Teradata and Forbes Insights Release New Study Exploring the Business Impact of Marketing Silos

INDIANAPOLIS, July 15, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Teradata Corp. (NYSE :TDC), the analytic data platforms, marketing applications and services company, and Forbes Insights, the strategic research and thought leadership practice of Forbes Media, today released a new research study for CMOs and other senior marketing decision makers worldwide titled, "Breaking Down Marketing Silos: The Key to Consistently Achieving Customer Satisfaction and Improving Your Bottom Line." 

In most enterprises, cross-functional alignment as a topic of leadership discussions is nothing new. However, despite all the attention companies pay to collaboration and cross-functional organizational work, research conducted last year by Teradata found that inter-departmental alignment still presents a particular challenge for marketing leaders.  In the global "Teradata Data-Driven Marketing Survey 2013," only 56% of the marketers surveyed said they routinely work with other functions as part of a regular process. A sizable group of marketers -- about a third -- just coordinate with other functions on an ad hoc, project-by-project basis. And 74% of marketers said that marketing and IT are not strategic partners in their company.

So what is preventing marketers from being more integrated with other functions?  Part of the challenge appears to be the very nature of the marketing function itself.  Silos exist within marketing departments in B2B and B2C companies primarily because most marketing departments are, by nature, segmented according to functions like advertising, public relations, industry/market research, digital marketing and employee communications, for example.  Marketing department silos can chip away at employee morale and create inter-office tension, and also undermine customer satisfaction, reduce efficiency, significantly increase cost and overall erode the bottom line. 

To share some leading firms' strategic and successful methods for overcoming the silo problem, Forbes Insights, in association with Teradata, interviewed leading CMOs from a cross-section of organizations including Citrix, Conversant, HubSpot, Juniper Networks and the Wi-Fi Alliance. The resulting paper is a blueprint -- a roadmap even -- for other CMOs and marketing leaders who want to build better-integrated marketing teams, increase customer engagement and turn bigger profits. 

The research explores some key questions, such as: Do marketing silos trickle down from the top?  How can CMOs resist the silo effect, particularly in an environment where everyone is competing fiercely for a piece of the marketing budget?  And how can the 21^st Century CMO create a cohesive, creative, and streamlined marketing department that delivers a better product and message to the customer? 

"Today's marketing leaders have many organizational and technological options to address the silo problem, yet truly rectifying it calls for taking a strategic, data-driven approach toward creating a culture that unifies decision-making by focusing squarely on the customer experience," says Teradata's Lisa Arthur, CMO, Marketing Applications.  "Tearing down the silos is a critical step for achieving success with data-driven marketing, and we hope this new research will help marketing leaders worldwide to put the wrecking ball in motion."

Free Research Report and Infographic Available

The 12-page "Breaking Down Marketing Silos" report and accompanying infographic are available from the Teradata website.  "Regardless of whether you oversee the marketing department of a global non-profit, a Forbes Global 2000 company, or a small startup, this research will help you think differently about silos, overcome their negative consequences and create a more cooperative culture that benefits both your company and your constituents," said Bruce Rogers, chief insights officer, Forbes Insights.  "We encourage CMOs and others in a marketing leadership position to learn from these important findings."

About Forbes Insights

Forbes Insights is the strategic research and thought leadership practice of Forbes Media, publisher of Forbes magazine and Forbes.com, whose combined media properties reach approximately 50 million business decision makers worldwide on a monthly basis.  Forbes research conducts research on a host of topics of interest to C-level executives, senior marketing professionals, small business owners and those who aspire to positions of leadership, as well as providing deep insights into issues and trends surrounding wealth creation and wealth management. For more information visit www.forbes.com/forbesinsights.   

About Teradata

Teradata (NYSE: TDC), a global leader in analytic data platforms, marketing applications, and consulting services, helps organizations become more competitive by increasing the value of their data and customer relationships. Visit Teradata.com for details.

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