Boathouse has released its annual CEO study which finds CEO confidence in CMO leadership and performance is softening.

Performance ratings highlight a gap between alignment and strategic impact. Only 15% of CMOs receive an “A” grade while 33% are rated “C” or lower. Still, 79% of CMOs show strong commitment to the CEO and board, the highest level in five years.

The lower grades make more sense when viewed in the context of the broader results, says Sonia Chung, chief strategy officer at Boathouse.

“The decline reflects a growing gap between rising expectations and perceived delivery," Chung tells Marketing Daily. “CEOs are increasingly focused on growth, financial accountability, and measurable impact, while many CMOs are still only delivering on the marketing metrics based on the data they have rather than demonstrating enterprise-level business outcomes.”

CMOs are still more often viewed as execution leaders than strategic drivers. The discussions between CEOs and CMOs  are increasingly focused on metrics and performance, with less emphasis on strategy, according to the fifth annual study.

“To reverse this, CMOs need to more clearly connect their work to revenue and growth, while strengthening execution, innovation, and their ability to integrate AI and advanced capabilities,” Chung says. “While relationships and alignment have improved, they are no longer enough on their own—performance is now being judged on tangible results like business growth and impact.”

Overall CEO confidence in the CMO role has declined to 43%, with expectations for the role  expanding faster than perceived capability. While 85% of CEOs believe the CMO role will still exist five years from now, only one-third of CEOs believe their CMO could step into the CEO role in the future.

“Despite being tasked with driving growth, CMOs are often operating within platform and data silos, making it difficult to clearly demonstrate the impact they are having on the business,” Chung says. “This creates a fundamental tension: marketing is expected to be a primary driver of growth, yet is still managed as an execution function. As expectations increase, marketing has not fully convinced leadership it can deliver at both the strategic and executional levels.”

CMOs are actually more aligned with CEOs and the business than ever before, but expectations have moved faster than perceived impact, she says. 

"CEOs are increasingly focused on execution, growth, and measurable business outcomes, and they are holding marketing to the same standard as other revenue-driving functions,” Chung says. “ What’s emerging is a gap between strong alignment and confidence in delivery — particularly in areas like driving growth, proving financial impact, and integrating AI into the business in a meaningful way.”

To close that gap, CMOs need to demonstrate clearer ownership of growth outcomes, not just contribution, while strengthening execution and translating strategy into measurable results.

CMOs are held 4x more accountable for AI ROI than any other executive, yet 46% of CEOs rate their AI capability as “C” or lower.

“Perception of AI has shifted from experimentation to expectation,” Chung says. “Last year, CEOs were largely focused on adoption and potential. This year, AI is expected to deliver real impact, driving both efficiency and growth. That shift is exposing fundamental gaps in data readiness, talent, and operational integration,and in many cases, adding complexity to execution rather than simplifying it.”

The result is a growing disconnect between what AI is expected to deliver and what organizations are currently able to execute. 

“That tension between ambition and readiness is now one of the biggest challenges facing marketing and the broader business,” Chung says. “There is also a rising expectation that AI will significantly improve productivity and efficiency. However, these outcomes have not yet been fully realized, further widening the gap between promise and performance.”

AI’s ability to deliver value is constrained by three key factors: data readiness, integration into workflows, and talent, she says. 

“Of these, data is the most significant barrier,” Chung says. “In many organizations, data remains fragmented, inconsistent, and difficult to unify across systems. Compounding the issue, few organizations have a centralized or strategic approach to managing data. Without that foundation, AI initiatives struggle to scale or deliver meaningful impact.”

After five years of conducting the study, one of the most notable trends is the perception that marketing has reversed from a profit center to a cost center, she says. 

“The share of CEOs viewing marketing as a cost center has risen significantly (35% to 60%), while those seeing it as a profit driver has declined,” Chung says. "Over the last two years, CMOs are more aligned with CEOs and more embedded in the business than in prior years, but that has not translated into increased confidence in their ability to drive growth. 

“Taken together, this points to a broader pattern: marketing is becoming more execution-focused and accountable, but is not consistently seen as owning growth at the enterprise level.”