Beyond marketing: The rise of the business-minded CMO

The responsibilities of the CMO role —?and the title itself —?have been hotly debated for years. A 2012 Forbes article said, “I have some sad news: The Chief Marketing Officer is dead .” Yet here we are, 11 years later, having this same discussion.

What’s changed? The average CMO tenure has shrunk from a high of 48 months in 2014 to 40 months in 2020 and 2021 . We’ve witnessed the rise and fall of several CMO archetypes. And concurrent with those changes, we’ve seen other titles thrown around —?for instance, some leaders dropping the “ing” to embrace Chief Market Officer and bring greater focus to the role as leader of go-to-market (GTM) strategy. Then add CXOs (experience), CTOs (transformation), and CDOs (digital) to the mix, and the lines blur even more.?

It's no surprise that we’re constantly rebranding marketing’s highest office. We can’t even consistently agree about what marketing is. In 2020, Oracle asked for definitions from seasoned marketing professionals, who said marketing:

• Is promotion.?
• Is educating and transforming.?
• Builds influence.
• Executes on an initiative.
• Works like a spotlight.
• Shows you as the solution.?
• Is all the things (you do to move a prospect through the cycle of knowing).

With such a spectrum of approaches to “capital-M” marketing, how can we expect consensus on a single title and direction for current or future leaders of all things marketing?

Here’s my take: the title doesn't matter, but the expectations have changed. CEOs and boards will prioritize hiring a new CMO archetype — the business-first marketing leader. Tomorrow’s CMOs will be business people who happen to have come up through the marketing ranks. They'll rely more on their knowledge of market dynamics, data, GTM strategy, and revenue models than any functional marketing skillset. The new imperative will be to drive go-to-market alignment and achieve growth efficiency.

How the CMO identity has changed?

To understand the evolving role of the CMO, let’s take a step back in time. For 30 years, we’ve seen different CMO archetypes emerge in popularity alongside shifting business conditions. But each archetype faded for a reason: It responded to the moment's needs but couldn’t adapt with the market.

Brand CMOs

When I first started my career, the dream was Super Bowl commercials and innovation conference keynotes. These visionary-type CMOs were skilled at inspiring and storytelling. Everyone wanted to work for or buy from them -- or at least that was the idea. In the late ‘90s and early 2000s, the brand CMO prospered, promising that investing in a big, audacious brand narrative would yield market share and revenue growth in the long run.?

But the market changed, and an economic boom sent businesses into a state of severe growth urgency. Fast growth was all that mattered. With the brand CMO’s work not closely tied to short-term revenue, they lost their seat at the table. Enter the demand CMO.

Demand CMOs

These CMOs brought “pipeline is all that matters” energy. They shied away from big-picture storytelling instead opting for a vernacular of campaign strategy and tactics. They leaned heavily into digital and events. They rallied their teams around MQLs and leads, each activity pointed directly at hitting their top-of-funnel number...and fast.

CEO and CROs liked them because of that pipeline focus, and CFOs liked them because they said they would feed the highly paid sales team. But eventually, this approach flamed out, too.?

I can hear the commentary now, "But sales needs leads! Why wouldn't we want a CMO that's singularly focused on building top-of-funnel volume?" The answer is nuanced, as is much of marketing. Yes, pipeline (notice I didn't say leads) should always be a CMO's north star, but this model incentivized "growth at all costs". If you remember, the rise of the demand CMO coincided with the rise of lead generation as the end all be all marketing metric. The model prioritizes the right outcome but forgets to factor in the cost of success.

Demand CMOs spent a decade or so building marketing's reputation to earn their seat at the revenue table. And they did. The problems started to arise when CFOs dug into the cost of acquisition and CEOs started to question how much that costly marketing-influenced pipeline really did for their bottom line. Organizations needed to grow but with some predictability and maybe a little less budget chasing the less than 1% of leads that actually convert to revenue.

Now what?

The economic challenges we're currently facing have driven a trend of more frugal, operationally-minded CMOs. And that's good for the downturn. For today's CMOs to keep their seat in the future, these leaders must learn lessons from those that came before them. Today's CMO must stay focused on building pipeline and be inspirational. They should stay ahead of the market and the business's financial health. This role is more complex than ever and success won't come from a focus on brand building or demand generation -- the magic lies in a symbiotic marriage of the two that drives sustainable business growth.

Future CMOs must commit to a mindset change: from building a solid marketing department to operating a successful business. But don’t be fooled, CMOs will always have to fight for their seat at the revenue table. Tomorrow’s CMOs would do well to have a backbone in the boardroom — and the data to back up their determination. To achieve the 360-degree view such a mindset shift requires, aspiring CMOs have tactical homework, too.?

Get comfortable with the entire business’s numbers. Dig into profit and loss statements. Know your way around burn rate conversations. Understand NRR, GRR, and how your company is performing. Stop living on an island and approach other areas of the business with a learning mindset. Talk to your CFO, CRO, and CEO. Connect with product and engineering teams. Form alliances with HR and IT.

I'll be the first to say, marketers have a built-in ego. You know we do. We know we do. Don’t let your creative ego become a career roadblock. Humility is your best friend. Future CMOs will fall in love with the outcome instead of the idea and embrace new, better ways to achieve them – from anywhere at any time.??

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The CMO’s not dead — not by a longshot. The role has expanded and now demands even greater agility and business acumen. The future CMO is someone who takes the best of all the prior archetypes and leaves behind their shortfalls. They will weave together demand tactics, storytelling, and operational prowess into a compelling and cost-efficient growth engine. Cross-functional collaboration will come second nature. And I’m betting they’ll be here 10 years from now — transformed to meet the day’s demands — even if we’re still debating their title.?