The Agile Brand with Greg Kihlström®: Expert Mode Marketing Technology, AI, & CX

What if your biggest CX innovation is also your biggest source of customer churn?
Agility requires a clear-eyed view of both the promise and the peril of new technologies. It’s the ability to embrace innovation like AI not just for efficiency, but with a rigorous focus on the customer outcomes that build long-term value.
Today, we're going to talk about the delicate balance of implementing AI in the customer experience. Specifically, we'll explore the rise of sophisticated, agentic AI voice bots, and the critical "dealbreakers" that cause customers to abandon interactions and, potentially, your brand altogether.
To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Sushil Kumar, CEO at Cyara.

About Sushil Kumar
Sushil leads Cyara’s strategy and growth with a vision to redefine how enterprises build trustworthy, AI-driven customer experiences. A builder at heart, he has spent his career creating platforms that change how software is engineered, validated, and delivered. His focus is helping global organizations achieve new levels of reliability, speed, and customer trust. Before joining Cyara, Sushil was the co-founder and CEO of RelicX.ai, a generative AI test automation pioneer acquired by Harness. He previously led major product and business organizations at Oracle, CA Technologies, and Broadcom, where he built and scaled category-defining AI, DevOps, and cloud solutions adopted by thousands of enterprises worldwide. With more than 25 years of experience leading high-growth teams and multi-hundred-million-dollar product lines, Sushil is known for blending deep technical insight with a pragmatic, product-first approach to leadership. His work centers on transforming how modern software and customer experiences are created, making them more resilient, more intelligent, and more human. Sushil holds a Bachelor of Technology from BIT Sindri and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Sushil Kumar on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sushil-kumar-343780/

---------- Resources ----------

Cyara: cyara.com

The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://aglbrnd.co/r/2868abd8085a9703

We’re proud to be a media partner for #MAICON26 - Oct. 13-15! Learn how AI can power your marketing and business and help you grow smarter. Use code AGILE150 to save! https://aglbrnd.co/r/7fe458ced0f04658

Reach your customers with Reddit. Spend $500 in ad spend, get $500 back in ad credit! Learn more: https://advertalize.com/r/491818c79fb1873f

Chaser is the only Slack-native project management platform that helps teams turn messages into tracked tasks, automate follow-ups, and maintain team-wide visibility, without adopting another tool. Now integrated with Claude and other GenAI tools. Learn more at trychaser.com and use code AGILEBRAND for a 3-month free trial (normal trial is 14 days).

The most influential minds in software, AI, and engineering leadership will be at WeAreDevelopers World Congress North America, September 23-25 in San Jose. Learn more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/60a7299222a7bcf1

Start building your own apps with Replit and get $20 off. Learn more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/93531742a7625a20

Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://aglbrnd.co/r/faaed112fc9887f3

Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstrom

Don't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/35ded3ccfb6716ba

Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com

The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"As algorithms and AI increasingly automate the ""what"" and the ""how"" of marketing, what is the enduring value of human creativity, and how do we prove its worth?

Agility requires not just adapting our tools, but fundamentally rethinking how we define, nurture, and measure creative value in a world increasingly guided by machine logic.

Today, we're going to talk about the intersection of brand creativity and artificial intelligence. We’ll explore:

- Why brand distinctiveness becomes a critical differentiator when algorithms favor homogeneity.
- The new operational model for creative teams, where human judgment guides machine-speed execution.
- Strategies for building lasting brand memory in a media landscape optimized for short-term performance.

To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Jason Ippen, Vice President, Brand Strategy & Content at Georgia-Pacific.


About Jason Ippen

Jason Ippen is Vice President, Brand Strategy & Content at Georgia-Pacific, where he leads brand strategy, innovation and marketing for a portfolio of some of the country's most recognized consumer brands. Over the course of more than 16 years with the company, he has held leadership roles across brands including Quilted Northern, Sparkle and Vanity Fair, helping drive growth through consumer insight, product innovation and brand building.
Jason has more than 25 years of experience spanning consumer packaged goods, marketing and general management. He earned an MBA from Columbia Business School and a bachelor's degree from Colgate University.

