The GTM Podcast - SoundSage

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Melanie Fellay is the CEO and Co-Founder of Spekit, a just-in-time platform that is transforming how we learn at work. Spekit meets reps with the process guidance, enablement and knowledge they need, right when they need it, in their flow of work to help them be more efficient, drive more revenue and eliminate the friction of change. She’s a Forbes 30 Under 30 recipient, Top 100 Female Entrepreneur to watch (Entrepreneur) and has been featured across Forbes, Entrepreneur, Fast Company, Business Insider and more. Mel co-founded Spekit with Zari Zahra to solve a simple challenge: how do we make sure employees know what they need to know, when and where they need to know it. Hundreds of the world's most innovative companies, including Uber Freight, Snowflake, Southwest Airlines and Invesco, rely on Spekit to empower their employees with real-time knowledge and training, without disrupting their day-to-day workflows.The company has raised $60M in venture funding from notable investors Craft Ventures. Felicis, Operator Collective, Matchstick Ventures, Renegade Partners, Foundry Group and Bonfire Ventures and more.

What you will learn

Narrowing the playing field and going where people aren't as a founder
Always be strategic and intentional when you go wide
The importance of customer facing as a founder
Making hard decisions faster will only benefit your team's success long term
Product momentum comes from working well as an executive team

Highlights

(2:40) The importance of allowing your mind to rest

(9:37) Mel’s founder journey that inspird her to build Spekit

(15:44) How to go-to-market with a tool that tackles multiple categories

(22:33) Customer facing as a founder shouldn't be overlooked

(24:10) How Mel ended up having to step in as Spekit's CTO during the pandemic and her experience sitting in the engineering seat

(34:08) How Mel took the mental strenght to show up for her team when things were difficult

(39:38) What Mel would tell her 25 year old self

(42:06) The Importance of networking and building your brand as a first time founder

(46:44) Figuring out how you work best as an executive team to increase product momentum

Quotes

"It's okay to solve different problems and go wide, but you need to have a very intentional strategy behind it"

"At the end of the day you need to have smart and resiilent people, but you need to have people who are driven on your particular problem"

Links and Resources

Mel's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melaniefellay/

Spekit's Website: https://spekit.com

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Meka Asonye is a Partner at First Round Capital based in San Francisco. Before moving into venture, Meka was an active angel investor backing companies such as Coda, Alchemy, Rimeto (acq. by Slack), Snackpass and Stytch. Previously, he served as the VP of Sales & Services at Mixpanel, where he ran the more than 100-person global revenue team. Before Mixpanel, Meka spent four years at Stripe and scaled and matured its sales organization during the company's rapid growth from 250 to 2000 people. Prior to joining Stripe, Meka served as Case Team Leader at Bain in San Francisco, partnering with the C-Suites of Fortune 50 companies across different verticals. Meka started his career working in Player Development & Baseball Operations for the Cleveland Indians. Meka earned a Bachelor of Arts degree cum laude in Economics and Finance from Princeton and his MBA from Harvard Business School

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What you will learn

Long term orientation for lead distribution at Stripe
Investing in the person, and then the product, is most important in angel investing
Best tips to start out in angel investing
Compensation structures that early stage companies should implement

Highlights

(3:44) How Meka started his career in player development and baseball ops for the Cleveland Indians

(8:50) Meka’s biggest challenges during his time at Stripe as the Head of Sales

(10:15) How the SMB team measured success at Stripe and how it evolved over the years

(13:14) Balancing lead distribution at Stripe

(16:28) Practicing “Dumpster Diving” at Stripe

(18:00) Setting up long term incentive structures at Stripe

(22:48) How Meka began angel investing

(28:10) What Meka learned from his first angel investing experience

(36:22) The best way to start out in angel investing

(39:42) Why traditional sales compensation models at early stage companies is flawed

(42:00) The importance of educating your customers effectively through each touch

Quotes

“One of the things I look for out of founders is commercial orientation”

“ I knew a little bit about what he was building but I really just made a bet on the person”

“What makes you money and loses you money is the founder”

Links and Resources Meka's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mekaasonye/

Meka's Twitter: https://twitter.com/BigMekaStyle

Mekas's Email: Meka@fristround.com

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Eli Rubel is the CEO of MatterMade and NoBoringDesign, and has served as a Marketing advisor for companies like Dropbox, Loom, Productboard, Calm, and many others. Prior to MatterMade & NoBoringDesign, Eli was the founding CEO of Glider.com which he led through a successful acquisition to FPX.

What you will learn

The importance of leveraging Demand Efficiency for your business
Being aware of the bad actors that exist in business
Extreme diligence on contract work should not be overlooked
Setting yourself up successfully post acquisition changes

Highlights

(3:39) Defining Demand Efficiency

(7:30) Shared data around good efficiency through channels

(10:10) Common micro-surfaces that are often overlooked

(13:10) Companies revisiting their brand guidelines and brand identity

(15:24) Good conversion rates on ad spend for b2b SaaS companies

(17:10) Things people should think about when analyzing their demand efficiency

(18:10) Eli’s acquisition that went wrong

(25:30) How to combat against acquisitions going wrong

(28:00) Post acquisition shift - how to set yourself up

(30:10) Founder Question: What your first marketing hire should look like

(25:00) Hot take: LinkedIn is dying!

(38:00) Operational excellence will set your team up for success every time

Quotes

“Demand efficiency as a definition, is the evaluation of all of the different micro surfaces and growth levers throughout the buyers journey and how they all stack up together”

“Build a brand that’s extensible, you can still have fresh ads that are being changed up as long as the underlying brand foundations were created in a way that allow for creativity and experimentation”

"When you combine curiosity, grit, and drive together, it doesn't matter what they know and what they don't know. Because they're going to figure it out and try"

Links and Resources Eli's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elirubel/

MatterMade's Website: https://www.mattermade.co

NoBoringDesign Website: https://www.noboringdesign.com

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Dave Gerhardt worked as a Senior Marketing Manager at Drift in 2015 and quickly grew into their VP of Marketing. Dave left Drift in 2019 to join Privy as their CMO for just under 2 years, then returned to Drift as a Chief Brand Officer. Dave now runs Exit Five, The #1 community for B2B Marketers.

What you will learn

How to successfully set yourself up as a one person team
Evolving your strategy and goals as your companies goals change
How to nail your companies messaging
Effectively building a founder brand
The importance of niching down to drive growth

Highlights

(3:25) Shifting from a ‘Yes mindset’ to a ‘No mindset’

(12:10) How Dave grew into a VP level role at Drift

(12:58) How Dave started his career at Drift

(24:00) Moments in Dave’s career where he didn’t achieve his goals

(28:48) Aligning revenue goals between Sales and Marketing

(31:50) Getting people excited and engaged in Drifts product at an early stage

(36:50) The pros and cons on starting a founder brand

(40:39) How Dave measured success for his podcast as they started out

(43:00) Hot take: Measuring everything in Marketing is no longer relevant

(45:00) The importance of niching down to drive growth

Dave's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davegerhardt/

Exit5 Community: https://www.exitfive.com

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Anna Baird started her career in Accounting helping with IPOs of companies like Google. She then moved to become an SVP at McAfee and when they sold to Intel she decided to work at start-ups so that she could help build the foundations at scale from the beginning. She became a CFO and then a COO and finally a CRO. Anna is now working on Boards to help other executives take advantage of the opportunities that they saw earlier and avoid some of the mistakes that she's faced at early stages ◡̈

What you will learn

The importance of leveraging your relationships to bring in revenue
Practicing resilience to surpass those who doubt your capabilities
Knowing when to walk away from a company
Understanding where your hires skillsets are to be successful within your organization

Highlights

(6:13) What Anna has learned throughout her career selling into large strategic accounts

(11:45) A walk through of Outreach’s deal review calls as a successful strategic tactic

(15:45) How to prepare folks to make a strong ask that garners results

(19:20) Anna’s impactful story that fueled her

(22:55) A moment in time where Ana faced a struggle with misalignment

(32:40) Anna’s advice to female leaders struggling to get promoted

(37:40) Understanding where your hires skillsets are to be successful in your organization

(42:10) Working in silos no longer works

Quotes

“I just wanna work with interest people, solving interesting problems, with people I enjoy and respect being around”

“The only reason why we exist as a company, is because we’re solving a pain. Never lose track of why you exist and what is it that you’re building for”

“Everyone wants to work for a place where they feel has a great foundation of innovation, great ideas, and different perspectives, and I feel that’s what the younger generation is excelling at”

Links and Resources Anna's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-baird-38966513/

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Bio

Justin Welsh helped scale ZocDoc as the Director of Strategic Sales, and later joined PatientPop as the SVP of Sales. Justin currently has over 440k followers on Linkedin and Twitter, and 150k subscribers on the Saturday Solopreneur Newsletter. Justin is also an Angel investor and an advisor for early stage startups. Justin has bundled all of his learnings into 2 courses that he offers today: The Operating System Digital Course, teaching you how to build a viable meaningful business on Linkedin and the The Content OS Digital Course, which gives you a more holistic strategy around content.

