About Planning Center

Planning Center, established in 2006, has grown to support over 85,000 churches worldwide. As an independent company, we pride ourselves on being debt-free with no outside investors. Churches use our tools to communicate and connect with their congregations, organize information, and coordinate events. We’re committed to building great products that solve real problems using web and mobile products.

Our team enjoys the flexibility of remote work, utilizing tools like Asana, Slack, Notion, and Zoom for collaboration. We gather quarterly at our main office in Carlsbad, CA, fostering our work relationships.

About the Work

At Planning Center, the Product Marketing Manager connects what we build to who we serve. They possess expert knowledge about how our products fit into a competitive landscape and why our customers choose Planning Center.

Their experience in research, analysis, and positioning supports and informs the rest of the Marketing Team. As a result, they contribute to a set of marketing tactics that are targeted, incisive, compelling, empathetic, and effective. Through close collaboration with Product Managers, the Product Marketing Manager is ultimately responsible for driving successful go-to-market plans for new products and features as well as managing the full marketing lifecycle for assigned products/areas.

Responsibilities

Go-To-Market Strategy & Positioning

• Develop go-to-market plans that successfully bring new products/features to market and distinguish Planning Center from its competitors.
• Establish, evolve, and champion go-to-market positioning and messaging for assigned products.
• Manage the full marketing lifecycle of all products, from launch to adoption, retention, expansion, amplification, and (occasional) sunsetting.

Research & Competitive Analysis

• Conduct research and analysis through interviews and surveys to gain meaningful insights about Planning Center customers and product use cases.
• Leverage research learnings to create personas that inform marketing tactics.
• Create and maintain competitor profiles that inform the Marketing and Product teams about the competitive landscape, including feature-by-feature comparisons, messaging analyses, and competitive strategies.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Collaborate with Product Managers to maintain alignment on product vision, positioning, and research findings.
• Participate in all relevant Product- or Engineering-led meetings to advocate for Marketing priorities and ensure alignment across teams.
• Work with the Director of Marketing, Product Managers, and company leadership to identify metrics that indicate a successful product lifecycle.
• Act as a product resource for other Marketing Team members as well as a marketing resource for Product team members.

Content & Enablement Support

• Support the Customer Success team with enablement resources (e.g., brochures, one-pagers, slide decks).
• Create content strategies and support in content creation alongside Marketing and other departments, including email and ad copy, Planning Center University, and other areas as needed.
• Consult with the Director of Marketing and company leadership on PR-related projects to provide customer insights and communications expertise.

Product Knowledge & Advocacy

• Maintain high-level knowledge about all Planning Center products.

Who We Look For

You bring 3–5 years of product marketing experience in the B2B software space.

Beyond your impressive background, you also bring the following:

• Educational background in business, marketing, communications, project management, or another related field, whether through a degree program, courses/certifications, or comparable job experience
• Robust understanding of customer retention and buyer psychology
• Ability to craft compelling, benefit-oriented copy for digital and print marketing channels
• Experience conducting customer research, summarizing key learnings, and disseminating to internal stakeholders
• Comfort in customer-facing contexts, including interviews, conferences, etc.
• Experience working cross-departmentally with Support, Customer Success, Creative, Video, Product, and Engineering teams
• Experience developing, executing, and measuring go-to-market campaigns
• Proven ability to manage a complex software suite that includes multiple product lines
• Previous experience in a customer-facing role (e.g., support, sales) is a plus

The best fits for any role on the Planning Center team are people embodying our Core Values:

• Engage with Humility - We actively participate with openness and receptiveness. We are ready to listen, learn, and speak thoughtfully and kindly—regardless of skill level, expertise, or place on the org chart.
• Invest in our team - We give our time and energy to our team’s success—improving collaboration with effective communication, making space for diverse perspectives, sharing knowledge, and asking questions.
• Do Our Best Work - We aspire to do our best possible work—continually looking for ways to improve the quality of our individual output and contribute to our team's overall success and growth.
• Focus on Customer Impact - We advocate for our customer’s best interests in our decision-making—we can trace the goal of every project back to creating positive value for our customers.
• Think Holistically, Work Iteratively - We focus on taking practical steps towards our goals with an awareness of the broader context—thinking big, working small.

We believe the strongest teams comprise people with diverse backgrounds and experiences, and we are committed to cultivating that diversity here at Planning Center. We're building an inclusive, supportive place for you to do your best work.

The Hiring Process

During the hiring process, you’ll have a chance to interact with several members of our team. We strongly encourage you to bring any questions to anybody you interact with. You’re interviewing us as much as we’re interviewing you.

Applications will be accepted until 9AM PST on April 23, 2025.

Below is an outline of the steps in our hiring process.

• Step one: Apply with a resume, cover letter, and portfolio. 
• • Your cover letter should speak directly to your interest in this position. We want to know what got you into product marketing, how your experience has set you up for success in this role, what motivates you to serve our specific customer base, and why you want to join our team.
  • Your portfolio should highlight achievements in previous product marketing roles. We want to see specific examples of value added to your team, your products, and your customers. Your portfolio should demonstrate your grasp of go-to-market strategy, product positioning, and creative messaging. Applicants without a cover letter and portfolio will not be considered. Your portfolio can be attached along with your cover letter.
• Step two: A Blind Screen with our Talent Acquisition Specialist.
• Step three: A discussion with the Director of Marketing and a member of the Marketing team to learn more about your background and approach.
• Step four: A series of Zoom interviews with key team members.
• Step five: Showcase your skills through a take-home project.
• Step six: Review your assessment with the hiring manager and ask any final questions.
• Step seven: Pending all goes well, we'll extend an offer.

Note for Internal Applicants:

We’re excited that you’re exploring new opportunities within our team. As part of our internal hiring process, we want to ensure transparency for all applicants. When you apply for a role on another team, your current manager will be notified. This is simply to ensure awareness and allow for any planning as needed.

Additionally, as an internal candidate, please be aware that some steps in the hiring process may vary slightly to better align with your existing familiarity with our organization. Rest assured, we aim to ensure a fair and thorough evaluation while maintaining a positive candidate experience.

Requirements

1. Reside in the United States
2. Eligible to work in the United States (we are currently unable to offer employment to those with H-1B visas)
3. Be willing to travel four times each year to connect with the rest of the team (not during a pandemic)
4. 3–5 years of product marketing experience in the B2B software space

Benefits

We love our team. It’s one of the core pillars we work off of every day, which is why we take care of you as best we can. Here are a few highlights, but you can find all our benefits here.

Get paid: We pay competitive rates no matter where you live, contribute to your 401k, provide a charitable giving match of up to $2,000 a year, have a generous allowance for continued education, and offer a co-working stipend. The annual salary range for this position is $105,000- $145,000.

Be healthy: Generous paid sick time and vacation time, $200 a month for physical fitness and mental health, 95% medical & 100% dental premium health coverage.

Get out: Paid Fridays off in the summer, every other Friday off the rest of the year, a month-long sabbatical every five years, one week off between Christmas & New Year, one week off a year to serve with a globally-focused non-profit, and two weeks paid vacation a year increasing to three over time.