CMO recruitment agency and headhunters
your next CMO, in good hands.
We combine our data, our sector experts and our AI algorithms to identify the headhunter most relevant to your role, from CMO of a mid-market firm to marketing director of a large group.
- no setup fees, pay on hire
- guaranteed replacement
they hire their marketing profiles with muzzo
how do you hire a CMO through a recruitment agency?
A CMO in post already sits on the executive committee. Muzzo hands your search, from mid-market to advanced scale-up, to the headhunters who place this role most: they verify the budget and contribution to revenue. Fee of 5 to 30%, paid on hire. If they leave within 3 months: search restarted at no cost.
how it works
you only pay if you hire
01
you describe the role
Using the form above: the role, your company, your scope. The rest is scoped in your first conversation with the Muzzo team.
02
our data chooses the headhunters
Our AI picks those who have hired the most CMOs, from more than 2,500 selected headhunters.
03
you meet the best profiles
Approached and qualified by headhunters who specialise in marketing leadership. You choose who you meet.
04
you hire, then you pay
Not before. If the new hire leaves within 3 months, we restart the search at no cost.
they hired with muzzo
Muzzo's strength is the diversity of its recruiters: there is always someone listening to our needs.
With Muzzo, I get the reactivity of a marketplace and the quality of a search firm.
let's talk about your role
Antoine and the Muzzo team help you scope your role and choose the right headhunters. Describe your role in the form: we'll call you back to discuss it.
Antoine GigomasCEO and co-founder of Muzzo
one last question?
With Muzzo, you set the fee, between 5 and 30%, and you only pay it on hire: no deposit, no fixed fees. A CMO of advanced scale-up who is building the function and a CMO of a large group who leads four marketing directors don't take the same search. The fee follows that difficulty, and the Muzzo team helps you set it.
You have a double guarantee. If the new hire leaves within 3 months, for example because the real mandate doesn't match the brief, we restart the search at no cost. If no replacement is found within 4 months, we refund 50% of the fees. On average, 94% of Muzzo hires are still in post after 3 months.
marketing leadership headhunters are ready to start
A hire signed in under 26 days, paid only on hire.
the reality
a CMO is judged by what the executive committee decides, not by the campaigns
a CMO in post already sits on the executive committee
They drive brand strategy and the budget in front of the other executives. They don't answer job ads. A headhunter who knows this executive level knows when and how to approach them.
brand strategy doesn't boil down to a media plan
The role means choosing between multiple teams, defending a global budget to senior leadership and tying brand to revenue. The headhunter tests that arbitrage, not just past campaigns.
a hiring mistake costs an entire financial year
Mismanaged marketing budget, teams going in different directions, leadership doubting the contribution to revenue. The headhunter checks the budgets actually held before putting anyone in front of you.
the roles
the marketing leadership profiles our headhunters go after for you
From the executive committee of a mid-market firm to the top of a large group, each search goes to a headhunter who has already placed this profile.
CMO of advanced scale-up
They build a marketing function that barely existed: brand, acquisition, product marketing, research. They often come after a head of marketing, to turn it into a leadership role.
CMO of mid-market
They drive the brand of an established company, with multiple business lines or subsidiaries to represent with one voice.
CMO of large group
They lead multiple marketing directors of subsidiaries or brands, align the KPIs and sit on the group's executive committee.
marketing director on the executive committee
Whether or not they hold the CMO title, they have the same mandate: a global budget, multiple teams and a seat on the executive committee.
the method
a headhunter who places CMOs, not an agency that does everything
A CMO is judged by the executive committee, not a campaign. So the method starts from what the role actually requires.
we scope the executive mandate
Global budget, number of teams, expected contribution to revenue, reporting to CEO or board: the brief describes what the CMO will drive in front of leadership.
a headhunter who places CMOs
From more than 2,500 selected headhunters, your role goes to those who place the most people in marketing leadership.
