Obsessed with B2B marketing? You should be a PRO member! Join now at 25% off (or 50% off for teams).

Dr. Leslie Gaines-Ross, a senior executive at the global communications consultancy Burson-Marsteller, is the chief architect behind landmark CEO and corporate reputation research. She is the creator of ceogo.com, the acclaimed Web site devoted exclusively to CEO news and information and the author of CEO Capital: A Guide to Building CEO Reputation and Company Success (John Wiley & Sons, 2003).

I spoke with her recently about where marketing fits in the leadership agenda of the CEO and what marketers can do to have influence at the very highest levels of an organization.

Young: In general, how do you believe that CEOs think about the marketing function?

Gaines-Ross: I believe that they think about marketing their company's products, services and overall corporate brand frequently. Most executives profoundly realize that it's more important than ever to communicate—internally and externally.

They need to articulate what the overall corporate brand promise is to customers, how the company is differentiated from its competition, how its customers' environments and purchasing decisions are changing, how its products/services are innovating and high quality.

Unfortunately, during the go-go '90s, many companies focused too heavily on Wall Street and forgot about communicating with their customers. CEOs better understand today the importance of marketing themselves to a portfolio of audiences.

Young: Is it true that CEOs rarely come out of the marketing function?

Gaines-Ross: There are very few of them. According to research by Spencer Stuart in Chief Executive magazine, finance and operations are the top two most common functions among Fortune 700 CEOs. Marketing and sales come out as a distant third and fourth.

Young: Why do you think that is?

Gaines-Ross: Most Fortune 700 CEOs have engineering backgrounds (19%) and business administration (16%). They are usually more analytical and quantitative. Marketing and communications are generally not CEOs' strong suits.

Unfortunately, many CEOs have to learn these “softer” skills too late. The next generation of CEOs will probably have more marketing experience because it will be part of everyone's job to listen and communicate to various audiences.

Young: In your book, CEO Capital, you say that Michael Dell listens to customers and considers that his job. Is it unusual for a CEO to consider that his job?

Gaines-Ross: Nearly all CEOs today say that they listen to customers. And to some extent, they do. However, the CEO position today is very complex and demanding.

CEOs are spending more time communicating with their boards, the press, employees, Wall Street and special-interest groups. Customers are the ones who tend to lose out. A CEO like Michael Dell makes sure to fit “the voice of the customer” into his weekly schedule.

Another example is CEO John Brennan of Vanguard, who mans the phones once a week as customers call in. Customers are what a business is really all about, and building time into CEO schedules to engage in the customer experience is critical to success.

Young: Speaking about size, David D'Allesandro, CEO of John Hancock, says in his book, “We're not watching sumo wrestling anymore. Size doesn't necessarily rule.” And I think what he's really talking about is that, in fact, big companies are threatened by midsize and small companies that are more lean and hungry and less bureaucratic, and they can react to the marketplace faster.

Gaines-Ross: Size can be a disadvantage. JetBlue is a good example of a company that can be nimble because of its size. As it grows, however, JetBlue will undoubtedly experience growing pains.

Smaller companies can have an advantage, but not all large companies are dinosaurs. Wal-Mart, IBM and HP are master marketers. They have been able to cut out the bureaucracy and act like gazelles, not elephants.

Young: And what do you credit that to?

Gaines-Ross: Burson-Marsteller's research consistently points to management quality as a prime factor in company success. Behind every successful company is a solid CEO and executive team with vision and the ability to execute. Good leadership can drive company success and inspire a work force to reach its goals.

My book, CEO Capital, describes how Lord John Browne of BP repositioned the oil giant as an environmentally responsible company that is “beyond petroleum.” Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of mega-GE, has done an excellent job of focusing on the customer and strengthening its marketing know-how. GE now has its first Chief Marketing Officer.

Young: And Jack Welch did not have that philosophy?

Gaines-Ross: Welch had the customer focus as well, but Immelt has taken it to a new level.

Subscribe today...it's free!

MarketingProfs provides thousands of marketing resources, entirely free!

Simply subscribe to our newsletter and get instant access to how-to articles, guides, webinars and more for nada, nothing, zip, zilch, on the house...delivered right to your inbox! MarketingProfs is the largest marketing community in the world, and we are here to help you be a better marketer.

Already a member? Sign in now.

Sign in with your preferred account, below.

Did you like this article?
Know someone who would enjoy it too? Share with your friends, free of charge, no sign up required! Simply share this link, and they will get instant access…
  • Copy Link

  • Email

  • Twitter

  • Facebook

  • Pinterest

  • Linkedin


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

image of Roy Young
Roy Young is coauthor of Marketing Champions: Practical Strategies for Improving Marketing's Power, Influence and Business Impact.