The Truth About Marketing Ops with Kelly Jo Horton, Head of Lifecycle Marketing Ops at Atlassian | Ep. 374
So, what does Marketing ops actually look like?
Atlassian’s Head of Lifecycle Marketing Ops Kelly Jo Horton joins Daniel to break down what ops actually is, why it’s so complex, and how high-performing teams are evolving the function for 2026 and beyond.
She explains why MOPS isn’t “just sending an email,” why process is everything, and why marketers need to stop treating ops like a drive-thru and start treating it like a Michelin-star kitchen. She also reveals how Atlassian structures its ops organization and why she believes the MQL is officially dead. You’ll also learn:
> What modern Marketing Ops actually does and why it varies by company
> How AI can automate repetitive ops tasks (like list cleaning and lead investigations)
> How Atlassian uses Jira, Confluence, Slack bots, and Loom to run ops like engineering
This is for anyone in Marketing, rev ops, or GTM who wants to build a scalable system…and for every Marketer who’s ever said “it’s just an email.”
Easily record and share AI-powered video messages with your teammates and customers to supercharge productivity at https://www.loom.com/
Follow Kelly Jo:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellyjohorton/
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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing/
Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: https://themarketingmillennials.com/
Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: https://workweek.com/
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How To Make or Fix Your 2026 Annual Plan with Jason Lyman, CMO of Customer.io | Ep. 373
Annual planning is where great marketing teams separate themselves from the rest…and Customer.io CMO Jason Lyman joins Daniel to break down exactly how to do it. Jason shares the Play to Win framework he uses, the biggest mistakes marketers make during planning season, and how AI now powers his planning workflow. And, how does Customer.io use stress-testing strategies to identify lifecycle opportunities? You’ll also learn: Why most marketing plans fail and how to fix yours.
• How to create strategic pillars your whole org can align around
• The 70/20/10 model for balancing safe bets and big swings
Whether you're a CMO, a team leader, or an IC who wants to level up, this is the episode for you.
Customer.io helps brands turn data into personalized messages that actually connect, across email, SMS, and beyond. Today, over 7,800 brands trust Customer.io to power their messaging. Visit: https://try.customer.io/paid/trial?utm_medium=ads&utm_source=marketingmillennials&utm_campaign=november_podcast
Follow Jason:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-lyman1/
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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing/
Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: https://themarketingmillennials.com/
Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: https://workweek.com/
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Five Email Lessons to Take Into 2026 | Bathroom Break #85
What if everything you believe about email marketing is wrong?
Daniel and Jay are here to blow up the biggest myths everyone still repeats, from “best send times” to “open rates don’t matter.”
They unpack the five email lessons they’re taking into 2026, including why low-lift CTAs spark real replies, how verified subscriber data reveals your true ICP, and the deliverability trap hiding inside your domain frequency report.
And, how do you use AI without sounding like a robot? Turns out, it’s easier than you think.
If you’re a Marketer planning to scale your email efforts next year, this one’s for you. 🚽
Follow Jay:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/schwedelson/
Podcast: Do This, Not That
Follow Daniel:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@themarketingmillennials/featured
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Dmurr68
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing
Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter:
https://themarketingmillennials.com/
Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: https://workweek.com/
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The Business Case for Bold Creative with Nick Tran and Amanda Slavin (From Marketingland 2025) | Ep. 370
Why do the boldest ideas drive the biggest business wins?
Live from Marketingland 2025, Nick Tran (ex-TikTok, Hulu, Samsung) breaks down all things brand and creative with Amanda Slavin (author, and co-founder of Future Frequency).
You’ll learn:
> Why crises often spark the most innovative creative work
> How to know when bold ideas are brilliant…and when they're just noise
> The myth of chasing trends vs. the real meaning of cultural relevance
Whether you're a CMO, a creator, or someone sitting on a brave idea you’re scared to pitch, this conversation will push you to rethink what “bold” really means…and why the riskiest idea might just be your smartest one.
Customer.io is an AI-powered customer engagement platform that helps teams turn first-party data into personalized messages at scale. It enables teams to easily create and send communications across email, SMS, push, in-app, and webhooks to drive engagement and growth. Today, over 7,800 brands trust Customer.io to power their messaging. Click here for more.
Follow Nick:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholastran/
Follow Amanda:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amslavin/
Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: https://themarketingmillennials.com/
Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: https://workweek.com/
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The Best of Both Worlds: How PLG and SLG Win Together with Gaurav Agarwal and Kyle Coleman of ClickUp | Ep. 371
How do Product-Led Growth (PLG) and Sales-Led Growth (SLG) actually work together…instead of competing against each other?
In this Marketingland 2025 session, ClickUp’s COO Gaurav Agarwal and Global VP of Marketing Kyle Coleman break down why the “PLG vs. SLG” debate is a false dichotomy, and how the most successful companies blend both to drive real revenue impact.
From navigating budget decisions to building demand, delivering intuitive product experiences, and integrating AI in ways that actually help (instead of over-promising), they dig into the mechanics of modern growth engines. And, should incremental ROI really be your real north star?
If you're building, optimizing, or scaling a modern GTM engine, this conversation is for YOU.
Optimizely helps thousands of brands create, personalize, and optimize exceptional digital experiences. See how Optimizely Opal, our AI agent orchestration platform, automates real marketing work and helps teams scale their impact at https://www.optimizely.com/ai/?utm_campaign=PS-GL-11-2025-MARKETING-MILLENNIALS-PODCAST&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=marketingmillennials&utm_content=opal-agent-orchestration
Follow Gaurav:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gauravragarwal/
Follow Kyle:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyletcoleman/
Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: https://themarketingmillennials.com/
Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: https://workweek.com/
Bored of the same BS Marketing podcasts? With insights from the sharpest minds in the world, Daniel Murray unpacks their playbooks just for you to take into your weekly Marketing meeting.
We'll get deep into the conversation with Marketing leaders from companies like Gymshark, Shopify, and Infiniti. Every week you'll hear from guests who run 9-figure businesses, manage communities of 20M+ people, and execute the campaigns you see on your timeline every day. The best part? We'll give you ALL of their actionable insights.
From building profitable newsletters to scaling on TikTok, Daniel gets into all of it. The one request he makes to all his guests? Stories or it didn't happen.
If you want to be part of The Marketing Millennials community, join in the conversation.
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-marketing-millennials
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And if you love the show, tell a friend.
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