Now more than ever, marketers are targeting their audience online. This has lead to many CMOs and CIOs having to work together, but not necessarily in harmony. Kevin Cochrane, CMO at OpenText explains how to break down the barriers.
1. "We are both on the same team"
CIOs and CMOs speak different languages and work on different timetables. But the two functions also share the fundamental business challenges of delivering growth and innovation, as well as high levels of customer satisfaction. If there’s anything CIOs should know about marketing, it’s the desire to explore the leading edge of technology together and drive innovation that supports automation, analytics, and interoperability across the enterprise.
2. "We want to step up our tech prowess"
Marketing professionals want to be educated by the CIO because a big part of marketing depends on technology. This is something CIOs and CMOs must work on together. When two masters of their own disciplines are in intense discussion; that’s when the big growth opportunities show up. Marketing professionals depend on that technology and CMOs and CIOs must be able to work together to deliver innovation and growth.
3. "Let’s Share Our Goals"
The first step for the CIO to better understand marketing is to synch goals. Get respective teams together to define a shared set of expectations. If CIOs are concerned only about projects completed and uptime, and CMOs are concerned only about leads, then they are going to have a hard time working together. Time frames should align, and budgets should be viewed as a shared opportunity. Perhaps most powerful of all, CMOs and CIOs should team on new initiatives, bringing them to their CEOs and boards as joint proposals. In doing so, they will gain maximum support and acceptance from the rest of the C-suite.
