From Wheel of Pain to Wheel of Gain.

Defining a common marketing language.

When the GenAI in Marketing project began, ZEISS Meditec’s marketing teams were far from being truly customer-centric. Seven independent business units, a broad product portfolio, and highly diverse target groups — from surgeons and service technicians to hospital IT managers — meant that orchestrating consistent and effective global marketing was virtually impossible. Local marketing teams were often understaffed and lacked the necessary technical resources. Content was sometimes distributed manually via email, translations were outsourced to agencies, and approval processes dragged on for weeks.

“We had up to four different asset management systems. Some materials were simply sent by email and then never seen again,” recalls Tham. Added to this was a fundamental disconnect between headquarters and the local teams. While high-quality content was being created centrally, the local offices often lacked the capacity to use or reuse it effectively. This created a cycle of inquiries, delays, and missed opportunities, which ZEISS Meditec described as the Wheel of Pain.

But how could they change course with so many stakeholders and processes involved? For Tham, it was clear that a complete reset was required. In a wide-ranging workshop involving both headquarters and international markets, and supported by consultants from BCG (Boston Consulting Group), the team developed a shared understanding of roles, workflows, and terminology. It quickly became clear that AI — based on a uniform, reliable, and robust dataset — would play a key role in streamlining processes, supporting local requirements, and reducing time-to-market. The outcome: the ZEISS GenAI Marketing Hub, an organisational and technical framework that enables local teams to manage marketing activations independently.