Jason Ippen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-ippen-1120086/

---------- Resources ----------

: https://www.gp.com/

The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://aglbrnd.co/r/2868abd8085a9703

We’re proud to be a media partner for #MAICON26 - Oct. 13-15! Learn how AI can power your marketing and business and help you grow smarter. Use code AGILE150 to save! https://aglbrnd.co/r/7fe458ced0f04658

Reach your customers with Reddit. Spend $500 in ad spend, get $500 back in ad credit! Learn more: https://advertalize.com/r/491818c79fb1873f

Chaser is the only Slack-native project management platform that helps teams turn messages into tracked tasks, automate follow-ups, and maintain team-wide visibility, without adopting another tool. Now integrated with Claude and other GenAI tools. Learn more at trychaser.com and use code AGILEBRAND for a 3-month free trial (normal trial is 14 days).

The most influential minds in software, AI, and engineering leadership will be at WeAreDevelopers World Congress North America, September 23-25 in San Jose. Learn more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/60a7299222a7bcf1

Start building your own apps with Replit and get $20 off. Learn more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/93531742a7625a20


Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://aglbrnd.co/r/faaed112fc9887f3

Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstrom

Don't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/35ded3ccfb6716ba

Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com

The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company"
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a world obsessed with optimizing the ad tech supply chain, what if the focus on 'shorter' paths is a complete misdirection from building 'smarter' ones that actually align with brand value?
Agility requires brands to move beyond incremental optimization and fundamentally rethink their media operating models. It’s about building a framework that is inherently resilient to platform shifts, privacy changes, and evolving audience expectations.
Today, we're going to talk about the disconnect between the technical ad tech conversation and the strategic needs of the brand. We’ll explore how leaders can bridge this gap by focusing on smarter media paths, curated inventory, and an operating model built for long-term value creation.
To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Bob Regular, CEO at Infolinks Media. Bob, welcome to the show!

About Bob Regular
Bob Regular is a long-established pioneer in the digital media industry with over 25 years of advertising experience. As CEO of Infolinks Media, he drives the company’s mission to provide innovative contextual and native advertising solutions to web publishers and advertisers worldwide. Bob has founded and scaled multiple digital businesses, generating over $1 billion in revenue, and he is the founder and managing partner of Delivering Yield, an investment and advisory firm focused on advancing digital media through strategic investments. With extensive experience in capital raising, he has successfully secured over $250 million in funding and excels in operating ad platforms, developing products, training teams, and implementing efficient processes to meet the industry's evolving needs. Known for his entrepreneurial spirit and visionary leadership, Bob continues to influence the future of digital advertising, significantly contributing to Infolinks' success and the broader digital media ecosystem, with a mission to transform the landscape by leveraging data, technology, and creativity to enhance advertising effectiveness.

Bob Regular on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rregular

---------- Resources ----------

Infolinks Media:

The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://aglbrnd.co/r/2868abd8085a9703

We’re proud to be a media partner for #MAICON26 - Oct. 13-15! Learn how AI can power your marketing and business and help you grow smarter. Use code AGILE150 to save! https://aglbrnd.co/r/7fe458ced0f04658

Reach your customers with Reddit. Spend $500 in ad spend, get $500 back in ad credit! Learn more: https://advertalize.com/r/491818c79fb1873f

Chaser is the only Slack-native project management platform that helps teams turn messages into tracked tasks, automate follow-ups, and maintain team-wide visibility, without adopting another tool. Now integrated with Claude and other GenAI tools. Learn more at trychaser.com and use code AGILEBRAND for a 3-month free trial (normal trial is 14 days).

The most influential minds in software, AI, and engineering leadership will be at WeAreDevelopers World Congress North America, September 23-25 in San Jose. Learn more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/60a7299222a7bcf1

Start building your own apps with Replit and get $20 off. Learn more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/93531742a7625a20

Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://aglbrnd.co/r/faaed112fc9887f3

Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstrom

Don't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/35ded3ccfb6716ba

Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com

The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the race to implement AI for operational efficiency, are we accidentally designing the essential human elements of creativity, judgment, and trust out of our organizations?

Agility requires not just the rapid adoption of new technologies like AI, but the deliberate and human-centered redesign of the culture and processes that support them.

Today, we're going to talk about:

- Why AI adoption is less about the technology itself and more about a fundamental cultural paradigm shift within your organization.
- Balancing AI-driven efficiency with the essential human elements of creativity, judgment, and empathy to create superior customer and employee experiences.
- How complex industries like healthcare can serve as a model for using AI to democratize knowledge and empower consumers.

To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Stephanie Trunzo, Chief Executive Officer at MERGE. Stephanie, welcome to the show!

