Director Spotlight: Gerald Chait — Driving Growth and Governance at the Intersection of Marketing and Technology
Gerald Chait has spent his career at the intersection of marketing, technology, and governance. After decades in executive marketing leadership roles, Gerald is now channeling his deep commercial expertise and academic rigour into board and advisory positions where he can help organisations navigate transformation, growth, and governance challenges.
“Marketing and marketing technology are playing an increasingly critical role at board level. They intersect directly with governance, risk mitigation and growth strategy.”
Inspired to Lead at Board Level
Gerald’s inspiration for pursuing board and advisory roles comes from recognising the heightened importance of marketing in shaping business strategy. With digital transformation and emerging technologies like AI reshaping markets, Gerald believes that boards can no longer afford to treat marketing as a peripheral function.
Instead, he sees it as central to key board-level issues: privacy, data protection, spam compliance, ethical marketing, and the responsible use of AI. His vision is clear: to contribute to boards with a blend of commercial acumen, digital insight, and governance expertise.
Digital Transformation and the Board’s Role
Having successfully led digital transformations across multiple industries, Gerald understands that boards must treat digital strategy as more than a “technology upgrade.”
“Digital transformation should not be treated as a technology upgrade, but rather a core enabler of competitive advantage, customer experience and brand positioning.”
Boards, in his view, have a critical role in:
- Ensuring strategic alignment and risk oversight,
- Embedding governance frameworks for cybersecurity and compliance,
- Overseeing ethical use of AI,
- Fostering the right culture and people capabilities to deliver innovation.
A Strategic Marketing Lens on Governance
As a seasoned marketing leader, Gerald brings a sharp perspective on risk and compliance. He has seen firsthand how insufficient awareness of privacy laws, anti-spam legislation, or AI governance can expose companies to serious consequences.
“We’ve seen high-profile cases where data breaches and compliance failures led to penalties, long-term brand damage, and financial loss.”
His board philosophy emphasises broadening governance frameworks beyond traditional financial oversight, to also cover digital, reputational, and compliance risk areas where many organisations remain vulnerable.
The Opportunities and Risks of AI
Gerald is a clear-eyed advocate for the responsible use of AI in marketing and business. On one hand, he sees enormous potential in hyper-personalisation, scaled customer insights, and deeper emotional connections with customers. On the other hand, he warns that boards must be alive to the risks of bias, discrimination, and reputational harm.
“AI enables organisations to build meaningful customer connections, but poor use can erode brand trust overnight. Governance of AI must balance innovation with ethics and compliance.”
Driving Sustainable Growth
For Gerald, customer-centricity is the true engine of sustainable growth. He has reversed revenue decline and led growth initiatives by grounding strategy in genuine customer insight.
“Sustainable growth starts with a deep understanding of customers, anticipating their needs, and creating emotional connections. When customers feel seen, heard, and valued, growth follows.”
Avoiding Boardroom Pitfalls in Branding
Gerald warns that boards often underestimate the true value of brand equity. He points to two common pitfalls:
- Undervaluing the emotional drivers of customer behaviour.
- Failing to balance short-term sales activation with long-term brand building.
His advice is to navigate the growth paradox — achieving short-term results while investing for future demand.
Navigating Technology Complexity
With deep martech and automation expertise, Gerald believes boards must establish clear frameworks to manage data, privacy, and ethical AI use. He also emphasises the importance of culture.
“By fostering a culture of continuous learning and innovation, boards can ensure a modern, skilled workforce that delivers long-term competitive advantage.”
The Future of Advisory Boards
Gerald sees advisory boards as playing an increasingly important role, particularly for scaling companies and early-stage ventures. They offer access to deep expertise and specialist skills that formal boards may not have.
“Advisory boards bridge the gap between ambition and execution. They bring in the right expertise at the right time to solve critical challenges.”
Education and Evidence-Based Governance
Gerald’s appointment to the Teaching and Learning Committee at UTS has sharpened his governance and leadership style. It reinforced his belief in evidence-based decision-making and the value of transparent, future-focused approaches.
“Being part of UTS has deepened my appreciation for innovation, equity, and collaboration in leadership.”
The Ideal Board Appointment
Looking ahead, Gerald is motivated to contribute to boards that are innovative, ambitious, and navigating transformation, whether that be scaling, entering new markets, or driving significant change.
He gravitates toward organisations with a customer-centric, ethical, and collaborative culture, where diversity of thought and long-term purpose are prioritised. His ultimate goal is to help build sustainable, high-impact businesses that thrive in complex markets.
“I’m motivated to contribute meaningfully by drawing on my breadth of marketing expertise, digital transformation leadership, consumer behaviour insight, and governance experience.”
Final Word
Gerald Chait brings a rare mix of commercial marketing leadership, digital transformation expertise, and governance insight. He understands the risks and opportunities of modern business and is committed to helping boards and advisory groups navigate them with vision, responsibility, and impact.
