I'm Lars Nyman, founder of Nyman Media, and a fractional CMO who's spent the last 15 years helping companies (from scrappy startups to multi-billion-dollar tech behemoths) untangle the spaghetti mess of modern marketing. The biggest leadership lesson is that you have to market yourself inside the organization before you can expect anyone to buy into your vision for the external brand. Most CMOs waltz in thinking their mandate gives them influence. It doesn't. Influence is earned the same way trust is earned in any high-stakes environment, and that is through consistency, clarity, and a little bit of charisma. I learned (the hard way) that if sales sees you as "just the brand guy," and finance thinks you're the department that spends money on vibes, you're dead in the water. No integrated strategy survives interdepartmental apathy. You have to lead, and lead beyond just the immediate marketing team. made it my mission to turn internal alignment into an art form. Weekly one-on-ones with sales and product. Monthly war-room style reviews with finance. I showed up armed with data, but spoke in plain language. You have to make marketing their problem too -- or better yet, their advantage. Leadership is NOT about giving inspiring TED Talks in company all-hands. It's about creating conviction. People don't follow titles, but they do follow clarity and results. This shift in mindset transformed how I lead. I now treat every leadership role like a dual campaign: one external, for customers; one internal, for hearts and minds. If the company doesn't believe in the brand, the market never will. Happy to refine for tone or cut for length -- or elaborate. Best, Lars Nyman, CMO www.nyman.media
One of the most impactful leadership lessons I've learned as a CMO is the importance of taking full responsibility and handling every problem—no matter how complex or stressful—with calm, persistence, and accountability. This approach has significantly shaped the way I lead and how my team perceives leadership under pressure. A specific example that really cemented this lesson was during a campaign involving an SMS sending platform. Due to a technical and communication mishap, a campaign was mistakenly sent out that wasn't supposed to go live. This error put the company at risk of a regulatory fine of up to $10,000. The initial reaction across the team was panic—understandably so—but I knew this was one of those defining moments where leadership is tested not by success, but by how you respond to potential failure. Instead of shifting blame or reacting emotionally, I immediately stepped in to assess the situation. I contacted every stakeholder involved, both internal and external, and ensured we had a clear and accurate understanding of what happened. I worked closely with legal and compliance teams to prepare a detailed, well-documented report outlining the timeline, technical causes, internal communication gaps, and—most importantly—the corrective actions we had taken. I also proactively engaged the SMS platform provider to explain the error and aligned our mutual responses to minimize impact. In the end, thanks to this structured and transparent approach, the situation was resolved without the company paying any fine. More importantly, this experience became a leadership benchmark within the team. They saw firsthand that even high-risk, high-pressure issues could be solved effectively when you take ownership, communicate clearly, and follow through until the very end. Since then, I've emphasized this mindset in our culture. It's not just about celebrating wins—it's about showing up when things go wrong. Leading by example in crisis moments builds trust, shows resilience, and inspires the team to adopt the same calm and committed approach.
One leadership lesson that completely reshaped my style as a CMO was: clarity beats charisma every time. Early on, I thought inspiring my team meant being super energetic and motivating. But I realized that no amount of energy could make up for vague direction. If people aren't crystal clear on what success looks like, they get frustrated, spin their wheels, or lose confidence. Now, I obsess over setting super clear goals, priorities, and expectations—and then giving my team the freedom to own how they get there. I lead with clarity first, inspiration second. How it shaped me: I spend more time on upfront communication and aligning everyone early, which actually frees me up to be a better coach and supporter later. It's not about firing people up with speeches—it's about giving them a real path to win, and then celebrating them when they do.
