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The First 90 Days as a CMO

Navigating the critical months to establish marketing leadership and add value.

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Thought Model: The First 90 Days as a CMO

Member Challenge

Recognition of these issues is essential to success and longevity as a CMO:

  • Lack of comprehensive market intelligence and strategic direction.
  • Misalignment between marketing strategies and business objectives.
  • Gaps in team capabilities and inability to demonstrate marketing ROI.

Our Advice

Critical Insight

  • Success requires bridging knowledge gaps while simultaneously delivering quick wins.
  • Cross-functional collaboration and stakeholder management are essential for CMO effectiveness.

Impact and Result

  • Aligning marketing strategy with company goals and clear execution roadmap.
  • Enhancing team capabilities and measurable marketing impact.

Research & Tools

Name Actions

1. The First 90 Days as a CMO Deck – A step-by-step framework for CMOs to assess their situation, build relationships, develop strategies, and deliver quick wins, supported by practical tools and templates.

This deck guides new CMOs through the first steps of implementing their leadership and effective business-aligned marketing strategies.

Name Actions
The First 90 Days as a CMO Phases 1-3

2. Executive Marketing Strategy Template – A structured framework for marketing executives to communicate strategy.

Designed to help CMOs establish their marketing direction, leadership approach, and department alignment with business goals, unite teams, and implement changes from day one.

Name Actions
Executive Marketing Strategy Template

3. Marketing Capabilities Maturity Assessment Tool – A diagnostic tool that helps marketing departments evaluate their maturity across key capabilities.

Provides insights to determine priority areas for improvement.

Name Actions
Marketing Capabilities Maturity Assessment Tool

Onsite Workshop: The First 90 Days as a CMO

Onsite workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost onsite delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.

Do-It-Yourself Implementation

The slides in this Best Practice Blueprint will walk you step-by-step through every phase of your project with supporting tools and templates ready for you to use.

Project Accelerator Workshop

You can also use this Best Practice Blueprint to facilitate your own project accelerator workshop within your organization using the workshop slides and facilitation instructions provided in the Appendix.

Module 1: Set Your Market & Business Context

The Purpose

Understand the landscape

Key Benefits Achieved

Participants will be able to identify key market trends and understand how these trends impact their organization, setting the stage for informed strategy development.

Activities Outputs
1.1 Review marketing department perception
1.2 Analyze competition & market share (optional) and positioning
  • Competitive landscape, brand/product placement, and market share are documented
1.3 Document strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats by completing a SWOT analysis
  • Business’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) are identified

Module 2: Create Your Strategic Framework

The Purpose

Strategic alignment and planning

Key Benefits Achieved

Participants will leave with a clear framework for aligning their marketing strategy with company goals.

Activities Outputs
2.1 Set your marketing vision and ensure it’s aligned with business strategy and values
  • Marketing vision statement and key ways to achieve it are defined
2.2 Define your strategic goals & objectives
  • Business and marketing goals are documented and aligned
2.3 Implement a SMART framework
  • Marketing objectives are specific, measurable, actionable, relevant and time-bound (SMART)

Module 3: Build Your Execution Plan

The Purpose

Create a plan for prioritized marketing initiatives.

Key Benefits Achieved

Established roadmap with key milestones.

Activities Outputs
3.1 Define and prioritize your strategic initiatives based on impact and feasibility
  • Key marketing initiatives are assessed and prioritized
3.2 Map current resources to programs and identify gaps
  • Resources are evaluated
3.3 Develop an implementation roadmap with key milestones
  • Implementation roadmap with key milestones established

Module 4: Determine Investment & Impact

The Purpose

Evaluate the impact and risk of your plan. Determine the investment requirements.

Key Benefits Achieved

Completed roadmap with identified impacts, risks, and required investment.

Activities Outputs
4.1 Determine investment requirements and impacts
  • Budget and KPIs are set
  • Capabilities maturity levels are evaluated and prioritized
4.2 Register risk & mitigation strategy
  • Potential risks are assessed
4.3 Evaluate marketing department capabilities, priorities, and structure
  • The marketing department structure is defined, and gaps are identified
4.4 Schedule key initiatives timeline
  • The marketing initiatives timeline is mapped out.
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