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You must be kidding me!  Your marketers are not performing!?  They spent how much on that last market research study????  They want how much for that next convention?   They want to pay an agency to do what??   Ever had a similar reaction?  Most executives have at some point … if you’re honest, it was probably sometime in the last 3-6 months.  It may be that your marketers don’t have the skills or the leaders they need to make the tough choices.  But it’s also likely that there’s a breakdown in the process somewhere.  Most people don’t intentionally screw up.  Most marketers are trying to do the best they can within the boundaries they perceive … or within the processes that have been established for them.  Sometimes those are excuses – but many times they are the perceived reality of corporate life.  Are your marketers clear on how your corporate or business unit objectives relate to the work they are doing – today – right now?  Have those objectives been translated into succinct and meaningful direction for your marketing partners and agencies?  Do your marketing leaders have the skills, experience, confidence, time, whatever – to recognize the key issues? To fix them or get help – quickly? To do that and keep the rest of the team focused on delivering what the customer really needs?  Is it clear what the customer ‘really’ needs – not just to you, or sales, or customer service – but to them? After all, they’re the ones that are ‘screwing up’ … aren’t they?