Mishka Pitter-Armand (MBA 2003) was never a Girl Scout; but she is a go-getter, an innovator, a risk taker, and a leader. “When you bring those four words together,” Pitter-Armand says, “they form the acronym G.I.R.L.”

In late 2016, Pitter-Armand, head of brand marketing for the Girl Scouts of the USA, helped launch the ambitious G.I.R.L. brand platform, to increase public awareness of the 100-plus-year-old scouting organization beyond those ubiquitous boxes of cookies. When it comes to the Girl Scout brand, Pitter-Armand explains, few people think of leadership first.

“A lot of people know the Girl Scouts. They know the uniforms or the cookies. Those are great things, but they’re not a true representation of the Girl Scouts as an organization,” Pitter-Armand observes, and it’s the brand relevance that the G.I.R.L. platform is designed to address. “Look at the Girl Scout alumnae: over 90 percent of female astronauts were Girl Scouts; every woman secretary of state; and 75 percent of congresswomen. How do we tell that story?”

Pitter-Armand is bringing the lessons she learned at HBS, and during more than a decade in the for-profit sector, to that question. In December 2016, the Girl Scouts debuted a new PSA: “I’m Prepared . . . to Lead Like a Girl Scout.” The 30-second spot, with a catchy new anthem, will air on cable networks in 2017. But Pitter-Armand knows she has an even more powerful network at her disposal for the campaign, as there are more than 2.7 million Girl Scouts and troop leaders to help build the G.I.R.L. brand platform and spread the message.

(Published April 2018)

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