The marketing team keeps evolving, with many organizations adding emerging roles like Marketing Technologist or Data Scientist. Ready to meet the newest member of the team? Enter the Marketing Performance Management (MPM) Specialist.
MPM responsibilities like planning, budgeting, performance analysis and reporting, and marketing performance optimization have been part of the marketer’s repertoire for years. What’s new is that leading marketing-driven organizations have started hiring dedicated people to handle these MPM responsibilities.
There isn’t a consistent Marketing Performance Management job title yet, but forward-thinking organizations like Kimberly-Clark, Snapchat and UnitedHealth Group are hiring specifically for marketing budgeting, planning and ROI insights. This hiring trend signals an acknowledgement of the importance of ongoing budgeting, planning and measurement within performance-driven organizations.
At Allocadia, we see a dedicated MPM role evolving into an essential member of the CMO’s core team.
Three Key MPM Talents
From our perspective, there are three main skills critical to any MPM role:
- Technical know-how
- Financial competence
- Data analysis experience
During my tenure at IDC, I began seeing many large organizations hire marketing team members with finance, data analyst or technology backgrounds. In my experience, MPM players don’t come from a traditional marketing communications background.
Don’t get me wrong – there are a few “unicorns” who offer a rare combination of marketing expertise, technical savvy and analytical skills. But finding those individuals is challenging. We’ve found it’s more effective to bring in someone with financial knowledge and analytics experience, and surround that individual with people who know marketing really well or provide in-depth marketing training programs.
Given the different kinds and sources of data associated with analyzing Marketing Performance Management, flexibility and adaptability are also critical skills.
Building Relationships Across the Organization
Those with dedicated MPM responsibilities are powerful allies in building relationships across the organization – especially with the C-suite and finance.
Depending on seniority, the MPM position may or may not report directly to the CMO. The most effective MPM roles are centralized – able to expand across the organization while establishing a center of excellence for planning, budgeting and performance measurement.
The MPM position also helps marketers speak the language of finance and the C-suite, helping marketers confidently answer tough questions about investments and results and communicate marketing’s impact.
The Future of MPM Roles
As adoption grows, look for MPM job opportunities to expand across all industries. More job titles will officially include the Marketing Performance Management moniker, and job descriptions will have more uniformity.
Like the companies that began using marketing automation in the early 90s, companies hiring for MPM roles now are early adopters. Their forward-thinking investment in MPM represents what I believe will become an important and elevated role within the marketing organization. To succeed and have a seat at the proverbial table, CMOs will need to have a dedicated MPM role to support them in running marketing more like a business.
But don’t worry if you’re not there quite yet–you’re not alone. Most organizations are just getting started on their path to performance. A single hire won’t get you there in one day. Start by identifying your biggest pain points and fill those gaps first. Look to leading companies who are paving the way and learn from them.
If you’re mapping out your path to best-in-class marketing performance, we have tips and milestones for you. Read our Essential Framework for Optimizing Marketing Performance.