Biggest Challenges Faced by a Senior Product Marketing Manager at Adobe
Ryan, a senior product marketing manager at Adobe, finds the biggest challenge in the role is the constant change and ambiguity inherent in the tech industry, requiring "being able to really focus and prioritize and get through the ambiguity". As a senior professional, the weight of decision-making and the need to strategically influence across many teams increases exponentially, making prioritization and impactful contributions paramount.
Ambiguity and Prioritization, Strategic Decision-Making, Cross-functional Collaboration, Influencing and Selling Ideas, Leadership and Seniority
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Ryan Khademi
Senior Product Marketing Manager
Adobe
University of Washington, Michael G. Foster School of Business, 2013
UCLA Anderson School of Management
Marketing
Technology
Product / Service / Software Development and Management
None Applicable, Worked 20+ Hours in School
Video Highlights
1. The ever-changing landscape of product marketing management and the increasing responsibility at senior levels.
2. The ambiguity inherent in tech roles and the need to adapt to unexpected events and prioritize tasks effectively.
3. The importance of prioritization, influence, and selling ideas within a large organization to drive impactful results and overcome the numerous opportunities available, which can also be challenging.
Transcript
Ryan, what would you say is your biggest challenge or our biggest challenge as a product marketing manager?
For all the reasons I mentioned, it's a great question. I love my role.
The biggest challenge is that it's always changing. As I get more senior, I'm taking on more responsibility, and it just gets harder.
When you start in product marketing management, you're often providing support. In a mature company, there's usually a process in place. You might be launching or growing a product, contributing to a foundational process and learning how to improve it.
As you become more senior, you need to guide that process and think strategically about the future. The biggest challenge for me is showing up to work and realizing that if I don't make the right decisions, it could drastically impact the business.
In tech, everything is ambiguous. I could open an article on The Verge, and my job could change drastically depending on competitor announcements, market shifts, or new trends like NFTs.
My challenge is being able to focus and prioritize, and cut through the ambiguity. There are so many things you can do every day, and you're the connective tissue across different teams.
It's about understanding what moves the needle, and being able to sell in ideas and influence people. This becomes harder in a bigger company.
The biggest challenge is knowing where to focus my time, how to cut through the ambiguity, and what needs to happen today to support the business versus what are nice-to-haves that aren't impactful. There's so much opportunity, but it can also be very challenging. However, it's a great challenge.