Well, I can only write from my own experience. I've worked for several major campaigns in my life. In banks, in telecom operators. And it's almost always been like this. And where there was none, the campaign collapsed. Not in a moment, of course, because campaigns, like people, do not die instantly, but age and degrade. But as a result, it was.

Have you worked with very many CEOs at SMEs? Based on my experience it seems to match the description, by and large.