3 Indicators the B2B CMO Role Will Never Be The Same

Today’s CMOs face an existential challenge: many no longer understand what’s expected of them. More CMOs than ever admit they feel their role is ill-defined, and as of 2023, the average CMO tenure has fallen to only 39 months — the shortest it’s been in a decade. 

One of the big reasons for this confusion is how quickly the CMO role has changed. In the latest 2023 B2B Marketing Benchmark, LinkedIn asked over 1,900 B2B leaders from across multiple industries about the CMO role, including how it’s changed, how it works now, and what it takes to be successful at it.

These leaders cited three major indicators of how the CMO role has evolved rapidly and permanently in the past three years. Understanding these shifts is key to understanding not only the new B2B CMO role and how to succeed at it, but also the pivotal role CMOs will play in the future of business.

1. The CMO role has a new number one priority: demonstrate bottom-line impact

Nearly one out of two CMOs and CFOs surveyed say the CMO faces much greater pressure to demonstrate impact on both bottom-line revenue and overall growth than ever before.

Over three out of four (76%) CMOs say they’re under pressure to prove ROI in even less time than they were two years ago. Meanwhile, another 47% of CMOs say they face increased pressure from the C-suite to show how their marketing will drive concrete long-term revenue growth. 

In response to these increased pressures, more than eight out of 10 (84%) CMOs say that to meet C-suite expectations they’ve begun to prioritize strengthening their skills at demonstrating B2B marketing impact on the bottom line.

Moving forward, a major aspect of the B2B CMO role will be to translate marketing strategy into short and long-term revenue impact, in terms the C-suite can understand. Many canny CMOs are already finding ways to do this, transforming their roles even further in the process.

2. CMOs and CFOs are teaming up 

As CMOs face increased pressure to adopt the language of finance to prove their worth, many are finding the CFO a powerful ally. According to our benchmark, just under seven in 10 CMOs at B2B companies say their relationship with the CFO is stronger than before.

Specifically, CMOs and CFOs are increasingly teaming up to unite their KPIs. This way, the marketer can use their data to tell the right story to the C-suite — a story that clearly demonstrates how their initiatives can, have, and will produce bottom-line revenue impact according to the CFOs own high standards. 

So far, this partnership is looking like a tremendous win-win. Eight out of 10 (80%) CMOs say learning the language of finance with the help of the CFOs has helped them secure more marketing budget. Nearly eight out of 10 (79%) say they are now able to involve as many members of the C-suite as possible in B2B marketing decisions. 

As the CMO continues to gain this influence, their partnership with CFOs and the rest of the C-suite will only become even more crucial. It will be up to CMOs to foster and deepen these partnerships to ensure they understand the bottom-line revenue needs of the company and how their overall marketing strategy can make them happen.

3. Organizations are looking toward CMOs for greater strategic leadership

“Marketing’s focus and knowledge of the customer drives far-reaching influence—we are often the data champion of an organization and own the customer journey.” – Paul Stoddart, CMO, Customer & Partner Success, Salesforce

Globally, 65% of CMOs and CFOs agree that the importance of the CMO has increased in the eyes of the C-suite within the past two years. In the benchmark report, Salesforce CMO of Customer & Partner Success Paul Stoddart helped explain why:

“Marketing’s focus and knowledge of the customer drives far-reaching influence—we are often the data champion of an organization and own the customer journey. We are at the epicenter, connecting teams and processes to form a single view of the customer, and using tools like AI + Data + CRM to drive differentiated customer experiences and new revenue streams.” 

Drawing on insights from the various teams that share data with marketing, CMOs are uniquely positioned to connect dots across the organizations that lead to better results. This holistic view of strategies and outcomes means CMOs can tie these disparate threads together into a clear narrative that defines organizational success. By offering strategic guidance to their companywide counterparts, CMOs can help steer the overall present and future strategy. 

These three indications add up to one conclusion: The CMO role is a more important leadership position than ever, and it’s only going to become even more crucial in the years to come.

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