ABSTRACT
Industry sector and size of business also impact on the type of chief marketing officer (CMO) role an organization adopts. There are the traditional delineations business-consumer (B2C) and business-business (B2B) roles, for example, can be very different. Company history and culture, the CEO's mindset and C-suite support also factor into the make-up of a CMO. According to Tom Seclow, who leads the North American Marketing Officer Practice for Spencer Stuart, the CMO is enjoying somewhat of an evolution. Ultimately, the senior-most marketer of an organization is responsible for facilitating growth, sales and marketing strategy. He or she must work toward objectives such as revenue generation, cost reduction or risk mitigation. The somewhat unpredictable impact of marketing efforts coupled with the need to drive profits often leads to a short tenure for many CMOs. Global executive search firm Spencer Stuart researches and publishes an annual report on CMO tenure.
