Phoebe Syms
Senior brand manager – brand fame and partnerships
KFC
Phoebe Syms is a marketer who isn’t afraid to push boundaries to drive results. In fact, she believes taking “calculated risks” is necessary for true creativity that drives meaningful results.
This belief in the need to defy convention is something embraced at KFC, where Syms works as a senior brand manager, leading on driving brand fame and partnerships for the chicken chain. Indeed, the busniess encourages and fosters bold creativity, she says.
“Too much process, red tape and a lack of autonomy stifle creativity and are a marketer’s nightmare,” she says.
Syms previously worked at fashion chain River Island for over seven years. She joined the retailer as a visual communications manager in 2014, before being promoted several times, latterly to brand manager.
Having worked in marketing for around a decade – with the past four years at KFC – Syms believes the biggest change in that time has been how consumers interact with brands. There is more competition than ever for consumers’ attentions, she states, meaning it’s harder for brands to stand out and get noticed.
“Brands need to stand out from the crowd and do it quickly. ‘Safe’, generic wallpaper advertising just doesn’t cut it anymore.”
That need to stand out from the crowd is something she actively pursues for the brands she works on. At KFC, she has been part of some of the brand's most fame-driving campaigns of recent times, collaborating with the likes of Greggs and Hackney Gelato to bring gravy together with sausage rolls and ice cream.
“Brands need to stand out from the crowd and do it quickly. 'Safe', generic wallpaper advertising just doesn’t cut it anymore,” she says.
Notably, she was campaign lead on KFC’s ‘All Hail Gravy’ campaign earlier this year, creative which generated much conversation for the brand, leading her nominator to describe her as “a catalytic force, super-charging how [KFC] shows up as a culturally relevant brand”.
She is also credited with her ability to bring together cross-agency partners, as well as internal teams, to encourage creativity in a way that her nominator says is “redefining what brand leadership looks like at KFC”.
Having made real impact in her career so far, looking ahead to the future, Syms recognises the large impact AI is having on the marketing industry but also maintains confidence in the need for bold creativity that pushes the boundaries. She advises anyone thinking of taking up a marketing career to dive straight in.
“Do it,” she says, describing marketing as “one hell of an epic rollercoaster”.
