Coca-Cola drops global CMO role amid leadership restructuring

Coca-Cola is getting rid of its global chief marketing officer function by merging it with "customer and commercial leadership as well as strategy" to create a new chief growth officer role.As a result, current chief marketing officer Marcos de Quinto, who led a significant "Taste the feeling" campaign last year, set to retire after a near 35-year career at the company.The change comes as the soft drink giant announced a number of senior leadership appointments, which look to drive its ongoing transformation into a "growth-oriented and consumer-centered" beverage company.Francisco Crespo, currently president of the Mexico business unit, has been tapped for the newly created role of chief growth officer. In this role, he will lead the company’s global marketing, corporate strategy, and customer and commercial leadership teams, creating a consolidated team to drive growth across five strategic beverage categories: sparkling, juice/dairy/plant-based, tea and coffee, water and enhanced waters, and energy.As part of the new structure, its new CEO James Quincey, who is the current chief operating officer, will take over the top job of the company on 1 May from Muhtar Kent.