Lisa Hutt, one of the UK’s best known marketers, shares her insights with Marketingmoves
About Lisa Hutt
Lisa has recently joined Concur® as the VP for EMEA Marketing, after a successful career as a Senior Director for Northern EMEA and EMEA Campaigns at Salesforce.com and Monster. She’s been a UK Marketing Manager at Sybase and has also worked in Corporate and Services Marketing at Dell.
About Concur®
Concur® is a leading global provider of integrated travel and expense management solutions for companies of all sizes. Concur’s web and mobile solutions help companies and their employees control costs and save time.
(Sandra Malone, Marketingmoves Director of Marketing interviews Lisa Hutt)
SM: Hi Lisa. Thanks for talking to us today. You’re really well known in the IT sector here in the UK, tell us how you view the sector at the moment.
LH: Hi Sandy. I think the sector is responding to a tough economy. Companies have to do more with less, and marketing teams are at the forefront of all of this, trying new and creative ways to create the wow factor, increase visibility, generate better leads and more sales.
SM: That must mean that quite a different marketer needs to emerge as well.
LH: I agree – at one time, being great at the job might have been enough, but today when we hire marketing people we’re looking for skills that will differentiate our organisation and give us a competitive edge.
SM: How does marketing get to the ‘top table’ in an IT company?
LH: Marketing has always had an issue in that it hasn’t been accountable for revenue. The language between a business and a marketer has rarely been aligned. Today, to be at the ‘top table’, a Marketing Director needs the tools in place to analyse their contribution to the bottom line. They need to be able to talk the language of ‘money’ and to have robust metrics in place.
SM: Interesting, is there anything else you’ve noticed that’s in demand for today’s marketers?
LH: There’s an absolute requirement for domain expertise too. Every marketer should be able to talk knowledgably about their company’s value propositions, competently demonstrate products, and make an overall contribution to the industry.
SM: Is that what you’re seeing at the moment?
LH: Actually, no. in a recent review of 40 job candidates, I was surprised at how out of date their skills were. That’s what’s so fantastic about the IDM (The Institute of Direct and Digital Marketing). They offer seasoned marketers a wide range of courses and information to keep them abreast of what’s new in the market.
SM: How could a marketing professional impress you?
LH: I am impressed by marketing innovation but most of all, I like to see real evidence that they have ‘feet on the streets’ and understand their customers and the industry. I’d be interested to see how proactive they are at developing themselves – Do they visit trade shows and use quieter times to read research and watch webinars? Marketers who don’t put their heels down in anticipation of change and challenge, understand the market, the customer landscape and the competition, are at the top of the game.
SM: Finally, give us your view on what makes a great Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)
LH:The best CMO’s pave a way for their team to align with the business, learn, experiment and evolve.
SM: Lisa Hutt, thank you very much.
