Client
OAKS, UK
Executive Summary
Team ramps from 2.5 → 6 → 8 FTE across the three tiers.
The team grows conservatively in Tier 1 (2.5 OAKS FTE with AIG partner support covering fractional strategy, PMM, and ops), hires the operational backbone in Tier 2 (Demand Gen + Content + PMM + Marketing Ops + second SDR), and adds the specialists needed for the bigger paid engine and ABM programme in Tier 3 (Paid-Media Specialist + SEO Specialist).
The plan shape follows the standard B2B SaaS marketing distribution benchmark (Gartner 2026 via MarketingMary): 25% Demand Gen, 20% Content/SEO, 15% PMM, 15% Marketing Ops, 15% Brand/Creative, 10% Leadership. UK salary benchmarks verified against Armstrong Lloyd 2025 SaaS report and Live-Digital B2B SaaS team structure 2026.
Hiring is timed to the tier-gate reviews so capacity is ready the day a gate opens. The Tier-2 ramp begins before the end-of-M7 gate; the Tier-3 ramp begins before the end-of-M14 gate.
Org Shape
The team grows with the plan, not before.
Tier 1 · M1–M7
2.5 FTE
Head of Marketing · Marketing Exec/SDR · Designer (agency) + AIG partner support
Tier 2 · M8–M14
6 FTE
+ Demand Gen · Content Lead · PMM · Marketing Ops · 2nd SDR
Tier 3 · M15–M21
8 FTE
+ Paid-Media Specialist · SEO Specialist
| Role | Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 | Function | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Head of Marketing / Marketing Director | 1 (AIG fractional → 1 FTE) | 1 | 1 | Leadership | |
| Demand Generation Manager | 0.5 (shared w/ Exec) | 1 | 1 + 0.5 Paid-Media Specialist | Demand Gen | |
| Content Marketing / SEO Lead | 0.5 (shared) | 1 | 1 + 0.5 SEO Specialist | Content / SEO | |
| Product Marketing Manager | 0 (AIG retained) | 1 | 1 (Senior PMM) | PMM | |
| Marketing Operations Manager | 0 (AIG retained) | 1 | 1 | Marketing Ops | |
| Marketing Executive / SDR | 1 | 1 + 1 SDR | 2 SDRs | Demand Gen | |
| Designer / Brand (fractional or agency) | 0.5 (agency day-rate) | 0.5 | 0.5 + on-demand video | Brand / Creative | |
| Total OAKS FTE | 2.5 | 6 | 8 |
Hiring Sequence
Each role is timed to a tier-gate review.
Hiring begins before each gate so capacity is ready the day the gate opens. Lead times are typical B2B SaaS marketing hire windows in the UK (60–90 days).
| Hire | Start window | Why this start | Lead time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Head of Marketing / Marketing Director | Tier 1 · M1 | Need an in-house owner from day 1 (replaces AIG fractional) | 90 days |
| Marketing Executive / SDR | Tier 1 · M1 | First-line campaign execution + outbound against the named list | 60 days |
| Designer (fractional / agency) | Tier 1 · M3 | First ad creative needs a designer | 30 days |
| Demand Generation Manager | Tier 2 · M7 (hired into) | Replaces fractional role; full campaign ownership | 60 days |
| Content Marketing / SEO Lead | Tier 2 · M7 | Replaces fractional; full content + email ownership | 60 days |
| Product Marketing Manager | Tier 2 · M8 | AIG retained PMM transitions out | 60 days |
| Marketing Operations Manager | Tier 2 · M8 | The role that makes Tier-2/3 paid measurable | 75 days |
| Second SDR | Tier 2 · M10 | Once MQL volume justifies | 45 days |
| Paid-Media Specialist | Tier 3 · M14 | Tier 3 budget needs specialist hands | 60 days |
| SEO Specialist | Tier 3 · M15 | 80+ article library + AEO discipline | 60 days |
Role-by-Role Action Plan
8 roles, each with explicit actions per tier.
Each role card has the same three-column structure: Tier 1 actions · Tier 2 actions · Tier 3 actions. KPI ownership listed per tier.
Reporting Cadence
How the team reports, reviews, and passes tier-gates.
Standard B2B SaaS marketing cadence scaled for a tier-gated 21-month plan. The tier-gate reviews are the inflection points.
Daily
Standup (15 min) — campaign status, blockers, handoffs. Marketing team + AIG retained strategist.
