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Stop justifying marketing. Start architecting growth.
Too often, CMOs find they’re speaking a different language to the rest of the boardroom. Creativity and commerciality clash. Growth stalls. The exact opposite of what marketing leaders - and their CEOs - intended.
There is a better way. Marketing leaders should be the architects of growth, operating strategically across three critical dimensions: resonating with the audience, translating boardroom priorities, and driving growth ambitions. More impact. More outcomes.
For a decade, Emma Pownall was the only marketer in a high-performing tech company boardroom surrounded by leaders who didn’t understand marketing’s complexity or trust its value. Drawing on real-world examples of translating strategy into business language to secure investment, she shows marketing leaders - and their CEOs - how to elevate marketing’s strategic role, justify budgets and architect growth.
Emma Pownall is a strategy and marketing leader with 20 years of inhouse experience driving organic revenue growth and customer lifetime value.
For a decade, she was the only marketer in a high-performing tech boardroom, alongside leaders who didn’t understand marketing’s complexity or evolving role. With a background in engineering, Emma blends analytical and creative thinking to connect buyer needs with commercial outcomes. She champions human-first, AI-enabled approaches that preserve connection and cut through AI ‘marketing’ noise while translating strategy into business language.
Having elevated marketing from misunderstood to essential, Emma founded the Marketers Like Me community. Through her Make Marketing Matter newsletter, podcast and mentoring, she equips marketers with the frameworks and mindset to unlock marketing’s value to growth.
Emma’s leadership and innovation have been recognized through awards: Hubspot’s EMEA Impact Award (2025), Advocacy Academy’s AI Innovator finalist (2025), CRN’s Women in Channel A-List (2019), and Coaching Culture’s Authentic Leader (2022).
Foreword ix
Preface xi
Introduction 1
Part 1: The foundations of growth 11
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Architect growth 13
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The three dimensions of growth 29
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An architect’s mindset 49
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The toolkit for growth 63
Part 2: The five ecosystem principles 83
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Design in 3D 85
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Stand Out 99
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Shape for Humans 121
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Embed the Experience 147
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Build a Destination 169
Part 3: From principles to practice 189
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Master the principles 191
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Drive performance 209
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Nurture the ecosystem 231
Conclusion 249
Notes 257
The ecosystem approach 269
Marketers Like Me 285
Acknowledgements 287
About the author 291