Anne Godfrey, chief executive, CIM

The CIM’s new chief executive Anne Godfrey talks to Maxine-Laurie 
Marshall about her planned shake-up for the body and her thoughts 
on women in marketing

Women in B2B can be hard to come by, not because they don’t exist but because they’re not very vocal. So when the CIM’s newly appointed chief executive released her radical new strategy for the 101 year-old marketing body, she seemed the perfect candidate to profile during International Women’s Month.

My feelings were instantly confirmed on meeting her; Anne Godfrey was warm and approachable but assertive. All character traits needed to bring the CIM up-to-date and counteract her observation that, “The CIM has become less relevant to the majority of the marketing profession.”

That bold and honest statement came from feedback from stakeholders, members and the marketing community but Godfrey admits, “If the board were to have briefed me, they probably would’ve come up with the same conclusions.”

Reaching people

The statement above is linked to the CIM’s first objective on the new strategy put together by Godfrey, to, “Significantly increase the number and variety of marketing professionals supported by and engaging with the CIM.” With this in mind, the institution has picked its new chief executive very wisely. Godfrey admits to being a real people person and says people, both members and staff, are the best part of 
her job.

Her love for managing people, and her ability to do it well, led to Godfrey’s move beyond a marketing position. “I like managing, and once you start managing teams – initially it was sales and marketing teams – you get management roles, then before you know it you get leadership roles, and before you know it you’re doing change management roles and the days of being in a sales and marketing position are over. I just love managing teams, and the more people the better.”

Although Godfrey began in sales – selling door-to-door – she says, “I hadn’t realised it [sales and marketing alignment] was such a big ongoing issue until I came here and read some of the articles that seem to have created a huge amount of heat. I suppose 
I’ve been lucky in that I’ve always worked with or in blended teams.” She goes on to say the two North American publishing companies she worked for had a very different view of sales, “There was less of a snobby view of sales. They weren’t seen as something nasty, there was mutual respect between sales and marketing.”

Her love of managing people and teams, mixed with her background in sales could have something to do with the aim of converging the CIM with the Sales Leadership Alliance (SLA). While they are already part of the same family, Godfrey wants to formalise this and says plans could involve a name change to, ‘the Chartered Institute of Marketing and Sales’.

“We’re very serious about engaging with the whole of the profession. We’ve already contacted the Privy Council to look at how difficult a name change might be. We had a response to say it’s possible but we now need to consult with the membership and other bodies in the space. It’s not a 2013 win.”

CIM in 2013

So what is next on Godfrey’s agenda for the CIM in 2013?

“The short-term focus is now the reorganisation of CIM to make it able to deliver the strategy then move into business planning.” Not afraid of change, she launched her reorganisation of the body in early February by, “getting rid of some layers of management and bringing in new skills to make sure the customer gets the right products and services.”

New roles include a head of IT, director of strategy, insights and learning and a sales and marketing director. Surprising for a body which represents marketing Godfrey reveals, “We’ve never had that particular position on the board before.”

But then there are several things that haven’t happened prior to Godfrey’s appointment. Such as the admittance from the CIM that it is out of touch with its audience. Godfrey tells me why she thinks this happened.

“I think it’s partly what’s happening to professional bodies, so we’re not alone. People now work differently, they access content differently and they learn differently. If a membership body or trade association, such as us, rests on its laurels then we very slowly become less relevant.”

Resting on laurels can happen to anyone as large as the CIM or even to you. I asked Godfrey for advice for those looking to move their career on and follow in her successful footsteps and, she very passionately told me it was all about professional development. She says, “When I got this job I got two hours of feedback and the consultant said there was no apparent commitment on my CV to continue professional development. While I was doing it, I wasn’t showing it.

“So if somebody at my age and at a 
chief executive level is being told that I need to have a commitment to learning, I would say to everybody else, have a commitment to your own personal and professional development because it’ll help you have a great career by helping your companies grow.”

While having a great career is the 
aim of men and women alike, with it being International Women’s Month I had to ask Godfrey if she thought there was a disparity between men and women 
in marketing.

“As somebody who’s worked with other professions, I’d say there are more women at senior levels in marketing than you would have in, say, law or accountancy. I think women make different choices, I think equal opportunity for all, not equality for all. In other words, if women make choices, they have to be aware that it might mean their career progresses at a different rate. I think marketing is a great career to then come back in to because it does have real opportunities for women, and certainly in the last six months I have met some fantastic women in really senior positions.”

Godfrey herself, is one of those women and I don’t doubt that she will bring the CIM back to relevance and, with her evident people skills, do so with a dedicated and motivated team behind her.

Godfrey’s 
top tips for 
marketers

To earn respect from your board, make sure you deliver ROI. Translate the activities you’re carrying out into measurable, deliverable KPIs. You’ve got to have information.

Have a commitment to your own personal and professional development. It can be unstructured or it can be formal qualifications if you like, but have a real commitment to your learning throughout your life.

Sales and marketing need to be best frenemies or the company’s not going to thrive. Get rid of the snobby attitude towards sales.

 

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