When asked about her proudest accomplishment as chief marketing officer of sustainable consumer goods company Grove Collaborative, Jennie Perry didn’t lead with the company’s recent IPO, how Drew Barrymore became an investor and spokesperson, or even Grove’s new retail partnerships. Instead, she talked about plastic. 

“I have been with Grove for two years now, and I was attracted to Grove because of its purity of mission and its sustainability positioning,” Perry said. And before discussing Barrymore's involvement in the 2022 “Wish-cycling” campaign, Perry went into great detail explaining why the campaign mattered in relation to climate change.

At its core, the campaign details how plastic recycling is a myth. “Recycling is not the solution to plastic reduction and the effect that plastic has on the planet,” Perry said. “Plastic is around pretty much forever, and we are producing it at lightning speed and consuming products that rely on plastic at a greater degree every year.”

The “Wish-cycling” campaign drove more than 400 million total impressions and the brand acquired more than 590,000 new customers in 2022, according to Grove.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Done can be better than perfect! It took me a while to learn that every project and decision didn’t have to be high-effort. Some decisions are worth lots of time and pre-work, but some low-risk decisions are better just done. Treating everything as critical slows you down and is exhausting!

What’s the biggest risk you’ve ever taken?

Hard to pick! Moving my family across the country to take a role that was far from a guaranteed success felt like a big professional and personal risk at the time. I’ve actually done this several times and although it’s hard, the experience and learning, both professionally and personally, with every move was worth it. Change is a forcing function for growth.

If you weren’t doing your current job, what would you be doing and why?

So many things! I love research, mentoring and higher education so have often fantasized about a career in teaching. And of course, there is always the lure of being a barista. I live for coffee.

What should the industry do to encourage more women and people of color into its ranks?

Reward leaders who make it a priority and take action to bring diversity to their leadership teams. The acceleration of diversity won’t happen organically. We need to build diversity into business goals. 

How do you expect emerging tech like Web3 and AI to impact your job in the future?

We spend a fair amount of time talking about AI and how to leverage it. I expect AI to meaningfully impact productivity across many functions, including creative. I’m super-excited by the possibilities.