Getting a Seat at the Right Table

I recently had the pleasure of speaking for the Greater Philadelphia and New York Metropolitan Area chapters of the Association for Accounting Marketing (AAM). While the topics were different - Managing Your Marketing Career and Marketing Budgets - a common thread ran through both presentations. How do we get a seat at the table? My initial response to this question is, "Be sure that it's the right table." If it is consider the characteristics of chief marketing officers (CMOs) and how to think strategically:

Chief marketing officers:
• See themselves as strategic thought leaders with an emphasis on the client.
• Their reputations hinge on the ability to demonstrate return on investment.
• Have a chief executive in their corner – someone who gets it and is a very public proponent of a more expansive, influential, and results-driven marketing organization.

Be certain that you are in synch with your managing partner’s vision of where the firm is headed.

Understand the “big picture” of your firm:
•Who are we?
•Where are we now?
•Where do we want to be?
•How will we get there?
•How will we know how we’re doing?

Determining strategies:
•Are we doing the right thing?
•Does the strategy meet/address critical issues?
•Is this aligned with our mission?
•Is this approach financially doable?