Why Go-to-Market Can’t Be Signed Away to Sales or Marketing

CEOs continue to be confused about GTM ownership. 

Part of the confusion is caused by our failure to parse and break down the conversation correctly.

Who owns Go-to-Market (GTM)? Ask a CRO, they’ll say “me.” Ask a CMO, and they’ll say, “Obviously, me.” Meanwhile, CEOs are busy “visioning” while sales and marketing build fiefdoms. 

Here’s the truth: GTM is too important to be left to any single function.

McKinsey & Company, Bain & Company, Harvard Business School, and GTM Partners agree. The 2010 playbook states that sales owns revenue, marketing owns leads, and product ships features. But it's 2025.

That growth playbook is siloed, slow, and stuck in time. You can expect 20% less revenue. We scapegoat the CRO and CMO when the real culprit was the legacy GTM strategy. 

We scapegoat the CRO and CMO when the real culprit was the legacy GTM strategy.

The new reality? GTM is a team sport that needs a cohesive playbook like the GTM Partners GTM OS. The CEO sets the vision and alignment. A cross-functional leader (COO, CGO, or a fractional exec) orchestrates holistic execution. Sales, marketing, product, and customer success are all at the table.

Why? The most robust accounts don’t care about your org chart; they are informed, practice team-buying, require cross-departmental decision support, and hate it when you waste their time.

They care about a seamless experience from first touch to renewal and expansion. When GTM is owned by one function, you get turf wars and missed targets. When the CEO owns GTM, you get alignment, velocity, and growth.

Stop building empires. Start building GTM teams. GTM is the most effective engine for durable growth, and it’s time the CEO drives. 

GTM Partners has proven executives, including me, who are ready to help you prioritize.

💙 Your Accounts!

PS. Contact me if you want a free GTM assessment to get started.