There is a higher percentage of female CMOs in the US than the UK, according to research by Act-On Software.
Some 56% of US CMOs are women, while 60% of CMOs in the UK were identified as men.
Other findings included how long CMOs tend to serve their companies, with UK CMOs staying an average of eight to nine years, and their US counterparts only serving for five years.
Additionally, only 30% of CMOs in the UK and US possess Master’s qualifications and higher, suggesting further qualifications are having less impact on a marketer’s ability to climb the marketing ladder.
Indeed, this was reflected in the B2B Marketing Salary Survey, which revealed those marketers with a Master’s degree only earn, on average, £2,288 more than those with no professional marketing qualification.
The report examined CMOs – or equivalent titles – from the FTSE and the US Inc. 500 list of mid-market companies.
Susy Dunn, chief people officer at Act-On, said: “If there’s anything this research makes clear, it’s that the role of the CMO is changing, and that our expectations of CMOs are evolving.
“We might still prioritise the same traits in CMOs we always have – a talent for building a company’s brand and partnering with sales – but it’s important we stay mindful of how we’re enabling and empowering tomorrow’s CMOs today; to make sure we’re setting them up for success and helping them to develop a deep business acumen, a focus on the customer, an affinity for partnerships, and cross-functional empathy.”