What you will learn

How to nail your Linkedin presence and strategy
Common mistakes and misconceptions folks come across when building their social presence
How to navigate burnout
How Justin cracked the twitter code on growth
The importance of giving yourself KPI’s as a thought leader
The best hacks on how to use your social channels to drive an abundance of inbound leads

Highlights

(3:18) The evolution of Justin’s career growth as a Solopreneur

(4:48) The courses Justin built on how to excel as a thought leader on Linkedin

(6:33) How to crack the twitter code

(13:25) Outsourcing creativity

(14:50) Using a scheduler for content - which platforms Justin uses for scheduling

(16:40) Justin’s take on threads

(19:15) The impactful results that Justin saw as he kickstarted his solopreneur journey

(22:17) Tips for executives and founders looking to build on Linkedin

(25:00) Common mistakes that folks should avoid on Linkedin

(27:00) Justin’s experience with burnout before he decided to bet on himself

(31:35) Justin’s best advice to his younger self

(33:26) How to motivate your hires to be more active on social

(37:48) Hot take: Fire Fast!

(41:55) Actionable tips that SaaS teams can implement to drive more inbound

Quotes

“It’s really about catching attention and stopping the scroll”

"I fired myself before my boss could. I wish people would do that more"

"How do you write, how do you sound, what's your voice: If you can nail those first 3 things for content, then you're in a really good spot"

Links and Resources Justin's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinwelsh/

Justin's Twitter: https://twitter.com/thejustinwelsh

Justin Welsh's Website: https://www.justinwelsh.me

The GTM Podcast Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

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Presenting you with a very special bonus episode this month...

Max Altschuler hits us with a very special announcment, Co-Hosted by the CEO and CoFounder of Outreach, Manny Medina

Tune in to hear it all!

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The GTM Podcast Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

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James Isilay founded Cognism a B2B sales intelligence company together with Stjepan Buljat in 2015. James had previously worked as a quantitative trader and analyst and studied Information Systems Engineering. Cognism helps you identify your ideal customers globally, find others like them, and reach out when they are most likely to buy.

What you will learn

The power of networking as you build your career
The importance of making top tier hires when scaling your business
Scaling internationally is how you win in today's market
Why SDR's should be working in office

Highlights

(3:05) James’ career journey that led him to become a founder
(8:09) Factors that drew James into being a financial trader early on in his career

(14:55) James’ inflection point quitting his 9-5 to start Cognism

(18:12) James’ learnings from his early days building Cognism

(20:33) How James calibrated excellence across his team

(27:08) Cognism's take on in office vs remote work

(31:28) Listener question: The “need to haves” on a go-to-market tech stack

(36:40) Hot take: every company should be expanding and building a sales capacity globally

(42:38) Value loops and ungated content is the way to succeed

Quotes

“Tools can make certain metrics better, but you need human intelligence to evolve it to the next level”

“Treat each country like a startup when joining a different global market”

Links and Resources James' Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-isilay/

Cognism's Website: https://www.cognism.com

The Diary of a First Time CMO book here: https://www.amazon.com/diary-first-time-CMO-Alice-Courcy/dp/B0BW2GWDQD/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

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Nicole is the VP of Marketing at Tackle, where she oversees the strategy and execution across brand, demand gen, content, product, customer, and partner marketing. She’s passionate about building GTM programs aligning cross-functional teams while scaling revenue. Before Tackle, she built and scaled the marketing team from the ground up at two previous SaaS companies.She enjoys advising early-stage SaaS companies as they build their marketing team and strategy.

What you will learn

The importance of taking ownership as a business and leaning on your team for support
Building the strongest possible cross functional team in order to collectively tackle the problem you're solving
Nicole's 4-part framework: 1 shared revenue goal, executing integrated campaigns across the org, and a multi touch attribution model
The importance of Infusing an integrated theme across the organization

Highlights

(3:17) The meaning of alignment between sales, marketing, & partnerships

(5:35) The framework Nicole built to create better alignment between sales & marketing

(11:03) How to extract data and diagnose a breakdown where problems are happening

(13:10) The impact on Nicole’s company after rolling out her framework

(16:08) What led Nicole to make changes within the sales and marketing org

(17:45) How Nicole motivated her team to adjust to these changes

(20:40) The importance of leading with data in every situation

(23:47) Nicole’s operational shift error

(26:53) Nicole’s biggest learnings and takeaways

(28:07) Listener question: Where to allocate marketing dollars in demand gen today

(30:15) Decreasing ad performance in today’s market

(31:35) Hot take: 1 Marketer with 10 different roles isn’t the way to succeed

(33:59) How to leverage AI for every possible role today

Quotes

“Whats our integrated theme for our next quarter, and how are we gonna infuse this into everything we’re doing”

“Try and focus on the overall pipeline health of the company rather than just our single individual business unit”

“Putting the bigger picture together around the campaigns and the strategy behind this, has been able to help us really show the results of all the efforts together”

Links and Resources Nicole's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolewojno/

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Adam Schoenfeld is the Co-Founder & CEO at Keyplay, as well as the Co-Founder & Analyst at PeerSignal.org. Adam is a 4th time SaaS founder. His past includes Siftrock (acquired by Drift), Simply Measured, Product & Strategy VP at Drift, and a board member at Bizible.

What you will learn:

The importance of having alignment with your cofounder
The concept of building a media channel as a part of every brand
Being overly structured doesn't bring you the best outcomes overtime
Never stop interfacing with your customers as a founder

Highlights

(2:57) The thinking and execution behind Keyplay

(6:06) How to get people to care about your early stage startup

(10:28) Adam’s advice to founders building a Media and community arm

(13:50) Adam’s pivotal career story

(20:44) The importance of the Cofounder relationships

(23:30) Not losing track of your customer

(27:25) How to get past the 1M mark as a startup

(33:30) Gating content is no longer needed in tech

(36:30) What's replacing gated content

(38:17) Offering a free version of your product will help your company's growth at the earlier stage

Quotes

"Really lean into the CoFounder relationship at a startup"

"In the early stage it's easy for the founder to be deep with the customer, as you get bigger you're less connected to each and every customer"

Links and Resources Adam's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elenahutchison/

KeyPlay's Website: https://keyplay.io

PeerSignal Website: https://peersignal.org

The GTM Podcast Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

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Guest appearance from the one and only Paul Irving again this month as him and Scott discuss the general trends in the macro environment, predictions and paving the path forward for todays economy. They also dive into the asset class comparisons and their latest US Trade Mission trip to HongKong!

Don't miss out!

Highlights

(0:45) Little Summer Update

(2:14) Why the VC landscape is different this year

(5:00) Paul’s take on the private and public markets right now

(8:44) Scott and Paul’s recap on the US Trade Mission in HongKong last month

(13:45) Last months GTM dinners in Toronto and NYC

(15:57) A GTMfund PortfolioCompany story / update from Paul

(21:00) Expanding on the concept of “flight to quality”

(26:00) Whether founders are going to start rethinking their value propositions

The GTM Podcast Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

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Elena Hutchison has over 15 years of B2B SaaS experience, including a 10-year run at Customer Experience leader Medallia where she supported the company's growth from Series B through IPO.As Medallia's Chief Strategy Officer, Elena led Product Marketing, Analyst Relations, and PreSales functions, and contributed significantly to the company's M&A and product strategy.Elena has particular expertise in scaling global PreSales functions - she joined Medallia as one of its first Sales Engineers and eventually led the 150-person org.She has also built a reputation as an elite Analyst Relations practitioner, with multiple leading Forrester Waves and Gartner MQs under her belt.Prior to Medallia, Elena spent 5 years in Professional Services and Customer Success roles. (She also earned some phenomenal stories from her days as a political pollster and focus group moderator).

What you will learn

How to stay motivated and stick with a company for 10+ years
Defining the role of Analyst Relations
Learning to step into an era of “yes” and an era of “no” equally in business
The importance of a peer group that gives you strength
Distinguishing which companies need Sales Engineers and which don’t

Highlights

(3:48) How Elena built her way up from engineer to C-Suite at Medallion

(7:22) How to fill the gaps when starting a new role

(13:10) Elena’s transition from engineering to analyst relations at Medallia

(18:24) Defining analyst relations

(25:16) Analyzing the concept of “Pay to Play”

(30:00) The metrics that matter for analyst relations

(31:41) Elena’s biggest mistake sitting at the executive table

(35:00) The power of outside mentorship

(37:20) The importance of bringing on Sales Engineers early on

Quotes

“If you’re continuing to learn in a place and the companies investing in you, you’re so much better off staying 90% of the time than you are hopping to another place for a better title”

“Having things that force you to do the things that you need to do, always helps you get through them”

“The real goal is building an early stage champion”

Links and Resources Elena's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elenahutchison/

Elena's Consulting: uprightar.com

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Manny Medina is the CEO and Co-Founder at Outeach. Prior to Outreach, Manny was employee number three on Amazon's AWS team, and led the Microsoft mobile division from launch to $50M in annual revenue. He holds an MBA from Harvard and a Masters in Computer Science from the University of Pennsylvania.