Weekly
Campaign review (60 min) — CPL, MQL, pipeline velocity. Head of Marketing, Demand Gen, Content, PMM, MarOps.
Bi-weekly
Sales-Marketing sync (45 min) — MQL handover, lead quality, feedback. Head of Marketing, Sales lead, both SDRs.
Monthly
Performance report to OAKS leadership (60 min) — full funnel, brand metrics, budget. Head of Marketing, OAKS leadership, AIG strategist.
Monthly
Customer advisory board — pilot feedback, advocacy, references. Head of Marketing, PMM, Pilot owners.
Quarterly
Tier-gate review (half-day) — go/no-go on next tier. Head of Marketing, OAKS leadership, AIG principal, named-customer panel.
Onboarding & Training
First 30/60/90 days, in plain language.
| Role | Week 1 | Week 2 | Weeks 3–4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Head of Marketing | Brief review, OAKS product demo, named-account list review, AIG retainer kickoff | Sales team intro, customer interviews (2 named customers), ABM platform selection | Set tier-gate report template, brief Marketing Exec, attend first AoC introductory call |
| Demand Gen Manager | CRM access, LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Google Ads, AIG strategist handover | First 4 LinkedIn creatives briefed, 4 Google landing pages briefed | First campaign launch, first weekly CPL report, AIG second-pair-of-eyes session |
| Content / SEO Lead | Content audit, keyword map, editorial calendar, AIG strategist handover | First 4 articles briefed + written | First lead-magnet PDF, first email sequence, first FE Sector Insights newsletter |
| PMM | AIG retained PMM handover, sales enablement audit, competitive landscape review | First OneFile vs OAKS battlecard, sales enablement deck refresh | First 2 named-customer case-study interviews, M7 positioning update |
| MarOps | CRM access, AIG retained Ops handover, lead scoring audit | ABM platform selection, attribution model choice | First attribution report, MQL→SQL dashboard, GDPR/PECR compliance review |
| SDR | CRM access, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, named-account list review | First outbound sequence draft, first LinkedIn InMail template | First 50 personalised sends, first 3 demos booked |
| Designer (fractional) | Brand guidelines, ad creative brief template, landing-page template | First 4 LinkedIn ad creatives delivered | First 4 Google landing pages delivered |
Certifications
Recommended training path per role.
Head of Marketing
B2B Marketing ABM certification (Momentum ITSMA / Demandbase)
Demand Gen Manager
LinkedIn Marketing Solutions certification + Google Ads certification
Content / SEO Lead
HubSpot Content Marketing certification + SEMrush / BrightEdge SEO
PMM
Pragmatic Institute PMM certification
MarOps
HubSpot Marketing Hub Pro certification + Salesforce Admin
SDR
LinkedIn Sales Navigator certification
Risk Register
Hiring risks with explicit contingencies.
| Risk | Trigger | Contingency |
|---|---|---|
| Head of Marketing hire stalls | Tier 1 starts without an in-house HoM | Extend AIG partner cover for fractional HoM (scope handled in the SOW) |
| Demand Gen Manager hire stalls | Tier 2 starts without a DG Mgr | Continue fractional via AIG; delay paid scale-up by 2 months |
| Designer day-rate too slow | Creative turnaround > 7 days | Bring designer in-house earlier; Tier-2 hire rather than Tier-3 |
| SDR turnover | Single SDR leaves mid-Tier | Move to agency SDR support; restart in-house hire |
| PMM hire stalled past M9 | Tier 2 starts without a PMM | Continue AIG retained PMM for one extra month; engage interim consultant |
Sources
Salary benchmarks and team-shape standards.
- B2B SaaS marketing team structure: MarketingMary 2026 (Gartner distribution benchmark)
- UK SaaS salary bands: Armstrong Lloyd B2B SaaS Marketing Recruiter 2025
- UK B2B SaaS team structure: Live-Digital B2B SaaS Marketing Team Structure 2026
- B2B SaaS PMM roles: Praxicom State of B2B SaaS PMM 2025
- Marketing ops benchmarks: MarTech.org Marketing Ops Benchmarks
- Hiring timeframes: Recruiterflow B2B SaaS Hiring Time-to-Productivity 2026
- ABM tooling: Hallam ABM guide
- Demandbase ABM: Demandbase ABM Best Practices