I spoke to the Ladies That UX meetup group about career transitions - specifically, my moves from publishing >> to marketing content strategy >> to UX content strategy >> and ultimately to product management. For each role I highlighted the top lessons and skills I learned, plus how I knew it was time to move to the next role.

1. Career transitions
Danielle Martin | Product Manager, Avvo
Ladies that UX | May 2018

2. Danielle Martin
Product Manager, Avvo
Connect with me!
Email: dmartin@avvo.com
LinkedIn: /daniellempost/
Connect with Avvo!
● UX jobs (Avvo Careers)
● UX & UXR internships (Fall 2018)

3. Projectm
anager
M
arketing
contentstrategyUX
contentstrategy
TO
DAY:
Productm
anager

4. I hope you learn:
For each of my roles…
● Titles
● (vs.) the actual work
● Top skills and learnings
● Why I decided to transition to the next role
● How I made the move

5. I’d love your feedback!
https://tinyurl.com/yac9v26h

6. Projectm
anager
M
arketing
contentstrategyUX
contentstrategy
TO
DAY:
Productm
anager

7. Penguin Group: Project Management
Titles: Assistant, Senior Coordinator, Assistant Manager
The work: Project management for a speakers bureau,
international websites and apps.
Top skills / learnings: Old-school professional etiquette,
juggling many projects, working with big personalities,
working across departments / vendors.

8. Penguin Group: Project Management
Why I wanted to transition: NYC → Seattle. Salary > living
expenses. Job at a “real” tech company.
How I did it: Geekwire-following, LinkedIn cold-calling,
family-friend intro, scrappy jack of all trades experience.

9. M
arketing
contentstrategyUX
contentstrategy
TO
DAY:
Productm
anager
Projectm
anager
Get people the legal help they deserve, by connecting
them with information, advice, and attorneys.

10. Avvo: Marketing Content Strategy
Titles: Marketing Coordinator, Marketing Manager
The work: Lots o’ marketing, focus on growing
consumer-facing content (blog).
Top skills / learnings: Tech pace; BHAG: big hairy audacious
goals; defining and defending content strategy; measuring
success.

11. Avvo: Marketing Content Strategy
Why I wanted to transition (to Product): For me, helpful
content > entertaining content
How I did it: Working closely with SEO & Content Strategy
teams, then applied to new open role.

12. M
arketing
contentstrategyUX
contentstrategy
TO
DAY:
Productm
anager
Projectm
anager

13. Avvo: Product / UX Content Strategy
Titles: Content Strategist, Senior UX Content Strategist
The work: SEO; long-form content; pairing w Design & Dev;
product content strategy; UX research.
Top skills / learnings: Life-changing (!!) UCD and content
strategy; PAR: Problem, Action, Result; DUHB: Data,
understandings, hypotheses, bets

14. Avvo: Product / UX Content Strategy
Why I wanted to transition (to PM): Product strategy; power
to prioritize impactful UCD/CStrat; orchestrating and
communicating; learn from an experienced Amazon PM
How I did it: Negotiated my manager, transitioned

15. M
arketing
contentstrategyUX
contentstrategy
TO
DAY:
Productm
anager
Projectm
anager

16. Avvo: Product Management
Title: Product manager
The work: Run an agile product development team that builds
things for our attorney users.

17. Avvo: Product Management
Top skills / my approach:
● Solving real “people problems” for real humans, often in stress
○ Julie Zhuo & Sarah Wachter-Boettcher
● Deliver user value, fast
○ The Lean Startup, MVP, Agile, Test & Learn & Share
● Make sure the team knows why they’re doing the work
○ Start with Why
● Process to speed team up, avoid randomization
○ Don’t Make Me Think
● Problematic state of diversity and inclusion
○ Technically Wrong, Better Together

19. Questions?

20. I’d love your feedback!
https://tinyurl.com/yac9v26h