Senior Program Manager, Confluent
Marketing
$135-170k
Data streaming platform
Be an early applicant
Data streaming platform
1001+ employees
Be an early applicant
$135-170k
1001+ employees
Company mission
Founded by the team that built Apache Kafka, their mission is to make managing Kafka easy.
Role
Who you are
- We are looking for a seasoned "builder" who can navigate ambiguity, negotiate trade-offs, and implement new frameworks with minimal supervision
- Experience: 7+ years of relevant experience, with at least 3-4 years specifically in Program Management or Marketing Operations within the B2B SaaS/Tech space
- Methodology: Strong proficiency in project management methodologies (Agile, Scrum, Kanban)
- Technical Stack: Expert-level command of project management tools (Asana preferred) and a working knowledge of marketing automation/CRM platforms (Marketo, Salesforce) to understand dependency flows
- Data Literacy: Ability to define KPIs and interpret data using BI tools (e.g., Tableau, Sheets) to independently report on program success
- Global Experience: Proven track record of working effectively with global teams across multiple cultures, time zones, departments, and functions
- Executive Presence: Ability to establish immediate credibility and build rapport with senior leaders, as well as technical and non-technical team members
- Strategic Communication: Exceptional written and verbal skills. You don't just share information; you use communication to influence partners and gain support for your strategies across all levels
- Proactive Problem Solving: You anticipate problems and develop mitigation plans rather than just escalating issues. You have a process-driven mindset but are resourceful enough to solve unique challenges
- Agility & Flexibility: You are comfortable making cross-functional decisions in a fast-paced, dynamic environment and can shift direction quickly without losing operational rigor
- Outcome Ownership: You are a self-starter who digs in to get the job done with minimal guidance. You focus on owning the results, not just "checking the boxes."
What the job involves
- We are looking for a Senior Program Manager, Marketing to orchestrate Confluent’s most critical cross-functional initiatives
- In this role, you will own the outcomes of large-scale programs
- You will act as the strategic connector across Marketing teams, ensuring our campaigns land with maximum impact
- This is an Advanced level role
- Program Ownership & Strategy: Own the core activities and outcomes for highly complex marketing programs. You will help define the program strategy (the what, why, and how) alongside leadership, ensuring alignment with broader business goals
- Cross-Functional Orchestration: Proactively identify and manage critical dependencies and connections across Creative, Campaigns, Demand Gen, Product Marketing, and Web teams. You will demonstrate leadership across teams to align conflicting priorities and drive execution
- Operational Frameworks: You will identify operational gaps in current processes and suggest frameworks to solve problems. You will drive the adoption of methodologies (like Agile/Scrum) to increase speed and clarity
- Governance & Standardization: Establish and maintain a "source of truth" for all program documentation. You will ensure rigorous adherence to compliance, budget tracking, and resource allocation models across all initiatives to mitigate risk
- Risk Management & Trade-offs: Anticipate roadblocks before they happen. You will be responsible for proactively negotiating scope and timeline trade-offs with senior stakeholders to protect the quality of the work
- Reporting & Analytics: Utilize an intermediate-to-advanced understanding of metrics. You will build and own dashboards that track program health and ROI, providing leadership with a clear view of business outcomes
- Mentorship & Team Elevation: Serve as a formal or informal mentor to other Program Managers. You will provide guidance on best practices, offer constructive feedback on program plans, and help cultivate a culture of continuous operational improvement within the PM community
Our take
Confluent is a commercial company built on top of the open-source Apache Kafka project. Confluent and Kafka have developed a streaming data technology that processes massive amounts of information in real-time.
The streaming database technology was developed at LinkedIn as a way of moving massive amounts of messages. The company decided to open-source that tech in 2011, and Confluent launched as the commercial arm in 2014.
While the base open-source component remains available for free download, it doesn’t include the additional tooling the company has built to make it easier for enterprises to use Kafka. Confluent's value add is in those additional tools, including a cloud version of the product and a marketplace for sharing extensions to the platform.
Confluent expanded strategic partnerships with Microsoft and acquired Immerok, and in 2023 expanded its cloud platform. 2024 saw further product expansions with the launch of the Confluent Migration Accelerator, all exemplifying how the company is living up to its name by rocket-boosting the benefits of Apache Kafka integration for companies.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (last 2 of 5 rounds)
Apr 2020
$250m
SERIES E
Jan 2019
$125m
SERIES D
Total funding: $455.9m
Company HQ
Mountain View, California
Leadership
Jay Kreps
(Co-Founder & CEO)Previously a Principal Engineer at LinkedIn.
Neha Narkhede
(Co-Founder & Board Member)Previously a Lead Engineer at LinkedIn and Oracle. They are an Investor/advisor for Gem, Block Party, Material Security, Abacus AI, Cortex Data, Yugabyte, Metaphor Data, Natalist, Common Room, and more.
Jun Rao
(Co-Founder)Previously a Senior Engineer at LinkedIn. Has a PhD in Computer Science from Columbia University.
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