CIOs need to stop trying to force CMOs to purchase technology through the IT department and focus on offering skills in purchasing and vendor management that marketers don't have, says Tourism Australia's CIO, Dave Rumsey.
CMOs are more business savvy than CIOs but that doesn't mean much if they don't have a good understanding of how to operate and use technology to their advantage, says IDC’s group VP executive advisory strategies, Richard Vancil.
The CIO-CMO partnership is one that's on the minds of many CIOs, and is seen to offer great potential. But it’s not always peaches and cream; there are challenges that many are still working through.
With sales and marketing departments having more control over the technology agenda in many organisations, CIOs need to think about whether they are putting in enough time and effort in their relationship with the chief marketing officer (CMO) as they would with finance and other business chiefs.
There’s a new synergy happening in the boardroom, and while some CIOs are left floundering by fast-shifting demands for them to become more agile, customer-responsive and creative, most are finding that they have more in common with their new best mate, the chief marketing officer, than they ever suspected.