JD Prater

Now this is a fun challenge. Assuming you did your homework during the interview process, you should have a good idea of what you're getting into. That doesn't mean you won't find some skeletons lurking behind close doors. Rather you should understand how the team views product marketing, what kind of executive support you can expect, and their expectations of you. 

With that mind, here are a few key things I would want to accomplish after 90 days.

• Everyone knows what product marketing does and what we're responsible for. That means internal evangelism and roadshows. You will need to educate internal teams on product marketing and get everyone on the same page. Don't assume they have the same definition. You define and evangelism it with executive support.
• Get product marketing added to the cross-functional agenda specifically product and sales teams. It's crucial that you're seen as a leader within these teams.
• Find and knock out any quick wins. This will make you look like good and earn respect among other teams. People want to work with A-players and people that can count on to get shit done. 
• At the end of 90 days, you should be prepared to present a long-term strategy of how why we're gonna win. Depending on the company, long-term could be a year, 6 months, or a quarter. Whatever that timeframe is I would want to see a presentation outlining our go-to-market strategy.

Lastly, be sure to check out a new Sharebird podcast launching in late January 2021 called Thrills & Chills where I interview first product marketers and those who have established product marketing in company. 

I suggest combining pieces from my answers to these questions. 

1. What's your framework to prioritizing needs/deliverables when you're the first Product Marketer at a company establishing the function?  
2. How do you think about your first 30/60/90 day goals when coming in as the Head of Product Marketing in a startup that didn't have product marketing before? 

That's an interesting question. I see the PMM role as the GTM strategy which includes a success launch. And I see PMMs as the owner of product messaging. Not sure I can help here.

Now if you're looking to move beyond those tasks and elevate your role then that's different question with a different answer.

I like to start with the purpose of creating a 30/60/90 plan. I view the plan as a set goals to help me strategize my first three months in a new job. I use it to help maximize my work output and stay focused. That said, I have rarely completed any 30/60/90 plan perfectly. 

Working in startups means lots of change and course correcting. It also means you're going to learn new information and have to adapt to it. Therefore, I advise PMMs to create a lose outline rather than a follow a template line-by-line. 

Here's what I'm currently doing in my new role at AWS (reminder it's a big company).

1. 30 days
1. Meet as many people as possible. I met over 40 people in my first days. Some meetings where very fruitful others where one time meetings. But this allowed me to introduce myself, what I'm going to be working on, undestand their role, and how we will work together moving forward. 
2. Complete HR & IT stuff (payroll, setup computer, etc)
3. Get access to tools that I'll use everyday 
4. Set up 1:1 meetings with my manager and monthly skip-levels with appropiate stakeholders
5. Understand team goals and how I contribute to them
6. Ask lots of questions with fresh eyes
2. 60 days
1. Start to internalize how the teams operate and cooperate
2. Understand how the business generates revenue and the levers that can be pulled to influence it
3. Understand the different team's goals (how are teams measured and how is success defined)
4. Complete necessary internal trainings
5. Formulate and document gaps in current process
6. Ask to be added to standing meetings to get additional context
7. Keep meeting more team members
3. 90 days
1. Start working on a cross-functional project and/or take the lead a new one
2. Complete outstanding onboarding tasks
3. Keep meeting more team members

This can definitely be a challenge whether you're the first or tenth PMM at a company. I'm a fan of working backwards from the customer, rather than starting with an idea for the product team or from the sales team. From there, I like to ladder needs/deliverables up to team goals and business goals (impact). Then I'll stackrank them based on perceived effort of the deliverable. 

Essentially, I'm creating an 2X2 grid based on business impact and perceived effort to complete the task.

The first PMM must provide a ton of value for the company. Generally speaking, it's value measured by impact on revenue. They also need to get along with other stakeholders (sales, product, CS, marketing). Lastly, they need to have execuitve sponsorship. That's the trifecta all PMMs should strive for.