About Stephanie Trunzo
Stephanie Trunzo is CEO of MERGE and a veteran tech and health leader with 20+ years of experience in technology, marketing, health, and storytelling. Formerly SVP and General Manager at Oracle, where she launched Oracle Health and led the Cerner acquisition, she also held executive roles at IBM and was President/COO of PointSource.
As a recent addition to MERGE’s board in 2024, Stephanie is poised to drive the company's growth at the dynamic intersection of consumerism and health and wellness. A pioneer in AI with over 20 patents, she’s recognized for her thought leadership and was named to the Frist Cressey Ventures Collective in 2024. In 2026, she received an MM+M Pinnacle Award, and under her leadership, MERGE was named 2025 Agency of the Year and made the 2026 MM+M Agency 100 list.

Stephanie Trunzo on LinkedIn

---------- Resources ----------

MERGE

MERGE is a marketing and technology agency built for the intersection of health and wellness. They help organizations navigate AI, digital transformation, and emerging technologies with a human-centered approach, using storytelling and technology to create more meaningful connections with the people they serve.

We’re proud to be a media partner for #MAICON26 - Oct. 13-15! Learn how AI can power your marketing and business and help you grow smarter. Use code AGILE150 to save!

Reach your customers with Reddit. Spend $500 in ad spend, get $500 back in ad credit!

Chaser is the only Slack-native project management platform that helps teams turn messages into tracked tasks, automate follow-ups, and maintain team-wide visibility, without adopting another tool. Now integrated with Claude and other GenAI tools. Learn more at trychaser.com and use code AGILEBRAND for a 3-month free trial (normal trial is 14 days).

The most influential minds in software, AI, and engineering leadership will be at WeAreDevelopers World Congress North America, September 23-25 in San Jose.

Start building your own apps with Replit and get $20 off.

Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show.

Connect with Greg on LinkedIn

Don't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more.

Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology.

The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the push to integrate AI into go-to-market strategies, are we optimizing for activity or for intelligence?
Agility requires not just adopting new technologies like AI, but critically evaluating how they deliver contextual intelligence. It’s about adapting your strategy based on smarter signals, not just automating existing processes at a higher volume.
Today, we're going to talk about moving beyond the hype of generic AI in sales and marketing to focus on what actually drives revenue. We'll explore the concept of vertical AI, specifically for go-to-market teams selling to technical audiences, and how decoding intent signals from public developer conversations can create a significant competitive advantage.
To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Tal Peretz, CEO and Co-Founder at Onfire.

About Tal Peretz
Tal Peretz is the CEO and Co-Founder of Onfire, a contextual AI platform that helps technology companies decode real-time market signals and drive revenue growth using developer and IT buyer intent data. Prior to Onfire, Tal was Chief Technology Officer at OwnID, a Tel Aviv based startup focused on identity security solutions. Tal served at the 8200 intelligence force and built and scaled advanced data and AI systems focused on large-scale entity resolution and signal intelligence. Drawing on this background, he recognized a fundamental gap in modern go-to-market technology: while AI promised precision, revenue teams were still operating on incomplete, noisy, and outdated data. Under his leadership, Onfire was designed from the ground up to solve the data layer for IT sales by combining structured third-party intelligence with first-party customer context into a continuously updated market map. Tal is married to Shai and is a proud father of two, Dan and Ran.

Tal Peretz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tal-peretz/

---------- Resources ----------

Onfire:
The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://aglbrnd.co/r/2868abd8085a9703

We’re proud to be a media partner for #MAICON26 - Oct. 13-15! Learn how AI can power your marketing and business and help you grow smarter. Use code AGILE150 to save! https://aglbrnd.co/r/7fe458ced0f04658

Reach your customers with Reddit. Spend $500 in ad spend, get $500 back in ad credit! Learn more: https://advertalize.com/r/491818c79fb1873f

Chaser is the only Slack-native project management platform that helps teams turn messages into tracked tasks, automate follow-ups, and maintain team-wide visibility, without adopting another tool. Now integrated with Claude and other GenAI tools. Learn more at trychaser.com and use code AGILEBRAND for a 3-month free trial (normal trial is 14 days).

The most influential minds in software, AI, and engineering leadership will be at WeAreDevelopers World Congress North America, September 23-25 in San Jose. Learn more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/60a7299222a7bcf1

Start building your own apps with Replit and get $20 off. Learn more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/93531742a7625a20

Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://aglbrnd.co/r/faaed112fc9887f3

Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstrom

Don't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/35ded3ccfb6716ba

Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com

The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.