Few senior-executive positions will be subject to as much change over the next few years as that of the chief marketing officer. Many CEOs and boards may think that their senior marketers’ hands are already full managing the rise of new media, the growing number of sales and service touch points, and the fragmentation of customer segments.¹ But as the forces of marketing proliferation gather strength, what’s actually required is a broadening of the CMO’s role. This expansion will encompass both a redefinition of the way the marketing function performs its critical tasks and the CMO’s assumption of a larger role as the “voice of the customer” across the company as it responds to significant changes in the marketplace.

Critical contributors to the broadening mission of marketers include the Internet and evolving distribution models, which are profoundly changing the way consumers research and buy products. In addition, third parties such as bloggers and the creators of user-generated media are having a greater influence on corporate reputations. Finally, marketers must help companies find and meet the unique needs of an ever more diverse and global customer base. Taken together, these forces are making companies transform not just the marketing function...