Do you sometimes feel like the chief marketing officer is competing with you? Does he or she hop from trend to trend without establishing priorities or a revenue-oriented strategy? To create a better partnership among CIOs and CMOs in an era of digital marketing, Tim Pearson, author of "The Old Rules of Marketing Are Dead," suggests six new rules.

Both CIOs and CMOs should be made accountable for achieving revenue goals, Pearson says in an article by Doug Henschen at InformationWeek. The first rule is to learn to cooperate rather than compete, Pearson advises. Nobody wants to give up control over projects, but protracted power struggles don't serve anyone. 

"CIOs and CMOs have to co-lead and agree on the most important priorities and responsibilities up front. That's happening more and more as marketing budgets grows and decisions get scrutinized by executive-, management- or even board-level committees. Oversight and accountability from the CEO, CFO or COO can help make it happen," he says.

Next, embed some of your people into the marketing team, and have some marketing folks on yours, Pearson recommends. These liaisons can make the two teams' realms seem more familiar while improving mutual understanding of needs and limitations.

Make sure you and the CMO have common goals that are linked to business metrics. This may be easier said than done, but it can help to set up processes for promoting collaboration, such as CEO oversight and performance management initiatives. "Process ensures that the light of day is shining on the problem, and there's an institutional mechanism in place for resolving conflicts," Pearson says.

Have the CEO sign off on the details surrounding program goals, including budget and deadlines. You all need to agree not only on strategic goals, but also on how you are going to reach them. 

Put your cards on the table at the outset. If you prefer custom software to off-the-shelf, for example, be sure to spell it out before the project starts. The CMO has to take the same approach, making clear at the outset what capabilities are essential. And, Pearson says, "rogue technology selections have to end; they're a frequent source of data silos and dead-end investment."

Finally, set up a shared dashboard that shows metrics both teams are using to measure the project's success.   

For more:
- see Doug Henschen's article at InformationWeek

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