AMA: Iterable Senior Director of Product Marketing, Surachita Bose on Product Marketing Career Path

Let’s talk about the path of the industry-specific PMM. I’ve had the privilege of leading both, industry-focused and full-stack PMM teams—at Twilio (deeply verticalized hybrid GTM that paired core PLG offering with SLG for enterprise), Iterable (industry-agnostic platform focus, selling to mid-market & enterprise), and previously at Uber and Intuit. Along the way, I’ve learned a few truths about what makes this path rewarding, challenging, and—let’s be honest—occasionally frustrating. Let's talk about the perks of specializing. First, addressing the obvious: if you’re working in a vertical like financial services, healthcare, or public sector, your industry knowledge is pure gold. Why? Because these industries are tough nuts to crack and have significant untapped TAM/SAM. Customers in regulated markets don’t just want to know that your product is good; they want to know that you “get it”—their pain points (ie mobile purchasing behavior of consumers in Retail, State & Federal budget allocations for digital innovation, health care data privacy considerations, blockchain implications for fintech), industry-specific use cases, compliance hurdles (HIPAA, FedRamp), why their day is so much harder than anyone else’s and ultimately the answer to "Why Solution X". That’s where you come in. As an industry-specific PMM, you’re not just writing messaging—you’re translating complexity into clarity. Your expertise makes you indispensable to GTM and Sales teams that are trying to land the pitch. You’re the one who can say, “No, you don’t talk to an insurance exec about ‘seamless digital workflows.’ You talk about mitigating claims fraud and cutting costs — and X, Y, Z”. But it’s not just about the messaging. Specializing gives you a front-row seat to high-stakes strategic opportunities. You’ll work closely with Sales & GTM leadership, partners, and enterprise customers, making “you” the person folks trust in the room. This visibility? Career rocket fuel. And for early- to mid-career PMMs, it’s a golden chance to sharpen your storytelling and executive engagement skills. You will be surprised how immensely valuable “solutions or platform storytelling” skills are in a world full of “product-first and feature-first” pitches as a response to the competitive cycle of "feature wars". But wait, there's a catch. For a company to move to verticals, you need verticals that are large enough to support a dedicated GTM strategy and distinct enough to justify dedicated resources. Be tuned to whether the company is serious about a verticalized business strategy. Do they have an industry SME to guide and accelerate the roadmap/GTM motion? Are they prioritizing building verticalized features/offerings? Do they have a partner ecosystem to enable penetration into verticals? A targeted & nuanced industry narrative can only get you so far - without compelling strategic investments to back up these claims, the storytelling loses firepower pretty quickly. Second, specializing too much as a PMM can feel like falling into the narrow-focus trap. Vertical roles are valuable, but they can be limiting if you don't build transferable skills. Can you adapt your vertical narrative to a different industry? Show you're not just a "public sector" PMM but a "Solutions-focused marketer" who can tackle any complex "verticals" challenge. Take a step back and craft your "one-to-many playbook" as you delve into industries & observe the patterns. Your expertise with “Solutions” can also make you a strong candidate for roles in strategy consulting or advisory capacities. Also, many industry-specific PMMs play a key role in adapting PLG strategies for enterprise customers where horizontal PLG motions may falter ensuring you’re at the forefront of evolving marketing practices. And finally, let’s not ignore the elephant in the room: budgets. When things get tough (and they do— as we've seen in 2022), companies often prioritize horizontal initiatives over niche teams. If you’re in a vertical-specific role during a downturn or acquisition, you might find yourself on the chopping block faster than you can say “cross-functional alignment.” Industry-specific expertise can sometimes oversaturate niches, leading to competition for roles within those verticals. In smaller or leaner organizations (especially startups), verticalized or solutions PMM teams might face challenges like insufficient resources, unclear role definitions, or worse, orphan teams without a product/business mandate (yes, this happens). Emerging trends in PMM/GTM motions: 1. PLG Meets Enterprise: PLG isn’t just for scrappy startups anymore. Enterprises are jumping on board, and PMMs who can marry PLG’s self-serve principles with tailored enterprise strategies are in high demand. You’ve got to balance technical product depth with customer empathy & industry nuance. It’s like juggling flaming torches—but with data. 2. Rise of Hybrid Models: PLG, SLG, ABM—welcome to the alphabet soup of modern GTM strategies. Hybrid is the name of the game, and vertical-focused PMMs are often at the heart of these efforts. Why? Because you understand how to sell both the sizzle (industry pitch) and the steak (platform & product capabilities). 