Interview
Ahead of the AI Curve – Jim Lecinski
Imagine you’re a marketing professor who saw the AI revolution coming years before ChatGPT hit the scene, wrote the definitive book on AI marketing in 2021, and now find yourself at the epicentre of one of the most dramatic transformations in history.
This is the very position this week’s guest, Jim Lecinski, finds himself in. Jim is a Clinical Professor of Marketing at Northwestern University’s prestigious Kellogg School of Management, where he teaches AI in Marketing and has won Professor of the Year.
Adding to Jim’s canny foresight is his prior, 13-year career as a VP at Google. As a result, Jim brings both the practitioner’s real-world experience and the academic’s analytical rigour to one of the most important questions facing leaders and marketers today: how do you harness AI not just for efficiency gains, but for genuine competitive advantage and growth?
In our conversation, you’ll also hear about:
- Jim’s 2×2 framework for thinking strategically about AI applications in marketing
- Use-case examples from brands such as Coca-Cola, Starbucks, and IKEA where AI is used to revolutionise everything from creative development to customer service
- Why businesses need to prepare for the shift from search engine optimisation (SEO) to “generative engine optimisation” (GEO), and what that means practically
- The emerging world of AI agents and how this will fundamentally change how we all shop, and
- Jim’s essential learning resources for those who want to stay ahead of the curve.
We loved the way Jim shares his own wisdom and insights as well as sharing many examples of what market leaders are actually doing with AI.
We know you’ll enjoy this conversation with the whip-smart professor who saw the AI future ahead of the crowd.
Useful Links
Jim Lecinski on LinkedIn
Andrew Ng’s AI for Everyone course on Coursera
