When you’re ready to hire your first PMM, a decision needs to be made before you even write the job description: where does the role report?
The honest answer is: it depends (see, told you). And that’s not a glib response, it’s a genuinely important variable that shapes everything from the profile you hire to the work you’ll ask them to do.
The Three Models
Reporting to Product: Common in technical founder-led companies that grow into engineering-driven organizations. The PMM here will be close to the build process, excited about being the “first and best tester,” and focused on practitioner-level content and technical enablement. If your primary audience is IT, developers or other highly technical buyers, this model often works well.
Reporting to Marketing: The right model when a company is ready to scale. The product has proven desirable, customers are willing to pay, and the goal is to grow the external community of champions and better enable sales. The PMM here will lean toward storytelling at scale, content that resonates broadly, and close collaboration with demand generation activities along with sales motions.
Reporting Direct to Founder or CEO: Usually seen in two scenarios: when the PMM being hired is a senior leader who will eventually build and expand the marketing function, or when there’s a desire for direct oversight of the message at a critical company stage. This PMM is a strategic generalist, someone who has “been there and done that,” is comfortable in senior environments, and can both do the work and hire exceptional talent as the business grows.
What This Means for Who You Hire
The reporting structure isn’t just an org chart decision, it directly shapes the profile you should be looking for.
A PMM reporting to Product will thrive if they’re technically fluent and excited by the product detail. A PMM reporting to Marketing will thrive if they’re a strong storyteller with commercial instincts. A PMM reporting to a Founder needs significant experience, high EQ, and the comfort to navigate uncertainty at a senior level.
For PMMs reading this: always ask about the org chart in interviews. Not just where the role sits today, but why it was designed that way, and how it’s expected to evolve. That context will tell you more about the role than the job description ever will.
The Right Answer
Where should your PMM sit? It depends on where you are in your maturity journey, how established your product is, what your customer base looks like, what the competitive landscape demands, and what you need your PMM to prioritize.
There’s no universally correct answer. But there’s almost always a correct answer for your situation, and it’s worth thinking it through before you post the role.
For the full discussion: Where Does Your First PMM Report Into? →