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Expert Huddle: Positioning Case History

Case History by Firebrick

Bob Wright of Firebrick and Kristin Russel of Kinaxis

How Can CMOs Turn Positioning into a Growth Lever?

Join Bob Wright, Founder of Firebrick, and Kristin Russel, CMO of Kinaxis, for a case-driven conversation on positioning, market narrative, and buyer-centered differentiation.

As marketing leaders navigate shifting buyer priorities and pressure to demonstrate growth, positioning needs to give buyers a clear reason to choose, and executive teams a shared direction. This Expert Huddle explores the Kinaxis positioning story and what CMOs can learn about connecting a company’s strengths to customer needs, building executive alignment, and translating a market narrative into everyday marketing and sales conversations.

Conversation Points

  • Recognize when positioning is limiting growth and identify what needs to change.
  • Build a narrative around buyers’ business problems, with differentiation supported by concrete proof.
  • Align executive, marketing, sales, and product leaders around a shared positioning strategy.
  • Carry positioning into campaigns, content, and sales conversations so buyers hear a consistent story.

About Bob Wright

Bob Wright is the Founder of Firebrick, where he helps B2B technology companies sharpen their positioning and market narratives. His work focuses on buyer relevance, competitive differentiation, and executive alignment.

About Firebrick

Firebrick is a strategic positioning consultancy for B2B technology companies. It helps leadership teams define their differentiation and develop buyer-centered narratives that support growth and category leadership.

About Kristin Russel

Kristin Russel is Chief Marketing Officer at Kinaxis, leading global marketing across strategy, corporate and market positioning, brand, communications, and go-to-market initiatives. She brings experience building technology brands and leading marketing organizations through growth.

About Kinaxis

Kinaxis provides supply chain planning and decision-making software that helps organizations anticipate disruptions, evaluate tradeoffs, and coordinate responses. Its technology connects complex operational decisions to business outcomes, which is a useful context for exploring how positioning makes technical value meaningful to buyers.