Iron Mountain is nearly 75 years old, built on physical records storage, and structured as a real estate investment trust — known for most of its history for warehouses and shredding trucks, not brand campaigns. Then Karen Feldman arrived as the company's first-ever Chief Marketing Officer.

Karen joins Joel Harrison to explain what it actually means to become a legacy business's first CMO when marketing already exists, just without a seat at the top table — and the trust-building playbook that got her there. We cover the brand health study that reshaped her budget priorities, the McLaren Racing partnership that mirrors Iron Mountain's own value proposition, how AI is reshaping B2B search behaviour, and her advice for any marketing leader walking into a legacy business.

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Guest

Karen Feldman, SVP & Chief Marketing Officer, Iron Mountain

Karen Feldman is SVP and Chief Marketing Officer at Iron Mountain, a role she took on in November 2024 as the company's first-ever CMO. She joined from IBM Consulting, where she spent over 25 years at IBM, including as CMO leading the business's repositioning following the Kyndryl spin-off.

Karen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-feldman-217440/

Host

Joel Harrison, founder of Joel Harrison B2B and host of Trust & Influence in B2B.

Joel on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joelharrison/

In this episode

00:00 Welcome, and introducing Karen Feldman

02:27 What Iron Mountain actually does today

04:48 Karen's path from IBM Consulting to Iron Mountain

11:06 The brand platform: protect what matters, unlock what's possible

14:43 Earning the leadership trust to build a real CMO mandate

19:09 The McLaren Racing partnership

21:59 Brand, demand, and speaking the business's language

28:28 AI and trust in the B2B mid-funnel

32:25 Advice for marketers walking into a legacy business

35:11 Two years in: what's been unlocked so far

Follow Karen Feldman LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-feldman-217440/

Iron Mountain: https://www.ironmountain.com/

Closing & Calls to Action 🌐 Visit Joel Harrison's website to explore exclusive reports, upcoming events, and join the B2B marketing community: https://www.joelharrisonb2b.com/ What would you tell a marketing leader walking into a legacy B2B business for the first time?

Let us know in the comments below.

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