Director, Product Marketing - HCM & Payroll

Job Description HR, payroll, and workforce data are becoming more connected to the financial decisions businesses make every day — from labour costs and payroll accuracy to compliance, headcount planning, and business forecasting. For many mid-market organisations, these workflows remain manual, disconnected, and difficult to reconcile across HR and Finance.

Sage HCM connects HR, payroll, workforce data, and financial management through Sage Intacct, creating a significant opportunity to define a differentiated market position in a crowded HCM and payroll landscape.

AI agents are a key part of Sage’s innovation in this space. Sage HCM launched with the HCM Agent, focused on HR and payroll workflows such as payroll preparation, validation, reconciliation, and surfacing potential compliance risks. This reflects Sage’s broader “glass box” approach to AI, designed to make recommendations transparent, explainable, and auditable in workflows where trust, accuracy, and accountability matter.

As Director, Product Marketing – HCM & Payroll, you will set the product marketing strategy for Sage’s North American HCM, payroll, workforce management, and AI-enabled portfolio. You will connect market insight, product strategy, commercial priorities, and go-to-market execution to improve performance at scale.

This is a senior leadership role for a product marketer who can shape market strategy, influence roadmap and investment decisions, build compelling portfolio narratives, and align Product, Sales, Growth & Performance Marketing, Customer Success, Partner, and leadership teams around a clear commercial direction.

You will be accountable for the quality and consistency of positioning, messaging, value proposition, launch strategy, packaging and pricing inputs, sales enablement, adoption programmes, and in-life optimisation across multiple workstreams. You will also set repeatable product marketing standards, resolve cross-functional ambiguity, strengthen launch readiness, and coach teams so product marketing becomes more consistent, scalable, and commercially impactful.

This role requires someone who can combine strategic thinking with commercial judgement, use evidence to guide prioritisation, and translate complex customer, market, competitor, product, and commercial signals into decisions that help Sage win.

Location Requirement
Hybrid; 3 days per week from our San Jose Office

Minimum Qualifications

10+ Years product marketing experience in B2B SaaS, ideally within HCM, Payroll, Workforce Management, Financial Management, or adjacent business applications.

Proven experience leading product marketing strategy across a portfolio, domain, region, or major programme.

Strong understanding of SaaS go-to-market models, customer journeys, commercial performance drivers, segmentation, pricing, packaging, adoption, retention, and growth dynamics.

Advanced capability in positioning, messaging, value proposition development, and executive-level storytelling.

Experience using customer insight, market research, competitive intelligence, analyst perspectives, product signals, and commercial data to shape strategy and decision-making.

Demonstrated ability to influence product roadmap, investment decisions, GTM sequencing, segmentation, launch priorities, and commercial planning.

Strong cross-functional leadership experience, with the ability to align Product, Sales, Growth, Marketing, Customer Success, Partner, and senior leadership teams in a global matrixed organisation.

Ability to lead through ambiguity, resolve competing priorities, make trade-offs, and drive clarity across complex workstreams.

Strong commercial judgement with a track record of improving launch effectiveness, sales readiness, customer adoption, retention, or revenue growth.

Confident working with AI-enabled tools and workflows, with the ability to lead responsible and effective AI adoption within product marketing activity.

People leadership, coaching, or matrix leadership experience, with the ability to raise standards, develop capability, and scale product marketing impact.

Key Responsibilities Product Marketing Strategy & Portfolio Leadership

Own the product marketing strategy for Sage's North American HCM, Payroll, Workforce Management, and AI portfolio.

Shape portfolio positioning, value propositions, and commercial strategy to drive growth, adoption, and market differentiation.

Influence roadmap, investment, segmentation, pricing, packaging, and go-to-market priorities through market and commercial insight.

Market, Customer & Competitive Insight

Lead customer, market, competitor, analyst, and commercial insight to inform strategic decision-making across the portfolio.

Translate evidence into actionable recommendations that influence product strategy, go-to-market priorities, and growth opportunities.

Champion a customer-centric approach that challenges assumptions and strengthens Sage's market position.

Positioning, Messaging & Value Proposition

Define differentiated positioning, messaging, and value propositions across products, segments, and buyer audiences.

Ensure consistent, evidence-based messaging that clearly communicates customer value and competitive differentiation.

Strengthen Sage's market narrative around connected HR, payroll, workforce management, and AI-powered solutions.

Go-to-Market Strategy & Commercial Performance

Lead go-to-market strategy and launch planning across the HCM and Payroll portfolio, ensuring commercial readiness and cross-functional alignment.

Drive adoption, retention, expansion, and revenue growth through effective launch execution and in-life optimisation.

Use performance insights to continuously improve commercial outcomes and customer impact.

Sales Enablement & Customer Growth

Define enablement strategies that equip Sales, Customer Success, and Partner teams to effectively position and sell Sage solutions.

Support migration, adoption, and customer growth initiatives through compelling value-based messaging and programmes.

Ensure enablement and adoption activities drive measurable business and customer outcomes.

Cross-Functional Leadership & Executive Influence

Partner with Product, Sales, Marketing, Customer Success, and senior leaders to align strategy, priorities, and execution.

Influence roadmap, commercial planning, and go-to-market decisions through data-driven recommendations and executive storytelling.

Build alignment across a complex global organisation, creating clarity and momentum across multiple workstreams.

Product Marketing Excellence & AI Adoption

Establish scalable product marketing standards, frameworks, and best practices that improve quality and commercial impact.

Coach and develop product marketing capability across teams and stakeholders.

Lead the adoption of AI-enabled tools and workflows to enhance effectiveness, efficiency, and decision-making.

Benefits? We have plenty.

Competitive annual bonuses (20%)

Comprehensive health, dental, and vision coverage

401(k) retirement match (100% matching up to 4%)

32 days paid time off (22 personal days & 10 national holidays)

18 weeks of paid parental leave (offered 1 year after the start date)

Work Away Program: Opportunity to work & play for 10 weeks from another country (Sage-approved list)

Sage Foundation: 5 days paid yearly to volunteer

$5,250 tuition reimbursement per calendar year starting 6 months after the hire date

Sage Wellness Rewards Program ($600 wellness credit and $360 fitness reimbursement annually)

The compensation offered will be determined by factors such as location, level, job-related knowledge, education, and experience. For this role, in those locations, the target salary range for new hires is: $191,997 to $240,000. In addition to base salary, employees will participate in either a bonus plan based on company and individual performance, or a role-based, commission plan. Our talent acquisition team will provide the specific opportunity on our bonus or incentive programs to eligible candidates. The range listed is just one component of the Sage total compensation package.

#LI-SW1