Welcome to the New Era of Marketing Managers

It's a quite simple concept. In the past, marketing managers were the leaders and innovators, continually bringing new ideas to the table. They would be responsible for setting procedures for their team and holding each employee accountable for their piece of the puzzle. 

In 2018, this is no longer how marketing managers operate. Here are seven ways the job role has shifted: 

1. Today, each team member and department must work collaboratively to create an effective strategy. It no longer solely rests on the shoulders of the marketing manager.

2. Marketing managers no longer write the job description for their employees. Instead, employees come in and shape the position themselves. The marketing manager and human resources department simply evaluate the process and assess what is working and what isn't. 

3. In the past, marketing managers have been responsible for bringing new ideas to the table. Today, every member of the marketing team is directly accountable for generating marketing campaigns that are "outside of the box". 

4. Ensuring return on investment is the responsibility of both the sales and marketing departments. It is essential that these two teams work in conjunction for the best results. Marketing starts the conversation and sells the company's unique value proposition. The sales department is then responsible for using the value proposition to convince prospects your company is the best choice. 

5. The success of a business cannot fall solely on the shoulders of one individual. It takes teamwork to see the most effective marketing results. Regardless of the circumstances, it is the marketing managers role to ensure the team is performing. If they are not, it is the marketing managers job to evaluate the teams' efforts and make adjustments where necessary. 

6. Marketing professionals are typically experts in a particular facet of marketing whether that be public relations, branding, copywriting or digital marketing. While they develop briefs backed by their expertise in a specific sector, a marketing managers permission is only required if a second opinion is required. 

7. As marketing is a much more collaborative and teamwork driven department, performance reviews are held as a group evaluation rather than that of an individual. Reverse performance reviews look at each team member equally and keep the entire unit accountable for return on investment. 

Marketing Managers roles are becoming quite out-dated. In flat marketing department settings, collaboration is key, and work is equally distributed among team members. Furthermore, it is likely that individuals on the team know more about their respective area of marketing than their supervisors, so it makes it difficult for marketing managers to rate their performance without evaluating sales results.