How to find your assigned rocks, understand what the CMO expects, track your progress, and report status without being asked.
What Rocks Are (and Aren't)
Rocks are quarterly goals from Business OS methodology. They're commitments to deliver something meaningful over 90 days, not tasks. "Redesign the Acme website" is a rock. "Fix the footer link" is a task.
If you're assigned a rock, the CMO expects it done by quarter's end. Know the goal, update its status, and flag problems early.
Find Your Rocks
Pull all active rocks for the client:
get rocks for AcmeThis returns each rock with its title, description, owner, status, and due date. Look for rocks assigned to you or your team.
Example output:
| Rock | Owner | Status | Due |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website Redesign Phase 2 | You | On Track | June 30 |
| Blog Content Pipeline | Marketing Team | Behind | June 30 |
| Email Automation Setup | You | On Track | June 30 |
Understand What's Expected
The rock title alone isn't enough. Check the description and any related memories for context:
search memories about website redesign for AcmeThis shows decisions, commitments, and meeting notes that define the scope. The rock might say "Website Redesign Phase 2" but the meeting notes clarify: "Phase 2 covers the product pages and pricing page only. Blog redesign is Phase 3."
If the description is vague, ask the CMO before you spend three weeks building the wrong thing.
Update Rock Status
As you make progress, update the rock status so the CMO sees it in their briefings:
update rock "Website Redesign Phase 2" status to on trackRock status options:
| Status | When to Use |
|---|---|
| On Track | You're progressing as planned, no blockers |
| Behind | You're falling behind the expected pace |
| At Risk | There's a real chance this won't be done by end of quarter |
| Done | The rock is complete and delivered |
Mark a rock "Done" only when the deliverable is shipped and the CMO has seen it. "Code is written but not deployed" is not done. "Deployed and the CMO confirmed it looks good" is done.
Sprint Check-ins
Rocks break down into sprint deliverables. If the team runs sprints, your rock work should show up as sprint items:
get current sprint for AcmeUpdate your sprint deliverables as you complete them:
update sprint status for "Product pages wireframe" to completeThis keeps the sprint board current and informs the CMO's weekly summary.
When You're Behind
If you're behind, flag it early.
Don't hide it. The CMO will find out eventually - either from your status update or from the client asking where things are. Early is better.
Be specific about why. "I'm behind" is useless. "I'm behind because the client hasn't provided the product copy I need for the pages" is actionable.
Propose a path forward. Don't just flag the problem. Include what you need:
quick note: Website Redesign rock is behind schedule. Blocked on product copy from Sarah - requested March 15, still waiting. Options: (1) proceed with placeholder copy, (2) CMO follows up with Sarah, (3) adjust timeline.The CMO can resolve a blocker in one client conversation, but only if they know about it.
Reporting Progress Without Being Asked
The best marketing techs never get asked "where are we on X?" because they've already logged it:
quick note: Website Redesign progress - product pages complete and deployed. Pricing page in design review. On track for June 30.This note appears in the CMO's next briefing. They know where things stand before the client meeting. No Slack ping, standup, or "hey quick question."
The Rock Rhythm
| When | What to Do |
|---|---|
| Start of quarter | get rocks - know your assignments |
| Weekly | Update rock status if it changed |
| Each sprint | Update sprint deliverables as you complete them |
| When blocked | Log the blocker immediately |
| When done | Update status to Done, log the deliverable with a link |