Whenever we explained Dove's new brand positioning to anyone, they always said, 'Oh what a great idea.'

JUDIE LANNON: From your standpoint as head of Unilever's hugely important home and personal care brands, how would you describe the main issues in managing these brands?

All diageo's marketers are put through the Diageo Way of Building Brands (DWBB).

Some 14 years ago, the agency I worked at – it laboured then under the unwieldy name of BMP DDB Needham Worldwide – was invited to pitch for the Barclaycard account.

If you are the kind of marketer who leads your business in its strategic thinking, owns the relationship with the customer, controls the brand(s) and manages the portfolio, then you are probably not working in a technology company.

It is an incontrovertible fact that people want and need famous people and brands. We have looked for role models who can help us achieve what we want since the beginning of time.