To become a CMO, one needs 7-10 years of marketing experience and a business administration degree. Creativity is important, especially in industries like entertainment. Traditional paths involve specializing in marketing at the undergraduate level and working up the ranks, but non-traditional paths can involve working for an internet start-up. Involvement with marketing trade associations and extracurricular activities can also help build expertise and demonstrate soft skills.
To become a chief marketing officer (CMO), you must have a certain amount of talent for the job and seven to ten years of experience in the marketing industry. Most companies also expect at least a degree in business administration. Demonstrated talent in marketing can trump formal education in some cases.
Many of the activities that fall under marketing, such as advertising and promotions, rely on professionals with artistic talent or a propensity to come up with original ideas to capture the attention of consumers. While there is a lot of work under the heading that just requires common business skills, marketing is primarily considered to be a creative department. Marketing departments in certain industries require more creativity than others, such as the entertainment industry versus the pharmaceutical industry. If you want to become a marketing director, your innate talent for attracting consumers can play a significant role.
A traditional path to a CMO position is to specialize in marketing at the undergraduate level. After graduation, you can take a job as a marketing assistant and work in the ranks of a marketing department. After seven to dozens of years of increasing responsibility, you would be eligible to apply as a CMO. If you’ve earned an MBA in marketing, it might increase your chances of getting hired.
In more creative and fluid industries, special marketing talent can trump years of experience. If the product’s success depends on popularity, interest, or requires heavy promotional work, the ability to earnestly attract the public’s attention would be more valuable than any educational credentials or amount of experience. A non-traditional path to becoming a director of marketing might be to work with an Internet start-up that requires particularly creative marketing and social media to position itself in a fluid environment. As the company grows, you become the top title and would be more a function of talent than credentials.
Large, well-established companies will require a CMO candidate to have traditional qualifications and also be a leader in the field. Involvement with marketing trade associations in a leadership capacity will help you become a director of marketing, as well as any other activities that build expertise in the field. This could include teaching marketing classes at a community college or local trade association, providing expert opinion for media opportunities, and writing marketing articles for periodicals and publications. These extracurricular activities will also serve to demonstrate the soft skills needed for the role, such as people management skills, poise and professionalism.
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