CMO Summit - Marketing or General Management 2005

8/6/2019 CMO Summit - Marketing or General Management 2005

1/12

cmo summit 2005

Marketing or general management

which route to take?


2/12

cmo summit 2005

about spencer stuart

Spencer Stuart is the foremost privately

held, global executive search firm, spanning

over 50 offices in 25 countries worldwide.

Since 1956, Spencer Stuart has been

providing select clients with a range of

human capital solutions, including senior-

level executive search, board director

appointments and strategic leadership

services. The firm conducts nearly 4,000

assignments each year, partnering effec-

tively with clients ranging from Fortune

500, to mid-cap, to emerging growth

companies across a broad range of

industries and sectors.

consumer goods & services

Our global Consumer Goods & Services

Practice helps companies build superior

leadership teams, conducting nearly 900

searches each year for clients rangingfrom Fortune 100 companies to startups.

Consultants in-depth knowledge of specific

industry sectors, based on years of direct

senior-level experience and longstanding

relationships with top leaders, is the prac-

tices foundation for unmatched results.

Our consultants concentrate in the

following specialties:

> Consumer Durables & Packaged

Goods> Direct & Interactive Marketing

> Restaurants, Hospitality & Leisure

> Retail, Apparel & Luxury Goods

> Sports Business

cmo summit 2005


3/12

A Spencer Stuart survey of 500 marketing

executives across industries, recently

published in Advertising Age magazine,

found that 70 percent of respondents

have long-term aspirations of becoming

a general manager or chief executive

officer; only 30 percent want to be a chief

marketing officer (CMO).

To delve further into this topic, we invited

four past and present marketing executives

who have wrestled with which path to take

for our annual CMO Summit. This years

summit, Marketing or general management

which route to take?, was hosted by Spencer

Stuart, Advertising Age and the American

Marketing Association. The goal of the summit

was to discuss the opportunities and challenges

associated with various career paths for market-

ing professionals, be it a CMO, a general man-

ager or even a CEO. Spencer Stuart Chief Exec-

utive Officer David Daniel, who joined the firm

after spending 15 years shaping some of theworlds leading brands, moderated the after-

noons discussion with leading marketing exec-

utives who have chosen different career paths.

Marketings visibility continues to rise, as evident in the growing

number of new publications and forums devoted entirely to the

role of chief marketing officer. Yet, even as the role has become

more prominent, it appears that many marketing executives

now offered the opportunity to use marketing as a stepping

stone to general management are aspiring to move beyond

the profession.


4/12

choosing the right career path

Whether they aspire to marketing or general

management, the majority of survey respondentsagreed that the marketing function is an important

contributor to the business.

Gary Briggs began the afternoons discussion by

saying that despite the growing visibility of market-

ing, he was not surprised by the mounting interest

in general management among marketing profes-

sionals. You get to the point in your career where

you dont want other management constantly sec-

ond-guessing marketing. Rather, you want to be

the one second-guessing marketing, so it makes

sense to move into general management, he said.

Despite being named GEs first CMO in the

last 20 years, Beth Comstock also was not

surprised to learn that more and more marketers

want to move into general management. This

desire to move into management is a positive

sign because it shows that marketers are ambi-

tious and that they want to show how marketing

can make for a better general manager or a

better CEO. This also illustrates how marketing

can change the business dynamic.

Marketers with a great vision understand how

building the brand builds the business. They want

to touch everything, such as the supply chain, so

they can better build the brand. The general man-

agement career path, as a result, seems to be a

natural extension, said Jan Murley, who during

her 20-year tenure at P&G moved back and forth

from marketing to general management.

Comstock stressed, however, that it does not

have to be an either/or decision. Over the past

few years, weve been trying to build a marketing

function that is also a line function. Im regularly

pulling people out of general management and

asking them to be a marketing leader for their

business. In my ideal world, you couldnt be a

general manager unless youve done time in

marketing. The best-in-class companies, such as

P&G, make it clear the importance of marketing.

2

cmo summit 2005

This years panelists

gary briggs beth comstock

Vice president and general manager of

eBay in Canada. Prior to moving into

this general management position in

2004, he was vice president of consumer

marketing for eBay. (Following the

summit, he was named vice president

of marketing for PayPal.)

Corporate vice president and chief

marketing officer of General Electric.

Prior to joining GE, she held a

succession of communications and

promotions positions at NBC, Turner

Broadcasting and CBS Entertainment.


