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cmo summit 2005
Marketing or general management
which route to take?
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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
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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%
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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%
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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.
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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.
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