I’ve spent my career building marketing and sales stacks, developing GTM strategies, training teams, and implementing processes that drive sustainable growth. If there’s one hiring mistake I’ve seen more than any other, it’s this: too many executives think a great marketing leader is a great marketing leader — full stop.
They fail to account for the business’s current stage. A marketing leader who’s perfect for a startup will struggle in a late-stage public company. And the reverse is equally true.
I’ve worked across the entire spectrum — from scrappy startups to massive enterprise brands — and I can tell you: not all marketing leaders are created equal. Hiring the wrong type of leader for your stage will slow you down, waste money, and create tension inside the organization.
In this article, I’ll break down the key business stages — Startup, Go-to-Market, Growth, Scale-Up, Market Leadership, and Public Company — and explain what type of marketing leader you need at each point. I’ll also call out some of the biggest mistakes hiring managers make — and offer advice to marketers looking to identify where they will thrive.
Startup Stage
At the very beginning, there’s one marketing hire: usually a generalist who acts as the entire marketing function.
I’ve been that person. You’re doing everything: developing the brand, setting up tools, writing copy, building web pages, testing ads, sending emails, and figuring out analytics. You wear every hat and shift priorities daily.
The ideal leader here is a Swiss Army knife marketer — fluent across disciplines, energized by chaos, and motivated by rapid learning. They are hands-on builders, comfortable without structure or resources.
This is not the place for a career enterprise CMO. They’ll drown in ambiguity. Nor is it the place for a team leader who expects an army of specialists. The hire here must be both a strategist and an executor.
Go-to-Market (GTM) Stage
Once the product is ready for a broader audience, the company enters the GTM phase. The priority now is building demand, testing positioning, and finding the channels that drive acquisition.
The marketing leader here remains extremely hands-on, but with a strategic focus. They prioritize early pipeline growth, refine their messaging, and validate repeatable programs.
I thrive in this phase: crafting a MarTech stack (CRM, marketing automation, content workflows), identifying quick wins, and training the first marketing hires. The leader must be adaptable, data-driven, and laser-focused on creating measurable results — fast.
A common mistake here is hiring a big-brand marketer with no early-stage experience — they’ll waste time on perfection when what’s needed is speed, learning, and iteration.
Growth Stage
Once product-market fit is clear and revenue is climbing, companies enter the Growth phase. Marketing shifts from pure experimentation to scaling what works, while still iterating and improving.
Teams typically grow to 5–15 marketers. Specialists emerge in demand generation (Demandgen), content, SEO, and marketing operations. The leader transitions from individual contributor to manager and coach.
Here, you need someone who can still get their hands dirty but is skilled at team building, process development, and data analysis. They love growth marketing and understand that scaling requires discipline, including good attribution, clean data, and clear KPIs.
I’ve seen companies stall when they keep their original jack-of-all-trades leader, who resists delegation and struggles to scale a team. The right leader balances structure with a growth engine that keeps running.
Scale-Up Stage
Late-stage venture, Series C/D, or pre-IPO companies typically enter the Scale-Up phase. The marketing organization is now large (15–50+), budgets are significant, and leadership expectations are rising.
The CMO or VP of Marketing here must transform marketing from an opportunistic function into an operational machine. They build repeatable processes, enforce standards, and ensure that every program has clear measurement and accountability.
There is still room for creativity, but it occurs within defined frameworks. Leaders must manage complex tech stacks, align closely with sales and product, and report consistently to executives and investors.
A frequent misstep is leaving an early-growth CMO in place too long, hoping they can keep doing what worked before. But Scale-Up requires a new leadership mindset: process excellence, cross-functional alignment, and operational rigor.
Market Leadership Stage
Many companies reach a Market Leadership stage — often post-IPO, post-acquisition, or after securing a dominant share in their category.
Growth is still a mandate — but it’s more predictable, measured, and strategic. The focus shifts to international expansion, deepening customer relationships, increasing lifetime value, and protecting share from competitors.
At this level, marketing becomes truly enterprise: multi-regional teams, complex reporting, brand governance, and deep integration with sales and product functions. Global consistency and operational excellence are paramount.
The marketing leader must be an exceptional executive: experienced in large-scale marketing organizations, capable of managing hundreds of staff, and adept at aligning marketing with overall corporate strategy.
This is not the time to hire a fast-moving growth hacker or a purely creative brand marketer. You need a seasoned operator who can lead through complexity and build a durable, long-term competitive advantage.
Public Company Stage
At full public company scale, marketing leadership shifts again. Compliance, corporate governance, and investor expectations dominate the landscape.
Marketing must serve multiple masters: customers, partners, regulators, and investors. Every initiative is thoroughly scrutinized for potential legal risks and impact on brand reputation. Approvals are layered. Timelines extend.
Here, the CMO is a board-facing executive, fluent in corporate finance, global brand management, and governance. They’re a master of orchestration — less about building net-new campaigns and more about ensuring the entire marketing org is delivering against strategic imperatives.
The leader must manage across regions, cultures, and complex stakeholder environments. They drive marketing’s contribution to shareholder value as much as pipeline or revenue.
Hiring Pitfalls: One Size Does Not Fit All
Too many companies post vague Head of Marketing roles that could mean anything, or they expect one hire to somehow embody the skills of all these stages at once.
Common mistakes I see:
Hiring a scrappy startup marketer and expecting them to lead a 100-person org
Hiring a corporate CMO for a Scale-Up that still demands entrepreneurial drive
Expecting a GTM marketer to handle the brand rigor of a public company
The solution is simple but often missed: define the role for your stage — and hire accordingly.
If you’re Series A, say so — and find a builder.
If you’re a market leader, prioritize executive depth.
If you’re a Scale-Up, seek process leadership and operational excellence.
And be honest about what you really need, not just what looks good on LinkedIn.
Tips for Marketers: Know Where You Thrive
As a marketer, you should also ask: where do I do my best work?
If you love chaos and invention, consider joining a Startup or a growth team.
If you love building teams and processes, Growth or Scale-Up.
If you love global leadership and brand, Market Leadership, or Public.
Be honest with yourself. Nothing burns people out faster than being in the wrong stage. Some of my peers (including me) are incredible builders, but we struggle in the enterprise. Others excel in boardrooms but falter in a scrappy GTM. Know your strengths — and lean into them.
Final Thoughts
Not all marketing leaders are alike. And the smartest companies — the ones that scale successfully — know this.
They hire leaders who match the needs of their stage, and they evolve leadership as the company evolves. They avoid the myth of the “perfect marketer” who can somehow thrive at every level.
And as someone who’s built marketing and sales systems across these stages, I can tell you — when you get this right, marketing is a growth engine. When you get it wrong, it’s a drag.
Hire smart. Align to your stage. And watch your marketing fly.
©2025 DK New Media, LLC, All rights reserved | Disclosure
Originally Published on Martech Zone: Not All Marketing Leaders Are Created Equal: Why Hiring Must Match the Stage of Your Business