VP of Marketing

Job description

About Nightfall: Nightfall is the AI-native, unified data loss prevention and insider risk management platform that protects sensitive data across SaaS apps, GenAI tools, email, endpoint devices, and more. Hundreds of customers, spanning AI innovators to top 10 banks, trust Nightfall to detect and stop data exfiltration at scale. Nightfall enables organizations to innovate freely without the risks of losing intellectual property or exposing customer data. Our agentic platform helps security teams regain their time by putting data loss prevention on autopilot. With automatic remediation, security violations can be resolved automatically before they become incidents, and end-users can be automatically trained and coached in the moment to self-heal violations that they introduce. Nightfall is backed by leading VC firms including Bain Capital Ventures (Enrique Salem - former CEO of Symantec), Venrock (early investors in Cloudflare), WestBridge Capital, Pear VC (early investors in Dropbox and Doordash), and a cadre of cybersecurity leaders including Frederic Kerrest (founder of Okta), Maynard Webb (former COO of eBay), Ryan Carlson (President of Chainguard), Kevin Mandia (founder of Mandiant), and many others. About the role: The AI security market is moving fast and Nightfall AI is moving faster. We have built a product that enterprises need right now -- a platform that protects sensitive data across SaaS, endpoints, and AI apps -- and we need a VP of Marketing who can help us own this category before anyone else does. This is a rare opportunity to be the first true marketing leader at a well-funded Series B company with real product-market fit and a clear path to scale. You will report directly to the CEO, set the vision for the entire marketing function, and build something from the ground up -- demand gen, field, product marketing, brand, PR, website, and budget all in one seat. If you have done this before and want to do it again at a company with real tailwinds, this is the role. What You'll Do Marketing Strategy & Leadership Own the overall marketing strategy and roadmap -- from brand positioning and category narrative to integrated campaign planning and budget allocation. Translate company goals into a coherent, prioritized marketing plan that the whole team can execute against. Set the vision for the Growth Marketer and Head of Content and Narrative Strategy and ensure both functions are tightly aligned to revenue and company goals. Pipeline & Demand Generation Partner closely with the CRO and sales leadership to own top-of-funnel pipeline generation. Oversee paid acquisition, ABM, email marketing, conversion optimization, and inbound strategy. Hold the team accountable to closed-won pipeline targets, not just MQL volume. Field Marketing Build and own Nightfall's field marketing motion -- events, conferences, executive roundtables, and partner-led programs that drive pipeline and deepen customer relationships. Define which events we attend, sponsor, or own, and ensure every dollar of field spend is tied to a measurable outcome. Product Marketing Own the product marketing function -- competitive positioning, battlecards, sales enablement materials, and go-to-market launch planning for new products and features. Work closely with Product and Sales Engineering to ensure the market understands what Nightfall does and why it wins. Build the foundation for a product marketing function that scales as the team grows. Brand, Content & Narrative Partner with the Head of Content and Narrative Strategy to ensure Nightfall has a clear, compelling point of view in the AI security market. Own how we position against competitors, how we show up at the category level, and how our story lands with CISOs, security leaders, and enterprise buyers. Website & Conversion Own the Nightfall website as a marketing asset -- ensuring it clearly communicates our value proposition, converts visitors to leads, and is continuously optimized. Partner with the Growth Marketer on landing pages, CTAs, and the full conversion path from first touch to demo request. PR & Analyst Relations Own Nightfall's external communications strategy -- press releases, media relationships, thought leadership, and agency management. Build and manage relationships with industry analysts (Gartner, Forrester, IDC) to strengthen Nightfall's positioning in the data security and AI security categories. AI-Native Marketing Lead by example in building an AI-native marketing function. You and your team will use AI tools across research, content creation, campaign execution, reporting, and workflow automation. You will push the boundaries of what a small marketing team can produce by building AI into how we work -- not as an afterthought but as a core operating principle. Budget Ownership Own and manage the full marketing budget. Make allocation decisions across paid, field, content, PR, and tools with a clear view of ROI and pipeline contribution. Report on budget performance to the CEO and ensure every dollar is tied to a measurable outcome. Team Leadership & Development Lead, develop, and grow the marketing team. Currently overseeing the Head of Content and Narrative Strategy and the Growth Marketer, with plans to add product marketing and other functions as the company scales. Build a culture of accountability, creativity, and commercial focus. Cross-Functional Partnership Work hand in hand with Sales, Product, and Customer Success to align marketing strategy with revenue goals, product launches, and customer retention. Be a trusted partner to the CEO on go-to-market decisions and company positioning. What We're Looking For - 10+ years of B2B SaaS marketing experience, with at least 3-5 years in a senior leadership role (VP or equivalent) owning at least one marketing function fully - Proven track record of building and scaling a marketing engine at a Series A or Series B company -- you have done this before and can point to the results - Deep experience in demand generation and pipeline ownership -- you are comfortable being held accountable to revenue metrics, not just awareness or engagement - Strong field marketing experience -- you know how to build an event and field strategy that drives measurable pipeline - Experience owning or overseeing product marketing -- positioning, sales enablement, and competitive intelligence - Hands-on experience managing a marketing budget and making ROI-driven allocation decisions - Experience owning a company website as a marketing and conversion asset - PR and analyst relations experience -- you have managed agency relationships, briefed analysts, and built a company's external communications strategy - Proficiency with AI tools across the marketing workflow -- you use AI to move faster, produce better work, and push your team to do the same - Experience in cybersecurity, data security, AI, or a closely adjacent technical B2B category strongly preferred - A builder mentality -- you are energized by the challenge of creating a category, not just competing in an established one - Strong communicator and storyteller -- you can write a compelling narrative, brief an agency, and present to a board - Experience managing and developing a small, high-performing marketing team - Comfortable working in a fast-paced, high-ambiguity startup environment where the strategy and the execution are both your responsibility Why Nightfall - The timing is right. AI security is not a future category -- it is happening now, and Nightfall is one of the few companies purpose-built for it. You will be joining at the moment when the market is forming and the category is being defined -- that is the best possible time to be a marketing leader. - You will have a real seat at the table. This role reports directly to the CEO with full ownership of marketing strategy, budget, and team. No layers, no bureaucracy, no waiting for approval to move. - You will build something lasting. This is not a role where you maintain what someone else built. You will design the marketing engine, hire the team, and set the playbook that scales with the company. - Meaningful equity. Competitive compensation. A product people actually want to buy. Our Culture Our employees are recognized as our top asset and we provide great benefits, meaningful equity participation, and a fun and inspiring environment to create and collaborate. - Customer Centricity: customers are at the center of every decision - Practicality over Perfection: move fast, decide well, iterate - Strive for Excellence: high standards and continuous improvement - Transparent Communication: open, honest, and collaborative - Unwavering Resilience: push through the hard stuff - Have Fun: we work hard and genuinely enjoy doing it together Environment Nightfall AI takes pride in being an equal-opportunity employer. We value a diverse and global talent pool and the collaboration that results from having a diverse and inclusive team. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status. Our hiring decisions are based exclusively on merit, qualifications, and business needs. Compensation Employee compensation will be determined based on interview performance, level of experience, specialization of skills, and market rate. During the offer discussion, your recruiter will review the finalized base salary, bonus (for applicable roles), benefits & perks, and stock options as they’ll be reflected in the offer letter.