In our recent research report, my colleague Lisa Singer and I show why CMOs who prioritize alignment with product leaders more effectively drive growth initiatives and improve efficiency. When marketing and product leaders strategically work together, their companies deliver stronger customer value, accelerate go-to-market execution, and optimize resources.
The working relationships between CMOs, chief product officers, and their organizations range quite broadly according to our research: from “poor” or “functional” (i.e., not adversarial but siloed and misaligned) to “collaborative” and “productive” (i.e., where leaders and their teams partner strategically and proactively). Moving toward the productive end of this spectrum requires intentional leadership from the CMO. They cannot simply delegate alignment responsibility to product marketing leaders under them. They must invest their own time and influence.
Common Tensions Erode Effectiveness
Our research identified two primary areas of tension between marketing and product leaders that lead to reduced efficiency and ability to achieve business goals:
- Vision and strategy misalignment (product investments disconnected from commercialization realities; differing views on buyers, customers, and markets; messaging misalignment that undermines buyer and customer connection; lack of understanding of each other’s roles)
- Operational misalignment (differing metrics and lack of shared outcomes; weak collaboration during offering development prior to launches)
Forge A Partnership Focused On Buyer Needs And Customer Value
Our research also identified that CMOs who succeed in building productive product partnerships apply these best practices consistently:
- Shared focus on audiences and outcomes: They marry views on market and product opportunities, develop connected messaging from audience needs to product capabilities, and demonstrate how audience-centric campaigns support product goals and metrics.
- Structured processes and frameworks: They clarify roles and responsibilities, are transparent about decision-making criteria and timetables, and ensure assessment of requirements for commercial success.
- Early and structured collaboration: They align on growth opportunities, segments, and target value propositions, and they share and collaborate on market and competitive intelligence.
- Unified goals and metrics: They use a few key shared metrics such as net revenue retention rate, and they build offering dashboards with both marketing and product metrics such as customer acquisition cost and time to value.
- Trusted relationships and cross-functional learning: They pursue intentional interactions such as shared customer visits, regular check-ins, and “show and tell” sessions, and they value and invest time in personal relationship building and group outings.
The Bottom Line
Alignment with product leadership should be a top focus for CMOs. Start by scheduling a joint planning session to review one another’s goals, metrics, and upcoming priorities. Recognize that a true partnership means that marketing strategies and product offerings are connected to a common understanding of buyer and customer needs while resources are calibrated to achieve shared business outcomes.
Forrester clients, read more in the report, Strong B2B Marketing And Product Leader Alignment Drives Growth And Efficiency, and schedule a guidance session to explore how to apply this research in your organization.
