How Do You Map the Future Together, When You Have Yet to Define the Destination?
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How do you map the future together, when you have yet to define the destination? Find out why, despite their differences, the connection between CMOs and CFOs is crucial to unlock new value and growth. July 2019 CMO-CFO Connection Survey Report Foreword The digital world is creating opportunities for marketing that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. Marketing technology (martech) and growing proficiency with data are helping chief marketing officers (CMOs) understand their customers, track engagement and drive growth. As they connect marketing with customer experience, they are creating more value than ever. Table of Contents I. Foreword 01 II. About the research 02 III. Building a healthy marketing-finance dynamic is critical 04 IV. Approach, metrics and data privacy create the most tension 06 V. Everyone benefits when the CFO and CMO connect 14 To make the connection, CMOs than 300 marketing and finance around marketing’s approach to are using data to drive smarter leaders, 90% believe that marketing privacy regulation. Moreover, 59% of acquisitions, and to improve customer and finance need to work more finance respondents, compared to loyalty and retention. They are closely as their businesses pursue 49% of marketers, believe that their shifting from a campaign-focused to a digital transformation. It’s why 83% organization has a long way to go customer-focused style of marketing. assert that their company’s marketing before it can measure the lifetime They also are placing bigger strategic activity would be more effective if value of a customer. Evidently, there bets and investments, requiring them marketing and finance were more is a mismatch in what marketing to strengthen their relationship with closely aligned. and finance believe is possible with chief financial officers (CFOs). today’s tools and methodologies. Yet In this report, we discuss the they both have a vested interested in Why? CMOs need a significantly challenges that organizations must bridging that gap. larger budget to pay for an effective overcome for the connection to data-driven strategy and customer flourish. More than two in three The good news is that there is a clear experience, and they need to get respondents (67%) agree, for instance, willingness to make the relationship better at asking for it. They need to that the cultural differences between work. Ultimately, our research make stronger business cases and finance and marketing are becoming paints an optimistic picture – albeit forecast return on investment (ROI) in more, not less, pronounced over time. one in which there is clear room for a way that is satisfactory for the CFO. They point to tensions arising from the improvement on both sides. The onus two functions’ conflicting expectations is on marketing and finance leaders There are also mutual benefits in a around ROI and the use of qualitative to lead the way forward within their stronger CMO-CFO connection. and quantitative metrics. They teams and across the organization as As an organization’s ability to attract also suggest there is disagreement a whole. and retain customers supports business growth, a CFO can draw on the CMO’s knowledge and insight when communicating their growth Background reading: the evolution of marketing and finance and investment story to investors In recent years, CMOs and CFOs have been establishing the foundations and the board. In the past, when necessary for their relationship to succeed: a CMO’s focus was on campaigns rather than broader, holistic customer • EY 2015 report, Partnering for performance, found that more than half engagement, the CFO’s contribution of CFOs (54%) believed collaboration with CMOs had increased. Sixty- would have been more tactical than three percent reported increased involvement in marketing, but they also strategic. Today, it is a vital driver of indicated that their contribution remained largely around cost rather than enterprise value creation. new value creation. As a result, the CMO-CFO connection • EY 2014 study on the changing role of the CMO found that digital should be regarded as a crucial – but technologies have revolutionized the CMO’s role as customer demands still largely untapped – opportunity to require new skills for marketers and data interpretation. unlock new value and growth. This is why, according to EY survey of more How do you map the future together, when you have yet to define the destination? | 1 About the research This report is based on findings from a survey of 304 senior marketing and finance leaders, conducted with Longitude in early 2019. Responses were split almost evenly between marketing (150) and finance (154). CMOs and CFOs each represented 50% of respondents within their respective areas of the business; the two job titles are used within this report as shorthand for senior marketing and finance respondents more broadly. We also carried out in-depth discussions with several marketing and finance chiefs. 