5/12

At both Coca-Cola and Callaway Golf Company,

Ian Rowden found that movement between

marketing and operations also was encouraged.I grew up within companies that were very mar-

keting-centric with a fairly well-defined career path

from marketing into operating divisions and then

back into marketing, said Rowden. The issue

for me is less about marketing versus general

management, but what are the skill-sets that

marketers need but dont necessarily have.

building credibility

The majority of our survey respondents agreed

that the perception that marketers lacked business

skills and financial acumen was the primary obsta-

cle in moving from marketing to general manage-

ment. Not surprising, all of the panelists agreed

that there are certain business skills that are criti-

cal for marketers to possess no matter if they

remain in marketing or transition into an opera-

tions-focused role.

At times during my career, Ive felt like the annoy-

ing marketing guy walking around the company

with everyone looking at me like I had a dollarsign on my forehead, recalled Briggs. There are

a couple of things that marketing needs to do to

overcome this perception: expand the definition of

marketing because its not just about TV ads; do a

better job of working with finance; and, finally, be

better at developing ways to measure marketing.

Marketing will never have credibility until we can

go to the CFO and show our financial results.

At GE, senior management holds marketing pro-

fessionals accountable for delivering big growth

targets. Obviously we all want growth, but were

asking marketing to drive it from within to

grow what we have, explained Comstock. This

required giving marketing something to own in a

visible way, so we created the Imagination Break-

through Initiative, an organization-wide initiative

to drive double-digit growth. Its an organic growth

pipeline where each marketing team is responsible

for a number of projects. Once people saw that

marketing was driving this and being accountable,

it started to put marketing in a new light.

3

n murley ian rowden

ief executive officer of The Boyds

llection. She previously spent

ee years as group vice president

Hallmark Cards after more than

years at Procter & Gamble, where

e held a number of marketing

d general management positions.

Executive vice president and chief

marketing officer of Wendys International.

Formerly, he led global marketing and

advertising at Callaway Golf Company

and the Coca-Cola Company.


6/12


7/12

sure it is critical to the business. Be knowledge-

able and know that what you do is part of the

bigger scheme, he said. Any great business

person is a great listener and inquisitive.

Great marketers also are integrators. They pull

together the different functions and, oftentimes,

they serve as the chief of staff, which makes it a

great training ground to be a CEO. However, my

hope is that no one looks at it as, Oh, Ive cho-

sen marketing, so there goes my chance of being

a CEO, added Comstock.

When Murley moved from P&G and Hallmark to

The Boyds Collection, her traditional marketing

experience was peripheral. In terms of under-

standing the consumer and driving the product,

however, this experience was critical. For the busi-ness to grow from collectible into giftable, we

have to put the product where the people are and

not where they were. This requires a good distribu-

tion plan and a retail growth strategy which is

all about retail marketing, she said. Marketing

has become far more central in this new world.

Rowden noted that the ability to transition market-

ing skills to the operations side may be less about

competencies and more about how companies

define marketing, explaining that the definition

of marketing at GE is quite different than that of

a retail-driven company. Throughout my career,

I wanted to learn as much about the business as

I could because I wanted to understand how to

make the marketing that I was responsible for

have greater traction. As a result, this has influ-

enced how I define marketing. So regardless of

your specific career track, the more broad-based

experience you can get outside of your organiza-

tions definition of marketing, the better.

gaining more experience

Many in the audience agreed with the panelists

advice regarding the necessary competencies and

experiences that all marketing executives shouldpossess, but they wanted to know more specifics

on how to go about obtaining that experience.

International experience was critical for Murley

when she was at P&G. Working in a less-

developed market allowed me to lead the total

business. It made me much more accountable

about when and how I spent marketing resources.

An international assignment is one of the first

5

current position

Vice president 36%

CMO or top marketing executive 25%

Director 18%

Senior vice president 12%

Other 9%

compensation range

$200,000-$299,000 42%

$300,000-$399,000 21%

$400,000 and above 20%

Below $200,000 17%

Respondent profile


8/12

things I asked for and even though it took me

10 years to get there, the experience was invalu-

able, she said.

The benefits of an international assignment go

beyond the financial and overall management

experience. When you push yourself out of your

comfort zone, you learn a huge amount about

yourself early on, no matter if its a good role

or a bad one. Some people can go both ways

and find passion in general management and in

marketing. In companies where marketing is inte-

grated, it can certainly happen. But even if youre

not in that type of environment, try to find that

experience, Murley added.

Comstock wished she had taken an international

assignment. Ive traveled the globe, but if I hadworked overseas, I would be a much better

marketing leader. Going to an emerging market

and figuring everything out would have been excit-

ing. Today, it doesnt matter if you want to stay in

marketing or be a general manager, international

experience is critical, she said.