One leadership lesson that has deeply influenced my style as a CMO is the importance of listening—truly listening—to customers. Not just through surveys or sales calls, but by immersing myself in the language they use across forums, events, peer discussions, and support channels. Over time, I've learned that the most impactful campaigns aren't those built solely on creative flair or internal assumptions—they're the ones that echo the real concerns, vocabulary, and mindset of the customer. By designing our campaigns using the exact words and phrases our customers use, we not only align with their needs—we speak directly to their world. It's a simple yet powerful shift: from "messaging at" to "conversing with." This approach makes our content more relatable, reduces resistance in sales conversations, and accelerates trust-building. In cybersecurity especially, this matters even more. Decision-makers in this space are highly aware that there is no silver bullet solution. They've seen enough vendor hype to recognize when something sounds too good to be true. When our messaging reflects the complexity and reality of their challenges—acknowledging trade-offs, risks, and the layered nature of defense—it signals that we understand their world. It positions us not as a vendor pushing product, but as a partner grounded in real-world outcomes. Equally important is our discipline to continuously measure the impact of these campaigns—not just in terms of engagement or conversions, but through actual customer feedback. What are they resonating with? Where are they hesitating? Which words spark clarity, and which ones create friction? We use this feedback to fine-tune our messaging and approach, closing the loop between strategy and execution. This leadership lesson—listen deeply, design around the customer, and adapt continually—has shaped how I guide my team. It has created a culture of humility, curiosity, and accountability. Instead of pushing campaigns out into the market and hoping they land, we co-create with our audience. And that shift has made our marketing more human, more trusted, and ultimately, more effective.
I started a global branding and digital marketing firm 23 years ago. Before that I was CMO at 3 successful startups, all had positive exits. As a leader I always try to set the tone upfront with one rule, when in doubt over-communicate. Especially now that everyone is working in a hybrid environment it is key to set up regular e-mails, video and conference calls. At the beginning of the project do not make assumptions of what people from different groups want or know, just ask or send an e-mail. It will save you a lot of time, money and frustration down the road. Trust me. This comes from experience. Be a good listener and make sure you hear the others, their hopes, frustrations and intentions. If the lines of communication are open and everyone makes an effort to listen and be heard then collaboration will happen naturally and the information will flow. When you over-communicate and put employees first a well-informed employee can steer brand perception in a positive direction despite the uncertain future. Putting your people first is not just for large companies, small businesses have the ability to reach out to their employees and make a real difference too. Effective leadership communication is not just the message, but the method in which you communicate that matters. A simple e-mail may not suffice for a very large announcement. Communicating right now it is not just about giving updates (good or bad) leaders need to listen too for best results. In my experience great ideas can come from anywhere in the organization and engagement improves when people feel heard/involved.
The most important lesson is to listen first and decide second. Early on, I rushed decisions without enough input and missed key insights from the team. Now, I prioritize gathering feedback before setting direction, which builds trust and leads to better outcomes. Strong leadership isn't about having all the answers — it's about making space for the best ideas to surface.
When it comes to leadership style, there are two things I can think of that have impacted the way I lead. The first lesson was going through personality tests like Myers-Briggs, StrengthsFinder, or a DISC assessment, and understanding how everyone works and their way of managing stress or conflict. This lesson made major headway because the way I want to handle things could be radically different than that of my team, and if I push too hard, it only makes the issues at hand worse. I found it interesting going down this path and even thinking about the ways people like to communicate with one another, or how much encouragement someone needs so they feel seen and heard and could get the morale and momentum high in the department. The second activity was when working with the team and introducing OKRs, and allowing the team to come up with what they wanted to do, versus being told they had to do. There is something about giving people guideded control over their work and as long as what they come up with aligns with the core objectives and they have clear key results of how they are going to achieve said object, it is a win win for everyone and people feel empowered over their work and are more willing to work harder because they are doing things they picked and enjoy doing, plus they are on the front lines of their role and responsibilities so they should have a better understanding of what does and doesn't work.
One of the biggest leadership lessons I've learned is this: your team doesn't need a superhero CMO—they need a strategic compass with a human touch. Early on, I thought clarity came from having all the answers. Over time, I learned that clarity actually comes from creating space for smart people to think, speak up, and challenge the plan without fear. When I stopped driving everything top-down and started coaching from the side, our best ideas surfaced faster, and execution got sharper. Now I lead by framing the "why," co-building the "how," and then getting out of the way. That shift didn't just improve our outcomes—it created buy-in, trust, and a culture of shared wins. Turns out, the most magnetic leadership style isn't the loudest voice in the room. It's the one that listens hardest and clears the path.