Chief Marketing Officer Role Design

Reports suggest some concerns with chief marketing officer (CMO) performance. We introduce CMO Role Design and theorize it is a critical factor impacting CMO performance outcomes. Employing a role theory lens, we develop a conceptual framework of CMO Role Design and provide an initial empirical examination of three characteristics from the broader model. We theorize that effective CMO Role Design requires alignment between specific characteristics to enable better performance outcomes. Surprisingly, we find that more than half (54%) of CMO roles are misaligned, indicating how challenging it is for firm leaders to design effective CMO roles. As the first conceptual model of CMO Role Design, this paper establishes a platform for future research, identifying over 25 new research questions. For CEOs, executive recruiters, and CMOs, this research offers insight into the importance of CMO Role Design and provides a template to consider when designing and staffing CMO roles.