Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Sales and Marketing Leadership

🎯 Role Definition

Senior Sales and Marketing Leadership roles combine strategic go-to-market planning with hands-on execution to drive predictable revenue growth, build brand equity, and scale high-performing sales and marketing teams. This profile is for leaders accountable for end-to-end revenue motions — from demand generation and channel strategy to customer retention and P&L ownership — and who translate market insights into measurable business outcomes.

Keywords: sales leadership, marketing leadership, go-to-market, revenue operations, demand generation, CRM, marketing automation, P&L.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Senior Account Executive / Enterprise Sales Manager
Head of Growth / Growth Marketing Manager
Director of Product Marketing or Director of Demand Generation

Advancement To:

Vice President, Sales & Marketing or VP Sales
Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)
Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)

Lateral Moves:

Head of Revenue Operations
Director of Business Development / Partnerships

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Develop and execute a comprehensive go-to-market strategy that aligns sales, marketing, product, and customer success priorities to accelerate ARR/MRR growth and expand market share.
Own the sales and marketing P&L: set targets, allocate budget across channels, monitor spend vs. ROI, and drive efficiency in cost-per-acquisition and lifetime value metrics.
Build, lead, and scale high-performing sales and marketing teams across SDR/BDR, Account Executive, Demand Gen, Product Marketing, and Content functions; recruit, coach, set KPIs, and run performance reviews.
Design and implement end-to-end demand generation programs (inbound, outbound, ABM, paid media, events, partnerships) to drive qualified pipeline and improve conversion rates at every funnel stage.
Partner with product and product marketing to define value propositions, positioning, pricing, packaging, and messaging for new and existing products to increase win rates and deal sizes.
Establish rigorous revenue forecasting, pipeline hygiene, and quota-setting processes; implement predictable monthly and quarterly forecasting cadences with leadership.
Drive sales enablement: create playbooks, battlecards, objection handling guides, sales training programs, and certification to shorten ramp time and improve quota attainment.
Own CRM strategy and adoption (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot): ensure data integrity, automate workflows, and provide dashboards for real-time visibility into pipeline and revenue.
Lead account-based marketing (ABM) and strategic account plans for named accounts and enterprise opportunities to drive multi-threaded engagement and expansion.
Oversee performance marketing (SEM, paid social, display, programmatic), SEO/organic growth, content marketing, and email nurture strategies to maximize marketing-qualified leads (MQLs) and lower CAC.
Manage channel and partner ecosystem (resellers, referral partners, strategic alliances): recruit partners, define partner programs, co-sell motions, and measure partner-sourced revenue.
Implement customer lifecycle strategies with customer success to improve onboarding, adoption, retention, upsell, and reduce churn through coordinated campaigns and playbooks.
Lead competitive intelligence and market research to inform go-to-market decisions, product roadmaps, and sales positioning; translate insights into tactical initiatives.
Plan and execute product launches and major campaigns across paid, owned, and earned channels with cross-functional launch checklists, KPIs, and post-launch optimization.
Set and track KPIs and dashboards (pipeline velocity, conversion rates, CAC, LTV, churn, average deal size) and report outcomes to executive leadership and the board.
Negotiate and close large enterprise deals and strategic commercial agreements, including pricing concessions, terms, and SLAs in partnership with legal and finance.
Drive brand strategy and thought leadership initiatives to increase brand awareness, trust, and inbound funnel quality via PR, analyst relations, and executive content.
Optimize the sales funnel: run A/B tests, refine ICP/segmentation, and iterate on messaging to raise win rates and accelerate deal cycles.
Leverage marketing automation platforms (Marketo, HubSpot, Pardot) to build nurture flows, lead scoring, and lifecycle orchestration that convert demand into revenue.
Champion cross-functional alignment rituals (weekly huddles, monthly GTM reviews, quarterly planning) to ensure shared ownership of targets and coordinated execution.
Create scalable sales operations processes: territory design, compensation plans, quota allocation, commission forecasting, and incentive structures to align behavior with company goals.
Lead pricing strategy and margin optimization initiatives, working with finance to model scenarios, test price points, and implement packaging changes that maximize revenue and retention.
Foster a data-driven culture: embed analytics into day-to-day decision making, partner with BI teams to surface insights, and prioritize experiments that materially move business metrics.
Drive international expansion strategies including localization, channel adaptation, regulatory compliance, and go-to-market sequencing for priority regions.

