CMO Lunch & Learn: Mind the Gap Takeaways

In the recent ADMA CMO Lunch & Learn online webinar, ‘Mind the Gap’, the industry panel of inspiring marketing leaders discussed business transformation, marketing landscape changes and the importance of developing marketing capability – both the skills that you need in this ever-changing industry, and the ones that marketers are revealing they are critically missing.

The industry panel included Susan Coghill, CMO of Tourism Australia; Alexander Meyer, CMO of The Iconic; David Morgan, Principal of MacMORGAN Next Practice Growth; and Lionel Kho, VP of Data Transformation at Merkle.

One of ADMA’s main focuses is encouraging and supporting marketers and marketing leaders on their continual upskilling pursuits. As the marketing industry is constantly evolving, the skills you have, or the ones you are willing to develop, will be what allows you to navigate and thrive in this ever-changing future.

Susan Coghill touches on the busy year that Tourism Australia has had, shifting from an international focus to a domestic focus with Covid-19 border closures. Even with major market changes, Coghill has ensured that her team’s foundational work, pre-covid, is still progressing. The effort and great work they have focussed on to understand their customer journey and improve brand storytelling, continues.

David Morgan states that the future of marketing is all about transformation, and transformation in many ways. Morgan reiterates that the key lies in skill gap analysis, knowing current skill strengths and where development is needed. Our panellists all spoke on the importance of building foundational knowledge and continuing to retouch and refresh when needed.

Alex Meyer notes how the online market has become increasingly crowded and competitive. At one point, the team’s skill in the online environment was The Iconic’s competitive advantage. He says that it is now time to differentiate and find a way to stand out again, and that “traditional” channels are becoming more important for his team.

The panel discussed the recently launched ADMA Marketing Skills Assessment, and how the tool has assisted them to develop capability and ensure that teams have the skills required to not only deliver now, but also into the future. Panel facilitator and ADMA’s CEO, Andrea Martens, asked panellists to share how they have introduced the skills assessment to their teams, and the best times in the planning cycle to do so. We also hear from the industry panel on how they personally stay up-to-date and knowledgeable on current marketing skills and trends, and what shifts and challenges they see affecting the future of marketing.

Lionel Kho, who led the data analytics team which analysed results from the initial data from the ADMA Marketing Skills Assessment, highlights the importance of a company’s senior marketers sharing their knowledge and skills with those in mid and junior level roles. He also speaks about the common lack of experience in the newer and emerging marketing skills such as data science, analytics, and CRM across marketers of all experience levels. As businesses transition from traditional disciplines into these new capabilities, investment to develop skills will be required.

This episode of CMO Lunch and Learn ends with a discussion on skills that a CMO should build out to eventuate to the position of CEO. Our panellists agreed that you no longer need to be a generalist to be in a chief position; focus on your individual aspirations and more senior roles will follow.

If you missed this episode of Lunch and Learn, watch the full discussion here.

Learn more about ADMA’s Marketing Skills Assessment here.