Briggs discussed the importance of making your-

self uncomfortable as a way to expand your skills.

Reach out to others who you can learn from and

dont be afraid of what you dont know, he said.

Briggs went on to discuss the importance of hav-

ing mentors throughout his career something

all of the panelists confirmed was key to expand-

ing their realm of experience.

The guy I work for now is who I worked for at

Pepsi 12 years ago, Briggs said. Over the years,

Ive had people take me aside and tell me how

things worked. In fact, one time, I felt comfortable

enough with a mentor to tell him I wanted more

of a challenge not something one can always

do. Luckily, he told me to work on developing

what, eventually, became Aquafina bottled water.

That was great because, by feeling comfortable

enough to speak up, I got to work cross-function-

ally at a relatively young age.

Mentors were immensely important to Comstock

throughout her career as well. For a long time,

I kept saying I didnt have a mentor. However, I

realized that Ive had tons of mentors. I had a

boss, Bob Wright at NBC, who, while I worked

for him, also became my mentor. He has coached

me through taking risks and this was a job that

required a risk taker.

6

cmo summit 2005

Survey findings

what is your next likely move in your career path?

General management 39%

More senior marketing role in new company 39%

More senior marketing role in current company 18%

Other 4%

what are your long-term aspirations?

President/CEO 44%

CMO 30%

General management 26%


9/12

what ultimately attracts a marketer

The survey revealed that the main motivation for

marketers who want to remain in marketing is

that their passion lies in the function, followed

by the increased visibility and influence that mar-

keting now has in the organization. On the flip-side, of those who aspired to general manage-

ment, the majority stated it was due to the ability

to have a greater influence over the organization

and the ability to apply their skill-sets in a differ-

ent environment. When asked what motivated the

panelists, the audience learned that, in the end,

the decision always is personal.

I have no set criteria for selecting a position,

said Briggs. For me, its about the people I get

to work with and how committed the company is

to what were trying to accomplish. At eBay, thereis great support for marketing and there are a lot

of marketers in senior management. Were such

a data-driven consumer generation business that,

in the end, marketing and general management

are one in the same.

Murley viewed her career options based on the

importance of the brand within the organization.

I spent my entire career building brands I love

taking a brand, building it, taking it to new places,

working to reinvigorate it. So, my first question is

always, Where can I do this? It has to be at a

place that believes brands matter. Obviously, Hall-

mark was a wonderful choice, and while Boyds is a

less well-known brand, it has great potential. I natu-

rally want to know next if this is a growth opportu-

nity and if the company has the resources, both

financial and human, to get where they want to go.

conclusion

All marketing executives, regardless of career

aspirations, must be passionate about connecting

what they do to how it drives the business, said

Rowden. We all want to prove that we can

deliver and that marketing can make a difference,added Briggs. Yet good marketers, those who

will most successfully transition into general

management, know how to focus and prioritize.

The summits panelists all concluded that the

specific career path is less important than how

well the marketer performs. To grow, pick your

moments well, those where you can take a risk

7

where would you like these long-term aspirations to unfold?

Medium/small company 45%

Large corporation 25%

Leading multinational 22%

Small entrepreneurial venture 8%

if your goal is to be the top marketing officer, why?

Passion lies in marketing 59%

More reward from increased visibility/influence 20%

Always intended career progression 18%

Lack of interest in managing other functional areas 3%


10/12

on something but then execute against it.

Execution is critical, said Murley.

Rowden summarized the afternoons discussion

with a pointed question to the audience: How

much of our lack of perceived credibility is a self-

fulfilling prophecy? We as marketers think we are

perfectly engineered to be right where we are. But

no one walks into a job and says Im here to be

the CEO or the CMO. Someone starts within the

organization and progresses. If we think marketing

lacks certain skills, it could be because we createda position where we dont stack up in todays

hierarchy of what is required to run a business.

No matter the destination be it marketing

or general management todays marketing

executives must consistently and effectively

execute against the organizations business

strategy if they hope to grow in their careers.

8

cmo summit 2005

if your goal is general management, why?

Ability to have greater influence over the entire organization 33%

Allows application of skills/experiences 31%

Seeking new challenges/developing skills 18%

Always intended career progression 11%

Greater compensation 7%

what is the biggest obstacle in moving from marketing

to general management?

Marketers are not perceived as broad and 31%

deep business people

Lack of financial expertise 28%

Marketing is not a route to management in 21%

my current organization

Career succession is predetermined 20%

Survey findings

Photography courtesy of the American Marketing Association.


