Deborah Wahl on Being the Anchor Through the Storm

What I’ve Learned

Deborah Wahl has spent her career steering some of the world’s most iconic brands through turbulence. She has been at the helm during economic recessions, industry upheavals, reputational challenges, and most recently as Global CMO of General Motors during a period of rapid transformation in mobility.

During the 2008 financial collapse, as a senior marketing leader in the auto industry, she faced a perfect storm: consumer confidence collapsing, entire business models under strain, and leadership teams scrambling for answers. In those moments, people looked to marketing not just for campaigns, but for reassurance, clarity, and direction.

“Resilience is not about being unshakable. It’s about providing steadiness when the world feels uncertain.”

That realization reshaped Deborah’s approach to leadership. She understood that resilience wasn’t about projecting invulnerability — it was about anchoring teams in purpose and clarity, so they could weather uncertainty together.

How I’ve Sharpened

Deborah fortified her resilience through repeatable practices that helped her lead teams through disruption:

• Anchor in purpose. She made the “why” behind the brand the north star. “When everything else is chaotic, purpose is the one thing you can hold onto.”
• Simplify priorities. She stripped away non-essentials so her teams could focus on the two or three actions that mattered most.
• Model steadiness. She kept her composure in high-stakes settings, knowing her tone would set the culture. “The calm you bring in crisis becomes the trust your team carries forward.”
• Balance pressure with care. She encouraged recovery practices — pacing, breaks, empathy — to prevent burnout and keep her teams sustainable.
• Stay visible. She showed up consistently, even in the hardest moments, reinforcing that leadership wasn’t hiding behind closed doors.

Each of these practices built not only her own resilience, but her team’s confidence that they could deliver under pressure.

Why It Matters

For Deborah, resilience is collective, not individual. Leaders who stay grounded in purpose and model steadiness give their teams the confidence to keep moving, even when the environment feels overwhelming.

“People draw their strength from the steadiness of their leaders. When you provide that anchor, the team can weather any storm.”

About Deborah Wahl

Deborah Wahl is the former Global CMO of General Motors and has also held executive leadership roles at McDonald’s, Chrysler, and PulteGroup. She is recognized for leading teams through disruption by grounding them in purpose, simplifying complexity, and modeling steadiness under pressure. Known for her clarity and calm in the face of volatility, she has fortified resilience not only for herself, but for the organizations she has served.