• by Cory Treffiletti , Featured Contributor, March 10, 2015

What does it take to hire a successful CMO in today’s marketing economy?  Answering that question is not easy because the environment keeps changing, but there are some key qualities essential for the person leading your marketing.

First and foremost, a CMO must have the ability to lead without relying on ego.  To do this requires experience and confidence coupled with what I heard someone recently call a “humbitious” personality.  That word means exactly what you would think: someone who is ambitious, but approaches things from the perspective of humility.

You have to take your lumps once in a while to realize you don’t know everything, to find the right balance between expressing your will and truly leading a team.  The right kind of CMO can formulate a strategic plan, get others on board with that plan, and then guide a team to execute that plan -- while still realizing the plan will almost certainly have to change. A humbitious CMO creates a plan, but is willing to be proven wrong, checking ego at the door.

Successful CMOs in today’s environment are analytical and love the numbers.  They will set up their strategy and immediately establishes metrics, which can be tracked. Building a brand is essential, but brand awareness metrics are a proxy for driving results, and results come in terms of revenue.  It’s OK for your CMO to be initially focused on strategy, but s/he should have a clear, short-term path to accountability by establishing a dashboard of data, or hiring the people who will become immediately accountable. 

You also need CMOs who are willing to sell: to step up and lead a sales meeting at the drop of a hat, to tell your company’s story, and go toe-to-toe with a prospect, supporting that story in person. If they don’t, they can never fully understand the customer. It’s nice to develop a storyline in your office, but there’s no substitute for going directly to the customer to see if it resonates.

Great CMOs should also be capable of providing creative guidance, but they don’t have to come directly from a creative background. Creative is important because it defines how your message is delivered, but good CMOs will hire the people best able to make that happen. They should be able to establish a vision for the brand, but not spend their time tweaking colors and fonts in a deck -- not a good use of their time. 

Good CMOs are willing to learn new things.  In this environment, change is the constant.  New channels arise monthly and new strategies need to be developed.  The CMO who sticks to only one path is doomed to fail.

Most importantly, you want a CMO who is willing to NOT be the smartest person in the room.  This goes back to being “humbitious.” You want a CMO who will hire the best people without being threatened by their abilities.  You want CMOs capable of hiring their successors, if possible, to create a winning formula and a team that can succeed under the right vision and guidance.

What happens if you hire the wrong CMO?