What you will learn

How to stay driven and motivated while building a multi billion dollar company
The importance of staying small in headcount as you begin to scale
Finding product sales fit as fast as you can as a first time founder
Manny shares his first sale that helped pivot the company from recruiting to sales
Why managing by forecast has changed in the last year
The best sales fundamentals to help founders succeed in today’s down market

Highlights

(2:42) Where Manny’s sustained motivation to win comes from

(5:14) Manny’s take on AI’s impact on rev tech

(9:35) Manny’s take on the competitive landscape with the emergence of AI

(19:40) An impactful story that happened to Manny recently came across

(27:24) How to maintain a strong company culture as you start to scale

(33:35) Manny’s valuable advice to first time founders

(35:03) The story of Manny’s first memorable sale

(37:08) 2 fundamentals things that have changed in SaaS over the last couple years

(40:40) Best tip to founders

Quotes

“You have to get excited about what’s forward, and once you get excited about what’s forward, the sustaining factor is how many other people you infect with that happiness”

“It’s not obsession it’s one step passed obsession - this is what you think about, this how you play, this what you obsess about, this is what you think about on weekends”

“We don’t fundamentally believe in just forecasting, it has to be forecasting with an action”

“What are the artificacts of culture that will live on past you?”

Links and Resources Manny Medina's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/medinism/

Manny Medina's Twitter: https://twitter.com/medinism

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Drew Sechrist is the Co-founder and CEO at Connect The Dots. Drew spent over 10 years at Salesforce.com as the VP of their High Tech vertical. He started his career in late 1999 as employee number 36 at Salesforce, beginning as the number one AE globally, and later to the number one Sales Manager globally.

What you will learn

The importance of having a centralized point of contact who can act as a trusted liaison for your business
Leveraging your network to drive revenue
Knowing when to make strong asks in sales
Introducing a Sales Ambassador role in your company

Highlights

(2:50) The premise behind Connect The Dots & Drew’s story building his career

(12:56) The evolution of LinkedIn and problems we face with it today

(19:05) The importance of patience and creativity to elevate your career

(21:05) Scotts infamous play that he rolled out at Outreach that brought in hundred of millions of dollars

(27:35) How they built Connect The Dots

(32:25) Drew’s successful play he ran at Salesforce

(39:34) Knowing when to leverage your network

(42:15) Introducing a Sales Ambassador to your sales organization

Links and Resources Drew's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drewsechrist/

Drew's E-mail: Drew@ctd.ai

Connect The Dots Website: https://www.ctd.ai

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Elissa Fink serves on several not-for-profit and corporate boards. Retired from Tableau Software in 2019 after 11+ years as their CMO, she helped grow the company from ~$5 million to over $1 billion in revenue and helped lead it through IPO and enterprise growth, leaving right before acquisition by Salesforce. She earned a BA in English and an MBA in Marketing. She now enjoys time with her husband, teenaged daughter and 9 year old son.

What you will learn

Exercising the power of no
The importance of surrounding yourself with exceptional individuals
Always hire folks who’s best years are ahead of them

Highlights

(4:00) What made Elissa stay at Tableau for 11 years

(7:27) Elissa explains her experience as a leader at Tableau and having to adapt as a Marketer

(12:56) What Elissa attributes her career growth to

(17:42) Elissa explains Tableau’s decision to start the Tableau conference at 12M in revenue

(33:10) The importance of excercising the power of no

(36:08) Elissa’s vital mistake attacking a competitor

(39:37) How to make a big impact in your first 90 days at a new role

(44:27) A brand touch is a demand touch

(46:57) How to hire the best folks

Quotes

“Every once and I while, stop and think: who am I and how am I doing this, and is this what we need right now?”

“As you go through your career and your startup journey, it’s very valuable to take a look at what other people around you are doing”

“To be around excellence is a really important thing, and it helps you grow because you see it and you can emulate it”

“The power of no is pretty powerful”

Links and Resources Elissa Fink's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissafink/

The GTM Podcast Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

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Max Altschuler back at it this month leading our monthly bonus episode solo while Scott & Paul take Hong Kong for a US trade mission.

Max hits us with some internal company updates, this months PortCo announcements, qualities that we're looking for in founders as we invest in new early stage startups, and a little topical discussion around moats and distribution.

Don't miss out!

Highlights

(1:30) Update on the fund, network & candidate growth

(3:03) Tailwinds, econonmic changes, and micro qualities that we continue to look out for at the fund

(4:30) Types of entreprenerus / founders that stand out to us when evaluating an investment

(6:22) PortCo announcements

(7:04) "We have no moat, and neither does OpenAi" Unpacking the concept of moats and how to succeed through distribution

(9:13) Max's 4-part Series on the GTM Newsletter (Decoding Community)

The GTM Podcast Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

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Scott Leese is a 6x Sales Leader, 4x Founder, 3x Author, a Sales Consultant, Advisor, Solopreneur, and Community Builder. Scott Leese Consulting was founded in 2016 with a focus on companies scaling from $0 - $25m ARR. Scott founded Surf and Sales in 2017 with the mission to bring valuable events and conferences around the globe to help sales professionals and executives grow and expand their skills. Most recently Scott founded GTM United, which is a private community of go-to-market professionals united by a mission to put their development first. Get feedback, ask questions, practice self-care, and make real connections.

What you will learn

How to land advisory work & how to hire the best advisors
Identifying which early stage startups to join
The importance of asking deeper questions in your career
The 'Go-To-Network' approach

Highlights

(4:40) Defining advisory work in SaaS

(7:57) What to look for when bringing on an advisor

(11:07) How to land an advisory role

(17:21) The big resume bl*p that Scott encountered in his career

(25:50) Building strategies to discover different sales archetypes

(32:35) Earning the right to side hustle

(34:45) What Scott would've done differently throughout his career

(41:30) Scott's advice on hiring the best sales individuals

(44:20) Hot take: Go-to-market strategies won't be relevant in a couple years

(48:54) Creating a partner channel to accelerate your business

Quotes

"My biggest mistake was that I wanted everyone to be one type versus maximizing everyone's different skillsets"

"A small dose of humble pie, that I then internalized to mean 'now I really know what I'm doing', because now I've been exposed to my weaknesses"

"I think it takes just as much energy and effort to build and scale a company in a sales organization that has the possibility of being a billion dollar company as a company that maxes out at 250Million"

Links and Resources Scott Leese's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottleese/

GTM United: https://www.gtmunited.com/join-now

Scott Leese Consulting: https://scottleeseconsulting.com

Surf and Sales: https://www.surfandsales.com

The GTM Podcast Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

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Over the past 20 years, Jamal closed multiple $50m deals as an individual contributor enterprise seller, authored the best selling book, Mega Deal Secrets, coached hundreds of ambitious sellers to sell the largest deals of their lives, and founded the Enterprise Sellers Community, a community of practice for individual contributors.

What you will learn

The psychology on how to sell to executives
Knowing which deals to prioritize
Multi threading and aligning your sellers to your product market message
Earning clout and respect from executives

Highlights

(3:09) Things to think about when starting to sell to larger Enterprise

(5:48) The story behind Jamal's best selling sales book “Mega Deal Secrets”

(9:36) How to get access to the right people in the room when closing a deal

(15:12) The framework for identifying and prioritizing the right deals

(18:00) How to earn clout and respect from executives

(22:31) How to keep executives invested in your relationship

(31:26) Key components necessary in an enterprise sales playbook

(36:30) Practicing patience in sales

(41:25) The Importance of Co-selling as a CEO

Quotes

“This is not about discounts and which team members to use, this is about how we steward the most important IP of our company”

“The answer is always: Get higher sooner”

“More often than we might suspect, the alignment between product readiness and the message to the market don’t line up in a way that let sellers do their job”

Links and Resources Jamal Reimer's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamal-reimer/

Mega Deal Secrets Book: https://www.megadealsecretsbook.com/order-471103471676473227166

The GTM Podcast Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

Mega Deal Secrets: How to Find and Close the Biggest Deal of Your Career

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Sam Jacobs is the founder & CEO of Pavilion and Host of The Sales Hacker Podcast, Sam is focused on helping people unlock and achieve their professional potential. He believes there is greatness within all of us and sometimes it just needs a mechanism through which it can be brought forth. This philosophy led him to build a company called Pavilion and the purpose of that company is to help members, employees, and stakeholders realize the greatness within themselves. Pavilion is a paid membership for leaders of all levels dedicated to providing support, assistance, education, and career growth. They are a global organization with over 9,000 members and hubs in every major city in the world. Sam created Pavilion based both on his personal experience and the experiences of friends, partners, and colleagues in the high growth community.

