In this issue:
- In Our Opinion: Mobile Marketing Talent Needs – Immediate & Long Term
- Blog Roundup:
- Build Endurance for Maximum Performance
- Managing Change: Respond Instead of React
- Survey: The Results of Our Online ID Survey
- Career Announcements: Digital Consulting, Investment Banking & Financial Services
In Our Opinion: Mobile Marketing Talent Needs – Immediate & Long Term
by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White
We recently teamed up with Michael Becker, Managing Director, North America of the Mobile Marketing Association (“MMA”) to launch a new, industry-wide mobile talent (and skills) initiative which we would like to share with you since mobile is one of the newest, fastest growing areas of marketing and advertising spending in 2013.
Mobile Marketing Talent Needs – Immediate & Long-Term
Marketers know consumers’ attention is increasingly being drawn to their mobile devices (smartphones, tablets, etc.), but most companies are still in the early stages of mobile marketing strategy development. According to a recent CMO Council survey, only 16% of the top 250 marketers have developed a mobile marketing strategy including the development of full-time mobile talent/staffing needs. Most companies are still proving the ROI of mobile marketing investment and this has caused a hiring lag…and marketers are falling behind in building the dedicated mobile marketing organizations and recruiting/developing the mobile talent (in several functional areas) required for sustained future mobile marketing growth and success.
To address this “talent gap,” The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA – North America) is creating a Mobile Talent Task Force, led by Jeff Gundersen, CEO – Executive Connections LLC, to further the dialogue, research, and “best practices” sharing related to defining and filling the current and future mobile talent needs (and gaps) in this new, connected mobile marketing age.
EC’s Perspective
As a marketing specialized, boutique executive search and personal branding firm, EC has been at the forefront of mobile marketing and social media/marketing development over the past several years. Many consultants have been saying “This is the Year of Mobile” for several years, however, until recently the technology and scale was not in place to make this prediction a reality. However, the latest generation of smart phone technology, combined with the rapid market penetration of tablets, plus advances in big data/analytics, have formed the “perfect storm of opportunity” for mobile marketers. So the age of mobile marketing is here, and there are big opportunities for marketers, although not without risk since the consumer, who is in charge, expects a lot from marketers (relevance, context, privacy, security).
EC will be leading the initial meeting of the MMA Mobile Talent Task Force at the upcoming MMA-NY conference in NYC – May 8-10, 2013. The initial meeting will be from 8:50am-9:35am on Wed., May 8 and we are inviting CMOs and senior-level digital and mobile marketers to attend this meeting and join the Mobile Talent Task Force.
Current Industry Landscape
Based upon two recent surveys, CMO Council Survey (Oct. 2012) and Aquent – Forrester (“Planning for Mobile Marketing Success Through Smarter Staffing” – Nov. 2012), the current industry landscape is as follows:
- Consumer mobile adoption is outpacing mobile marketing talent investments.
- Consumers are rapidly flocking to sophisticated mobile devices and behaviors.
- Marketers are slowly evolving to support wider mobile programs, however, the vast majority (80%+) do not yet have a mobile marketing strategy so efforts are predominantly standalone.
- Companies are using a variety of talent resourcing approaches (contractors, freelance, agencies) as most are in the first 1-2 years of developing mobile marketing strategies and programs.
- Demonstrating the ROI of mobile marketing is the biggest challenge facing companies who want to hire, acquire, and build in-house mobile resources.
- The majority of companies are working with their traditional brand and digital agencies to help them integrate mobile into their overall marketing plans.
- There are no clear organizational models or set of responsibilities yet established for mobile marketing employees further compounding the mobile talent acquisition and development processes.
Mission Statement – MMA North America Mobile Talent Task Force
The MMA North America Mobile Talent Task Force mission will be to develop a robust set of industry guidelines and standards, and share mobile talent acquisition, development and organizational “best practices,” across all industry sectors and categories of constituents, enabling mobile marketers, media and agency partners, service providers, and enablers to identify, hire or acquire, and develop the talent pipeline needed to support both immediate and long-term mobile marketing needs.
Goals & Objectives
Specific MMA Talent Task Force Goals & Objectives will include:
- Assist in surveying and defining current and future mobile marketing organizational trends and models, mobile marketing positions/role descriptions, mobile education/training requirements, and other mobile talent-related requirements, and share these findings in MMA publications, white papers, and conferences.
- Assist all MMA constituencies in building the ROI case for mobile marketing strategy and hiring the full-time in-house mobile resources (in both the Marketing and IT areas) required to support the immediate and long-term mobile marketing needs.
- Promote mobile marketing talent hiring and development “best practices” among marketers, media/agency partners, technology enablers, and other MMA constituencies, supporting the rapid growth of mobile marketing as an important integrated marketing strategy for branding, customer acquisition, mobile commerce, loyalty and advocacy, and service.
- To empower new mobile talent acquisition and development innovations within the framework of guidelines and standards to grow the mobile marketing category as a whole.
Summary
We are inviting participants from several different constituencies (marketers, agencies, technology enablers, search/recruitment firms, education/training, other service providers) to join the Mobile Talent Task Force. If you or your company have an interest in this topic, please reach out to me at jgundersen@executiveconnectionsllc.com and we will schedule a follow-up call to discuss.
FYI, attendees to the May 8 Mobile Task Force meeting in NYC will receive a complimentary admission to the MMA conference (May 8-10) program.
Blog Roundup: Did you catch these recent posts on our blog?
Build Endurance for Maximum Performance
When we hear the word endurance, we usually relate it to the performance, stamina and the resilience of an athlete. As leaders and emerging leaders, we suggest you “hear” the word and take the same definition, but add the elements of bravery, prevail, and persistence.
Particularly in these challenging economic times, we need to create athlete-like minds AND bodies to sustain performance in the pace of the current marketplace, to be great role models, and to create outstanding results in every area of our lives!
…Read more
Managing Change: Respond Instead of React
The world of work as we have known it is changing and evolving at an extraordinary pace. The “rules” of the past no longer apply, and new “rules” are being written and rewritten all the time.
Changes can be unsettling, whether they’re potential or actual, positive or negative. You may be gearing up for a promotion/new position, staring at a wide-open field of new prospective clients, or launching new products and services. Or you may be hunkering down in the face of outsourcing, downsizing, mergers/consolidations, takeovers, and local or global competition. …Read more
Survey: The Results of Our Online ID Survey
In our recent Online Identity Survey, we gained further insights into the role your online identity plays in your ability to land the right career opportunity and your challenges in building out an online presence that is a match for your personal brand.
Thanks so much to those of you who participated and to the many who remarked that our questions were “eye-opening” and “thought-provoking.”
We will spotlight the prize winning recipient of our Online Identity Package Makeover (valued at $1,500) conducted by our personal branding experts, Lola White and Kirsten Vernon, along with the results of our collaboration in an upcoming issue.
Highlighted survey results: …Read more
Career Announcements
Managing Director, Alliance Sales Lead – NEW
Managing Director, Social Media Offering Lead – NEW
Managing Director, Investment Banking
Senior Executive – Financial Services
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