2 | How do you map the future together, when you have yet to define the destination? Respondent job title Business size Sector 25% 34% 33% Chief Financial Officer $100 million to $499 million Consumer goods and retail 25% 33% 14% Chief Marketing Officer $500 million to $999 million Financial services (include banking investment) 6% 18% 14% Head of Finance $1bn to $4.99bn IT, Telecoms and Media 2% 11% 14% Head of Treasury $5bn to $9.99bn Manufacturing 6% 2% 5% Head of Content/ $10bn to $19.99bn Professional services thought leadership (consultancy, strategy etc.) 9% 2% 5% Head of Digital Marketing $20bn+ Real Estate & Construction 3% 4% Head of Marketing Analytics Energy, Utilities and Natural Resources 4% 3% Director of Treasury Transport and Warehousing 3% Travel, Entertainments and Hospitality How do you map the future together, when you have yet to define the destination? | 3 Building a healthy marketing-finance dynamic is critical I bring the CFO into marketing meetings, “saying to him: ‘Come on, you’ve got to learn about this and you’ve got to understand.’ CMO of a Fortune 500 insurance company While these are the words of a CMO, Leader for Media & Entertainment between marketing and finance is they could just have easily been those and EY Americas Marketing Services currently less productive than any of a CFO eager to bring his or her Leader. “However, if they can forge other in their organization. CMO into the next finance planning a deeper strategic relationship, they As survey respondents suggest, meeting. Both functions express can learn from each other’s respective there’s some way to go before the a desire to get the other to better talents and strengths and drive growth relationship is sound. Diverging understand their point of view, and more effectively. Together, they can priorities and expectations between both have a compelling reason for open the door to new opportunities CMOs and CFOs are bringing strains doing so. around data-enabled marketing, between the two functions into sharp sophisticated views on ROI and better The marketing and finance dynamic is focus. Indeed, two in three agree value creation. Ultimately, value is critical to unlocking long-term value that the cultural differences between created through customers – and growth in the digital world. As finance and marketing are becoming CMOs and CFOs together can b data-driven customer engagement more pronounced. ecome the steward of the total produces more commercial customer experience.” Several factors may explain the origins opportunities and the mutual benefits of the complex dynamic between the of a closer working relationship According to our survey, 90% of two functions and their different ways between the functions become clear, marketing and finance leaders believe of operating: there is growing pressure on marketing that the two functions need to work and finance leaders to work in tandem. more closely as their businesses 1. Different priorities for pursue digital transformation. business growth “CFOs and CMOs collaborate Nonetheless, almost half of all CMOs and CFOs differ on what their frequently today due to necessity,” respondents say that the relationship business needs to succeed over says Janet Balis, EY Global Advisory the next few years. Finance leaders 4 | How do you map the future together, when you have yet to define the destination? focus on a set trajectory for business Figure 1: CMOs and CFOs name what they consider to be their businesses’ top growth, and marketers have their growth priorities eye on what they need to do to deepen customer acquisition CMOs CFOs and engagement. 1. Improving relationships with 1. Learning to drive stronger While the finance function doubles existing customers (45%) insight from data (43%) down on business intelligence and takes a company-wide view 2. Improving awareness of our 2. Improving relationships with brand (41%) existing customers (38%) of investments, marketing is paying closer attention to the 3. Learning to drive stronger 3. Improving awareness of our external customer landscape and insight from data (39%) brand (34%) how the brand is perceived, and 4. Ensuring we have the right 4. Ensuring we have the right driving business outcomes. Other skills/talent (35%) skills/talent (34%) differences are more unexpected, 5. Developing a more open and 5. Cutting costs/enhancing such as marketing’s strong ambitions inclusive culture (31%) efficiency (31%) around cultural inclusivity in its top five priorities, where CFOs favor cost-cutting and efficiency. These competing priorities suggest a difference in how the two functions think about the business overall (see figure 1). How do you map the future together, when you have yet to define the destination? | 5 2. A disconnect on data which oftentimes gives the CFO more mentioned above, the overwhelming Both functions agree that marketing leverage due to historical knowledge majority of respondents believe that is becoming more data-driven, with and relationships with the board,” their relationship is crucial for digital increasing focus on ROI and delivering explains Dan Carter, former CFO of transformation.