What you will learn

Pre-negotiating your severance pay and equity when joining a company
Adjusting Comp plans and aligning each contributors goals to the companies
Pivoting away from the zero interest rate era

Highlights

(3:16) SVB banking analysis

(11:06) Pavilion’s origin story

(15:00) Stepping into Pavilions next chapter

(23:48) What people should be thinking about and negotiating for into their contract as they move into their next roles

(35:41) How to handle getting paid not at market rate

(41:29) Hot take: Sales people don’t actually generate the money in the business

Quotes

“I’m not soho house, I’m not Kim Kardashian, I don’t know how to scale cool”

“Ask yourself: does my perspective on growth align with how the CEO wants to grow”

"It's your job as an employee of the company to understand how the business works, and if you don't want to do that, take a hike pal, get outa here!"

Links and Resources

Sam Jacobs' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samfjacobs/

Pavilion's Wesbite: https://www.joinpavilion.com

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Stevie oversees Vanta’s go-to-market team to support the company’s rapid growth. Stevie brings over 20 years of sales and business development experience to the role, most recently serving as Vice President of Mid-Market Sales at Twilio, running a $425 million business for the market-leading cloud communications platform. Joining as one of their first account executives, Stevie played a pivotal role in establishing Twilio’s enterprise business with key Fortune 500 customers. She helped to grow the sales team from a dozen to over 1,000 team members. Stevie also supports startups, serving as an angel investor and advisor for the past decade.

What you will learn

How to succeed in technical sales as a non technical person and a non technical resume
How to look for curiosity in candidates when in the hiring process
Turning a lack of belongingess into an abundance mindset and greater success
Don't undermine the power of networking

Highlights

(1:48) What Stevie attributes her early success to

(4:20) How revenue leaders and their teams are currently using AI today - building a team for AI revops

(10:48) What made Stevie reach all time success in sales during her time at Twilio & how to break into technical sales as a non technical person

(13:30) 2 fundamental ways to test for curiosity in an interview process

(16:10) Stevie’s career shaping story that turned rejection into fuel

(22:45) Transitioning from changing from a scarcity mindset to an abundance mindset

(26:35) Stevie’s mindset shift on the importance of networking in your career

(33:28) The struggle to hire talent in todays market

(35:47) Vantas open roles as of May 2023

(37:40) Hot take: Resumes don’t matter

Quotes

“While RevOps is a partnership with engineering we’ve gotta have our own resources to build these great customer experiences and AI is going to be at the heart of these experiences within weeks not years”

“I think we’re so leveraged, we’re having so many great conversations, and rather than take AI and try to optimize how we work today my hope is to really transform it completely”

“Transitioning from changing from a scarcity mindset to an abundance mindset”

“There’s no value in keeping these things you know a secret, the value is in sharing them with other people”

Links and Resources

Stevie Case's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steviecase/

Vanta's Wesbite: https://www.vanta.com

Vanta's Career Page: https://www.vanta.com/company/careers#open-roles

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Juan George (JG) is the Co-Founder of 858 Partners, a boutique restaurant technology management & investment firm that he Co-Founded with his former CRO in January 2023. 858 Partners provides go-to-market expertise, capital, and connections to restaurant technology organizations possessing the ingredients to achieve extraordinary success within the Enterprise Restaurant Vertical. Prior to launching his agency, JG was the former SVP of Enterprise Sales at Olo, the leading on-demand commerce platform for the multi-unit restaurant space. JG joined Olo as a Seed Stage start-up and over the course of a 15+ year run helped the company go public on the NYSE under the ticker OLO. During his tenure as an IC/Leader, Olo signed 71% of the Enterprise Restaurant Market (82,000 locations) and become the gold standard for enterprise software in the restaurant tech ecosystem. Olo’s growth story is a masterclass in focused, lean, and efficient GTM execution in a period of market excess. Of the 2021 vintage of SaaS IPOs, Olo was the single most efficient in 2 categories: 1) Lowest Sales to Revenue Ratio (8%) and 2) Lowest Burn Multiple (0.05%).

What you will learn

Patience is a virtue in startup land
Know your buyer beyond what may be presented
Go lean in your team to win
The importance of saying no in sales
Why hiring good sales leadership is fundamental in scaling your company

Highlights

(3:05) JG’s background and experience at Olo

(11:53) Update on 858 Ventures and JG’s recent transition from Operator to VC

(21:00) Enterprise sales efficiency and the new vertical SaaS playbook

(35:44) How Olo began it’s winning streak straight into IPO

(43:02) JGs biggest mistake as an operator hiring insider sales reps

(44:48) Biggest learning throughout JP’s 15 year stint at Old

(51:42) JG’s controversial claim that Outbound is dead

(54:29) Hot take: You better be using ChatGPT at all times of the day

Links and Resources

JG's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juangeorge/

858 Partners Website: https://858partners.com/

Food on Demand Article: https://foodondemand.com/03222023/with-new-venture-ex-olo-execs-launch-858-partners/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Back at it for another monthly Jam session but this time with an ultra special guest... The man, the myth, the legend; our very own Paul Irving.

Not just a handsome devil but also the brains behind the GTMfund operation takes Max's seat this week to hit us with all the GTMfund updates in the last month.

Talking AI's influence on the GTM stacking process, How partnerships and referrals are going to play a huge role in pipeline velocity, Paul's career advice to folks starting out in a role... and tons more!

Highlights

(2:51) The truth behind Scott & Paul's friendship

(3:48) The birth of DormVIP, Scott & Paul's first business

(5:45) Paul's experience leading up to join the GTMfund

(9:12) Unpacking common conversational themes discussed with our LP's and Founders at our latest GTM dinners

(14:57) Upcoming events including a dinner at the US Embassy in Hong Kong

(18:04) The new GTMfund rebrand

(20:10) GTMfund deals in April and the value in our community

(23:13) Paul's personal career advice to folks starting out in their new role and hoping to make an immediate impact

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

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Julia Gilinets is currently the Head of Sales at Pocus, also a go-to-market executive who has helped scale businesses from 0-10M across a multitude of different industry verticals. Julia has intentionally built the product led sales foundation before it was cool; Doing PLG before PLG was a thing. She brings data democracy to go-to-market teams everywhere and always out there advising, speaking, and teaching.

What you will learn

The importance of forming deeper relationships within your company
Understanding trends for the greater good of your product
The positive outcome derived from the pursuit of data
Resorting to discovery in order to better understand people’s behaviour
Why outbound and the SDR role is outdated

Highlights

(1:40) How Julia started doing PLG before PLG became widely known

(9:05) How to make sense of your product’s data

(12:06) Julia’s experience working AdTech: going from 0-35Million and later acquired by Twitter

(18:53) How to carve out equity for yourself after an exit

(26:48) How to overcome mismanagement by your CEO

(31:51) Hot take: Outbound in the SDR role is broken

Quotes

"Even if it would've gone no where, those would've been great relationships to have"

Links and Resources

Julia's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliagilinets/

Pocus' Website: https://www.pocus.com

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Intro

Kevin Bailey is the Co-founder and CEO of Dreamfuel, a mental performance coaching platform for winning teams. Kevin Bailey is 3 time tech Founder who has done mindset coaching for over a thousand Sales professionals and currently completing his masters in applied neuroscience.

What you will learn

Habit formation coaching
Best recovery tools to equip yourself for success
Guided visualization as a form of healing
How to guarentee success in your career through a flow state

Highlights

(2:32) Kevin’s philosophy and thinking of being a mental performance coach

(6:18) Kevin’s connection with mental performance and deep rooted story

(13:01) Tools that Kevin used to turn his life around (including Whim Hoff breathing)

(17:03) Coaching people on habit formation

(25:45) A walk through of some of the best exercises to do when feeling mentally trapped

(27:38) Guided visualization as a mental performance exercise

(39:55) What good recovery looks like

(43:30) Hot take on grind culture

Quotes

“ If you can learn to stay in flow state you will win the marathon in your career “

“Truth is we have to recover everyday, the idea of a mental health day can be really powerful. But if you teach your team how to recover like champions every single day then they won’t actually need that”

“Any habits that gives you massive reward and very little effort are dopamine wasters”

Links and Resources

Kevin's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinjamesbailey/

Deamfuel's Website: https://www.dreamfuel.com

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Intro

Kathleen Booth is the SVP of Marketing and member of experience at Pavilion, The modern union for go-to-market leaders. Prior to her time at Pavilion, she founded Quintain Marketing a full service marketing agency that she sold after over 10 years of operating.

Kathleen has held a multitude of Marketing Leadership roles at VC backed B2B Tech companies. She continues to serve as an advisor to early stage SaaS companies and B2B startups.

Kathleen shares a ton of tactical advice on B2B leadership, including how to show up in your community, how to properly draw lines when founding a company, and her biggest learnigs from her exit after operating Quinatain Marketing for 11 years.

