Question Page

I am actively interviewing for PMM opportunities and in at least 4 out of 5 scenarios hiring managers went ahead with internal candidates. What can I do to improve my interview performance?

An additional complexity in my case is that I need visa sponsorship from the company to take up any role.
Christiana Franson
Dropbox VP, Head of Product MarketingNovember 3

Ah, that's tough. When you're competing with an internal candidate, you're up against someone who has considerable product, market and organizational intel. They won't take a long time to ramp, and they have minimal cultural risk too. 

So - to counteract this, you have to come prepared - and I'm not just talking some Google research. I would develop a compelling outside-in perspective that is deeply informed. Prepare some provocative questions, have recommendations for positioning on the website and maybe flag some big market or competitive moves that inform your opinions. Bonus points if you can find a friendly inside the company to give you an inside scoop! As a hiring manager, I'd be looking for someone who surprises and/or impresses me, because it feels like they've been in our strategy meetings based on their unique perspective on an issue we're tackling.

Hang in there - there are a LOT of great PMM jobs out there. 

1481 Views
Developing Your Product Marketing Career
Thursday, January 23 • 12PM PT
Developing Your Product Marketing Career
Virtual Event
Ilana Sacknovitz
Cynthia Akupue
Flor Ortiz
+74
attendees
Top Product Marketing Mentors
Mary Sheehan
Mary Sheehan
Adobe Head of Lightroom Product Marketing
Amanda Groves
Amanda Groves
Enable VP of Product Marketing
Michele Nieberding 🚀
Michele Nieberding 🚀
MetaRouter Director of Product Marketing
Jeffrey Vocell
Jeffrey Vocell
Panorama Education Head of Product Marketing
Jackie Palmer
Jackie Palmer
ActiveCampaign VP Product Marketing
Kevin Garcia
Kevin Garcia
Anthropic Product Marketing Leader
Sahil Sethi
Sahil Sethi
Freshworks Vice President - Global Product Marketing
Susan "Spark" Park
Susan "Spark" Park
Monzo Director of Product Marketing
Christine Sotelo-Dag
Christine Sotelo-Dag
Close Head of Product Marketing
Candace Marshall
Candace Marshall
Zendesk Senior Director of AI Product Marketing