To determine the most commonly used marketing organizational structures and how these approaches correlate to revenue growth, the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), reported by Marketing Profs, surveyed 303 marketers from a mix of B2C and B2B companies, from midsize or large firms with 20 or more full-time marketing employees in the United States.
40% of respondents say their organization has a matrixed structure and 38% say their organization has a networked structure (cross-functional teams come together for specific projects). Just 17% say their firm has a command-and-control structure (directives are issued top-down, and functions operate in silos).
Type of Org Structure in Use | |
Structure | % of Respondents |
Matrixed | 40% |
Networked | 38 |
Command and Control | 17 |
Others | 5 |
Source: ANA, March 2018 |
Most respondents say their company's organizational structure is based on either product/service lines or on organizational function. Smaller firms (under $500 million in annual revenue) are more likely to have organizational structures based on consumer segments and the customer journey, compared with larger firms.
Marketing Organizational Structure | ||
| More than $500 million | Less than $500 million |
Product or service lines | 32% | 26% |
Organizational | 32 | 30 |
Market or vertical | 14 | 9 |
Consumer segments | 7 | 13 |
Customer journey | 4 | 13 |
Geography | 7 | 5 |
Source: ANA, March 2018 |
23% of firms with a command-and-control Marketing organizational structure have equal or lower revenue than their peers; 15% have higher revenue. 40% of firms with a networked Marketing organizational structure have higher revenue than their peers; 30% have equal or lower revenue.
Revenue Performance vs. Competition | ||
| Revenue Flat-Decline | Revenue Growth |
Comand and Control | 23% | 15% |
Matrixed | 41 | 41 |
Networked | 30 | 40 |
Other | 6 | 5 |
Source: ANA, March 2018 |