Brand Manager

You:

  • are a brand manager at a company that makes household products.

  • have 7 year experience.

  • have an MBA.

  • are focused on marketing.

  • might be getting a big promotion this year to department head.

Your company wants:

  • new innovative products. 

New products are a great opportunity for you to grow your reputation in the company. 

You partner is: 

  • a new assistant brand manager (ABM).

  • marked as high potential.

  • ambitious.

Your ABM found a good opportunity for your company. Some researchers are creating a spray-on laundry detergent that doesn’t need water or a washing machine. The product is not done yet, but has lots of potential. You already persuaded senior management to purchase the spray-on technology. 

You are meeting the ABM to:

  • decide how to structure the team that will do the product launch. 

You want:

  • to maintain control over all new product launches. 

You are worried:

  • the ABM probably wants to be the head of the project. 

  • this would mean a loss of control and influence for you.

  • it  would also set a precedent to other employees (they might expect to be promoted faster too). 

Since the ABM has never managed a team of peers before, to expect a promotion now is unrealistic. However, you also remember your own start long ago right after business school and you don’t want to completely stop the ABM’s dreams. 

Some options:

  • If the ABM can control his/her ego a bit, you are open to giving him/her the opportunity to work with you on this project in some higher capacity/role. 

  • You could  also give him/her another interesting role.

  • You would be willing to allow the ABM to help with presenting parts of the project to senior management and at the National Sales meeting.

  • Or you can give the ABM a more boring role like Finance which would work with his/her strengths, but not provide him/her with the exposure and experience he/she is looking for. 

There are various roles on the project team:

  • Project Head

  • Market & Competitive Analysis

  • Finance

  • Product Design

  • Advertising Plan

  • Something else?