Growth Activated | The B2B Marketing Leadership Podcast
Growth Activated is a podcast for B2B marketing leaders who want to elevate their marketing strategies, lead confidently, and drive real business results. Each episode offers actionable insights and proven frameworks to help you activate growth for your team, your company, and your career.
Growth Activated | The B2B Marketing Leadership Podcast
How to Find Your Ideal Marketing Role: A 4-Part Framework for Smarter Career Moves in 2025
#4: Feeling stuck in your B2B marketing career? Whether you’re debating between a fractional CMO role or a full-time marketing leadership position, this episode of Growth Activated is for you. Mandy Walker explores four key considerations for identifying your next big career move, including employment type, company stage, industry fit, and a company's marketing vision.
Mandy shares personal stories from her own career journey—navigating layoffs, exploring fractional marketing jobs, and making industry transitions—to help you approach your next step with intention and confidence. If you’re ready to activate growth in your B2B marketing career, grab a notebook and hit play!
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
- Why 2025 is the perfect time to rethink your marketing leadership career
- The pros and cons of fractional vs. full-time roles in marketing
- How to assess the right company stage: Build, Scale, or Sustain
- What to consider when transitioning to a new industry in B2B marketing
- How to evaluate a company's marketing investment, executive buy-in, and culture
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Chapter 1: Charting Your Career Path in 2025
Welcome to Growth Activated! I'm Mandy Walker, your host. As we step into a new year, there's no better time to reflect on where your career is headed and plan your next big move. This episode is dedicated to helping you figure out what's next in your professional journey—whether it's a new role, a new industry, or a complete career pivot.
With optimism in the hiring landscape for 2025, it's an exciting time to evaluate your options. According to a recent ZipRecruiter report, 76% of companies are planning to expand their headcount this year. This is great news after a couple of years marked by hiring slowdowns. If you've been sticking it out in a role that no longer excites you, now could be the perfect moment to make a change.
On a personal note, 2024 was a transformative year for me. I experienced my first layoff, took my first career sabbatical, and explored new ways of working as a fractional CMO and consultant. I gained invaluable insights about myself and my career priorities, and today, I want to share some of those learnings to help you navigate your own career decisions. Whether you're feeling stuck, burnt out, or ready to take on a fresh challenge, I hope you'll find value in this episode.
Chapter 2: Shifting Your Mindset
One of the things I challenge you to think about is your mindset around finding your next great move. When I was laid off and took my career sabbatical, I came back with a mindset of, “I just need to make money.” I interviewed for every role and took every client opportunity that came through my desk, whether it felt right or not.
While this approach accelerated my learning, especially around what I wanted to do and what I wanted to avoid, I realized that having an abundance mindset versus a scarcity mindset really impacted my experience. We all need to pay our bills—I get that—but I'm now very focused on aligning my career with my values and the season of life I'm in.
Are you in a season where you're looking for high growth and challenges? Or are you craving stability? Maybe you want something fun and new. Think about these things as we dive into the four key considerations I've pulled together today.
Chapter 3: Key Consideration 1 - Employment Type: Fractional vs. Full-Time
The first key consideration is what type of employment you want: fractional or full-time. I’ve experienced both this year, and here are a few themes I’ve noticed.
Flexibility
Fractional roles offer more flexibility. You control your calendar, location, and workload. I loved this. I took Fridays off for months and worked 25-hour weeks when I wanted to. That freedom was invaluable to me.
Risk
Fractional work is higher risk. There's no guaranteed income, no benefits, and you need to handle taxes and business development. On the flip side, fractional work can offer higher income potential through hourly rates that compensate for those risks. If you prefer lower risk, a full-time role may be better for you.
Work Style
Fractional work often involves managing multiple clients, which can lead to context switching and exhaustion. I learned to keep my client portfolio to no more than three clients at a time to avoid burnout.
Overall, think about your risk appetite, flexibility needs, and preferred work style when considering fractional vs. full-time work.
Chapter 4: Key Consideration 2 - Company Stage
The second key consideration is the stage of the company you're looking to join. I’ve broken this down into three stages:
Build Stage
This stage focuses on survival and finding product-market fit. It's a high-risk, high-reward environment where you’re doing a lot of product marketing and market identification. It's exciting but challenging.
Scale Stage
This is my favorite stage. The company knows it has a great product and is focused on growing predictably and sustainably. There’s more strategy involved compared to the build stage. This stage suits someone who enjoys operational excellence and scaling what already works.
Sustain Stage
These are large enterprise companies focused on staying relevant and efficient. The culture is highly strategic but can be slow-moving due to approvals and red tape. If you enjoy a sophisticated, methodical environment, this stage could be for you.
Consider which stage aligns with your personality and career goals.
Chapter 5: Key Consideration 3 - Industry
The third key consideration is the industry you want to work in. I spent over 10 years in B2B and B2C services before pivoting to B2B SaaS, which is much more cutting-edge in its marketing approach.
When considering an industry, think about:
- Investment in Marketing: Research how much companies in that industry typically invest in marketing.
- Marketing Style: Is the industry more traditional or digital-focused?
- Target Personas: Do you understand the personas you’ll be selling to? If you already know the audience, it can make transitions smoother.
Chapter 6: Key Consideration 4 - Company Vision & Culture Around Marketing
The fourth key consideration is the company’s vision and culture around marketing.
Executive Buy-In
Pay attention to how the C-suite views marketing. Are they engaged and supportive, or do they see it as a tactical support function? During interviews, observe the questions executives ask—this will give you clues about their mindset.
Reporting Structure
Who will you report to? The CEO? The CRO? This can indicate how marketing is prioritized within the company. Reporting directly to the CEO usually means marketing is seen as critical to growth, while reporting to a CRO can mean a heavier focus on demand generation.
Marketing Investment
What is the company’s current level of investment in marketing? Do they back up their words with budget and resources? If not, that’s a red flag.
Role Expectations
Is the role more execution-heavy or management-focused? Titles can be misleading, so clarify the composition of the role you’re applying for.
Chapter 7: Final Thoughts
Those are the key considerations I’ve learned over the past few years as I’ve navigated career changes. If you're thinking about making a move in 2025, consider:
- What type of employment do you want?
- What stage of company fits your work style?
- What industry excites you?
- What’s the company’s vision and culture around marketing?
2025 is looking bright. Don’t settle for a job that bores or burns you out. Take a risk. Remember, the average person spends 33% of their life working, so be intentional and strategic about your career.
Thank you for joining me today. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing or sharing it with friends. I’d greatly appreciate it. In the meantime, keep activating growth for yourself and your company. Talk soon!
