Analytics, social media and digital strategy top the list of most-needed marketing skills in new Spencer Stuart survey

Despite the demand for new skills, a majority of U.S. marketing leaders surveyed say classic customer marketing experience is "as important as ever"

NEW YORK—Social media, analytics and digital strategy are the capabilities CMOs and senior marketing leaders most need to build or add in their teams to deliver on their companies’ marketing strategies, according to a new survey by Spencer Stuart. The survey of 207 U.S.-based marketing executives was conducted in conjunction with Spencer Stuart’s annual CMO Summit, being held today in New York City. This year’s event explores the topic of "Building the Right Team: How CMOs are Finding, Keeping and Motivating Talent in a Changing World."

More than half of survey respondents, 56 percent, said their marketing organization does not have the right team and skill-sets in place to deliver on the company’s marketing strategy and priorities.

Among the capabilities that marketing leaders say their organizations most need to add, metrics and analytics skills and social media experience topped the list. Forty percent of respondents said their organizations need metrics and analytics skills and 39 percent said social media skills. Other in-demand capabilities include digital strategy (35 percent); marketing planning and strategy (31 percent); mobile (20 percent); branding (16 percent), business intelligence (15 percent) and classic product marketing (15 percent). Respondents could choose multiple capabilities.

"Marketers across industry sectors face growing pressure to deliver innovative and breakthrough consumer experiences in a host of digital channels and social media platforms. As they strive to keep pace with the dramatic changes in the way consumers want to interact with brands, marketing leaders have to make important decisions about how to organize their teams — the capabilities they need to add or build and how to retain their key people," said Tom Seclow, who leads Spencer Stuart's Marketing Officer Practice.

The survey also asked how marketing organizations are going to address these gaps. Fifty-seven percent of respondents said their organizations are likely to hire from the outside to add needed capabilities, while 24 percent said they would build these skills through professional development efforts. Just over 12 percent said they would expand existing roles or transfer expertise from other parts of the company.

While the need to build capabilities in social media, mobile and other digital channels was a common theme, classic customer marketing training and experience remain highly valued, the survey found. Fifty-eight percent said traditional marketing expertise is as relevant as ever to their marketing organization, and another 14 percent of respondents said it was more relevant than in the past. A little more than a quarter of respondents, 28 percent, said customer marketing experience is less relevant than in the past.

Among other findings from the survey:

• One-third of the marketing leaders who responded to the survey reported that recruiting new team members with key skills was their primary leadership challenge related to their team.
• Thirty-four percent said assigning team members to special projects or providing additional training is the most effective way to retain top talent. By comparison, 14 percent and 9 percent of respondents, respectively, saw higher pay and promotions as the most effective retention tools.
• Driving top-line revenue growth was cited as a top priority for the marketing function by 60 percent of respondents. Acquiring new customers and growing market share also were top priorities, cited by 36 percent and 35 percent of respondents, respectively. In a similar survey in 2010, marketers said their top three priorities in order were: driving top-line revenue growth (51 percent); increasing brand awareness (42 percent) and acquiring new customers (29 percent).

About the survey

Each year, Spencer Stuart conducts a survey of U.S.-based CMOs and senior marketing leaders across industries in conjunction with its annual CMO Summit. Now in its ninth year, the CMO Summit is an annual gathering of top marketers to discuss the most timely business issues of the day.

About Spencer Stuart

Spencer Stuart is one of the world’s leading executive search consulting firms. Privately held since 1956, Spencer Stuart applies its extensive knowledge of industries, functions and talent to advise select clients — ranging from major multinationals to emerging companies to nonprofit organizations — and address their leadership requirements. Through 51 offices in 27 countries and a broad range of practice groups, Spencer Stuart consultants focus on senior-level executive search, board director appointments, succession planning and in-depth senior executive management assessments. For more information on Spencer Stuart, please visit www.spencerstuart.com.