moved my family when they were two and four to, , a different country, , on the other side of the world. , with, I didn't know anyone over there.

My wife gave up her career. , so that was a risk. , that was one of my favorite jobs of all time. , and the first year was terrible. Like everyone was unhappy. The next three were the best I think of my career. , and boy did I learn a lot and did I grow a lot as a person, as a husband, as a leader, all everything.

And so, um, you know, don't just. Take the easy path, take some risks. , and you know, same in marketing. , you wanted them to be calculator risks. , But, , I'll think back to, uh, when I knew Morgan best probably when she was running Gatorade and I was running Mountain Dew and I did the, the silliest ad ever, , called Puppy Monkey, baby Wi on the Super Bowl.

And I had like, everyone above me [00:22:00] thought it was the dumbest thing they'd ever seen, and I had to sell it in all the way up to our board. , and that was a risk. Like if that had bombed, which it had a high chance of doing, , that probably would've been career limiting. But, um, it was the right thing to do for the brand, and I believed it in my heart and good for everyone above me for trusting.

, and so, yeah, it's good to take risks though. It, it's always fun and it's, it's good to fail. That's how you learn, right? And so as a leader, what you want to do is set the culture where, you encourage risk taking, not crazy. Risk taking, risk taking with some data and some, some good, , boundaries.

But the important thing is to learn from the risk, uh, or, or learn from failures and not punish failures. And I see a lot of companies and people punishing failures and creating the environment where you can't, you know, take some risks. So, pretty simple concept [00:23:00] there. 

[00:23:01] Nadine Dietz: Okay. I have to ask Greg, what was the name of that campaign again?

Puppy. 

[00:23:04] Morgan Flatley: Puppy. Oh, that's a good one. 

[00:23:05] Greg Lyons: Puppy Monkey Baby. You don't know Puppy Monkey. No. 

[00:23:09] Morgan Flatley: I'm gonna have to go check that out. So I think it won like the Super Bowl. It was like one of the top, I mean it, it was a big risk that actually paid off, I think Greg, cuz I remember it well. 

[00:23:19] Greg Lyons: Thank you. At least, at least one of you remember it.

[00:23:24] Nadine Dietz: I'll, I'll go do my homework around that one, Greg. So I have to check that out. And Morgan, for I, we are close to out of time, but please bring us home. Take us home. Let's talk about risk for you and, and how you've navigated that. 

[00:23:39] Morgan Flatley: I mean, I, I am like Greg, so without, it's very hard for me to take risks is what I'll say.

I'm naturally not a risk taker, but when I have, whether it be, choosing to come to McDonald's, which was a big risk from a career perspective, I loved PepsiCo. , or some of the work that I did in the, in the US , [00:24:00] with some of our famous orders work, , big risks. , that actually another example is when we moved the business in the US to widening Kennedy big risk.

Those have. In each case ended up being the best decisions I made just because of what I learned and how I grew, and how the brand grew and the business grew and the impact it had. I think the trick, and maybe we do a separate session on this, is how you help, like Greg, I would love to know who was advising you on Puppy Monkey, baby.

You know, h how you. As a leader, get comfortable when you're taking a risk and everyone else is telling you you're crazy because I think that's when, that's when magic happens. And again, sometimes they don't work out, but when they do, it's just a total game changer and it's important to have people you can turn to, to help you kind of navigate those times when everyone else is saying, I don't see it.

I think you're crazy. [00:25:00] 

[00:25:02] Nadine Dietz: Yeah, so, and we certainly can have another session, but Greg, do you wanna just. Do you have an answer for Morgan here before we close 

[00:25:09] Greg Lyons: out? Yeah. On, , I, I have two people that I go to on everything, , that I'm not sure about. , and one's my dad and then. One's, uh, a mentor of mine in that case and Puppy monkey baby.

I told my dad, he is like, what are you doing? You have two children. Do not do that. That is the stupidest thing ever. I was like, yeah, I think I know. So sometimes you just gotta go. , and that, that time felt right. , the brand was so strong at that moment. , nothing would've. Well, who knows? But, , it felt right in my heart.

So sometimes you, even if you don't have people, but Morgan's point is, is a great one, which is always surround yourself with people that you trust, who you can go to for advice, who have more experience than you do. , 

[00:25:56] Morgan Flatley: just said Minus, minus Greg. I call Greg cause he has more [00:26:00] experience than I do.

[00:26:01] Greg Lyons: So my wife just started volunteering at a hospice and the amount she's learned from those wonderful folks is games changer in her life. It's amazing what you can learn from people who have tremendous experiences, right? Absolutely 

[00:26:18] Morgan Flatley: amazing. 

[00:26:19] Nadine Dietz: Well, we are at time. I, uh, wanna thank you both very much for coming and sharing these three truths, which I think will apply for everyone.

Uh, so thank you so much for sharing those three truths, which was be authentic, be kind, be brave. And I thank you so much and I thank everyone for tuning in today. I hope everyone enjoyed today's session and I look forward to seeing everyone in the next visionaries. So thank you, Morgan. Thank you, Greg.

Thanks, baby. 

[00:26:49] Morgan Flatley: Thanks. Thanks, Greg. [00:27:00]