Principal Financial Group announced that Beth Wood has joined the company as senior vice president and chief marketing officer, effective July 22. As CMO, Wood assumes overall responsibility of Principal’s Global Center for Brand and Insights which includes brand, market research, analytics and business intelligence, global firm relations and external communications. She fills the position previously held by Beth Brady, who retired from Principal in November 2018. Wood will report to Dan Houston, chairman, president and CEO of Principal, and will be based in Des Moines. Most recently, Wood was vice president and chief marketing officer of the individual businesses with New York-based Guardian Life Insurance. Her 25-year career has also included numerous marketing leadership roles in the consumer-packaged goods and healthcare industries, with companies such as Frito-Lay and Johnson & Johnson. Wood has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and communications from Babson College in Wellesley, Mass. She also earned a digital marketing certification from Cornell University and digital transformation certification from University of California Berkeley. In her free time, she enjoys helping women-owned startups develop their business and marketing plans.