Marketing pros take the lead in driving B2B

Growth in B2B e-commerce requires the right mix of professional staff, with marketing leaders most responsible and accountable for effective strategies, Forrester Research says. Business-to-business e-commerce operations long rooted in the technology department at many companies in many cases are realigning as marketing-driven functions, resulting in new pressures to organize staffing across multiple groups of personnel, Forrester Research Inc. says in a recent report. “Key roles can make or break the B2B e-commerce initiative, and digital pros must get those key roles on board early,” Forrester says in the report, “Organize and Staff for B2B Digital Transformation,” by B2B e-commerce senior analyst John Bruno along with other Forrester analysts. The report adds that B2B e-commerce organizations must create cross-functional teams, combining the skills and contributions of customer service, sales, and marketing personnel along with technology and other departments.