* Sponsored post – this article was commissioned by Marketo to promote its research report, ‘The rise of the marketer’, conducted by The Economist Intelligence Unit. Marketing readers can download a complimentary copy of the report here » 

The majority of marketers believe their organisations must change the way they structure and design the marketing function over the next three to five years.

More than 80% of marketers say they believe there is need for change in the way their organisation’s marketing function is run, according to a survey by The Economist Intelligence Unit, commissioned by Marketo.

The research, published in a report titled ‘The rise of the marketer’, asked marketers whether they agreed they need to change their approach over the next three to five years to better support the business.

More than four out of five (81%) agree with the statement: “We need to change the structure and design of our marketing organisation to meet the needs of our business over the next three to five years.”

The results found this recognition is shared across a diverse group, including B2B and B2C, large and small organisations, CMOs and lower-level executives.

European marketers are most inclined to agree, at 90%, while North Americans are least inclined to agree: in that region 72% agreed.

The figure above, reproduced from the report, shows that the largest proportion of marketers (52%) fall in the group of ‘evolutionaries’, favouring incremental change rather than corporate revolutions.

The report suggest that those marketers at the top of the scale – who stressed the urgent need for change – are perhaps perhaps in organisations where marketing is seen as a purely creative function, or perhaps they have already made big strides in this area and are thirsty to capitalise on the momentum. The survey found that they are more likely to be seen as a cost centre and aspire to drive revenue, to be accountable for managing the end-to-end customer experience and engagement, to move aggressively to acquire talent and to actively leverage data and technology. It’s a change which suggests significant, unrealised potential, creating a need to move quickly.

DOWNLOAD: ‘The rise of the marketer: Driving engagement, experience and revenue’ – an Economist Intelligence Unit report, sponsored by Marketo, based on a survey that included responses from 478 CMOs and senior marketing executives worldwide, and a series of in-depth interviews with senior executives. Marketing readers can download a complimentary copy of the report here »