Title Readiness Rule
Earn the capability before accepting the executive title
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 99%
The Title Readiness Rule separates career progress from status. Before accepting an executive title, evaluate the real scope of the job and whether you have demonstrated the capabilities normally implied by that title. For a CMO, those capabilities include hiring strong people, designing teams, building scalable models, and producing outcomes through others. An inflated title at a tiny company can create an awkward later trajectory if the company stalls or replaces the leader, because the person's next suitable role may carry a lower title. The framework therefore prioritizes intellectually honest role selection, substantive problems, and opportunities to learn from excellent people. Titles become a lagging indicator of capability rather than a substitute for it.
Origin
Extracted from Marketing Against The Grain during Kieran and Kipp's discussion of premature startup CMO titles.
Core principles
- 01Titles should reflect demonstrated scope and capability
- 02Problem-solving creates career value more reliably than status
- 03Executive readiness includes hiring and team design
- 04Premature titles can distort future career options
- 05Intellectual honesty supports durable leadership
How to run it
- 1
Strip away the label
Evaluate the role's responsibilities, resources, and accountability without considering its proposed title.
Pro tip Write the job description using only outcomes and scope.
Watch out Prestige can hide a role that offers little genuine executive experience.
- 2
Test executive capability
Assess whether you have already shown that you can hire, design teams, build scalable models, and lead through other people.
Pro tip Use concrete evidence rather than confidence or aspiration.
Watch out Being an excellent individual marketer does not automatically establish executive readiness.
- 3
Examine trajectory risk
Consider how the role will be interpreted if the company grows, stalls, or replaces you.
Pro tip Compare likely next roles under several company outcomes.
Watch out A title that overshoots capability can make a later move appear like a demotion.
- 4
Choose the problems
Prefer the role that offers consequential, transferable problems and strong learning opportunities.
Pro tip Seek mentors and colleagues whose strengths expose you to the next level.
Watch out Do not trade durable learning for three letters.
- 5
Accept when scope and readiness align
Take the executive title when the actual role and your demonstrated capability credibly support it.
Pro tip Treat the title as a description of the work, not validation of personal worth.
Watch out False modesty should not prevent acceptance when the evidence genuinely supports readiness.
In the wild
A startup offers its first marketer the CMO title despite having five employees and no management scope. The marketer instead agrees on a director title, gains experience hiring specialists and building scalable acquisition systems, and later takes a true CMO role with evidence that matches the title.
→ The career narrative remains credible while the marketer develops the missing executive capabilities.
Common mistakes
Equating title with capability
A senior label does not supply the confidence, knowledge, or leadership skills required by the role.
Ignoring downside scenarios
Evaluating only the startup's best-case growth path conceals how an inflated title may affect later moves.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for startup marketers deciding whether to accept a CMO or similarly senior title at a small company.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal when a title accurately reflects substantial executive scope, accountability, and proven capability.
From the transcript
“do not take the title of CMO before you are ready for CMO.”
“Titles don't make careers, problem solved make careers, and that's what you should focus on.”
“I would argue that if you are chasing a title like the CMO title, you have a zero percent chance of being a successful leader…”
From the episode
Marketing Monopoly