AMA: Adobe Director, Product Marketing & Strategy, Gagan Mand on Building a Product Marketing Team

Its definitely a partnership. At a high level, PMM defines the “what” and Demand Gen drives the “how.”PMM brings the customer insight, positioning, messaging, and key narratives. Demand Gen takes that and translates it into scalable campaigns across channels. In terms of campaign ideas, it’s a shared responsibility: PMM often brings ideas rooted in product moments, launches, or market opportunities Demand Gen brings channel expertise, audience insights, and what’s working from a performance stan ...Read More

One of the top-of-mind challenges right now is the rate at which PMMs have to pivot. The market, customer expectations, and products are all evolving rapidly, and the pace of change keeps accelerating. PMM leaders have to guide their teams through that while forming a clear point of view with conviction - not over months, but in very compressed timelines. At the same time, rapid product evolution means constantly adapting strategy and shifting the GTM motion without creating confusion for sales ...Read More

I’m a big believer in aligning the product marketing structure closely with the sales organization. That creates clear ownership and a strong partnership with sales and ensures every PMM is tied directly to a business segment or vertical. Because of that, each team member operates with significant ownership and autonomy - they’re responsible for driving end-to-end outcomes for their area. So success starts with a clear, tangible business impact. I look at it following dimensions: Business outcom ...Read More

Marketing is a broad umbrella with functions like brand, demand gen, content, and thought leadership. Many of these are focused on campaigns, channels, or execution. PMM's role is fundamentally different, and they own the end-to-end business. Sitting at the intersection of product, sales, and customer, PMM is a strategic function that directly impacts business performance. Some things I look for: High agency & ownership: I expect PMMs to operate like mini GMs, owning business outcomes like a ...Read More

Great question. During your MBA, one of the most important things you can build is curiosity and I mean that intentionally. The pressure of grades and recruiting is real, but I personally learned the most in my second year, once I was placed and could focus fully on learning and exploring.Be curious about how technology is evolving, how great companies and leaders are making decisions, and how customer needs are changing. Don’t just observe - form your own hypotheses and actively test them with ...Read More