What does a part-time CMO do for a Milan company?

A part-time CMO runs your marketing one to three days a week. They sit in the management meeting, own the plan and the budget, lead the team and the agencies, and report to you on results. You get the judgement of an experienced marketing director for the days you need.

Milan is a specific place to do marketing. The city concentrates fashion, design and finance, hosts the Italian head offices of many international groups, and is the country's main start-up hub. Brand standards are high, creative agencies are everywhere, and good senior marketers are in demand. The weak point is often the link between brand and business: a strong image and a lot of activity, with no clear line to pipeline, sales or margin. That link is the job of a marketing leader.

iytro created the Part-time CMO model in France in 2019. It has more than 400 clients and is B Corp certified.

Which Milan companies does the format suit?

• Fashion, design and consumer brands that have grown through wholesale and retail and now need to structure digital, CRM and direct sales.
• Fintech and software scale-ups where the founders still run marketing and the sales team wants better leads.
• Italian head offices of foreign groups with a small local marketing team and no senior leader to argue the Italian case with headquarters.
• Professional services and B2B firms that have always grown by reputation and referral, and want a more predictable flow of new business.

If you have a team that executes well and only need one finished asset, such as a brand platform or a go-to-market plan, look at the On Demand offer.

How many days, and how much does it cost?

The format is simple.

• One to three days a week, embedded in your team. An interim version exists when a marketing director leaves.
• €1,100 to €1,500 per day.
• About €10,000 to €12,000 per month at two days a week.
• No long-term commitment. You adjust the number of days month by month.

The leader is matched to the problem. A consumer brand that needs to grow direct sales may need a CRM or growth profile. A B2B scale-up may need a product marketing leader. A group subsidiary may need a full CMO. Available profiles also include Brand Director, Content, Field and Partner Marketing and Marketing Ops.

How are on-site and remote days organised in Milan?

iytro has offices in Paris, Barcelona and New York, and none in Milan. Leaders come from Paris or Barcelona. Milan is a short flight from both, which makes regular on-site days realistic.

A pattern that works for a two-day engagement:

• On site in blocks. Two consecutive days in your Milan office at regular intervals, for the management meeting, team one-to-ones, workshops and agency reviews.
• Remote in between. A fixed weekly team meeting by video, shared dashboards, and a messaging channel for decisions that cannot wait.
• Extra presence at peak moments. Milan lives by its calendar. If your business depends on the fashion weeks, the design week or a major trade fair, plan the leader's on-site days around them well in advance.

Discuss the working language before you start. Many Milan teams work in English with international colleagues and in Italian with customers and agencies. Say which applies to you, so that the question is settled before the first day.

The first month deserves more time on site than the following ones. A leader who has met your team, your customers and your agencies in person works faster from a distance afterwards.

How does it start?

Three steps.

• A conversation about the problem. Describe the business situation. The profile of the leader follows from it.
• A diagnosis. During the first weeks, the leader reviews customers, positioning, channels, budget and team, and proposes a short list of priorities.
• Execution and monthly review. The leader runs the plan with your team. Each month you decide whether to keep, raise or reduce the number of days.

For examples, see the Japhy case study and the Coinhouse case study.

Where to read next?

If your company is based outside Milan or sells across the country, the page on the part-time CMO in Italy covers the wider picture. If you are still weighing this option against a full-time hire or an agency, read the page on the fractional CMO in Milan.