"I put in my notice yesterday"

“I wanted to let you know I put in my notice yesterday.”

“Oh… sh*t.” 

That’s verbatim how the conversation started. Mark was telling me that he was leaving UserEvidence. And just a few minutes later, in the same conversation, I learned I was being tapped as the next VP to step in and lead the team. 

This call had more impact on my life per word than any other work call before it. I’ve wanted to lead a team at some point in my career, it’s what I’ve been building towards (even if I would shy away from saying it outright). But this timing was unexpected, so to be honest my feelings were… mixed. 

I was bummed to lose a great boss in Mark, a bit overwhelmed too. 

That night I took myself out for Ramen and a beer at my favorite brewery. 

Not necessarily even to celebrate. I brought my journal and sat by myself processing everything on the page. 

My mind filled with things to solve: 

Will the team be ok? 

Demand gen and ops aren’t my strength. 

We’re in the middle of hiring our most important role to date, our first CMA hire.

Will people disagree with the decision to put me in this seat? 

I needed that moment to process by myself. Then, once I started telling family and friends, the excitement started kicking in. 

Now, over a month later, I’m fully in-seat as a first-time VP of Marketing. I’m managing the team, prepping for Q2, presenting at a board meeting, hiring, and watching pipeline numbers even more obsessively than before. 

Evidently isn’t going anywhere. The promise of this newsletter stays the same: First-time marketing leader figures it out in real time and bleeds on the page for your enjoyment (and maybe a learning or two). 

But, I do bring a different perspective than Mark. 

So I want to start this new season of Evidently by sharing a bit about where I come from, who I am, and what you can expect from me moving forward. 

Who is this guy?

I probably should’ve known I was destined for this life when I wrote my first jingle for the “Eaton Good Snack Shack” at our Exchange City field trip back in middle school. My perspective now is purely driven by my personality, which is, of course, my mullet and mustache.

To be real though, there are a few things that will deeply impact what I bring to this role: 

My product marketing experience

I’m a product marketer by trade and I’ve spent most of my career in early stage startups. I joined UserEvidence as the second marketer two years ago to build PMM from scratch. Since then our revenue has grown 4x, the team has grown, and AI has begun its world takeover. I’m curious to find out how my PMM background impacts my overall marketing leadership style. 

My introspective nature

I’m a thinker. This has been a strength for me when it comes to building out ideas, my executive presence, and the strategic work of product marketing. Sometimes this can also mean I get bogged down. Decisiveness is something I’m working on in this new role. I’ll explore that growth here, I’m sure. 

My pursuits outside of work

I live up in the mountains west of Denver. I’m a newbie ultra-runner, ski mountaineer, photographer, backpacker, and more. My life outside work influences my approach to my career, leadership, and marketing. I’m sure there will be some outdoor adventure stories and analogies thrown in here. To prove my point: who do you think had the idea to make our Highline branding match national forest signage? 

I’m looking forward to sharing more from these perspectives with y’all.

What to expect from me

This first send was a lot about me (uncomfortably so, if I’m being honest), but I wanted you to get to know who was going to be in your inbox moving forward. The good stuff is coming up next. A few upcoming sends you can look forward to:

• How life as a VP looks different (outside of the work itself)

• What it looks like to hire + get our first customer marketer up and running

• When work is a priority, but not an identity

• How to lead functional areas you don’t have much experience in

• Building and rolling out a strategic narrative

This is an important year for UserEvidence, and there’s a lot of work ahead. If there are topics you’d like to see written about just hit reply and let me know. I’m looking forward to connecting with y’all. 

Let’s do this. Talk soon.

3 things I’m digging this week:

• How 4 customer marketers are using AI: I’m hosting a convo with 4 amazing customer marketers next week. They’re each sharing how they’re using AI in their customer marketing programs. No BS on this one. They’re each sharing their real playbooks. Come join us.

• Red hand files #359: I love the Red Hand Files from musician Nick Cave. Written as a letter response to reader questions, this letter covers the value of music, AI-generated songs, and how we can be the answer to meaninglessness. Warning for language. 

• Mutiny’s pivot: By all means Mutiny had a good thing going, and they scrapped it to go all in on the AI agent path. Looks like they’re focused on ABM and sales to start as key personas. It’s a big swing and I’m excited to watch how it plays out. They did a good job with their launch.

🏔️ Highline 2026 Applications Are Open

You, 100 other B2B marketing leaders who get it, and 3 days in Jackson Hole.

Highline 2026 is on. If you’re a Director+ marketing leader who wants to join us in the Tetons from August 3-5, apply right here by May 15th. Spots are filling up quick.

UserEvidence, who?

UserEvidence makes it easy to earn and keep trust from first touch through expansion.

We turn customer evidence, references, and advocacy into one system that builds credibility with buyers and strengthens relationships with customers.

• Not buried in Slack.

• Not stuck in decks.

• Not dependent on a hero effort from one person.