In this keynote, Article Group's CEO, James Townsend, challenges product marketers to look outside their world and resist their product's gravitational pull and focus relentlessly on customer empathy instead. Too often, organizations become seduced by the excitement of building and launching products—the innovation cycles, feature releases, and technical capabilities that define what we do as product marketers. But what happens when this product obsession overshadows the very customers we're trying to serve? From Samsung's missed opportunity to Regis Corporation's costly reinvention of existing solutions, the pattern is clear: companies that fall in love with their products instead of their customers waste resources, lose focus, and ultimately surrender market share to competitors who understand what customers actually need. Key learnings will include: - How Samsung's "Next Big Thing" success was built on customer insight, not corporate philosophy—and why abandoning that put a ceiling on their growth - Why the seductive appeal of being a "product company" leads to expensive solutions for problems that don't exist, illustrated through Regis Corporation's empathy misstep - How entertainment industry storytelling frameworks can provide the structure and discipline product marketers need to build customer-centric narratives that resist product gravitational pull

High-performing PMM teams don’t happen by accident — they’re built intentionally. This roundtable is a chance to hear what other PMM leaders are doing to develop their teams, support growth, and keep great talent. You’ll join a small-table discussion led by experienced PMM leaders, with plenty of time to swap ideas, compare what’s working, and learn from each other. At the end, each table will share the best takeaways and tactics back with the room. We’ll cover topics like: - How teams are supporting ongoing learning without overwhelming people - Simple mentorship models that actually work (and don’t require tons of admin) - What leaders are doing to keep PMMs engaged, growing, and excited to stay Come ready to participate — you’ll leave with practical ideas you can bring back to your team, and a clearer sense of what “great” looks like right now.