The Center works closely with sponsor companies to set its agenda, and to address each sponsor's unique branding issues through executive consultations, tailored research projects and event sponsorships.
Companies can join at different levels of sponsorship which can be tailored to meet specific company goals and needs. Our primary areas and levels of sponsorship are:
- Lead Sponsorship
- Research Sponsorship
- Executive Networks: CCO Council and Marketing Innovation Network (MIN)
- Event Sponsorship
- Marketing & Innovation Case Competition
- Make a Gift
For more information, please e-mail us at [email protected] or call us at +1-212-853-8587.
Lead Sponsorship
The Center has worked with its lead sponsors in a variety of industries in projects that address:
- Creating a corporate/product brand strategy for entry into a new geographic region
- Transforming a corporate culture from an engineering focus to a brand and market focus
- Using customer experience to revitalize a former mega-brand for its re-launch
- Achieving global consistency in the roll-out of a new brand positioning
- Using a brand promise to drive internal change across departments
- Developing a new brand architecture after a merger or acquisition
- Brand naming in the digital environment
Research Sponsorship
The Center works with sponsoring companies and foundations that are interested in utilizing the expertise of the Center, its global network and Columbia Business School to analyze specific topics in the fields of branding and marketing. Research projects can either be broadly distributed research papers or peer-reviewed academic articles.
Research project types have included:
- Broad-based analyses into how brand strategies intersect with business, societal and cultural trends
- Examining new approaches to brand and business strategy through dataset review and modelling
- Case study write-ups surrounding specific business initiatives
Executive Networks: CCO Council and Marketing Innovation Network (MIN)
With partner Palisades Media Ventures, the Center has launched two executive networks—the Chief Communications Officer (CCO) Council and the Marketing Innovation Network (MIN)—to bring together top executives from a wide range of industries in a dynamic peer-to-peer learning community to uncover new insights into the ever-changing, technology-driven world of marketing and communications.
Sample benefits from each network include:
- Two Summits per year, hosted by Columbia Business School’s Center on Global Brand Leadership in New York City, plus additional regional events throughout the US
- Access to leading research, best practices, and thought leadership from the Center on Brand Leadership; from other Columbia Business School professors; and from other innovators, entrepreneurs, and thought leaders on marketing and communications
- The opportunity to pose questions, share best practices, and gain insights on marketing and communications—in a non-competitive environment—from fellow network members who work within a range of industry categories
Read more about the CCO Council and Marketing Innovation Network (MIN).
Event Sponsorship
Companies can contribute to the Center by becoming sponsors of its flagship BRITE Conference series, or through sponsoring unique events on topics of interest within the field of branding.
Our latest BRITE Conference sponsorship brochure (.pdf) provides details on the various levels of sponsorship for this event.
Marketing & Innovation Case Competition
The Marketing Innovation Case Competition is an annual event produced each spring by Columbia Business School’s Center on Global Brand Leadership, in collaboration with the Marketing Association of Columbia (MAC).
Dozens of MBA students from Columbia Business School participate in the task to develop an innovative business and brand strategy by combining the seemingly incompatible. This technique, devised by Prof. Bernd Schmitt, stimulates creative thinking by requiring participants to “combine one concept with another seemingly incompatible concept—for example, a well-known brand with a seemingly incompatible social phenomenon or lifestyle trend.”
The groups have four hours to prepare an idea and then present it before a panel of business executives who judge their efforts along the following criteria: creativity, a defensible business case, and the clarity and style of their presentation. Cash prizes are awarded for the top rated teams, and all participants receive a small gift.
Our latest Marketing & Innovation Case Competition sponsorship brochure (.pdf) provides details on the various levels of sponsorship for this event.
Make a Gift
Each year, the Center on Global Brand Leadership hosts numerous public programs and creates content that helps numerous people and organizations create and refine their unique brand. Much of our content and programs are free.
As a very small department in a large 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational institution, the Center relies on philanthropic contributions to continue to carry out its mission of sharing the latest insights on brands, innovation, and technology with the public.
If our mission resonates with you, or if you feel like you have gotten value out of our programs and would like to give back, please consider making a tax-deductible gift to the Center on Global Brand Leadership. No gift is too big or too small—thank you in advance for your consideration!
To make a gift, click the Give Now button. This will take you to the Columbia Giving website. From the dropdown list, select "Other" and write "Gift to the Brand Center" in the allocation instructions. Thank you in advance for your support!
Additional Sponsor Benefits
Depending on the level and type of sponsorship you commit to, additional benefits may include:
- Opportunities to speak in Center conferences
- Hosting an event or speaking in student classes
- Complimentary registration at Center events worldwide
- Free registration for selected Executive Education courses at Columbia Business School
- Participation in MBA student team projects
- Opportunities to sponsor case studies and customized research studies
- Complimentary copies of Center books and other publications
- Acknowledgement on conference materials, web site, and newsletters
For more information on these opportunities or other customized sponsorship partnerships with the Center on Global Brand Leadership, please e-mail us at [email protected] or call us at +1-212-853-8587.