Biography

Beth Wood is executive vice president and chief marketing officer (CMO) with Principal Financial Group®. As CMO, Beth leads the Global Brand & Experience team, serving as the architects and stewards of the Principal brand. The team creates and amplifies the branded stories that invite customer curiosity and participation in our financial educational and planning narrative. Beth and her team are accountable for aligning the global organization around the customer; utilizing data insights, analytics and technology to deliver compelling customer experiences and measurable results to support business growth. In her role, Wood also serves as Chair of the company’s Sustainability Task Force and Chair of the Principal Foundation.

Wood joined Principal® in July 2019. Prior to Principal, Beth was vice president and chief marketing officer of the individual businesses for Guardian Life Insurance in New York City. Her responsibilities included leading digital marketing transformation across the life, disability, annuity, and wealth management businesses in support of the company’s general agency system, its 3,000 financial representatives and their respective clients. She held this role since 2016. Before that, she served as second vice president, life, and agency marketing at Guardian since 2010.

Beth has more than 30 years’ experience as a brand and marketing leader. She’s held numerous marketing leadership roles in the consumer-packaged goods, healthcare, and financial services industries, with companies such as Frito-Lay, Johnson & Johnson, and MassMutual.

Beth earned her BS in marketing communications from Babson College in Wellesley, Mass. She’s also earned her digital marketing certification from Cornell University and a data and digital transformation certificate from the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business.