3. The Push for Verticalization: Companies like Salesforce and Microsoft are doubling down on industry-specific solutions. If you can define and market vertical offerings, you’re playing in a space that’s going to grow. Bonus points if you can help customers navigate digital transformation— it’s like teaching them to surf the oceans when they’ve been accustomed to swimming in a pool. 4. Cross-Functional Leadership: As an industry PMM, you’ll spend a lot of time working with Sales, product, and Customer success teams. Your ability to bring everyone together around a shared vision is what makes you not just a PMM but a leader. Hybrid models are becoming the norm. Successful industry-focused PMMs have a mastery of both SLG (building enterprise trust through tailored value propositions) and PLG (scaling with high-touch, data-driven experimentation). Advice for Navigating this path: If I were mentoring someone exploring this path, I’d advise them to study companies leading in verticalized GTM strategies (Box, Salesforce, ServiceNow) and learn how their PMM teams contribute. 1. Find your Balance// Take a portfolio approach Specialize, but don’t pigeonhole yourself. Build a playbook that’s adaptable to different industries. You want to be the Swiss Army knife of PMMs, not just the bottle opener. 2. Show Your Impact Always connect your work to business results. Did you help close enterprise deals? Influence product strategy? Lead thought leadership initiatives? Make sure your résumé screams, “I don’t just execute; I deliver results.” 3. Invest in Transferable Skills Data-driven storytelling, stakeholder management, market research, competitive analysis —these are your evergreen skills. They’ll serve you no matter where your career takes you. 4. Build Your Network// Connect with PMM mentors Engage with PMM peers on platforms like Sharebird, PMA, other platforms and try to do this IRL. I find that I learn a lot more from actual PMM meet-ups through the real talk that happens in person vs TOFU style PMM advice on Linkedin. Learn from folks who’ve been down this road and can share real examples of what works and not. Having taken a portfolio approach throughout my PMM career (including solutions PMM roles), I believe that building a solutions PMM muscle in a specific vertical or two can be a game-changer. The key is to stay curious, adaptable, and nimble. At the end of the day, whether you’re marketing to fintech execs or healthcare providers, you’re telling a story that solves real problems. Do that well, and you’ll always have a seat at the table. Oh, and remember: every challenge is just another plot twist in your career. And who doesn’t love a good story?

I’ll be honest: cracking the code for being a high performer while maintaining work-life balance in PMM—especially in B2B tech—feels like hunting for a unicorn. When you find it, do me a favor and send me the coordinates :-) PMM roles often feel like you’re juggling flaming rings while everyone around you is throwing more into the mix— sales wants a deck yesterday, product needs messaging for a Tier 1 feature launch, feature adoption is lagging and PMM is tasked with cracking the code, and marketing has another integrated campaign pitch to review. Sound familiar? I can offer advice based on what I try to do to balance long tail, critical business priorities, impromptu executive asks, hiring priorities, team mentoring/feedback and cross-functional relationships. Generally speaking, WLB is a complex and elusive juxtaposition that depends on the stage of your career, the function you're in, the stage of the company you work for, and other macro factors beyond our control. The way to realize work-life integration (note I did not say balance) is a game of mastering 1. building capacity to take more on 2. maximizing flexibility and 3. being intentional & establishing boundaries - some days and weeks you get it right and some days you don’t. This is a never-ending tradeoff, and I don’t have perfect answers. But here’s my evolving set of principles that help me find my balance across my "life roles" as a PMM leader, mom/partner, friend, and mentor .. I'm a work in progress! 1. Work for the Right Company (and the Right Leader): Not all companies create the same environment. Some expect “heroics” as a baseline. If the fundamentals are off, no amount of heroism is going to save the day. Look for organizations that value sustainable productivity and have leaders who model healthy boundaries. I know, easier said than done—especially in today’s job market. When interviewing, watch for red or yellow flags like high turnover or overly chaotic structures. Ask hard questions about team culture and micromanagement. Glassdoor and Blind reviews can also be enlightening, though take them with a grain of salt. And if you find yourself in an environment where the fit is not quite there, overcome status quo bias and consider moving on to the next thing. Knowing when to persist vs when to pull the plug and having the wisdom & courage to make these assessments is key. 2. Ruthlessly Prioritize: PMM is a role where everything feels urgent, but not everything actually is. I use the 80/20 rule—spend 80% of your time on the 20% of work that drives the most significant outcomes (think launches, GTM strategy, and executive deliverables). Learn to Say No – or at least “not now.” Be transparent about trade-offs and get better at negotiating. If you're asked to do something that doesn't align with your team's priorities, explain what you'll deprioritize to take it on. I've found that while these conversations may seem hard, stakeholders respect honesty and clarity. 