What you'll learn

Best ways to overcome your Imposter Syndrome
How to leverage your community in order to elevate your career and drive pipeline
How to better understand your company's objectives
An in-depth explanation of Kathleen's entrepreneurial journey and the importance of drawing lines in the sand when starting out

Highlights

(6:20) The mission behind Pavilion and how Kathleen first kicked off her role with the team

(8:09) Strategies to overcome Imposter Syndrome

(12:33) Tips & tricks for managing a board

(15:47) Why community is more important than ever

(21:17) Who should be showing up in your community to drive actual revenue and demand

(27:45) Incentivizing your team to show up in community

(31:11) Kathleen’s experience building and selling her company

(40:50) Tactical advice to founders who haven’t yet found product market fit

(44:27) The importance of investing in your personal brand

Quotes

“Developing the confidence to say: I don't know, but i’ll find out”

“In the leadership world, it's important to be vulnerable in a way that expresses confidence”

“The best advice I can give to founders today, is to always form a corporate prenup when starting out”

Links and Resources

Kathleen's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathleenslatterybooth/

Pavilion's Website: https://www.joinpavilion.com

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Justin Strackany is an early stage software vet, investor, GTM executive, and worked as the first employee at SecureLink for a total of 18 years. Throughout his career at SecureLink, Justin played a multitude of different roles including Director of CSM, VP of Sales, and most recently as their Chief Customer Officer. Justin shares an impactful story at SecureLink that led his CEO to bring him in as an acquisition partner. Discussing the journey of an acquisition through a private equity firm and the pivotal decision of rolling his shares post acquisition.

What you’ll learn:

Knowing your values when joining a company
The benefits of startup learnings and acquisitions
How to manage and level up in the private equity and venture capital space
The importance of relinquishing control as a leader
How to work within an executive team
How to manage up to a board & private equity firm.

Highlights:

(3:05) Hot take on Bitcoin’s trajectory

(8:33) Building and starting out SecureLink as an Acquisition Partner

(16:12) Knowing what your equity equates to when joining a company

(19:05) What Justin implemented on the Go-to-Market front after being brought on

(21:20) Blind spots encountered post acquisition

(29:47) What Justin did to triple sales post acquisition

(32:10) Things to do to set yourself up for a CRO role

(35:57) Actionable ways to improve revenue retention

Quotes:

“if you don’t like to sit in meetings or you struggle iterating in the same concept, it’s not that you suck and somebody’s better than you, none of us are going to be great at everything”

“One of the things i learned as a manager is that it’s really about your team, it’s not about you”

“In sales, you gotta go slow to go fast”

“I think it’s bullsh*t that we hire CS people for empathy and then we are shocked that they struggle with negotiations and renewals”

Links and Resources

Justin's Linkedin:

GTM Consulting:

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Max Altschuler and Scott Barker back at it for yet another monthly jam session!

Touching base on the latest internal and external updates, our official GTM retreat announcement, newest deals, the secret sauce in throwing executive level events, & Max's hot tips on his 36th birthday and everything he's been working on in regards to personal and career development.

Highlights

(1:33) Annual GTM retreat details

(2:10) GTM Job Board updates

(3:33) How to host a white-glove experience event for executives

(5:40) Building and fostering a deeply authentic community (through our annual retreat)

(7:20) The value and takeaways from our GTM sessions - how we look at businesses, how we size up opportunities.. etc.

(16:48) Max's 36th Birthday fueled with reflection, recalibration, self growth

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

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Tyler Short joins us this week as we dive into all things Go-To-Market, but this time with a Venture Capital twist. We get a deeper glimpse into what's going on across the VC world and the implications of today's market for founders & investors. Tyler currently works as the General Counsel and Director of Operations at SixThirty Ventures.

Tyler peels the onion on one of his biggest career learnings to date - a venture deal that crumbled apart. Not one to miss!

What you will learn

Things to look out for as someone investing in startups today
How to fundraise smarter
The fundamentals to help you better navigate which startups to invest in
Legal necessities to be aware of as a founder
Knowing when to walk away from a deal

Highlights

(3:26) VC terminology & how to break into venture

(6:28) Predictions and themes in today's Market

(14:15) A deal that fell apart and what Tyler learned throughout the process

(30:36) Best advice to founders struggling to raise in this market

(33:27) Advice to founders around legal work

(35:42) Tyler’s view on AI legal tech

(38:15) What the best founders do to move the needle

Quotes

“Not every founder and VC are a match made in heaven”

“Too often i see a spray and pray approach from founders - the fact of the matter is venture has a lot of specialists in this world “

“Do your due diligence , make sure you understand who the funds are that you’re trying to meet, and target the right ones”

“All business people are part time lawyers, it’s the good business people who know that, and lean into it”

Links and Resources

Tyler's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyler-short-gc/

Tyler's Twitter: https://twitter.com/TylerShortVC

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

The GTM Newsletter - https://thegtmnewsletter.substack.com

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Erica Kuhl joins us this week for an inspiring episode on how to build your community in today's environment, with over 20 years of enterprise community expertise.

Erica shares some valuable tips and tricks that she learned after spending over a decade successfully building the Trailblazer community and ecosystem at Salesforce.

What you'll learn

How she built the Trailblazer Salesforce community from scratch and what inspired her to do it
How to run programs with any size budget and any size team
How to build community strategies to scale
The positive outcomes of exceptional leadership
The importance of aligning community to a business strategy

Highlights

2:30 - Intro & Erica's experience building out trailblazers at Salesforce

10:55 - Hot take: The over saturation of community

18:25 - Challenges scaling the community at Salesforce

35:24 - What Erica would do differently if she could go back and build Salesforce's Community all over again

42:58 - Erica's advice on how to make team meetings more upbeat, lively, and productive

45:20 - Erica's take on a widely held belief that revenue leaders share that she thinks might be bullsh*t

47:23 - Step1 when starting a community

Quotes

"Community is a business strategy, it isn't a fad"

"I stress to anyone building communities today: Partner with your support person if they don't get it, KEEP ON GOING!"

Links and Resources

Erica’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericakuhl/

Erica's Twitter: https://twitter.com/ericakuhl

Erica's Blog: https://medium.com/@erica.kuhl

Erica's Website: https://www.ericakuhl.com

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Dave Kennett joins us on this week's episode to discuss lessons learned throughout his years transforming businesses to adapt for a digital world, the art form of sales, how to lead from the front, and walks us through the genesis and evolution of Replayz.

In 2019, after an extensive career at notable companies such as AutoTrader.ca, Strutta, Payfirma, Hootesuite, and MergeBase, Dave founded Replayz - a predictive SaaS platform that uses Data Science to analyze Call Scoring Results to predict what skills matter the most.

What You Will Learn:

The importance of role-playing, how to communicate to the CFO
Steps to building trust and rapport through credibility
How to cultivate and leverage customer stories for a competitive advantage
5 leadership tools to arm your team with
Ways to visibility improve your win rate
How to lead from the front, and learn the most from past mistakes
Strategies to navigate career path options in the current environment

Highlights:

(5:20) Call coaching culture & Replayz pain point solution strategy

(7:45) Blind spots in discovery/demos & how to avoid them

(13:22) Common threads of sales reps that consistently crush it

(18:10) How to introduce a customer story

(21:45) The importance of role-playing

(25:00) Digitally transforming AutoTrader to Trader.ca

(27:10) Leadership lessons from experience

(34:25) How to think about career pathing

(39:10) Rounding out your leadership skills

(40:25) Widely held beliefs that are wrong

(44:30) Actionable moves available now

Quotes:

“If you’re able to create consensus, and build bridges, in an unofficial leadership capacity where you can’t just tell someone to do something and they do it, you’re going to build a lot of muscles that will be very applicable in the real world.”

“Really understanding what are the things keeping up your prospect up at night, costing them either inefficiency or money, and where can you help them. That mental shift is what we see really helps reps. Spend more time on discovery - and then it’s not just spending the time, it’s what you spend the time on”

“All we need to do is think what it’s like being in a buying position ourselves; we’ve all been there. When you really think that through, on what kind of experience you want as part of the buyer journey, it’s pretty easy to start adapting your style that way.”

“If I’m asking for someones time I should at least do the research to create a hypothesis that might resonate with them - lead them to where you think they might be going.”

“We should, as sales professionals, aspire to leave the prospect after every single call with a feeling like ‘Wow that sales rep taught me so much that I would have actually paid for that call.’"

“Someone told me, ‘You’re a nice guy and sometimes too nice. Go in as the hard-ass, you can always come back and ring that in later.’ I took that advice, and it was terrible advice, because it wasn’t who I genuinely was. That caused a disconnect between the leader I could’ve been versus the leader I was.”

Links and Resources

Dave’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dkennett/

Replayz Website: https://replayz.com/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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‘Thinking more out of the box instead of just following playbooks is something that I think is important.’ - Martin Gontovnikas.

In this week’s episode, Scott Barker chats with Martin Gontovnikas ‘Gonto’ about taking big risks in marketing, Generative AI, and understanding customer behavior while making marketing strategies.

Gonto is the founder of Hyper Growth Partners. He previously worked with Off Zero where he started in branding relations and ended up in marketing and growth, growing with the company in revenue from 20 dollars to 20 million average revenue.

