Most Important Skills for a Technical Marketing Manager at Edmund Optics
A technical background is helpful but not mandatory for a Technical Marketing Manager position; strong communication skills, both written ("understanding how to craft a story") and verbal, are paramount, along with the ability to adapt to diverse personalities and work styles. Developing these skills through practice is key to success in this role, as demonstrated by the interviewee's experience.
Technical Proficiency, Communication Skills, Storytelling, Adaptability, Collaboration
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Cory Boone
Technical Marketing Manager
Edmund Optics
University of Arizona, Graduated in 2016
M.B.A. from University of North Dakota
Biology & Related Sciences
Technology, Advertising, Communications & Marketing
Communication and Marketing
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient
Video Highlights
1. Technical background is useful, but not necessarily a specific degree. Chemical, mechanical, or optical engineering backgrounds are all relevant.
2. Strong written and verbal communication skills are crucial, including storytelling and crafting compelling narratives, even in technical contexts.
3. Adaptability and the ability to work effectively with diverse personalities are essential, requiring learning to communicate effectively in various ways and tailoring approach to individuals and situations
Transcript
What skills are most important for a job like yours?
For my role, a technical background is needed. Some knowledge is helpful, and it doesn't have to be perfect. For example, no one on my team has an optical engineering degree; they have chemical or mechanical engineering degrees.
But some level of technical background is really useful for understanding the subjects we're learning about and then communicating them to others. That's essential. More importantly, though, are communication skills, mainly writing.
You need to understand how to write effectively. This is something you can grow into if you have a good base understanding. You don't have to be an amazing writer from the start. I enjoyed writing growing up, but I wasn't always at the top of my English class. It's a skill that can be developed.
Then, being able to communicate means understanding how to craft a story. Even with technical marketing for engineers, you have to grab their attention immediately with a hook. You need to show them the value of what you're presenting and have an arc that keeps them engaged throughout.
It's still storytelling, even when explaining a very specific technical concept. So, writing, storytelling, and speaking are very important. You could have a career in this area solely as a writer, but being able to speak opens up many other doors. This includes virtual events or promoting yourself and what your organization is doing, both internally and externally.
So, written and verbal communication skills are very important. Something else you pick up through practice is learning how to work with a diverse set of personalities. I interact with experts across our company and people from other organizations, all with different personalities.
Understanding how to work with them effectively can be a challenge. Some people don't respond to email, so I know who I need to track down by phone. I also know for others it's more effective if I just swing by their desk, talk for five minutes, and take care of it. That's just something you figure out with experience.