Sharanya Ramachandran - Humans of Zoho

Life at Zoho

Describe your current role in the organization.

I currently lead customer experience marketing for CRM, CRM Plus, and Bigin. My role started as an email marketer for CRM's lead generation programs. The roles in product marketing were not defined then, and all of us did everything necessary for the product. My work today is more defined, and I also know how to keep abreast of emerging trends and apply them to my work.

What role does Zoho’s company culture play in your identity and the work that you do?

Zoho's company culture keeps me grounded and humble. It teaches me that titles do not matter, but my work—and, more importantly, the quality of my work—matters.

It feels good when I am able to guide future marketers on the many questions they have and share knowledge. My learning is definitely put to good use—I feel it is the greatest impact I have on the company.

What does your work space currently look like?

It is a small, simple work space, especially now with space constraints at home. These are the essential pieces for me:

My laptop and charger.

My Zoho notebook and pencil. Call me old fashioned, but I still prefer writing.

An idol of Lord Ganesha sitting on a rocking chair and reading.

My water bottle.

At Work

Tell us about a time you overcame a challenge you didn't think was possible?

My team and I did a marketing release in a couple of days. Did I think this was impossible? No, I didn't think it was impossible. However, I was unsure if I could deliver all the basics on time. This was a challenge, but we overcame this with a lot of lessons—lessons for every stage in our careers!

Your most embarrassing blunder?

This was quite early in my career with Zoho: I was new to product marketing and was learning the basics. I remember speaking to a customer who wanted some customizations.

However, because of some delay in my emails, the customer sent an escalation email stating they were canceling because of the lack of support from us. I felt personally responsible and learned some good lessons. All that was required was proper communication at the right time. I still cringe at this memory.

P.S. We did retain that customer, of course!

Is there a project or an accomplishment at Zoho you’re proud of?

From what I've learned at Zoho, there is pride in every successful, completed task or project. But if you ask me specifically, I would like to mention my product marketing stint with Zoho Campaigns, which I set up from scratch.