How do you prioritize your product marketing projects and still make time for ad-hoc requests?

That’s always a challenge in a resource-constrained world! My goal is to spend 80% of time on 1-2 big strategic projects, routine launches, process improvements, and leave 10%-20% of time for ad-hoc requests which I’ll prioritize based on some combination of interest in problem, development opportunity, and relationship-building.  During planning, I'll involve my key stakeholders (PM, design, and sales) into the process and walk them through how much PMM support they can expect. Things will inva ...Read More

The quarterly planning process is critical in order to set expectations up-front about what product marketing can and cannot tackle. Ideally as part of that process, each PMM leaves a bit of capacity unaccounted for (my goal would be 10-20%). This buffer should accommodate any last-minute emergencies, scope creep on the priority initiatives, and professional development. As a rule, I don’t encourage the habit of accommodating ad-hoc requests. It’s a slippery slope that leads directly into produc ...Read More

Ah, that's the million dollar question. At the beginning of each half we align with the leadership team which features and projects we're going to work on. This helps set expectations. Then I socialize with PMs what PMM is working on, which usually includes other projects besides feature launches. It's important for them to know what else you're working on to set expectations. Having said that, there's always adhoc requests and we either say no, and explain why we don't think supporting that req ...Read More

Great question and something I deal with on the daily!  Ad-hoc requests:  Set expectations: Be clear with the requestor on timelines (why you can't get to it immediately, etc.) and try to let them know when you can get to it.  Gauge importance of the request. If it's HIGH priority for your VP, CEO, etc. or something essential for a key initiative, then quite possibly you'll have to get to it sooner. Ask questions: On top of how important it is, ask how the request will be utilized, or who it's g ...Read More

There are many answers to this question depending on how large your team is, how much budget you have, etc.  Some pointers: Get clear on your goals for your product marketing team (even if it's just you) and how they ladder to the business goals.  Build an annual plan. It's surprising how much you can get done in a year. It's also surprising how little you sometimes achieve in a week. By having an annual plan you can chip away at your long-term goals whenever time allows. Take an honest look at ...Read More

We work with our PM team to create a quarterly roadmap. This helps us align with them on the major releases that are happening, discovery work we need to do, and align on key activities to influence growth.  We also then do a big marketing team-wide planning every quarter to ensure that, for example, those big product releases are also on Content & Demand Generation's calendar. We then have a ticketing system where folks can input requests. We review these on a bi-weekly basis to see if some ...Read More

I think a lot of it has to do with a combination of setting expectations and being realistic that important ad hoc requests will -- not might, but will -- come up.  The most important time to make sure you're in that mindset and proactively communicating with your manager, team, and stakeholders is during quarterly/annual planning. Think hard about what your bandwidth will look like and what you need to do to hold 10-20% in reserve (likely means saying no to a few projects some folks have asked ...Read More

This is a great question. I have at least a half-dozen executives whose interests I seek to manage with my workstream. I keep a running list of my main projects and bring it with me anytime I meet one of these execs. I show my priority among them which is driven by immovable dates on the calendar (events and launches) and then by seniority of who is asking for a project. If I get asked for something new I explicitly push the bottom project, and it is 50/50 if the ad-hoc request will be withdrawn ...Read More

This is a tricky one because you need to prioritize your work and hit your goals. At the same time, you want to be flexible if new projects come up that supersede what you’re working on.    There are ways to ensure you arrive at the best decision for the good of the company. At the end of the day, everyone is working to make the company successful, and if your teams are functioning well, people will get that. A win for the company doesn’t always mean a win for you, personally.    The best thing ...Read More