Ep. 544 | Everyone Owns the Brand: From Siloed to Shared

OnBase: Smashing Sales and Marketing Misalignments

Episode Summary

In this episode of OnBase, host Paul Gibson sits down with Bee Patel for a deep dive into what it really means to “own the brand” in 2025. Bee challenges the legacy idea that branding lives solely within marketing and shares how today’s most effective brands are shaped by collaborative ownership across HR, product, comms, and sales.

Bee discusses the evolution of branding as a business outcome driver—supporting everything from lead generation to sales conversion—and shares actionable strategies for unifying internal teams to create stronger external brand impact. The conversation also tackles AI's current challenges, the importance of simplification in brand governance, and how fostering creative freedom can help teams cut through the noise.

Best moments

• (0:47) Bee discusses her journey and focus on converting reputation into measurable business outcomes.
• (1:33) Paul introduces the importance of reimagining brand ownership.
• (3:33) Bee explains the shift of the brand from an awareness tool to supporting lead generation and close rates.
• (5:46) Bee shares an example of collaboration with HR and product teams during a brand transformation at Insight.
• (12:55) Bee states her personal opinion that AI is currently more of a challenge than an enabler.
• (16:25) Bee emphasizes the importance of communication and early stakeholder involvement to remove silos in brand collaboration.
• (19:09) Bee advises comms leaders to simplify and empower teams to own the brand rather than policing it.

Key Takeaways

• Brand Is Everyone’s Job:
  Gone are the days of brand as a “marketing deliverable.” Today’s successful organizations embed brand values into every function—HR, product, sales, and beyond—to maintain a consistent and authentic experience.
• From Gatekeepers to Facilitators:
  Comms and brand leaders must move from enforcing rules to enabling ownership. This cultural shift empowers teams to internalize and live the brand, not just follow guidelines.
• Trust Is the New Currency:
  Bee underscores that in a market where trust drives conversion, brand consistency and credibility aren’t nice-to-haves—they’re game-changers.
• AI as a Work-in-Progress:
  While AI has potential, Bee cautions against jumping on every tool. Strategic, contextual deployment—especially for operational efficiency—matters more than trend-chasing.
• Measure What Matters:
  Bee shares real-world impact metrics, including a 33% increase in content engagement and a surge in solution-based RFPs following brand transformation efforts.

Tech recommendations

• ChatGPT

Resource recommendations
Books:

• The Speed of Trust by Stephen Covey - A must-read on how trust drives business results.
  
• The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins - Bee’s current read on navigating boundaries and letting go.

Blogs:

• Farnam Street - A weekly newsletter that helps to demystify and simplify complex mental models.

Shout-outs

• Nerea Gandarias, a Senior Marketing Executive at 8x8 - Bee recommends her as an inspirational leader with unmatched strategic rigor and humanity in leadership.

About the Guest
Bee Patel, Global Marketing & Communications Director at AlphaSights is a razor-sharp marketing leader, bringing over 15 years of expertise and knowledge across marketing and communications. With experience in internal and external communications, she is passionate about crafting user-centric content and messaging that cuts through the noise and is delivered through an integrated communications mix. She currently leads the global Brand and Communications Team at AlphaSights, focused on brand building strategies and connecting with their key stakeholders through compelling storytelling and engaging digital experiences.

Prior to joining AlphaSights, she led the European content and communications team for Fortune 500 technology solutions provider, Insight, overseeing their PR, social, and content strategy across nine European regions.

Connect with Bee.