Successful CMOs have certain unique traits and they can broadly be divided into four categories. First of all is the expertise level. The modern CMO needs to have a basic grasp over technical terms such as hacking, coding or digital marketing. One needs to be design –focused and data driven. One also needs to be a lifecycle marketer so that as they understand the criticality behind acquiring customers and then engaging them to retain. Such CMOs also understand that marketing needs to be a multi-channel activity and not dependent on single point. The next category is leadership. Such CMOs are visionaries which helps them frame holistic a corporate strategy. They are top communicators and are intuitive about qualities of people. Instead of hogging the limelight, they believe in empowering team members. This allows them to act as facilitators for team members to excel at within a certain budget on specified resources. Next up, CMOs need to be business focused. They know the centrality of customers so develop plans accordingly that are revenue focused. They understand the complexities of cross-department communication so manage it accordingly. Such CMOs constantly believe in growth so keep innovating. Their decision making involves constant amplification around aspects such as company culture, brand stories, funding streams or technology scaling. The final category involves personality traits which start off with a basic curiosity that the CMO needs to display. The person must be humble, willing to take risks, possess an eye for detail and accountable for the overall results of the team.

Source:  http://marketingland.com/20-traits-successful-cmos-2-73629