Marketing Leaders Face Trust Deficit Despite Strategic Recognition as AI Redefines Role

Marketing Executives Rarely Become CEOs Despite Growing Strategic Importance

Marketing executives find themselves at a crossroads, according to comprehensive research examining the evolving role of Chief Marketing Officers across German-speaking markets. The study, conducted by Roland Berger alongside the University of St. Gallen and leadership advisory firm Heidrick & Struggles, surveyed over 130 C-suite leaders and reveals a striking contradiction: whilst marketing gains acknowledgement as a strategic investment rather than mere expenditure, CMOs remain conspicuously absent from succession planning conversations.

Only 34% of surveyed executives consider their current marketing leadership as viable candidates for chief executive positions. This figure appears particularly stark when examined against the backdrop of Fortune 500 companies, where merely 58% maintain a marketing executive reporting directly to the CEO—a decline from 63% the previous year. The situation proves even more challenging in business-to-business environments, where this figure drops to 42%.

The research indicates that no current DAX CEO has ascended from a CMO role, with only two having clear marketing assignments in their career histories at Henkel and Puma. This pattern suggests a fundamental disconnect between perceived value and actual influence at the highest organisational levels.

Industry Context Shapes Marketing’s Strategic Weight

The study demonstrates that sector dynamics play a crucial role in determining marketing’s perceived importance. Consumer-facing industries such as packaged goods, financial services, insurance, media and telecommunications afford marketing greater prominence. In these sectors, 61.9% of executives support board representation for marketing leadership.

Industrial sectors present a markedly different landscape. In manufacturing and industrial environments, merely 27.3% advocate for board-level marketing representation. As one interviewed executive observed, economic pressure renders marketing expendable, particularly in regulated industries where economic moats derive from tangible assets rather than brand equity or customer experience.

The Finance Credibility Chasm

A pronounced gap exists between marketing’s perceived value and budgetary reality. Whilst 49% of C-suite leaders anticipate marketing budget increases, only 30% of finance chiefs share this optimism. Indeed, 40% of CFOs expect budgets to decrease. This disparity proves particularly acute when examining value perception: 48.5% of all C-suite executives rate marketing’s contribution as high or very high, yet only 20% of finance leaders concur.

Marketing investment as a proportion of revenue has declined from approximately 12% in 2016 to roughly 8% in 2025, according to Gartner data. Simultaneously, consumer attention has become increasingly difficult to capture, with time spent on advertising-supported media falling from 54.6% in 2021 to 51.4% in 2025.

The Path Forward: Five Critical Capabilities

The research identifies clear pathways for marketing leaders seeking greater influence. Strategic thinking emerges as the paramount skill, rated 6.6 on a seven-point scale, followed by leadership capabilities at 5.3. However, the role demands evolution beyond traditional competencies.

Firstly, marketing leaders must adopt an entrepreneurial business owner mindset, aligning marketing with broader strategic objectives whilst shaping business models from customer perspectives. As one executive noted, markets reward CMOs who demonstrate capability in running entire businesses rather than merely managing functions.

Secondly, stakeholder management fluency proves essential, particularly regarding profit-and-loss literacy. Marketing leaders must speak the language of finance, taking ownership of P&L responsibilities whilst actively contributing to revenue growth. Organisations where marketing operates as a collaborative partner to sales, finance and operations view CMOs more favourably as potential chief executives.

Thirdly, multi-functional experience and commercial acumen enable navigation of complex organisational dynamics. CMOs who rotate through various business functions and understand the complete spectrum of value creation gain credibility. Several executives noted that some CFOs intentionally spend time in marketing or other functions to broaden perspectives, suggesting the reverse should hold equally true.

Fourthly, storytelling capability remains crucial. Marketing leaders must win over both executive stakeholders and consumers whilst aligning internal and external narratives. This role as “Chief Storyteller” requires balancing creative solutions with data-driven decision-making, tying brand, performance marketing and customer experience into unified narratives across complex channels.

Finally, bringing customer voice into boardroom discussions proves indispensable. Marketing must not merely collect data but derive deep insights informing long-term differentiation strategies. CMOs who anticipate emerging customer needs and translate them into actionable product roadmaps earn recognition as strategic partners.

Technology as Transformation Catalyst

_{Top marketing leadership trends for the next year. Source: Roland Berger}

Artificial intelligence and data-driven decision-making have become central engines for growth. The research indicates that AI integration shows the largest expected importance increase (+0.6), followed by data-driven decision-making (+0.3). Marketing stands among functions most affected by AI transformation, with 64% of participants in related Roland Berger research identifying high automation potential.

However, technology governance often remains centralised at the top, with 54.6% of executives indicating CEOs make ultimate decisions on marketing technology budgets, compared with just 30% for marketing itself. Marketing leaders who anchor their technology agenda in strategic priorities rather than treating it as standalone infrastructure gain significantly more trust. Successful CMOs define promising use cases, take responsibility for customer data across entire lifecycles and align these efforts with broader business objectives.

The Customer Ownership Imperative

Perhaps most consistently across interviews, customer centricity emerged as fundamental. CMOs increasingly face expectations not merely to understand customers but to represent them strategically, embedding customer insights into product development, innovation, sales and service.

This requires moving beyond campaign execution to become the customer’s voice in board-level conversations. Marketing leaders must anticipate customer needs and orchestrate cross-functional responses, particularly in fast-moving environments. The future CMO orchestrates across functions, anticipates emerging needs and translates them into actionable strategies driving growth, ideally owning the entire customer journey and lifecycle, focusing on acquisition, customer success and retention.

The research paints a picture of transformation already underway. Whilst traditional marketing responsibilities such as brand ownership and creativity remain important, they no longer serve as primary influence levers. The future belongs to marketing leaders who integrate strategic leadership, technological fluency and business ownership—demonstrating not merely functional expertise but genuine capability to shape organisational direction and deliver measurable commercial impact.