The CEO: Aligning with the Company Vision

January 27th, 2025

Part of the
“How Suite It Is: A CMO’s Guide to Executive Conversations” insights series

Purpose of this Guide: To empower CMOs to demonstrate marketing’s strategic value, align with the Chief Executive Officer’s vision, and drive measurable business growth through marketing leadership. Building a strong partnership with the CEO requires understanding their strategic priorities and demonstrating how marketing directly contributes to the company’s overall success. This guide provides frameworks and strategies to help CMOs position marketing as a key driver of business value and growth.

Key Outcomes

Showcase marketing’s role in achieving company vision and strategy
Establish marketing as a key driver of business growth and market leadership
Align marketing initiatives with CEO’s strategic priorities

Executive Alignment at a Glance

This section provides a high-level overview to help CMOs align their approach with the CEO’s priorities and preferred metrics. By understanding these core focus areas, CMOs can ensure that marketing strategies resonate with the CEO’s expectations and goals.

Core Priorities and Success Metrics

This table highlights the primary areas of focus, engagement preferences, and success metrics valued by a CEO. Use these insights to tailor your approach, ensuring that marketing initiatives are aligned with the CEO’s strategic vision and demonstrate measurable value towards business growth objectives.

Area	Details
Focus Areas	Market leadership, competitive positioning, long-term growth, innovation, corporate culture
Preferred Approach	Strategic, vision-focused, market-driven, growth-oriented
Success Metrics	Market share, brand value growth, revenue growth, customer acquisition in strategic segments

Strategic Goals and Top Concerns

This table outlines the primary strategic goals and potential concerns of a CEO, which impact how marketing should be positioned. By aligning marketing efforts with these strategic objectives, CMOs can address the CEO’s strategic vision and priorities directly.

Strategic Goals	Top Concerns
The CEO sets the overall direction and strategy for the company, focusing on driving sustainable business growth, establishing market leadership, creating shareholder value, building competitive advantages, fostering innovation and transformation, and developing corporate culture and capabilities.	– Market position and competitive threats – Long-term sustainability and growth – Innovation and disruption risks – Organizational alignment and culture – Shareholder value and market perception

The Conversation Guide

To build a productive partnership with the CEO, focus on strategic alignment, growth initiatives, and market leadership. This conversation guide helps frame discussions around marketing’s contribution to the company’s vision and long-term success. By grounding these discussions in the CEO’s strategic priorities, CMOs can demonstrate marketing as a strategic catalyst that supports the company’s overall growth objectives.

Questions to Ask the CEO

These questions are designed to gain a deeper understanding of the CEO’s strategic vision and expectations for marketing. By focusing on business growth and market leadership, these inquiries help ensure that marketing efforts are viewed as strategically aligned with the company’s long-term goals.

Strategic Direction	“What are our primary business goals for 2025?” “Which markets or segments will drive our most significant growth?” “How do you see our competitive position evolving?”
Risk Appetite	“What is your comfort level with experimental marketing approaches?” “How should we balance short-term results with long-term brand building?” “What level of investment in new markets are you willing to support?”
Success Metrics	“What key performance indicators matter most to the board?” “How do you want to see marketing’s impact on business growth measured?” “What benchmarks should we use against competitors?”

Questions to Be Prepared to Answer

Anticipate these questions from the CEO to demonstrate that marketing’s strategy is growth-focused and directly supports the company’s strategic vision. Being ready with data-driven responses will reinforce marketing’s role as a strategic driver of business success.

Strategic Alignment	“How will your marketing strategy directly support our 2025 business objectives?” “What competitive advantages will our marketing approach create?” “How are you planning to help us enter/dominate [strategic market]?”
Resource Allocation	“How are you prioritizing spending across different markets/segments?” “What’s the balance between maintaining current business and driving new growth?” “How will you scale marketing efforts as we expand?”
Innovation & Leadership	“How are we staying ahead of market trends?” “What innovative approaches are you bringing to our marketing?” “How will marketing help position us as an industry leader?”

Key Metrics the CEO Cares About

These metrics provide a strategic lens on marketing’s impact, focusing on measurable contributions to business growth and market leadership. By prioritizing these key performance indicators, marketing can reinforce its role as a strategic driver that supports the company’s vision and long-term success.

Market Performance

Market share trends
Brand value growth
Competitive position metrics
Customer acquisition in strategic segments

Business Impact

Revenue growth contribution
Customer lifetime value
Brand health metrics
Market penetration rates

Future Growth Indicators

Pipeline development
New market opportunity size
Innovation metrics
Customer advocacy scores

Winning Strategies

To foster a strong partnership with the CEO, focus on aligning marketing’s initiatives with strategic vision and growth objectives. Emphasize strategies that demonstrate business impact to position marketing as a reliable driver of business growth.

How to Demonstrate Value

Demonstrating value to the CEO goes beyond showcasing marketing outcomes; it’s about proving that marketing is a strategic driver that contributes to the company’s vision and growth. By tying marketing initiatives directly to business goals, CMOs can position marketing as a catalyst rather than a cost center. This approach reassures the CEO that marketing efforts are aligned with and advancing company strategy.

Connect Marketing to Business Outcomes

Link campaigns directly to revenue growth
Show impact on market share
Demonstrate contribution to strategic initiatives

Think Like a CEO

Present marketing as a strategic driver, not a cost center
Focus on long-term value creation
Address broader business challenges

Speak Their Language

Use business metrics, not just marketing metrics
Focus on market leadership and competitive advantage
Frame discussions around growth and innovation

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Avoiding these pitfalls is essential to building credibility and trust with the CEO. Failing to align marketing metrics with strategic objectives or providing unclear value propositions can erode confidence in marketing’s strategic impact. By focusing on data-driven, business-relevant metrics and preparing for contingencies, CMOs can demonstrate that marketing is a responsible, results-oriented contributor to the company’s strategic goals.

Tactical Focus

Don’t get caught in campaign-level details
Avoid marketing jargon
Don’t focus solely on short-term metrics

Narrow Perspective

Don’t ignore broader market trends
Avoid siloed thinking
Don’t underestimate competitive threats

Poor Alignment

Don’t disconnect from company strategy
Avoid misaligned success metrics
Don’t ignore board-level concerns

Success Indicators

Clear success indicators reassure the CEO that marketing is aligned with the company’s strategic vision and is a valuable, accountable part of the business. When marketing goals and metrics directly support business growth and market leadership, it reinforces marketing’s role as a strategic partner in achieving the company’s long-term business objectives.