Challenges and starting point —
While the business understood that marketing was important, its value and role were unclear to stakeholders and the team.
Marketing goals were often disconnected from business outcomes, and it was difficult to communicate their actual impact. The team remained stuck in a support role, primarily reacting to the loudest demands.
The marketing leader’s daily life was filled with constant firefighting and back-to-back meetings.
Every day was a race to solve urgent problems between business demands and team needs.
Without clear priorities, it was difficult to delegate responsibility effectively. The director spent their energy working ‘in marketing’ instead of ‘on marketing’.
While the budget was tracked closely, there was no transparency into where the team actually spent their time.
The journey from event organizer toward a business partner —
01 Phase 1: Fixing the foundation through vision clarification & translating vision into a concrete Business Plan
We worked with the VP of Marketing and the leadership team to define the core purpose of the marketing function. Through working sessions, we created a bold vision that united the team.
With this clear direction, we used The Mavenfirst Marketing Function Business Plan™ to connect the vision to the daily work of our 30+ person team.
As a result, the VP can share the value of marketing effectively, build stakeholder trust, and establish marketing as an important partner in our business journey.
02 Phase 2: Solving accountability through ownership and defined decision-making
Even with a clear vision, the team worked in a traditional "order-and-deliver" model. We needed to ensure the 30+-person team worked toward the new 3-year target.
To solve the issue of unclear accountability, we defined a transparent decision-making process.
03 Phase 3: Closing the transparency gap through systematic management rhythm
Previously, the VP of Marketing lacked visibility into where the team spent their time, making it impossible to prioritize or protect them from ad hoc requests.
Now, the VP leads the entire department through a comprehensive Management System that tells the story of the function’s performance through data.
04 Where the marketing function is heading next
The marketing leadership team is now focusing on communicating its value organization-wide.
The new clarity allows marketing to transform from a support function to a core business element.
With established accountability and transparency, they're ready to develop a long-term investment roadmap and explore new ways to enhance their impact on business outcomes.
RESULTS AFTER THE FIRST YEAR
RESULTS AFTER THE FIRST YEAR
From chaos to strategic impact
Unplanned work dropped from 65% to less than 5%, serving as the primary driver for improved overall performance.
Strategic alignment: 95% of resources are now directly aligned with set yearly priorities and business outcomes. By focusing on the right things, the function has significantly increased its commercial contribution to the organization.
This new clarity also enhanced team wellbeing and improved employee retention: the team’s largest uplift in eNPS, as clear expectations and autonomy allowed everyone to see exactly how their work contributes to business success.
For the VP of Marketing, the change meant moving from constant firefighting to proactive strategic leadership, with the confidence that the team can now plan and execute systematically.