Confluence of CIOs and CMOs

Being technical and introvert essentially marked the essence of a CIO whereas the CMO was judged by his creativity and extrovert nature. But with the passage of time and advent of technology, these traits have been amalgamated where each is required to possess the skill set of other, inclusive of his own which is an imperative requirement for the overall progress of the company, reports Forbes.

The analogous relationship between the CIO and the CMO cannot be discounted for as both seem to be drawn by a common criterion – technology. The expenditure incurred on technology by the CMO is overwhelming and in some cases, it is almost equivalent to that of a CIO. The primary reason for this can be attributed to the on-going trends in technology/marketing arena, i.e. markets of today are mostly technology driven.

“What’s becoming clear is that in order to stay relevant and remain competitive in today’s uber-digital and social world, the CIO and the CMO must work together. Today and in the future you’ll see this connection grow tighter than ever before,” said Jeff Schick, VP, Social Software.

As such, technology can play a pivotal role in bridging the gap between the CIO and the CMO. Social Software has apparently come up with an answer to foster a more amicable relationship between the two loggerheads.  It is being tagged as ‘IBM Web Experience Software Technologies’.

Schick remarks, “We’re addressing two big barriers for social business adoption: 1. managing the vast amount of available social data and 2. aligning teams across IT, marketing and communications to use this data and insights to better serve employees and customers.”

Usually, CIOs are found to be lagging in adhering to the technical requests of the CMOs as they are already crammed under the immense pressure of the management in meeting the deadline for projects at hand, that too with a limited availability of fund and resources.

With respect to that, IBM has invented a novel way of dealing with such impediments. It is called ‘IBM Customer Experience Suite,’ which is a part of their web experience software technologies and it empowers the CMOs in dealing with the changing business conditions to the extent that –
•    It enables the CMOs to post media assets on the web to facilitate awareness.
•    Alter data on the fly without bothering the IT.
•    Track and monitor activity on a website independently.
•    Integrate a formidable network to distribute information, irrespective of the channel.

CMO should pay heed to this innovative software in order to lessen the burden, both on himself and the CIO.

Although it is agreed software might not completely annex the prevailing hostility between the CIO and the CMO but it will definitely, up to an extent, soothe the adversity between the two executive heads. After all, it is prerequisite on the part of both the CIO and the CMO to bury their hatchet and work hand in hand to propagate the business and give rise to a new partnership so that the organization doesn’t bear the brunt of their not-so-personal vendetta.