3. Automate and Templatize everything: Reinventing the wheel is the enemy of efficiency. I have a toolkit of “PMM ALL THE THINGS” (my Uber colleagues might chuckle reading this) of best-in-class messaging frameworks, launch plans, pitch decks and sales enablement materials - build, launch, repeat, iterate. These can save you hours of work and make cross-functional asks less daunting. In addition, use platforms like Notion, Asana, or Airtable to track deliverables, manage priorities, and automate workflows. A solid process cuts down on the chaos. 4. Lean Into Cross-Functional Partnerships: You don’t have to do everything alone. Delegate to teammates or lean on your cross-functional counterparts. Collaborate with sales enablement for decks, demand gen for campaign narratives, and product managers for technical insights. Build trust through collaboration and a strong reputation for delivering high-quality work on time and this will mean that stakeholders will trust you and be more patient when you need breathing room. Clarify expectations early, and get aligned on what’s needed and by when, vagueness leads to scope creep, and scope creep eats time. 5. Say No to perfectionism: You can’t be a high performer if you’re running on fumes. PMM is often about iteration. Launch MVPs in your work and refine them as you go. Done is better than perfect when deadlines loom. Step away during the day to recharge. Even a 15-minute walk can reset your focus. And when you’re off the clock, be off the clock (ha!). High performance isn’t about being busy—it’s about delivering value. If you’re producing high-impact work, you don’t need to put in 70 hours a week. Focus on being a strategic thinker who solves problems, rather than just an executor ticking off tasks. 6. Observe markers of burnout: I've gotten better at noticing the signs of burnout in myself over time, especially when I fall into a rut. I've observed this with folks on my team as well, it typically begins with feeling irritable or disengaged, which gradually snowballs into full-blown exhaustion and a nagging urge to move on—even if the job may be a good fit. What I realized is for me, it isn't about the hours I’m clocking but more about the balance between what I’m putting in and what I’m getting back. When I’m busy but feel a strong sense of progress, growth, or momentum, burnout rarely happens. The problem arises when I feel stuck—investing time and energy but not seeing meaningful returns in terms of momentum or fulfillment. What’s been helpful is taking quick, small actions to shift gears before I spiral further and shifting my perspective on things. These changes, no matter how minor, create an upward cycle that help restore energy and motivation instead of letting things slide downhill. High performance isn’t about being busy—it’s about delivering value. If you can prioritize, set boundaries, and stay attuned to your energy levels, you can thrive (in PMM or any demanding function) without burning out. And when all else fails, remember this: the flaming rings can wait. Quoting Dory from Finding Nemo, sometimes you gotta just keep swimming. (Oh, and when you figure out how to achieve true balance? Seriously, call me!)

I spoke (in my previous response) about underlying principles to achieve balance but your question is more about the day-to-day so let's dive into the tactical aspects a bit more here. For me, it is a fine dance that involves constant recalibration between deep work, relationship-building, meetings, refining customer & product sense, and calendar management - some weeks, relationship-building takes center stage; other weeks, you’re heads-down on strategy & deliverables - challenging and deeply satisfying when you nail it. The key is to stay aware, adjust as needed, and protect your personal time fiercely. The more senior you get in your career, the less flexibility you have just due to the sheer volume & complexity of stuff that comes your way but you certainly get better at making important tradeoff decisions and being firm with boundaries. TL/DR: Begin your day with intent, minimize meetings, spend time with customers, manage your own career, and balance time between doing/thinking, plus some other stuff. Some actionable things I do to optimize my days and weeks: 1. Be Intentional with my time. Time is the ultimate currency and I try to think of my day in "buckets": * Deep Work: This is where the "work" happens—think time, strategy, content creation, customer needs, analysis. I block uninterrupted time on my calendar for it. The prime real estate of my day goes towards this. * Meetings: Where collaboration and decision-making happens. The intention is to keep these focused and purposeful. * Relationship Building: Relationships are the grease that keeps everything moving smoothly. Whether it’s a quick Slack message to check in or grabbing a coffee, I make room for this intentionally. * Emails/Slack: Handle in batches, turn off notifications periodically. We live in a digital rabbit hole. If it is urgent, someone will find you. * Personal Time: Non-negotiable. But I will admit I'm not inherently good at this .. but getting better. 