84% of CMOs Report High Levels of Strategic Dysfunction

April 2, 2025

Eighty-four percent of CMOs report high levels of strategic dysfunction within their function, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc.

A survey of 403 CMOs conducted in October through November 2024 revealed organizations with high levels of strategic dysfunction are 36% less likely to report strong business and marketing performance. CMOs report multiple forms in which strategic dysfunction appears (see Figure 1).

“Strategic dysfunction is characterized by a state of confusion and conflict resulting from unclear, too numerous, or conflicting enterprise objectives that marketing must support,” said Amy Abatangle, VP Analyst in the Gartner Marketing Practice. “As a result, CMOs are unable to successfully create, communicate and execute effective marketing strategies.”

Figure 1: CMOs Reporting High Strategic Dysfunction
Figure 1: CMOs Reporting High Strategic Dysfunction

Source: Gartner (March 2025)

CMOs Prioritize Operational Needs Over Customer-Centric Planning

Strategic dysfunction also pulls CMOs’ focus inward, often at the expense of customer-centricity. Just 40% of CMOs take a primarily proactive, market-oriented approach to planning, and 61% percent of CMOs say their plans are primarily driven by operational needs such as prioritizing work.

Strategic dysfunction hinders CMOs’ ability to chart a course for marketing: a significant majority (94%) of CMOs say translating enterprise strategic directives into actionable marketing plans is a challenge.

“As CMOs are increasingly pulled into tactical work to meet competing stakeholder needs, they lose the ability to create bold, proactive strategies that anticipate customer needs at a time of unprecedented volatility and uncertainty,” said Abatangle. “CMOs must leverage marketing’s unique value as a sense-making function, synthesizing customer insights to help C-suite peers align on core priorities.”

Short-Term Marketing Strategies Harm Business Performance

For many CMOs, marketing strategies have become short-term, operational plans. Just 15% of CMOs plan beyond three years. However, short-term thinking comes at the expense of results: CMOs who plan out 18 months or more are 1.5 times more likely to report high marketing and business performance than those who do not.

“When CMOs are ineffective strategists, they not only compromise their influence in the C-suite, but also burden their teams with confusion and chaos,” said Abatangle. “CMOs must dedicate resources to strategic planning, work to enable a more market-oriented approach to strategy development and focus on long-term strategies alongside short-term plans.”

 

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