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WhenJimMurphyBA ’86needsaquick lunchwhile travelling
in India, he reaches foraSnickersbar.
Hedoes thispartlybecausehehasa shellfishallergyand isvery
careful aboutwhat heeatswhileoverseas.Also, heconsidersSnickers
his favouritechocolatebar.
Perhaps themost logical reason, however, is thatMurphy is the
global chief customerofficer forMarsGlobalChocolatebusiness—
home to theworld-famous familyof candy, includingSnickers.
“I alwaysbring somechocolatewithmewhen I travel,” says the
UWindsor grad. “I’ve found that that andaGuinnesswill takeyou far
inapinch.”
Onemight be surprised to learn that thisvery successful business
executivemajored incommunication studies. “I couldhavegone the
traditional business route,”he says. “But I think there’sagreat deal of
benefit ina liberal artseducation (also see
VIEW
cover story, p. 20),
versus focusingonanyonediscipline.”
Upongraduation,Murphy joinedCampbell Soup inMichigan.
Subsequent salesandmarketingpositions included stintswithClorox
andDanone,whoseNorthAmerican salesoperationhe ran.
In2008,MarsCorporationofferedhim thepositionof seniorVPof
sales forNorthAmerica; he tookon theglobal portfolio four years later.
Inbroad terms, heprovides strategic sales leadershipandguidance to
theorganization,whileensuring themore-than-5,000 salesassociates
worldwideare focusedondrivingmutuallyprofitable relationshipswith
their customers.
Murphyworkswith19worldmarketsandconsequentlyspendsabout
75percentof his timeon the road for thecorporategiant.Murphyand
hiswife, Linda, live inBaskingRidge,NJ,with their two sons, Jamesand
Colin.
Thecompany’scomea longway since1911,whenFrankC.Mars
made thefirstMarscandies inhisTacoma,WA, kitchen.Today, the
familyownedbusinesshasnet salesof more than$33billion, 75,000
employeesglobally, and sixbusiness segments: petcare; chocolate;
Wrigley; food; drinks; and symbioscience.Among itsbrandsareDove,
Mars,M&M’s, Skittles,Twix,UncleBen’s,WhiskasandPedigree.
Named for thepast threeyears to
Forbes100BestCompanies
, it
was recognized for itsextensive learninganddevelopment training,
communityengagement, andhealthandwellnessprograms.Other
benefitscitedby
Forbes
included freecandyandbeingable tobringone’s
pet towork.Over thepast year,Marshasbeennamed to similar lists in
more than20countries.
Mars isa “flat”corporation, inwhichpeopleanswer theirown
phones, noonehasaprivateofficeandeveryone—includingMurphy—
punchesaclock.This isbasedon theMars familybelief that noone
function ismore important thananother.
Whileeverycompany focusesondelivering results,Murphy says
thechallenge isdelivering those results in the rightway. “Youcan’t bea
badmanagerof peopleand surviveatMars.Howyou lead isas
important aswhat youdeliver.
“I hadoneboss tellme that feedback isagift.What you’redoingwell
andpoorly—botharecritical aspects in improving, year after year.”
Being familyownedgives thecompanygreaterflexibilityand
autonomy, saysMurphy. “Wecanmakedecisionswithoutworrying
about the impact onWall Street.”
For example, it haspledged touseonlycertified, sustainablecocoa in
all of itsproductsby2020—thefirst global, chocolatecompany todo so.
“Wemake significant investments incocoa sustainability,” says
Murphy, noting that thecompany’scocoa is sourced from small, family
driven farmsclose to theequator. “Helpinghundredsor thousandsof
farmers improve their yield through scienceand technologymeanswe’re
improving theirprofitabilityandgiving them theability toeducate their
childrenandbetter their lives.”
When it comes toeducation, theUWindsor alumnus isa strong
proponent of continuing it after graduation.He takes two to threeweeks
of specialized trainingeachyear at such institutionsas theLondon
School of EconomicsandHarvard. “I believeyou should invest inyour
own, personal development.”
Whenheaddressesuniversity studentsornewlymintedgrads, he
tells them thatwhat counts isn’t a specificdegreebut, “their emotional
intelligence.Howwell theycan thinkon their feet.And,maybeas
important,maintainingamanagerial bias for execution.”
This refers toamanager’sflexibilityduringaproject’splanning stage
so that itsendgoal ismet.After all, hepointsout, “Thefinal result is the
onlypart of the strategyconsumerswill see.”
Murphyparticularlyenjoyswatchingaprotégé’sprofessional growth.
“Theability to spend the timewith someoneand see themdevelopand
moveon isvery rewarding.”
Asa leaderwith theexperienceand foresight toplanglobal sales
strategies for abillion-dollar corporation, cultivateexceptional employees
andpacka shellfish-free snack, JimMurphyhas raised the—chocolate—
bar inavery satisfying fashion.
n
v
ALUMNI PROFILE
BYJENNIFERAMMOSCATO
THESWEETTASTEOFSUCCESS
JimMurphyBA ’86
Opposite: JimMurphyBA ’86plans global sales strategies.
