Driven to lead: Allyson Witherspoon is building a legacy for herself in the automotive industry

This article originally appeared in the Fall 2024 issue of Trulaske Magazine

Allyson Witherspoon, B.S.B.A. ’99, has always loved cars – their design and the sense of independence they give. 

The first car to capture her imagination was a shiny Porsche 911 that pulled up behind her family’s idling station wagon. Looking through the back window, 7-year-old Witherspoon was captivated by the humming marvel of engineering and design.

“I was completely fascinated and drawn into the design,” Witherspoon said. “I kept wondering, ‘How do you shape sheet metal like that?’ I was captivated by the whole thing.”

Today, Witherspoon is in the driver’s seat as the corporate vice president and global chief marketing officer (CMO) at Nissan Motor Corporation in Tokyo, Japan. With more than 20 years of global marketing experience for some of the world’s most prestigious automotive companies, including Mercedes-Benz, Volvo and BMW, she has consistently delivered brand and revenue growth. Her assignments across the United States, Europe and Asia have seen her lead breakthrough marketing performance, creative excellence and business growth, all while driving culture change.

Witherspoon has proven herself a global marketing leader who shines brightest at the intersection of marketing, design, engineering and technology.

“I am a self-motivator,” she said. “I am never satisfied with the status quo. I am always looking for a different way, a more creative way of doing things. I think about how to become a better leader every single day. I ask myself: ‘How do I lead a team to deliver greatness?’”

Call to marketing

Witherspoon grew up in Springfield, Missouri, where her father, the late Charles Rex Witherspoon, was a well-known and much beloved oral surgeon and philanthropist. Her first job as a teenager was filing papers in her father’s medical office. It was there that she began to shape her vision of the leader she aspired to be – strong, compassionate and reliable. 

“I came to really appreciate the type of leader my dad was,” she said. “He had this incredible ability to motivate his team and care for both them and his patients. I learned a lot about leadership from watching him firsthand.”

The youngest of five, Witherspoon and her twin brother, Robert, shared a close relationship during their formative years. They attended Greenwood Laboratory School on the campus of Missouri State University in Springfield, where they graduated high school in a tight-knit class of 25.  When it came time for college, Witherspoon briefly considered playing basketball at a small school, but quickly opted for the “big school experience” after visiting the University of Missouri.

The only member of her immediate family not in the medical field, Witherspoon always had a knack for numbers. She began her academic journey as an accounting major at the Trulaske College of Business. But by her junior year, something was missing; the material wasn’t resonating with her. Eager to find her true calling, Witherspoon enrolled in an international advertising class. The first day marked a turning point when the class discussed the iconic “Got Milk?” campaign and its impact on international markets. 

In that moment, Witherspoon realized where she belonged – marketing. 

“We talked about how the campaign’s imagery didn’t work in some parts of the world because it had a different meaning there,” she recalled. “For whatever reason, I found that fascinating – how brands operate and connect with cultures all around the world. There is a universal truth that is consistent, but how it comes to life around the world is very different.”

Listen and lead

Over the years, Witherspoon embraced overseas assignments that tested her limits, each one pushing her to adapt, grow and deepen her understanding of humanity, honing her into a more effective communicator and influential leader. Her work has been intentional and one day at a time. 

“I started to train myself on the way to work,” Witherspoon said. “I would think about what I needed to manage, how I needed to communicate it, and how to make things as clear and concise as I could. Then at the end of the day, I would do a post-analysis on it. What worked well? What do I need to improve upon? How can I retool this for tomorrow?”

Through her work and self-reflection, a powerful realization emerged: Listening is the key to effective leadership. 

“If you want to understand, you must listen,” she said. 

In her role as global CMO, Witherspoon has also come to appreciate data’s power to influence boardroom decisions. 

“I always bring data as part of a proposal. It’s especially important for marketing, which can seem very different than engineering and manufacturing,” she said. “What I bring to the table is a very data- and customer-oriented mindset.”

