Deloitte Digital shares the latest insights into the experiences and behaviors of CMOs and senior marketing executives (SMEs).
The research surveyed 38 UK chief marketing officers and 34 senior marketing executives (72 people in total). The respondents have a wide range of experience, with half in the marketing field having more than 11 years of experience, and almost a quarter of CMOs having more than 20 years of experience. These organizations spanned six major industries, with annual revenues ranging from less than £5m to over £50bn, and a mix of B2B and B2C.
Findings include: How the role of CMO and SME has changed over the past five years, the key skills and personality traits that are most useful to marketers, how the role is likely to change over the next two years, and how generative AI will play a role in the role. The biggest opportunity, outsourcing creative work and the key challenges in its role.
The full report can be viewed here. The main points are as follows.
- Half of CMOs surveyed said the CEO is their most important strategic partner, followed by the chief technology officer (11%). Meanwhile, senior marketing executives say sales personnel are their primary strategic relationship (26%), followed by operations (18%).
- Economic conditions ranked as the top issue among CMOs and SMEs, followed by digital transformation and customer acquisition and/or retention.
- Both CMOs and SMEs spend about 70% of their time working with people outside of marketing, but CMOs only spend a quarter (28%) of their time with marketing colleagues.
- Leadership ranks as the most useful skill for both CMOs and SMEs, followed by communication and strategic thinking.
- CMOs rank the use of AI within the role as the biggest change to their role over the past five years (18%). Meanwhile, SMEs say their biggest challenge is different working patterns (such as remote or flexible working).
- CMOs agree that the biggest change to their role over the next two years will be an increased need to prioritize sustainability and social responsibility in marketing and brand strategy (23%). Meanwhile, small businesses say the biggest change is increased pressure to demonstrate the impact marketing has on the business. Revenue (23%).
- Both CMOs and SMEs believe the biggest opportunity for Generative AI in their role is content creation (25%), closely followed by improving operational efficiency (22%) and improving customer experience (21%). Masu.
William Grobel, director of Deloitte Digital, commented: “The role of a CMO or senior marketing professional is becoming increasingly diverse as they work collaboratively with a variety of internal and external stakeholders, often requiring skills beyond traditional marketing. Our research reveals that both CMOs and senior marketing executives are focused on navigating difficult economic times while investing time and money in transformation. CMOS is not only intimately connected to business operations, but also serves as a catalyst for growth. Creating a great customer experience remains central to these roles. It's clear that small and medium-sized businesses are doing more on a daily basis.”