11/12

Amsterdam

T 31 (0) 20.305.73.05

F 31 (0) 20.305.73.50

Atlanta

T 1.404.504.4400

F 1.404.504.4401

Barcelona

T 34.93.487.23.36

F 34.93.487.09.44

Beijing

T 86.10.6505.1031

F 86.10.6505.1032

Bogota

T 571.618.2488

F 571.618.2317

Boston

T 1.617.531.5731

F 1.617.531.5732

Brussels

T 32.2.732.26.25

F 32.2.732.19.39

Budapest

T 36.1.200.08.50

F 36.1.394.10.97

Buenos Aires

T 54.11.4313.2233

F 54.11.4313.2299

Chicago

T 1.312.822.0080

F 1.312.822.0116

Dallas

T 1.214.672.5200

F 1.214.672.5299

Frankfurt

T 49 (0) 69.61.09.27.0

F 49 (0) 69.61.09.27.50

Geneva

T 41.22.312.36.38

F 41.22.312.36.39

Hong Kong

T 852.2521.8373

F 852.2810.5246

Houston

T 1.713.225.1621

F 1.713.658.8336

Johannesburg

T 27 (0) 11 707.9460

F 27 (0) 11 463.3371

Leeds

T 44 (0) 1937.547700

F 44 (0) 1937.547710

London

T 44 (0) 20 7298.3333

F 44 (0) 20 7298.3388

Los Angeles

T 1.310.209.0610

F 1.310.209.0912

Madrid

T 34.91.745.85.00

F 34.91.561.42.75

Manchester

T 44 (0) 161.499.6700

F 44 (0) 161.499.6710

Melbourne

T 61.3.9654.2155

F 61.3.9654.4730

Mexico City

T 5255.5281.4050

F 5255.5281.4184

Miami

T 1.305.443.9911

F 1.305.443.2180

Milan

T 39.02.771251

F 39.02.782452

Minneapolis/St. Paul

T 1.612.313.2000

F 1.612.313.2001

Montreal

T 1.514.288.3377

F 1.514.288.4626

Munich

T 49 (0) 89.45.55.53.0

F 49 (0) 89.45.55.53.33

New York

T 1.212.336.0200

F 1.212.336.0296

Orange County

T 1.949.930.8000

F 1.949.930.8001

Paris

T 33 (0) 1.53.57.81.23

F 33 (0) 1.53.57.81.00

Philadelphia

T 1.215.814.1600

F 1.215.814.1681

Prague

T 420.221.411.341

F 420.222.233.087

Rome

T 39.06.802071

F 39.06.80207200

San Francisco

T 1.415.495.4141

F 1.415.495.7524

San Mateo

T 1.650.356.5500

F 1.650.356.5501

Santiago

T 56.2.940.2700

F 56.2.249.7883

Sao Paulo

T 55.11.3759.7700

F 55.11.3759.7736

Shanghai

T 86.21.6386.1177

F 86.21.5306.2718

Singapore

T 65.6586.1186

F 65.6438.3136

Stamford

T 1.203.324.6333

F 1.203.326.3737

Stockholm

T 46.8.534.801.50

F 46.8.534.801.69

Sydney

T 61.2.9247.4031

F 61.2.9251.3021

Tokyo

T 81.3.3238.8901

F 81.3.3238.8902

Toronto

T 1.416.361.0311

F 1.416.361.6118

Vienna

T 43.1.36.88.700.0

F 43.1.36.88.777

Warsaw

T 48.22.840.60.61

F 48.22.642.36.78

Washington, D.C.

T 1.202.639.8111

F 1.202.639.8222

Zurich

T 41.44.257.17.17

F 41.44.257.17.18

To request additional copies,please contact Stephanie Sliwickiat 1.312.396.3878 or

[email protected].

2005 Spencer Stuart. All RightsReserved. For information aboutcopying, distributing anddisplaying this work, [email protected].


12/12

cmo summit 2005

www.spencerstuart.com AmsterdamAtlanta

Barcelona

Beijing

Bogota

Boston

Brussels

Budapest

Buenos AiresChicago

Dallas

Frankfurt

Geneva

Hong Kong

Houston

Johannesburg

Leeds

London

Los Angeles

Madrid

Manchester

Melbourne

Mexico City

Miami

Milan

Minneapolis/St. Paul

Montreal

Munich

New York

Orange County

Paris

PhiladelphiaPrague

Rome

San Francisco

San Mateo

Santiago

Sao Paulo

Shanghai

Singapore

Stamford

Stockholm

Sydney

Tokyo

Toronto

Vienna

Warsaw

Washington, D.C.

Zurich

CMO Summit - Marketing or General Management 2005

Documents

Transcript of CMO Summit - Marketing or General Management 2005