Marketing is like a magnet to me. It’s where I started off my career, & though I now work in Change Management, I still find myself liaising closely with & partnering Marketing teams - Research, Brand, Customer, Media & Comms, Digital. My background & experience puts me in a unique position to understand the impacts, drivers & motivations of changes that impact Marketing teams.
But there’s one thing about Marketing teams that still surprises me - they restructure all the time. One Marketing team I was in restructured before I came, during my time there, & shortly after I left. Another restructured shortly after I finished a contract. Another restructured as part of an organisation-wide strategic operating model redesign. And I know of other Marketing Departments making changes too.
Why is Marketing constantly in flux?
Quite simply - because the market is forever changing. Marketing strategy, technology, tools & processes has to adapt constantly to keep up with volatility, global competition, & huge consumer, customer & media shifts. Digital, data & other massive disruptors move the goal post for marketing success, and Marketing teams have to keep up. The only problem is: as much as people love variety, they also need an element of stability. How do we help Marketing teams better cope with the inevitable continual redesigning of their teams?
Know thyself
Understanding the group personality of Marketing teams gives you an opportunity to better support them through a restructure. In my experience, here’s 3 key traits of most marketers:
Visionary - they love big picture, ambition & feeling like they are keeping up with the latest trends
Creative - they want things to sparkle & pulse, sound interesting, & feel exciting, especially for their customer
Passionate - strongly emotive, they are extremely proud of their work & feel the importance of what they do
Setting it up to switch them on
Knowing who marketers are means you can adjust your approach to help them feel positive through the restructure process.
Link it to your customer strategy & a bigger why - especially new global/industry trends with case studies of recent success
Show appreciation & gratitude - of their skills, experience & value the whole way through
Create a campaign - harness unique branding, theme & colour, & use powerful, positive language & key messaging to bring the restructure to life
Allow their voice to be heard - give multiple opportunities to get their feedback & include them in decision-making processes
Tap into a personal transformation - help them shift, grow, develop & express themselves, their emotions & their goals
I love Marketing still - the people, the work & the future. Marketing teams are filled with incredible talent, so supporting the engagement & wellbeing of yours properly through your redesigns is an opportunity not to be missed.
I'm Lata Hamilton - the Founder & CEO of Passion Pioneers, a Change Management consultancy specialising in digital transformation, operating model changes, and new ways of working and leadership.
Grab my free Creative Launch Ideas Guide with 53 ways to bring your next Change and Transformation to life - download it here.
And if you'd like my help with your next change or building leadership capability for your team, get in touch with me here.