contribution to revenue tested before interview
The headhunter asks the profile to detail an actual budget they managed and what the leadership team retained from it. Then they cross-check with reference calls to their former executive committee.
the figures
a CMO's salary in figures
source: Apec, Pay for managers in the private sector across 111 job families, 2025 edition, p. 87 (marketing leadership, closest family to CMO) (opens a new window), 2025 data
source: Apec, Pay for managers in the private sector across 111 job families, 2025 edition, p. 87 (marketing leadership, closest family to CMO) (opens a new window), 2025 data
source: Apec, Pay for managers in the private sector across 111 job families, 2025 edition, p. 87 (marketing leadership, closest family to CMO) (opens a new window), 2025 data
source: Apec, Pay for managers in the private sector across 111 job families, 2025 edition, p. 87 (marketing leadership, closest family to CMO) (opens a new window), 2025 data
hiring a CMO: what you need to know
why use a headhunter to hire a CMO?
The CMO drives brand, the global marketing budget and multiple teams in front of the executive committee. Good profiles are in post, busy with budget arbitrage, and don't answer job ads.
A headhunter who places marketing leadership knows how to approach them and ask the right questions: what budget, which teams, which reporting to the CEO. For more operational marketing, without an executive seat, see our head of marketing page.
CMO or head of marketing: where is the line?
The head of marketing runs their own campaigns for an SME or B2B scale-up, often with a small team. The CMO arbitrates a global budget among multiple teams (brand, acquisition, product marketing, research) and answers for marketing's contribution to revenue to the executive committee.
Many companies move from one to the other as they grow: the head of marketing builds a function that didn't exist, the CMO inherits it once it is established and weighs on group strategy.
how do you assess a CMO at interview?
The CV lists campaigns and budgets managed. The interview should show something else: the ability to arbitrate among multiple teams and defend that budget to an executive committee that doesn't speak marketing.
Ask for a real case: a contested budget, the arguments used, the decision made next. The headhunter does this first screen before introducing anyone, and checks in reference calls that the budget and teams were actually managed.
does a CMO's role change by sector?
Yes, markedly. According to Apec, the median for marketing leadership managers reaches 112 k€ in banking and insurance, against 84 k€ in retail (2025 edition). In banking, brand hinges on trust and regulation; in retail, on foot traffic and repeat visits.
Nail down the sector in the brief before discussing pay: it changes the mandate as much as the pay level.
CMO of large group, mid-market or advanced scale-up: what varies?
A CMO of advanced scale-up builds a function that barely existed, often after a head of marketing. A CMO of mid-market drives the brand of an established company, with multiple business lines to represent. A CMO of a large group leads multiple marketing directors of subsidiaries or brands.
According to Apec, line-management responsibility lifts the median from 78 to 84 k€, and managing own budget from 76 to 85 k€ (2025 edition). The level is set in the brief, not at interview.
your questions about hiring a CMO
The head of marketing runs their own campaigns for an SME or B2B scale-up. The CMO arbitrates a global budget among multiple teams and sits on the executive committee, with an expected contribution to revenue. For more operational marketing, see our head of marketing page.
Yes. According to Apec, marketing leadership managers with line-management responsibility earn a median of 84 k€ gross a year, with 80% between 53 and 141 k€. Those who manage nobody are at 78 k€ (2025 edition). State the number of teams in the brief: it changes the profile to look for.
Yes, but less than line-management responsibility. According to Apec, marketing leadership managers who manage own budget earn a median of 85 k€ gross a year, against 76 k€ without (2025 edition).
According to Apec, banking and insurance top the list, with a median of 112 k€ gross a year (80% between 58 and 181 k€). Retail is at 84 k€ (80% between 52 and 139 k€, 2025 edition). The gap stems as much from budget size as sector regulation.
Yes. Our headhunters cover CEO, chief revenue officer and communications director roles: three roles close to CMO but with distinct mandates. Describe the role in the form and we'll choose the right headhunter.