Josh promoted Jess to VP of Marketing, now he has to explain himself.
It could've been just another episode about a promotion. Josh showed up with a list. Trust, track record, and receipts — the works. Somewhere in there, a Pokémon-style ghosty evolution got involved. Cue the part performance review, part origin story, part accidental therapy session.
Hear how Josh's three-point list turned into a full-blown career audit, why "Sponge, Scaffolding, and Ninja Kick" became an actual operating system, and how one unhinged podcast idea was Jess's 'make big bets' philosophy in action.
Get to the good stuff:
[00:00] Josh announces the promotion. Jess would like to thank her mom, Dr. Atkin, and the Academy
[00:41] Jess forgot she'd been promoted. Josh announced it with a Pokémon evolution, because of course he did.
[02:30] Josh has a surprisingly strong opinion about the phrase, "What should I work on?"
[03:40] The best marketing leaders are basically undercover CEOs. Jess explains how
[06:59] "I trust you" — terms and conditions apply. Jess on what real autonomy feels like
[09:45] Sponge, Scaffolding, Ninja Kick. A 30-60-90 plan so good Josh still remembered the code names a year later.
[11:19] Jess already had a marketing wishlist. She'd just never found a company weird enough to say yes
[13:31] Josh's most controversial take: Jess's stress was a green flag. He knows how that sounds
[15:53] Jess made a very hard year look suspiciously easy. Josh's next words: "Start crying on demand."
[17:35] Jess's first marketing bet at Vector: a podcast that never mentioned the product. Apparently, this was Plan A
[19:03] Reason three for the promotion: strong opinions, immediately followed by "bitch, give me money."
[23:05] Jess and Josh would like you to believe in yourself — whether you like it or not
[23:49] Jess's one hiring rule: hire the person who'll eventually run this function
[27:16] Jess spent years thinking content was a nice-to-have. Josh cold DM'd her because of it
[29:16] Every CEO has a marketing thesis. Josh's just happened to involve artists
[33:37] Jess admits she didn't know pipeline. Not how to measure it, anyway. Cue the High School Musical comparisons
[36:58] Josh's CMO checklist: executive presence, mini-CEO energy, maximum goofy shit
[39:57] New segment idea: bad character voices. Jess uses the first one to manifest a CMO promotion
This Meeting Could’ve Been a Podcast is a Vector production.
Filmed and produced by Sweet Fish.
Editing by Handy Man Edit.
Filmed and produced by Sweet Fish.
Editing by Handy Man Edit.
Show notes by Content 10x.
Music by Peter McIsaac Music.