What you will learn:

The impact of Generative AI on marketing
How to achieve big hairy audacious goals in marketing
Experimenting in marketing when risk tolerance is low

Highlights

(04:02) Generative AI for marketing

(09:56) Where will Generative AI be in 10 years

(13:31) Audacious goal experiments that worked

(22:53) Big audacious goals that turned out successful

(30:29) Restructuring back after implementing an audacious idea

(33:40) Running experiments when risk tolerance is low

(36:40) How long do you run an experiment before making a decision?

(39:31) What most revenue leaders believe but Gonto doesn’t agree with

(44:01) Fitting marketing strategies into users’ habits

(46:36) How to get in touch with Gonto

Quotes

'There's so many layoffs now but a lot of these layoffs are a result of companies doing things just because they think they have to be doing them not because they should do them. Understanding that maybe doing something different is better is very hard.'

'If you're going to try experiments, I would think about two ways of doing it. Number one is; you try absolute extremes. You’ll get an answer on which one is better very fast. So what that means is that you can still fail, but failing five times to find the one that works in one month is not the same as failing five months to find the one that does work. So failing faster is a good way to get to the objective.'

'When we think about experiments or things that we want to try out, most ideas come from gut feelings from somebody on the team. That gut feeling may come from doing research, but the research and the data will not tell you what you need to do.'

'Thinking with more out of the box instead of just following playbooks is something that I think is important'

'When you're doing marketing, I think that's to drive people to come to your website and to convert, you need to live and exist inside their habits. If you try to change what they do in their day to day to get them to come. It's not gonna work.'

‘Something I think is important when we do experiments is if they increase something very little, you need a lot of samples to see which one works better that means it needs to run for one month for two months or something like that, when you make an experiment where a and b are extremely different, that means that the change is likely going to be higher, and therefore you need less samples.’

Links and Resources

Gonto’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mgonto/en

Website: https://www.hypergrowthpartners.com/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Episode Description

Max Altschuler and Scott Barker back at it for another monthly jam session. Sharing some compelling internal company updates as well as the impact of our candidate placements in the last year (placing over 80 candidates in the last year). We also can't help but discuss some topical stuff, including: Whether companies should begin to ban alcohol at work related events, generational trends, and ChatGPT's takeover on our creativity.

Highlights

(1:50)- The generational evolution within the work force

(4:45)- The importance of our creativity and whether ChatGPT has much competition against it

(13:17)- Hot take on whether companies should ban alcohol or not

(16:20)- Internal company updates & the motivation behind our decisions [new HQ office, new official GTMfund hires]

(27:00)- Deal updates & SPVs

(29:42)- Angel Investing sessions and candidate placements at our portfolio companies

The GTM Podcast

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Mark Stephenson joins us in this week’s episode to talk about the modern revenue architecture. Mark has 30 years of solution sales leadership experience, with high growth series A through D companies. Currently he's an advisor at Evisort, former VP of Sales at Avi Networks, and has worked at large companies such as HP, Cisco, & Xerox..

We kick off this episode by unpacking the 5 leading and 4 lagging indicators of a strong go-to-market team that drive your business.

What you will learn:

The importance of getting cross functional alignment within your team
Leading metrics that every leader should be focused on
5 layer framework on modern revenue

Highlights:

(8:03) 5 Layers on how to Go-to-market

(13:48) Problems to solve on the Go-to-market approach

(20:37) Where Mark’s gone right and wrong in defining ICP

(26:10) How to hire great talent

(32:18) Cross-functional alignment

(36:00) the leading and lagging metrics for successful alignment

(45:00) Mark’s take on the layoffs happening in todays market

Quotes:

“Everybody get granular on what the ideal customer profile is”

“You’re only as good as the talent you hire and develop”

“Great companies have great talent”

“In go-to-market alignment you gotta look for 2 things: efficiency and leverage”

“The number one thing to look for in ICP, is gross margin and revenue growth”

“In any economy, any growth market, you need to focus on your people development”

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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In this week’s episode, Scott is joined by Bryan Breckenridge and Corey Marshall, the co-founders of VITAL, a company that harnesses impact-powered revenue and culture to accelerate growth.

Corey Marshall is a builder, advisor, and investor with a strong background in CRM Data. He previously worked with Splunk, a cybersecurity startup where he built programs around workforce development, employee engagement and volunteerism.

Bryan Breckenridge is a social intrapreneur who thrives at the intersection of corporate and nonprofit mission fulfillment maximizing social, environmental and economic returns. He has implemented growth and impact strategies and integrated nonprofit networks into core operating structures at Salesforce, LinkedIn, Box, Zillow, and Snyk.

They explore the world of social impact issues in startups, including how and when startups should get involved in social issues, which issues to take on, how to align these with the company’s values and how these help in connecting with the customers for eventual profitability.

Highlights

(1:44) Introduction of speakers

(2:50) Corey Marshall’s background story

(5:15) The impetus for Splunk

(6:36) Brian’s background

(9:42) Brian’s time at Salesforce

(11:08) The truth about the Sales profession

(13:26) Having environmental, social and governance in mind as a Startup

(19:34) Attracting talent that aligns with your company’s values

(22:09) When should a company take a stance on social issues?

(29:11) How should startups establish which social impact issues to focus on?

(36:42) Corey’s story about building strong partnerships through participating in social impact issues

(40:16) Merging problem solving for clients with addressing social issues they are passionate about

(47:39) Strategies that revenue leaders or founders can implement

(53:56) Social impact participation extends beyond sales and marketing

(56:14) How to get in touch with Bryan and Corey

Quotes

‘What’s been true for me all the way through is that people have to see your authentic desire to make them successful. You have to listen and garner trust, and that's going to be universal no matter what the regenerative AI turns on, I think trust is still going to be at the core.’ Brian Breckenridge

‘The reality is, if you can find ways to humanize your product, your brand, your people, your company in a way that is resonant and aligned with folks in other dimensions, than purely software, or purely services, all of a sudden, you have other dimensions of connection with them. What you're doing is you're making it applicable to different types of organizations.’

‘Even if you're at an earlier stage, and really trying to craft your message still and figure out what you are trying to be when you grow up, it's still really important that you get crisp around what your full value proposition is, as opposed to simply what your product base value proposition is. Because that broader picture ultimately resonates more broadly and deeply with your prospects than you might realize.'

‘When you're asking (about social impact issues), you're not just asking your seven-person team or your 70-person team, you're also asking your first three customers, the types of things that they're passionate about and you realize if there is an authentic alignment, then suddenly now you're entering those conversations with your clients and deepening your relationship and your trust with them’

‘Make sure that as you are going to market in whatever segment, you know who your buyer is, you know your ideal customer profile, you know who your user is and understand the variety of motivations that come with those folks.’

‘Compliance effort is about storytelling when it comes down to it. What you're trying to do is say we are managing some of these very tangible risks by doing things that engage different stakeholder groups, whether they be our employees, our investors, our customers and partners. There is a big world out there that you need to control for, or that you at least need to plan for your engagement. That is how you minimize your risk.’

Links and Resources

Website: thevital.co

Email: info@vital.co

Bryan Breckenridge Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/bryanbreckenridge

Corey Marshall Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/coreymarshall

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Pivoting and verticalization has the potential to be a game-changer for many companies. A case in point is the story of Seismic.

On the podcast today is Ed Calnan, the founder and former CRO of Seismic, a company he led through the pandemic. In this episode, you will learn how Ed, as the company’s first BDR, grew the company to 1,500 people, 2,000 customers, and $300 million in ARR through successful pivoting and verticalization to financial services.

What you will learn:

The power of pivoting and verticalization and how to do it successfully
The value of vacation, rest, and relaxation
The importance of analyzing and sharing team successes

Highlights

(3:00) Ed’s reflection on founding Seismic and taking a long break after 11 years

(9:30) The value of sales enablement

(13:00) How to pivot and verticalize successfully: Case study of Seismic

(32:20) The benefits of being a specialist and an expert

(35:50) Why you need to analyze and share team successes

(48:42) Discussion on consistent communication, being open and authentic

(49:42) Strategies for growing a company and harnessing customer stories

(52:20) A strategy founders and revenue leaders should implement to move the needle

(55:30) One common misbelief held by revenue leaders

(57:03) The challenges of being a revenue leader: How to identify and address core issues

Quotes:

“If you do something you love, it doesn't feel like work during the day.”

“It’s hard to do that as an entrepreneur, to recognize that you do need a break, and that you’re not as completely committed as you need to be to run a high-growth company.”

“The power of verticalization is really amazing because if you sell to a financial firm in the morning and an insurance company in the afternoon and a tech company tomorrow, you don't live and breathe the value prop, especially in a specialized industry like that.”

“I've been a part of companies over my career where everyone's like, we're gonna verticalize and everybody goes to verticalize. It takes effort and money and time to specialize. The first quarter you miss, everybody says, ‘Clearly the vertical thing’s not working. Let's go back to being generalists.’ I feel like it's more of a knee-jerk reaction versus a long term play.”

“When you're verticalized, you can focus on one buyer persona, one type of customer and, you can drill it into the team's heads with training and repetition and cycles, and it's easier to grasp.”

