Keysight Technologies began as the electronic test and measurement division of HP when it divested from HP’s subsidiary, Agilent, in 2014. But it wasn’t until August 2017, when Keysight signed a $1.6 billion acquisition of Ixia, that Marie took the reigns as the company’s first CMO.
What are the challenges in being the first CMO at a company?
Marie: People have a lot of opinions on what a CMO should and shouldn’t do – and you know what they say about opinions! I spent a lot of time educating the organisation about what best-in-class marketing practices are. I leveraged experience I’d had at Cisco and Check Point to share some of the key marketing initiatives those companies undertake and how structured they are.
My approach to building stakeholder relationships was to tie everything marketing does to a tangible business result. I looked at the company strategy, ensured my metrics were tied to those of my peers, and aligned the transformation I was putting in place to show them the impact.
How did you tackle misconceptions people have about marketing?
I had to do it at multiple levels. First with my peers, then with the board of directors, then scaling it down to the various VPs – sharing my vision of what marketing is and is not.
I had a lot of support from my CEO. He was really the guiding light to ensure I got the backing for the transformation I was putting in place. With both the CEO and head of sales 100% behind the transformation, it was a question of communicating the vision and starting to show some quick wins and fast results – because that’s key. The reality is that as a CMO you have to show some fast wins, or people become impatient. You get about three months before the support runs away, and after that you need to start producing.
Is there more pressure as the company’s first CMO, or is there more freedom because expectations are lower?
There’s definitely extra pressure! I get to be the first person to show the true value of a marketing organisation and what it can bring. My results have to be spectacular, and fast. There’s no precedent and nothing they can relate to in terms of performance – I’m it. I’m the first, and frankly I don’t want to be the last!
Are stakeholders more open to what you’re proposing without having had that precedent?
You’re absolutely right. As you implement any changes there’s inevitable griping and whining because you’ve moved somebody’s ‘cheese’, or something isn’t operating the way it used to. But the leadership team across the company has been 100% supportive by asking ‘If you look at what’s been done since Marie’s been here, do you think it’s for the better?’ Fortunately people have said it is, which has silenced that noise.
