What you need to know:

• 18 months on from the surge in digital transformation, CMOs are still struggling with managing changing capabilities and finding the right talent.
• A report from Capgemini found three quarters of CMOs are now responsible for contributing to business growth (76 per cent) and data and technology (74 per cent).
• However, only 43 per cent of marketers say their teams use data to decide a go-to-market strategy for a new product or service, and 40 per cent use data to modify their campaign strategies.

Following the surge in e-commerce and CX, CMOs’ responsibilities are shifting with close to three quarters now responsible for contributing to business growth (76 per cent) and data and technology (74 per cent).

According to the latest Capgemini Research Institute report, despite CMO’s new data-focused responsibilities, only 12 per cent of marketers have the requisite data access, capabilities, and talent to drive value from real-time marketing.

Although all marketers are using data in some way, most are not applying it to drive marketing decisions, with only 43 per cent of marketers say their teams use data to decide a go-to-market strategy for a new product or service, and 40 per cent use data to modify their campaign strategies.

Similarly, 42 per cent say that, by harnessing data, their team has been able to be more agile in responding to customer and market needs. 

The CMO shifts focus

For traditional marketers (who do not qualify as ‘data-driven’), catching up with high-performing rivals is necessitating a fundamental shift in roles, skills and capabilities, according to the Capgemini research .

Despite the changes in CMOs’ duties and skills, the shift is not sufficiently reflected in the marketing function more broadly.

CMOs will need to address a broader tech capability and skills deficit. Less than half of marketers say they have established the data and technology capabilities needed to deliver data-driven marketing, with only 45 per cent adopting a customer data platform that provides a unified and a single view of customers,

A further 44 per cent say they have an adequate supply of skills in areas such as AI and machine learning, or data analytics and data science. 

Less than half (45 per cent) have social digital-marketing skills, and a similar proportion (46 per cent) say they have sufficient skills in augmented and virtual reality. 

In response, the report said marketing departments should look to in-house key functions, with half of marketers agreeing that their organisations are trying to build internal skills and capabilities over partnering with outside vendors. 

Currently 81 per cent of marketers partner with agencies for activities including branding, marketing strategy and digital marketing.