How Mature Is Your Marketing Team? A Framework to Find Out (and Level Up)
June 4, 2025
If you've ever found yourself asking, "How do we stack up against other marketing teams? Are we behind—or ahead—and what does great even look like?" you’re not alone. Whether you’re leading a team of two or twenty, the landscape of B2B marketing is more complex—and more strategic—than ever.
As a marketing leader who works with organizations in the messy middle of transformation, I’ve seen firsthand how important it is to benchmark performance—not just based on activity, but on maturity. Enter the Marketing Maturity Matrix, a structured framework that lets you evaluate your current state, identify areas for growth, and build a roadmap to evolve from reactive support to a strategic driver of revenue.
In a recent episode of Growth Activated, I sat down with Jim Irving, creator of the Sales and Marketing Maturity Matrix, and Michael Phelan, founder of GoToMarket Pros, to unpack how the matrix works, what it reveals, and how marketing leaders can self-assess their teams—whether they choose to go through a formal tool or do it internally.
Here are the biggest takeaways from our conversation—plus how you can conduct your own assessment and start leveling up your marketing org today.
"The start of any journey is knowing where you are," Jim reminded us. But in most companies, there's no easy way to benchmark sales and marketing maturity.
Think about maturity across key pillars like:
Ask yourself: Are we intentional, consistent, and effective in each area? Or are we reacting more than we’re planning?
✅ Why it matters: Knowing your maturity level across multiple dimensions gives you clarity. It helps you spot blind spots, uncover strengths, and start the right conversations internally.
Need help developing a marketing strategy that aligns with product and business goals? Read this next.
"Most teams are somewhere in the middle—not as behind as they think, but not best-in-class either," Jim explained.
Whether you go through a tool like Jim’s or assess your team internally, start with a simple 1-to-5 scale for each area:
1 = Haven’t started2 = Just getting going3 = Making progress but not consistent4 = Well-defined and managed5 = Best-in-class and evolving
Rate your team across the major pillars, and get input from sales, marketing, and leadership stakeholders. You’ll quickly see where you’re aligned—and where there’s a gap.
✅ Why it matters: Creating a shared understanding across functions helps align priorities and identify friction points.
"We’ve had companies scoring at the top of the chart in one area, and near zero in another," said Jim. That contrast can be eye-opening.
For example, marketing might believe their messaging is sharp, while sales says it doesn’t resonate. Or sales might rate their tech stack high, while marketing sees room for improvement.
✅ Tip: Put your scores into a simple chart or spider graph. Visualizing misalignment often sparks the most honest and helpful conversations.
For more on closing the gap between sales and marketing, check out this blog on B2B alignment.
"Marketing leaders today have to be part technologist, part strategist, and part storyteller," Michael said. "That balance is hard to strike without visibility into your gaps."
If your team is stuck in reactive mode—constantly producing assets, chasing campaigns, or responding to sales requests—it’s time to zoom out.
✅ Pro tip: Pick one or two areas to focus on improving. Think small wins first: a better brief, a refreshed positioning doc, a quarterly campaign calendar that aligns with sales.
If you're focused on developing stronger content and ROI, this conversation with Zoë Hawkins is a must-read.
"This isn't about adding tools—it's about knowing which levers to pull," said Michael. "Sometimes that’s people, sometimes process, sometimes tech."
Focus instead on using maturity gaps to drive smart resourcing:
✅ Action step: Use your assessment—however you conduct it—to guide your next budget or headcount request. Tie every ask to a clear business outcome.
"Sales and marketing are one engine," Jim emphasized. "If one’s revving and the other’s stalling, growth suffers."
Jim and Michael emphasize that successful orgs think of themselves as one revenue team. That means:
✅ Insight: Include at least one sales stakeholder in your assessment. Compare perspectives—and commit to improving one area together.
Looking to dive deeper into this mindset shift? This piece on CMO-CRO alignment breaks it down.
"Your 'B-level' maturity today could feel like a 'C' in six months," Jim noted. "Everything’s moving. You need to reassess."
A marketing maturity assessment isn’t a report card—it’s a snapshot in time. To really drive change, you need to revisit and re-rate your team every few months.
Markets shift. Teams evolve. Tech changes. Staying proactive means building this into your operating rhythm.
✅ Next step: Add a simple check-in to your quarterly planning. Ask: What’s improved? What’s still lagging? What’s next?
"Don’t try to fix it all at once," Michael advised. "Win early. Build trust. Then go bigger."
Jim and Michael agree: transformation happens in steps. Don’t try to become world-class overnight. Instead:
✅ Takeaway: A few early wins can change perceptions—and open the door to bigger conversations and bigger investments.
Transformation doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when marketing leaders get proactive, get strategic, and get aligned with their revenue peers.
Whether you use a structured tool or build your own scorecard, the goal is the same: clarity, alignment, and growth.
If you’re ready to lead your team from execution to impact, the journey starts here.
Let’s go get it.
👉 Curious to see how your team stacks up using the official framework? Learn more about the Sales and Marketing Maturity Matrix here.
I built the CMO mentorship I wish I had—because too many marketing leaders are figuring it out alone. At Growth Activated, we help B2B marketers bridge the gap between execution and executive leadership, equipping you with the strategic mindset, frameworks, and hands-on guidance to drive impact at every stage of growth. From scaling multi-million-dollar organizations to leading SaaS startups, I’ve been in your shoes—and now, I’m here to help you step into the marketing leader you’re meant to be. Whether you need a strategic marketing plan, expert coaching, or team training, Growth Activated gives you the tools to lead with confidence and deliver measurable results.
