The CMO Archetype: Why Dazzle Doesn't Always Deliver

The Ideator vs The Achiever - the marketing leader conundrum

B2B company executives and board members are everyday consumers of marketing. They’re immersed in ads hawking the latest mobile phone, cologne, or drink. Trips through the airport have them surrounded by images of the hottest productivity software. Naturally they wonder: why isn’t that us? We must have the wrong marketing people. This leads them to seek out the most innovative and creative Marketing leader they can find. Enter the CMO Archetype.

The Ideator: Marketing's Alluring Dreamer

The Ideator is a whirlwind of creativity, constantly brewing the most dazzling marketing concepts. They sweep into boardrooms with presentations that sparkle—decks loaded with trendy buzzwords like "disruptive innovation," "digital transformation," and "omnichannel influencers." Their slides are visual symphonies, their pitches mesmerizing. They can spin narratives that make executives lean forward, eyes wide with possibility. Every meeting ends with a burst of excitement, team members scribbling notes, feeling like they're on the cusp of a marketing revolution.

The Achiever: The Quiet Performance Driver

On the flip side, The Achiever might not set the room on fire with theatrics and jargon-heavy promises. Their approach is methodical, almost understated. They speak in concrete terms—metrics, timelines, incremental improvements. The Achiever can piece together a series of interconnected, achievable steps grounded in the reality of budgets and resources. They understand that marketing transformation isn't about the most brilliant idea, but about the disciplined implementation of solid strategies.

Beyond the Pitch: What Really Matters

Naturally, the board and leadership team want to be dazzled. Honestly, who wouldn't? It’s energizing. It’s fun. These ideas are going to change the trajectory of the business, right?

The reality is, these ideas rarely materialize beyond the pitch or presentation. The Ideator is a master of energy, constantly generating brilliant concepts that never quite transition into action or fizzle quickly when they come up with the next big idea. They're the person who can describe the perfect marketing rocket in exquisite detail and the astounding results you can expect, but can't actually assemble the launch pad. Their strategies remain theoretical models. 

The Achiever knows that a 5% improvement consistently applied is more valuable than a theoretical 50% transformation that tickles the fancy. They build marketing engines that might not look sexy, but they run with remarkable efficiency. Their success is measured not in the brilliance of their initial concept, but in the incrementally increasing, yet tangible business outcomes they consistently deliver.

Balancing Creative and Actionable Marketing

There is certainly a place in B2B marketing for fun, creative, energizing. Is it possible to have a Marketing leader who can effectively blend the visionary qualities of The Ideator with the disciplined approach of The Achiever? Yes, but it’s not common. One estimate suggests 41% of people are left-brained logics, 27% are right-brained creatives and 32% have “golden brains” using both sides equally. 

The value of The Ideator is their ability to think big and bold. To go beyond what’s easy or possible; to really think outside of the box and challenge the status quo. But it also needs to be actionable and achievable. 

A CMO’s role is similar to a CEO’s:

• Set the direction: Define and communicate the company’s marketing vision and strategy.

• Build the team: Recruit and empower leaders and experts to execute the strategy.

• Deliver results: Ensure the company achieves its goals and creates value for stakeholders.

Setting the direction doesn’t mean having all of the answers. That’s why you’ve built a team of experts and empowered leaders with complementary strengths – the creatives who challenge the status quo and bring you some crazy-ass ideas, data experts who provide insights, and leaders who can connect these elements into cohesive marketing strategies that align to the overall business objectives and goals. And importantly, make sure you have all of the right people to bring that strategy to life.

More times than not, the Ideator doesn’t have the strengths to make all of that happen. You need The Achiever who recognizes their strengths and weaknesses and makes the magic happen in their less flashy, but more disciplined, results-driven approach.

So, board members and executives, the next time you're hunting for a Marketing Leader, look beyond the showy display. Seek the professional who values dreams and big ideas and can also methodically transform those dreams into tangible business results.