AI has long been thought of as a threat to creativity. But what if they’re not at odds at all?
In this episode of Marketing Vanguard, live from the World Economic Forum in Davos, CMO of Adobe Enterprise Rachel Thornton reveals why putting human creativity at the center of marketing strategy is more critical than ever and how CMOs should be navigating this tectonic shift.
What you’ll learn:
- How to position AI as “augmented intelligence” rather than artificial intelligence
- Why the core creative concept must remain human-driven while AI handles scaling
- How to free your marketers from tactical asset-building so they focus on what they love
- The framework for proving marketing’s revenue impact to your C-suite
- Why authenticity and brand definition are now competitive imperatives
- How to treat customers as co-creators of your brand experience, particularly with Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences
With a background in B2B technology marketing across industry leaders, including Cisco, Microsoft, Salesforce, and AWS, Rachel has established herself as a thought leader in connecting marketing initiatives to business growth and revenue impact.
Her work at Adobe has positioned her at the intersection of creative tools, data-driven marketing, and emerging technologies, making her insights invaluable for enterprise CMOs navigating AI adoption while maintaining brand authenticity and customer engagement.
Episode Highlights:
[03:00] Reframe AI as “Augmented Intelligence” to Unlock Marketer Productivity — Rachel emphasizes that AI should be positioned as an enabler that amplifies human creativity rather than replaces it, shifting the conversation from “artificial” to “augmented” intelligence. This framing is critical for CMOs because it helps marketing teams embrace AI tools without fear of creative devaluation or job displacement. The key step is to clearly communicate that AI handles the scaling and execution work, translating campaigns into 30-50 languages, producing assets, and personalizing to individual customers, while humans drive the core creative concept and campaign ethos.
[08:05] Marketing as a Revenue Driver: Connecting Brand Work to Business Growth — Rachel stresses that CMOs must confidently communicate to the C-suite, especially CFOs and CEOs, that marketing directly drives customer growth and new revenue, positioning themselves as true business growth partners rather than cost centers. This messaging is essential because many finance leaders still view marketing primarily as a brand-awareness expense rather than a revenue-generating function. The critical step is to use data and analytics tools to trace customer journeys from initial brand engagement through conversion, demonstrating the specific revenue contribution of each campaign and marketing initiative.
[10:51] Build Authentic Brand Definition in the Age of AI-Generated Content — Rachel highlights that authenticity and clear brand definition have become competitive imperatives as AI content proliferation increases, requiring CMOs to explicitly define what their brand stands for and how it will be distinctly visible across emerging channels like agentic engine optimization. This matters because customers increasingly question what’s real versus AI-generated, making authentic brand positioning a powerful differentiator and customer trust driver. The actionable approach is to conduct brand workshops where leadership clearly articulates core brand values, customer emotional benefits, and a unique point of view, and then ensure this definition guides all AI-assisted content creation.
