Hey hey.

Finally made it to NYC yesterday after the typical deplaning saga.

If you know, you know. (But if you don’t know, follow along on IG for all of the craziness @chrismeade)

I must have some kind of curse with air travel because once again, I found myself back at the gate before ever leaving it. But hey, we rally.

Once I actually got to NY, the trip has been amazing.

Saw some amazing members, linked up with great friends, and squeezed in a few long-overdue convos. Grateful for this community every time I get to see it show up in real life.

On that topic, the whole reason I’m here is because The Founders Club is hosting a 50-person event tonight, then keeping the ball rolling with Othership tomorrow. Could not be more stoked.

Also: the studio renovations are officially underway, and our new Coral Gables BODY location is on track to open this summer.

More on that soon, but for now, let’s get into it.

Let’s talk about the moment founders dread but almost always face:

The CMO conversation.

Things aren’t working. CAC is up. Conversions are down. Sales feel soft, slack’s quiet. And you’re wondering if the person you hired to lead growth is actually doing anything at all.

The instinct? Cut ties. Move fast. Bring someone else in. And maybe that’s the right move.

But more often than not? It’s not a CMO problem, it’s a founder delegation problem.

Let’s dive in:

When You Hire, You Think You’re Buying Outcomes

Early on in your business, you wear every hat. Sales. Growth. Product. Hiring. Retention. It’s chaotic, but at least you know what’s going on. Then the business grows, and the advice starts pouring in:

“Hire people smarter than you.”
“Work on the business, not in it.”
“Buy back your time.”

So you hire a CMO. Big resume. Big vision. Big expectations. And a few weeks in, something feels… off.

You don’t love the ads. The strategy feels thin. Results are slow. You’re asking for updates and getting vague responses. You start feeling like you could do a better job yourself.

And maybe you could.

But here’s the question most founders never stop to ask: Did you actually empower them to lead? Or did you just expect them to mind-read your vision?

Because the difference between a high-performing CMO and a scapegoat almost always comes down to one thing: Alignment.

You Can’t Outsource What You Haven’t Owned

I’ve made this mistake. At CROSSNET, I hired too fast, delegated too hard, and expected someone else to figure it all out.

“Here’s our brand. Here’s the goal. Make it happen.”

What I didn’t provide:

A clear brief
Past learnings
Campaign data
Product roadmap context
Guardrails
Feedback cadence
KPIs that actually mattered

And then I got frustrated when the results didn’t come fast enough.

But here’s the thing: If you haven’t taken the time to clarify your vision, no one else can amplify it. Your CMO isn’t a mind reader. They’re a strategist. A communicator. A driver. But they can only drive if you’ve handed them the keys and told them where you’re going.

The First 30 Days Will Make or Break Everything

If you’ve hired someone to lead growth, here’s what should happen in their first month:

Mutual Download
You don’t just give them assets. You walk them through what’s worked, what hasn’t, and why.

Shared Scoreboard
Establish what success looks like. Not just revenue. Think CAC, retention, LTV:CAC ratio, MER, blended ROAS.

Feedback Loops
Weekly check-ins. What’s moving? What’s stuck? What do they need? What’s getting blocked?

Roadmap Alignment
What’s launching when? What channels are prioritized? Where’s the risk? Where’s the upside?

Clear Boundaries
What can they own outright? What requires your input? Where do they need to push you?

If none of that has happened, the problem isn’t them. It’s the onboarding.

Delegation Doesn’t Mean Disappearance

Founders love the idea of delegation.

“Let me hire this person so I can focus on vision.”

But vision isn’t static. It evolves. And if you disappear from the marketing conversation, the brand starts to drift. Your CMO might be brilliant. But if they’re building in a vacuum, they’re guessing.

Delegation doesn’t mean detachment. It means building a shared operating system so they can move independently, but aligned. And that only happens when you show up early, consistently, and with clarity.

What to Do Before You Fire

If you’re thinking about cutting your CMO, do this first:

Audit the brief. Was it clear enough to succeed?
Revisit the metrics. Were they reasonable?
Check the cadence. Have you been giving feedback?
Ask yourself: If they failed, did I set them up to win?

And most importantly: Have the conversation. Ask where they feel blocked. Ask what support they need. Ask what would change everything in the next 30 days.

If they don’t have answers? That’s a red flag. But if they do, and you just haven’t given them the time, clarity, or tools, they might still be the right person. Just not the way you’ve been using them.

You’re Still the CMO, Just Not in Title

Even when you hire out the seat, you’re still the founder. You set the tone. You define the north star. You cast the vision. So before you fire your CMO, ask yourself one thing:

Did I build a marketing engine, or did I hand off a mess and hope for the best?

If it’s the latter, fire the playbook first. Then decide if the person still fits the version you’re building next.

Keep building,
Chris