What problem did this memo solve?

Digital Experience did not have a clear scope tied to inbound outcomes, so priorities and decision rights were muddy. The memo made scope and outcomes explicit.

What was built in the team model?

A clarified scope, purpose, mission, objectives, and operating cadence for the team, aligned to integrated growth and inbound outcomes.

What outcomes are documented?

A clearer operating system for the Digital Experience team, which unlocked faster iteration and stronger inbound and conversion performance.

Who is this approach for?

Best for platform or website teams that need clearer decision rights and outcomes, not just an intake queue. Less useful when scope is already stable and fully owned.

Where can I go deeper next?

Next, read GitLab Growth Marketing OKRs & Quarterly Plans.

Shaping GitLab’s Integrated Growth and Inbound Marketing Team

Q: What is Shaping GitLab’s Integrated Growth and Inbound Marketing Team?

A leadership memo on reframing the Digital Experience team: scope, purpose, mission, and objectives tied directly to integrated growth and inbound outcomes.

The interview prompt

During my interview with Todd Barr, then CMO of GitLab, he presented a challenging scenario. He opened GitLab’s homepage, shared his screen, and asked for my insights on enhancing it. It was an excellent, tricky question.

Several thoughts raced through my mind:

"Did Todd specifically request any element on this homepage?"
"Is this homepage a favourite of the CEO?"
"With only a few days of preparation, do I fully grasp the priorities and context?"

I said, “The homepage has a lot going on, making it challenging to pinpoint a starting point. This complexity might also overwhelm potential customers.” Todd appreciated the perspective, and he offered me the position.

Mandate and scope

This encounter occurred in May 2020. My mission at GitLab was to elevate the Digital Experience team within the Growth Marketing segment of the Marketing organization.

Year one was heavy: redesigning the organization, refining processes, hiring, and making a few hard firing decisions.

Working closely with Marketing leadership, I redefined my team’s scope. This involved narrowing our focus but expanding our responsibility for Inbound Marketing and upper-funnel metrics.

Operating model: purpose, vision, mission, objectives

Together, we established an effective iteration process. We then articulated our purpose, vision, mission, and objectives:

Purpose

Why we exist

We take a customer-centric approach to educating prospects on how GitLab enables them to deliver software faster and more securely.

Vision

Where we’re going

Wherever DevSecOps or DevOps is mentioned, GitLab is there.

Mission

What we do

We drive improvement to GitLab’s user journeys, marketing site experience, and conversion funnel.

Objectives

Increase site engagement (lower bounce rate, increased pages per visit, form fills, etc.)
Increase free trials
Increase quality sign-ups
Increase traffic to the Marketing Site

GitLab is a documentation culture so you can review in depth how the team I established operates here:

Handbook and operating docs

https://handbook.gitlab.com/handbook/marketing/digital-experience/

In 2021, the market rewarded growth and we could invest in resourcing. I had already proven I could make a material impact, so I developed the following plan to grow GitLab’s Digital Experience team. This proposal became the foundation for the continued success of GitLab’s Marketing site.