2. Spend time with customers: I prioritize making time for focus groups, advisory councils, and usability sessions with customers. Also, allocate time every week to looking at data (product usage, churn metrics, survey data, NPS scores, A/B test results) and I see it as an extension of getting to know customers at scale. Keeping my ears close to the ground with customers & data helps me formulate hypotheses for product development, marketing campaigns and strategic narratives. Finally, I spend time every week researching competitors and other products in the space/adjacencies to sharpen product sense and identify trends. 3. Be ruthless with calendar management/Time blocking: Your calendar is your frenemy so prioritize what matters. I will politely decline meetings without clear agendas or where my input isn’t critical, embrace async updates where possible. If it’s not on my calendar, it’s not happening. Use tools like "Pomodoro", Todoist, Flow to get stuff done. 4. Master Prioritization & Delegation: Not everything can be urgent or important—no matter how it feels. Every morning, I build my daily to-do list with: 1. What drives the biggest impact? 2. What can wait? 3. What can be delegated or eliminated? I've used frameworks like Eisenhower’s Matrix (urgent vs. important) to decide where to focus and how to allocate time. 5. Relationship building takes work: Building relationships and having personal connections isn’t separate from work— it’s a part of it. Some of my most productive conversations and authentic "unlock" discussions have happened during informal catch-ups or walks. I make time for small gestures — sending team kudos, giving feedback, or just checking in on how my peers and team are doing. Relationships pay dividends in trust and collaboration and make work truly rewarding. 6. Commit to learning: Make time to read. Learn more about the science and art of product, best-in-class storytelling, and building & scaling high-performance teams. Ask for feedback. Make learning a habit and make it non-negotiable. 7. Protect your Personal Time: No one will protect your time but you. This requires communicating boundaries clearly and sticking to them politely. Log off when you say you will (ha! chuckling as I'm typing this). I’m not perfect but I’ve learned that stepping away makes me more productive not less. Balance isn’t about doing it all perfectly; it’s about doing what matters most and letting the rest go. And finally, don’t forget to celebrate the small wins—sometimes, balance looks like finishing your to-do list and still having time to hit the couch for a Netflix binge or squeezing in that Pilates drill.

Being active on LinkedIn can elevate your visibility, but if it feels forced or inauthentic, it’s okay to approach it differently. Also, most discerning readers can see through it if someone is posting just to stay visible and in my opinion, it's much worse to show up with empty PMM platitudes and appear vapid. There are other ways to build engagement and "find your voice" and it can be done through thoughtful commentary on other people's posts, connecting with peers directly or reposting articles that truly resonate for you. Some people stand out in my feed simply by reposting — they don’t post much original content, but I’ll read what they share because of their caliber, thoughtfulness, and how discerning they are - I know if they endorse something it will be high-quality content. I'll say from experience that personal networking and your professional brand (people who know you and your work) is the strongest tool you have in your arsenal to have visibility into potential opportunities. Your work, portfolio and how you show up in interviews will speak louder than any LinkedIn activity — just make sure you're getting in front of the right people. Good luck!

Hmm, if you've done work on the brand side including gathering customer research and insights, you already know more about PMM than you think. Start by stepping back to understand PMM as a function more deeply. Explore its various facets—different PMM specializations, core skills, and how the shape of PMM differs between consumer vs B2B, startups vs larger orgs, PLG vs SLG, SMB vs mid-market vs Enterprise. There is a plethora of resources online on product marketing as a function - network with PMM professionals to understand their day-to-day and try to find the translation layer to represent your work from a PMM lens. Identify any gaps, focus on what you’re already strong at, and build from there. PMM is a relatively newer function and plenty of marketing and product professionals have pivoted to PMM by demonstrating their specialization and fluency in relevant PMM skills from adjacent functions and industries. If I were you, I would build a portfolio of projects to highlight (for PMM roles) your expertise with - 1. [Inbound] Understanding of Customer Needs & Pain Points 2. [Inbound] Research & Experimentation 3. [Inbound] Data-forward and data-informed strategy development skills 4. [Outbound] Storytelling (!!) - your brand-side experience gives you an edge here You may need to stretch to develop expertise in areas like GTM orchestration, sales enablement, or contributing to product roadmaps, but those can be long-term growth goals. Startups are usually more willing to make a bet on smart & adaptable folks who will learn on the job. Alternatively, consider entry-level PMM roles at larger organizations where you might have more structured learning and opportunities to get guided mentorship. Both paths have value and the choice depends on your style of learning and having a firm understanding of what kind of environment you'll thrive in.