“If you’re a specialist and an expert, you’re going to win more than you lose.”

Links and Resources

Ed’s LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/edcalnan/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Today on the podcast, we have the privilege of speaking with Cara Felleman - a dynamic advisor, investor, and sales powerhouse. Cara is currently serving as the Vice President of Sales at Vividly and is also an LP at GTM Fund, where she uses her expertise to help startups grow and scale.

With a wealth of experience, Cara has a unique perspective on what it takes to succeed in a fast-paced and competitive environment. When it comes to hiring, she identifies two key attributes that she looks for in employees. The first is the unwavering drive to succeed despite obstacles. The second is having a positive outlook and being able to stay hopeful even when things seem hard.

Cara is also a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion in the workplace. She believes that companies need to take into account the emotional and cultural impact of their decisions, such as layoffs, on employees.. Cara thinks we can make workplaces that are more fair and open to everyone if we approach these problems with empathy and understanding.

Join us as we delve into these important topics with Cara Felleman and gain valuable insights into what it takes to create fair, safe, and successful workplaces and sales teams.

Highlights

(2:37) Qualities of a successful go-to-market professional

(5:46) Why companies need to be more considerate in layoffs

(8:00) How layoffs have a greater impact on women

(11:50) Exploring strategies for attracting and retaining Gen Z talent

(16:24) Building the sales team at Resy: The challenges and lessons learned

(20:35) Finding the middle ground between control and collaboration

(32:19) Discussion on how to relinquish control and trust your sales team

(37:06) Conversation on radical candor

(38:26) One thing most go-to-market leaders believe that is not true

(42:49) The value of human connection in business

Quotes:

“Working at an early-stage startup is about figuring out how to make lemonade out of a lemon that barely has juice in it.”

“If you are someone that looks at the negative, it's going to be very difficult in this (early-stage startup) environment or when the market’s hot. You have to be able to say like I'm successful no matter what I have the will to do it. You have to be your best motivator.”

“There is a domino effect to women being laid off. Does that stop them from saying, ‘Well, do I have to choose my career or a family? If I choose to have a family, I'm more likely to be laid off because maybe I didn't work a full year.’? That's what they're looking at. That really scares me.”

“The Gen Z market thinks very differently than what we're used to. The Gen Z market absolutely will look down upon a company that does not have diversity. They want transparency.”

“If you have a side hustle, you're gonna want a structure at work. If you do not have a side hustle, you're going to want the flexibility in work. It really comes down to getting to know the individual and what they’re looking for. We can’t generalize that all Gen Z are this way, but it’s fair to say that by the time a Gen Z starts at a job, specifically a startup, you have to expect that they don’t have 5 years of work experience, but they have 5 years of work experience in different ways.”

“Gen Z is going to give us a run for our money and say, ‘Hey, you can continue doing this way. But I have an idea.’ And we should listen to those ideas because innovation is what's going to keep us moving forward.”

“Your goal is to get to this incredible Island. When you get to the island, you win. Is that an exit? Is that going public? That boat ride is going to be rocky. But if you don't all know why you're on the boat and you're not all paddling the same way, you're not going to get to the island; you're not going to win. So everyone needs to know how to win and why we're making those decisions.”

“If you're going from a Series A to Series B, one of the biggest things that investors look for is repeatability.”

“The best sellers are the ones that follow the process.”

“I strongly believe you should hire someone a little bit more expensive, that is more experienced, that can take on a larger remit, than to hire someone cheaper and younger to just do the job. Because that level of trust and expertise is there.”

“People do not care about the details of how the company came about, but when you're a founder, they care to hear that from you.”

Links and Resources

Cara’s LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/carafelleman/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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"If you are doing something that is consistent, you have to figure out a way to leverage this technology (ChatGPT) to do that for you. Otherwise, you’re going to be wasting so much time where some other kid is going to be able to leap years ahead of you."

-John Barrows

Do you think that AI and sales automation are about to take over the sales profession? If you're a sales professional, this is a terrifying prospect that you must understand and be prepared for.

In this episode, John Barrows, CEO of Sell Better by JB Sales, helps you understand what the new reality of sales looks like and how to stay ahead of the AI curve. With his expertise and experience, John discusses the implications of AI and automation and how it will challenge the sales profession, as well as the importance of remaining human and personalizing your sales approach.

What you will learn:

The future of sales with AI and automation.
How sales professionals survive and thrive in a world of AI and automation
The potential ramifications of automating jobs
AI personalization at scale

Highlights

(4:40) John and his daughter’s children book about sales

(7:34) How ChatGPT will change the sales profession

(9:10) Why you must get interested and learn to leverage ChatGPT

(11:20) AI personalization at scale

(15:00) The impact of the recession and AI revolution on sales jobs

(17:25) The failure of the education system today

(23:55) Addressing the university ban of ChatGPT

(28:00) John’s learnings from getting fired twice – “They were two of the best things that ever happened to me.”

(43:01) John’s best actionable advice to revenue leaders

Quotes

"Be the last mile. Don't try to fight the bots; they're going to win."

"If you are doing something that is route or consistent or whatever, you have to figure out a way to leverage this technology (ChatGPT) to do that for you. Otherwise, you’re going to be wasting so much time where some other kid is going to be able to leap years ahead of you."

"A 15-year-old kid with ChatGPT and a few other automation things will be able to write personalized emails, genuinely personalized emails at scale."

"2023 is the year that the no-value interaction from a human dies."

“I am concerned with the masses who we have trained to be cogs in a wheel.”

“Ask yourself the question, ‘What about my job right now can a computer do?’ That’s a question that all of us need to look at, all of us need to ask.”

"Sometimes you need some life to punch you square in the mouth for you to realize that there's a better way."

"Focus on the controllables. They can turn into this catalyst of really positive change."

"Ask yourself, 'What's the risk?' and if you're okay with the worst case scenario, do it."

"I always told people, I'm not the smartest kid out there, but I know I can outwork you, period."

Links and Resources

John’s LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/johnbarrows/

I Want to be In Sales When I Grow Up, a children’s book by John Barrows: https://www.iwanttobeinsaleswhenigrowup.com/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Max Altschuler and Scott Barker back at it for another monthly jam session. They share company updates for the month of January, including some exciting PortCo announcements. They also discuss the ongoing layoffs and some strong advice on how to create and maintain solid pipeline in this market, as well as some predictions on the future of the SDR role.

Highlights (1:47) - PortCo updates and highlights

(6:55) – A behind the scenes intel on the 70+ candidates that the GTMfund placed in the last year

(13:00) - Most common challenges founders and revenue leaders are facing today

(17:24) - The future of the SDR role

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

Checkout the latest GTM Newsletter on The Master List of GTM Interview Questions.

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“Once you state your price, in a very factual, unashamed way, shut the F up. Just by shutting up, you will either get the answer you were hoping for, or at the very least, you'll learn more than if you keep talking.”

-Udi Ledergor

Join me on this episode as I talk to Udi Ledergor. Udi Ledergor is the former CMO of Gong and the company's current Chief Evangelist. The insights he offers in this episode are invaluable for anyone interested in branding, content development, negotiating, or creating a devoted fan base.

In this episode, you will learn:

How Udi Ledergor and Gong achieved 100x growth in a short period of time
The hacks and strategies used to create a powerful brand presence on a limited budget
The impact of providing an exceptional candidate experience even if they are not given an offer
How to negotiate well

Highlights

(0:49) Udi Ledergor: From Gong’s CMO to Chief Evangelist
(13:49) Udi’s superpowers: Branding and Negotiation
(14:58) How Udi secured a Super Bowl commercial with a modest investment
(21:15) Marketing hack: Amplifying modest offline investments like billboards with digital
(28:00) How to create raving fans
(31:00) Content strategies: New, thought-provoking, and controversial create conversation
(36:33) How to negotiate properly
(41:00) Why you shouldn’t have pricing conversations over email
(44:08) Getting noticed on LinkedIn: Bold, controversial, conversational content
(49:03) How revenue leaders can succeed by going back to basics

Quotes

“Brand is way too important to leave it to marketing”

“We want to have the biggest booth. We want to have the longest speaking opportunity. We have to be on the biggest stage. And so we like going big, and we did this from the very early days.”

“Don't put out trivial content because that'll never build your brand in any meaningful way. Put together something that takes a stand, can be controversial or polarizing, if it calls for it, and then you have a chance of people talking about what you’re doing."

“Brand is an all-company sport. Everyone from the CEO to the support engineer have to take part in building the brand. Marketing can only be a steward and take the packaging for it.”

"Know your value, and don't be embarrassed about asking for it."

"When you put out an offer or a counter offer, you have to be prepared to walk away if someone calls your bluff."

"If you know you're worth X but someone is offering you half of X, you should just walk away."

“Most negotiations in life are not a one-time deal, whether it’s a life partner, children, business partners. You can’t build a long-term relationship if you know someone’s getting screwed.”

"Let the other side think about it: Embrace that awkward silence after you name your price."

