Sometimes CEOs consider a CMO because they have a head of sales and marketing, and sales issues consume their time. Sometimes it’s because their marketing organization is focused on communications and sales collateral, and they’re looking for a more strategic contribution. In larger organizations, marketing resides within individual business units and geographies, and there is a need for a more holistic approach to marketing that makes sense at the corporate level. In some instances, companies are simply testing an approach that they see others adopting – CMOs are a growing trend on executive teams.

At the same time, hiring a CMO can be risky. They can be expensive, and tenure has been an issue. Misaligned expectations between the CMO, the CEO, and the executive team are common. Questions about decision rights, accountabilities, staffing and budgets can be thorny. It’s not unusual to find companies working through these issues while their CMOs walk through a revolving door.

Our experience as former CMOs can be an invaluable guide to laying the groundwork for a successful new marketing leader. As strategic marketing advisors, we can provide an objective assessment of your business needs, and help you design the role and the accountabilities that are right for your business. There are very different responsibilities for CMOs in different organizations – the key is to find the right model for yours. We can also help you test it out in a pilot engagement…many of the key issues will come out when we take on the CMO mantle.

We also believe that our shared CMO model will prove right for a number of companies. Investing in a full-time CMO, and all the expenses that come with that, may not be the right solution for all. We would love to help you find the approach that works best for you.