Secondary Functions

Manage vendor and agency relationships (creative agencies, media buyers, SEO consultants, demand-gen agencies), including contracts, SLAs, performance reviews, and budget reconciliation.
Support investor and board communications by preparing GTM performance summaries, pipeline health reports, and forecasts to inform fundraising and strategic planning.
Oversee marketing operations and data governance to ensure GDPR/CCPA compliance, lead consent management, and accurate customer segmentation.
Lead recruitment planning and succession management for key sales and marketing roles; partner with HR to develop career ladders and retention programs.
Collaborate with finance to build attribution models, LTV/CAC analyses, and long-range planning that tie marketing investments to business outcomes.
Coordinate events, trade shows, and executive roundtables to drive lead generation, customer engagement, and industry visibility.
Drive product feedback loops between sales and product teams to prioritize feature requests, roadmap items, and competitive gaps informed by customer conversations.
Support corporate communications and crisis management by aligning messages, spokespeople, and communication plans across revenue teams.
Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives: streamline GTM processes, reduce manual work through automation, and document playbooks for scaling.
Mentor high-potential leaders and run leadership development programs to build bench strength for future commercial organization needs.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Strategic sales planning and go-to-market design for SaaS, tech, or B2B enterprise offerings.
Revenue forecasting, quota setting, and pipeline management with CRM systems (Salesforce, HubSpot).
Marketing automation and demand-gen tooling (Marketo, Pardot, HubSpot Marketing Hub).
Account-Based Marketing (ABM) platforms and tactics (Demandbase, 6sense) and account orchestration.
Digital marketing expertise: SEO, SEM/paid search, paid social, programmatic advertising.
Analytics and BI skills: Google Analytics, Looker, Tableau, or similar for building dashboards and attribution reports.
Strong financial acumen: P&L ownership, CAC/LTV analysis, pricing strategy, and unit economics modeling.
Sales enablement and training methodologies, enablement tech stacks (Highspot, Seismic).
Channel management and partner program design, including co-selling frameworks and partner enablement.
Contract negotiation and deal structuring experience for enterprise sales and partnerships.
Marketing content strategy and product marketing: positioning, competitive differentiation, launch playbooks.
Event marketing and demand-generation through conferences, webinars, and field events.
A/B testing, conversion rate optimization, and funnel analytics to improve marketing and sales effectiveness.
Familiarity with compliance and privacy requirements impacting marketing (GDPR, CCPA).

Soft Skills

Executive presence and stakeholder management; comfortable presenting to C-suite and board members.
Strategic thinking with the ability to translate vision into operational plans and measurable KPIs.
Exceptional leadership and people management: hiring, coaching, coaching for outcomes, and talent development.
Strong communication skills: clarity in messaging, storytelling, and cross-functional influence.
Data-driven decision-making and experimentation mindset.
Collaboration and cross-functional facilitation to align sales, marketing, product, and customer success.
Resilience and adaptability in high-growth, ambiguous environments; prioritization under pressure.
Negotiation and persuasion skills to close deals and secure internal/external alignment.
Customer-centric mindset with empathy for buyer journeys and user research insights.
Continuous learning orientation and curiosity about market trends, channels, and technologies.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Economics, Communications, or related field.

Preferred Education:

MBA or advanced degree in business, marketing, or a technical discipline is preferred for senior leadership roles.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Business Administration
Marketing / Digital Marketing
Economics / Finance
Communications / Public Relations
Engineering / Computer Science (for product-led companies)

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

8–15+ years of progressive experience in sales, marketing, or revenue leadership roles; typically 5+ years managing cross-functional teams and P&L responsibility.

Preferred:

10+ years in B2B SaaS, technology, or enterprise sales environments with demonstrated success scaling revenue from early growth to scale.
Proven track record in building high-performing GTM teams, delivering multi-channel demand generation, and meeting ambitious revenue targets.