Words of wisdom

Witherspoon’s advice for graduates entering the workforce is: don’t get stuck waiting for the perfect opportunity, just get started. 

“At that time in your life, every single thing feels like the biggest decision you’ll ever make,” she said. “What you don’t know then is your career is going to take a lot of twists and turns, and that’s OK. You don’t have to have everything figured out the day you graduate. Things will eventually begin to take shape.” 

Most importantly, remain teachable and keep learning. 

“Try things out and find what motivates you. That’s how you start to realize the skills you have and where you can add value,” Witherspoon said. “It’s all about learning and building on those experiences. The most important thing I tell my team is to continue learning. The learning process never stops.”

Reflecting on her journey, Witherspoon said there is little she would change – except to be gentler with herself, a lesson she often shares with younger colleagues.  

“It goes back to the idea that everything will work out,” she said. “Still to this day, I learn the most from the things that don’t work out. That’s when I make the most growth.”

Work in progress

While Witherspoon has always taken pride in her unwavering work ethic, she’s learned over the years that drawing clear boundaries between work and home enhances her performance on the job. 

“I try to make sure I am exercising, eating right, drinking enough water, getting enough sleep and taking time off when needed,” she said. “It’s those little things that can make a big difference. There will always be an ebb and flow to the work, but the lesson I’ve learned is I am better at my job when I take care of myself. I am clearer, more focused, more patient and more creative.” 

When Witherspoon first entered the workforce 25 years ago, she didn’t see many women in senior leadership positions. That is changing. 

“I firmly believe you don’t aspire to something you don’t see,” she said. “I didn’t think I could have this level of role at any company when I first started, much less a global company. Fortunately, there were men who were mentors and took me under their wings and helped me develop.”

Today, Witherspoon prioritizes mentoring other women and facilitating discussions about the importance of diversity in the workplace. 

“I think it’s good to open that discussion and bring in representatives of the majority so they can understand as well,” she said. “Education is so important; we can learn from each other. 

About eight years ago, Witherspoon made peace with her drive for perfection and accepted that her life is a work in progress. The change in attitude keeps her motivated and free from impossible standards set for herself.  

“When I graduated, I just wanted a job,” she said. “Then, I just wanted to learn and then I wanted experience and then I started discovering what brought me joy and what I’m pretty good at. I never imagined that the person who graduated from Mizzou would be the global CMO of a global auto manufacturer. But here I am. I’ve stopped thinking about things in finite terms. I still have goals, but today, I let them happen instead of forcing them.”

Allyson’s favorite campaigns

Nissan Heisman House – 2019-2022

This campaign has been running for over 12 years and I enjoyed working with the team on how to make it fresh each year. Every year there is a new Heisman winner that enters the house and it’s a great experience coming up with the ideas, shooting the campaign with all of these Heisman legends, and thinking about how we can connect with the fans both physically on college campuses and digitally. Through the Heisman campaign I met Aaron Stoller also a Mizzou grad who has been the campaign film Director for several years. He and I were at Mizzou at the same time, lived across the street from each other but never met and now we’re great friends! 

Nissan Thrill Driver Super Bowl– 2022

Doing a Super Bowl campaign is really hard – it’s an investment and there is a lot of pressure and hard work to get it right. We worked for a few months on what we wanted to achieve and communicate before deciding on the final concept. Then we had an incredible group of people at Nissan, our agency partners, production partners and our talent who all just went for it to make everything about the campaign as impactful as possible. It was a huge success and our employees, dealers, and fans loved it and it brought new fans to the brand. 

 Gran Turismo - 2023

We collaborated with Sony for a few years on this movie since it’s based on a true story of Nissan GT Academy where gamers could test their skills in real race cars. It was interesting working on the script and product placement to ensure authenticity of what actually happened. When the movie came out last summer we had screenings around the world with our employees and dealers and there was a lot of pride to see the Nissan brand on the big screen.