The growth math is broken
Discover what growing marketing teams are funding while everyone else keeps making cuts.
Hello Readers 🥰
“How are we supposed to hit a bigger number with the same budget?”
That sentence usually lands right after the target goes up and the budget stays flat. Suddenly, every decision becomes a tradeoff: pause the hire, cut the campaign, delay the launch.
AirOps surveyed 300+ marketing leaders to reveal how CMOs and VPs are funding growth when expectations rise faster than resources.
The 2026 Marketing Leaders Reality Index gives you three immediate advantages:
📊 Pressure-test your growth plan: Benchmark your resources against a market where 75.4% face higher targets, but only 43.0% received larger budgets.
💰 Build a stronger resource case: See what fully funded teams do differently and why they were 2.35× more likely to increase headcount.
🤖 Prioritize AI with clearer evidence: Discover where to invest as 86.6% prioritize AI search, yet only 23.2% feel highly confident measuring it.
Unlock the report now and pressure-test your plan before your next budget conversation.
The findings go beyond headline benchmarks. You will see why 47.7% are cutting agency or vendor spend, 40.3% have stopped backfilling roles, and growing teams are changing their budgets, staffing, and AI operations together.
The report connects budget, headcount, channel performance, and AI maturity, helping you pinpoint what is actually limiting performance.
Compare your plan with 300+ marketing teams and uncover the resource gaps your current reporting may be hiding.