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SHERYL CROW TARGETS TISSUE INDUSTRY ON CLIMATE CHANGE CAMPAIGN

American singer Sheryl Crow has said a ban on using too much toilet paper should be introduced to help the environment.

The 45-year-old, who made the comments on her website, has just toured the US on a biodiesel-powered bus to raise awareness about climate change.

“One of my favorites is in the area of forest conservation which we heavily rely on for oxygen. I propose a limitation be put on how many squares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting,” said Crow. Now, I don't want to rob any law-abiding American of his or her God-given rights, but I think we are an industrious enough people that we can make it work with only one square per restroom visit, except, of course, on those pesky occasions where 2 to 3 could be required. I also like the idea of not using paper napkins, which happen to be made from virgin wood and represent the height of wastefulness.

Crow has subsequently told fans on her website: “And by the way guys, ...it was a JOKE!!”. It is not clear which of her suggestions she is referring to.

Kimberly-Clark unveils new global marketing structure

Kimberly-Clark Corporation has given a new structure to its new Global Marketing organization as part of an ongoing effort to extend its brand-building capabilities, accelerate growth and product innovation, and improve the effectiveness of its marketing resources.

As part of the new structure, three senior executives with extensive consumer products and marketing experience will join K-C in new roles that report to chief marketing officer Tony Palmer, who joined K-C in October of last year.

“Kimberly-Clark has great strengths in brands, people and leadership,” Mr. Palmer said. “The changes announced today are designed to build on our strong talent base to take K-C’s global marketing capabilities and teams to the next level and to transform this important business function into a strategic driver of growth and innovation in support of our Global Business Plan.

“We are building a marketing organization that enables great marketers to develop and grow professionally as they drive exceptional business performance for K-C worldwide.”

In support of these priorities, K-C has hired three senior marketeers to work with Mr. Palmer and K-C’s marketing teams worldwide to expand the company’s marketing prowess and capabilities.

Andrew Bienkowski will join K-C in the newly created role of vice president, Global Brands, responsible for leading the development of brand strategies for all global Consumer, Health Care and K-C Professional brands, prioritizing global brand innovation opportunities, and integrating these plans with business units and geographies. Most recently, Mr. Bienkowski served as group marketing director for The Coca-Cola Company, serving as the CMO for the company’s core Coke, Fanta and Sprite brands in 56 global markets. Prior to Coca-Cola, he worked for 12 years at Procter & Gamble.

Roger Chacko joins K-C in the new position of vice president, Global Marketing Knowledge and Intelligence. Mr. Chacko will be responsible for the establishment of best practices, standardization of consumer research tools, and brand research across all global business units. Mr. Chacko previously served as senior vice president strategy development for consumer, channel, competitive and category intelligence in North America at Mars, Inc. and has more than 17 years of market research and marketing experience with leading consumer companies, including The Kellogg Company, Danone Group and ConAgra Foods, Inc.

Clive Sirkin has joined K-C in the newly created role of vice president, Global Integrated Marketing Communications. He will be responsible for developing plans to integrate and manage marketing communications worldwide. Prior to joining Kimberly-Clark, he was group managing director for advertising agency Leo Burnett Worldwide.

To provide clear guidance and leadership for marketing, K-C is establishing a Global Marketing Leadership Team, which will be responsible for shaping K-C’s marketing vision, beliefs and priorities globally. The team will include representatives from KC’s businesses worldwide and will be led by Mr. Palmer.

K-C will also create Global Brand Leadership teams to set global brand strategy and governance, share knowledge and guide innovation and investment priorities for its key brands at the global level. The first two Global Brand Leadership teams being put in place will focus on the Kimberly-Clark and Huggies brands.

“Our new marketing structure will help us find new ways to deliver the promise of our brands through product and service innovations, help us discover new and surprising ways to better connect with consumers with relevant and meaningful messages, and help us maximize the return on our marketing investment,” Mr. Palmer said.

“I am confident that the new Global Marketing organization, together with the members of the Brand Leadership and local marketing teams, will help accelerate delivery of our Global Business Plan. Ultimately, I believe these actions will lead to sustainable revenue growth, improved margins and greater profitability as we evolve K-C into a legendary marketing company.”