CMOs Must Build AI Literacy and Restructure Teams Now
MarTech reports McKinsey and Gartner data showing most CMOs are excited about AI yet few are rewiring teams or addressing skill gaps.
A June 2026 McKinsey survey found that 96% of CMOs agreed they feel excited about the possibilities of AI at work, while only 28% viewed their companies as pursuing a fundamental rewiring of marketing teams and workflows, according to MarTech.
Limited Action Despite Excitement
The same McKinsey survey showed 80% of CMOs agreed that AI poses a threat to their job security. A June 2026 Gartner article stated that 66% of marketers say learning new technologies takes significant time away from day-to-day work. Gartner predicts that by 2027 a lack of AI literacy will rank among the top three reasons CMOs are replaced at large enterprises.
Gartner research also found that only 32% of CMOs say significant changes are needed to the CMO profile and skill set, and two-thirds do not think the skill gap is a problem.
Build AI Literacy
CMOs are advised to start with general resources such as the Marketing AI Institute, which offers free courses. They should then work directly with the AI tools their organizations use to develop informed questions for their teams.
Restructure Marketing Organizations
A May 2026 Gartner press release reported that CMOs are allocating an average of 15.3% of marketing budgets to AI initiatives. A June 2026 Boston Consulting Group publication found that 43% of CMOs report their AI investments in marketing exceeded $15 million this year, compared with 28% last year.
BCG stated that CMOs must reimagine the job to be done at every layer of the function in the context of what AI makes possible. Leading CMOs are creating new AI roles and teams, pairing humans with AI across analytics, marketing science, and engineering, and building smaller cross-functional teams.
Deliver Measurable Business Results
An April 2026 McKinsey article found that a hybrid human-AI workforce would deliver 10% to 30% revenue growth from hyperpersonalized marketing and 10x to 15x faster creation and execution of marketing campaigns. Humans would be freed to focus on higher-ROI tasks in data-driven marketing, media, and creative performance.
according to MarTech.