Links and Sources

Udi’s LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/udiledergor

Gong: gong.io

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Sales are an essential component of any successful companies. As such, it is important for companies to invest in developing strong leaders who can lead their sales team to success.

In this episode, we are joined by Rick Smolen. Rick is the current Head of Sales at Loopio. He is a results-focused revenue leader with over 20 years of experience in tech and enterprise software sales.

Rick used to be the Head of Sales at Greenhouse Software, where he oversaw the company's annual recurring revenue tripling to over $65 million in less than three years. Prior to that, he spent over a decade at Interlinks in sales, sales leadership, and international roles, and helped the company grow to over $300 million in annual sales.

In this episode, you will learn:

How to transition from a great salesperson to an effective people leader
Three sales methodologies, when to use them, and how to teach them
How to sell in a different global market

Highlights

(1:25) Rick’s background

(4:13) Rick’s first management role and career journey

(8:08) His opinion on promoting your top sales rep to leadership

(11:00) How to foster people management skills

(11:20) The value of mentorship in developing leadership skills

(14:20) Why transparency is key in team and leadership building

(16:40) How to deliver/receive tough feedback constructively

(18:18) Three different sales methodologies, when to use them, and how to teach them

(25:40) Rick’s learnings from spending 12½ years at a company

(29:40) Rick’s experience and learnings from selling in Asia

(33:52) Comparing doing business in North America and Asia

(37:37) Strategies to keep your team motivated through tough times in 2023

(41:28) One actionable strategy Rick has used to increase revenue

Quotes

The reason I got into management wasn't because I was some great people leader; it was because I was great at sales.

When you have people on your team that can help you recognize blind spots when they happen, it's a prerequisite so that you can make sure things don't go off the rails.

If you're an effective leader, you have more than one person on your team that has enough vulnerability-based trust that we can just get past all the BS and just be real with each other. I don't think a leader needs to have an entire team with that one-to-one type of relationship, but it's probably good to have one or more of those relationships on the team.

If you think about a career in sales, your first year in a role is really trying to get your feet under you. The second year, maybe you start to kind of thrive. By year three, you're like an expert in that company.

If you're going to go into a new geography, don't dip your toe in. You got to either go big or serve it from some other place.

Links and resources

Rick Smolen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ricksmolen/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Is the old marketing playbook still relevant? When is it best to start a campaign? How should revenue be distributed? How long should an experiment run before a decision is made? When should you ramp up a sales representative?

If you have asked yourself any of the above questions, this week’s episode is for you.

We are joined by Bob Elliott, the former managing director at SAP Canada, former SVP of sales at HootSuite, and former CRO of Built and Forder and limited partner in GTM funds.

Bob shares insights from his own story of acquiring $53 million for one of his customer’s SAP, taking a chance on a sales representative, and some of his personal thoughts on work ethic and work-life balance.

Highlights

(02:05) Bob’s backstory

(04:50) Shifting the end of year quarter to January

(7:44) Is the old marketing playbook breaking down?

(11:47) Balancing quick transitions and giving experiments time to get results

(15:07) Knowing when to ramp up a sales representative

(20:35) Resolving the work-life balance equation

(22:45) Engaging in conversations that bring you energy

(25:14) Bob’s story of growing SAP’s revenue to $53 Million

(30:45) Bob’s story on taking a chance on a sales rep at SAP

(35:29) Don’t let your imagination limit the size of your potential

(37:49) Bob’s biggest motivation at age 25

(40:21) What must one do to get noticed for a promotion?

Quotes

‘If you're in revenue, there's not many more important questions than those two: How much? and When?'

‘Once you put a number in the CRM, that's your new maximum deal size because it gets in your head.’

‘It’s critically important to always be thinking big and not llet your imagination limit the size of a potential deal.’

‘You don't get promoted for doing your job really well, that's what you get paid for. It will impact your performance review and your bonus, but that's your job. If you want to get promoted, do something above and beyond.’

‘If you have to be self promoting what a great job you're doing, you're probably not doing that great of a job. If other people think you’re doing an amazing job, that's a really good song.’

Links and Resources

Bob Elliott LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobelliott1/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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In this week’s episode, I’m joined by Pukar C. Hamal, CEO and founder of SecurityPal, a company that makes security questionnaires. Pukar has a strong background in Startups and Tech having started out in San Francisco in the early 2010s in a time of booming innovation and creativity.

He talks about how startups ought to navigate the topic of data privacy. He also shares insights on what security leaders should look out for, understanding the context of your specific organization in managing data security, evolving with the times, advancing best practices, and more.

This discussion explores his experiences as a sales development representative, his philosophy on risk-taking and regret-minimizing, and some of his career lessons.

In this episode, you will learn;

What sales development representatives do
Data privacy: what it is and what it means for startups
What security leaders ought to look out for
Pukar’s career learnings

Episode Highlights

(1:33) Pukar’s background story and SecurityPal beginnings

(6:47) The future of the SDR rule with increased tech automation

(12:25) The challenging nature of SDR roles

(16:49) How the SDR environment has evolved over time

(21:15) Pukar’s journey in tech: taking risks and minimizing regrets

(27:40) How to resolve deals that are stuck in legal procurement

(31:41) Advice for sales development reps on closing deals

(45:30) What security leaders should be looking at

(50:35) Pukar’s key career learnings

Quotes

‘Look within yourself and figure out what your motivations are. Are they purely monetary? Are you trying to rank yourself in this bizarre status game that we all play? Is that what motivates you? Is it something deeper?’

‘You have to go try to do something. Do something big and ambitious. We're all stardust, at the end of the day. We end up in the Cosmosis particles where we came from so it doesn't matter.’

‘I think it's so important to go through that phase in your life where you're just exploring, without an aim, having conversations about anything. I think some of the most creative ideas come from moments like that’

‘I hope I can say that I lived a fulfilling life and that I lived up to the resources that were given to me. I'm a big believer in being a productive member of society. If you subscribe to a part of society and you have the faculties to be productive, you’re of able mind and are able bodied, you should produce more than you've received. I think that's the social contract that I subscribe to. I want to make sure that I’m viewed as somebody that produced more than I was given. I think that brings me a lot of joy and fulfillment. I think those are important values to pass on to future generations.’

‘Be extremely customer centric, play the long game, understand that we're no longer islands anymore. Everybody knows somebody, and there's a lot more information about you now. It's more imperative for you to understand that you're really playing a repeated game with a lot of people.

‘What most security leaders want to know is: what sort of data are you storing? What is the risk to them? What data are you fundamentally interacting with? Where is that data gonna be stored? Who are the people that have access to that data? How do you vet them?’

‘Having a consistent growth mindset and trying to win as a team is much more fun than winning alone.’

Links and Resources

Pukar Hamal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pukarhamal/

SecurityPal: https://www.securitypalhq.com/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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In our first bonus episode of 2023, Max Altschuler and Scott Barker share updates for the new year and insights into how the year of 2022 unfolded. Max also shares his top tips and guidance for goal-setting at the beginning of a new year to set yourself up for personal and professional success.

Highlights

(3:26) - New Year’s Resolutions

(11:56) - Max’s Goal-Setting Exercises

(17:58) – What are we most proud of?

(20:59) - What to expect in 2023 and beyond

(24:17) - The IPO Backlog

Links and Resources

Max Altschuler: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxaltschuler/

Scott Barker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Who are you? Who do you help? How are you uniquely qualified to solve this problem? Three important questions every founder needs to answer before they step out.

In this week’s episode, Brendan Dell talks about all things ‘positioning’. He shares insights from his own past failures in business and how these have propelled him to understand the importance of positioning better.

Brendan Dell is a positioning and messaging expert with over ten years' experience in helping businesses optimize high impact sales and investment pitches, and build and execute high-growth GTM strategies.

In this episode, you will learn;

Why it’s important for a business to hone it’s messaging to better position itself
When the business should broaden its messaging
Love for the customer Vs Love for the Tech

Highlights

(00:00) Introduction

(2:55) About Brendan Dell

(5:40) Brendan’s thoughts on the Sam-Bankman Fried trial

(11:28) What is positioning?

(12:26) Brendan’s story about failure

(20:45) How founders can focus on solving real problems before rolling out products

(24:34) How do founders know when to broaden their marketing message?

(30:12) What makes great B2B brands unique?

(33:38) Why it’s important for businesses to position themselves for a specific persona

(39:00) Brendan’s message to listeners

Quotes

‘It's not the best product that wins; it's the best positioned product that wins.’

‘But for most founders, the place to begin is what are the jobs to be done and then where does your tool intersect with that?

‘Chapter one of your business is finding a very clear person with a very clear problem’

‘Be much more direct around the need to focus clearly on one core problem for one core persona and really nail that down.’

‘Be far less in love with the tech and be far more in love with the customer’

‘The reason a lot of products have a hard time being clear is because the product doesn't really do anything different or better and that often comes because they don't have clarity around who they're trying to help, what the problem is and what result they're trying to deliver so they can't come up with new and unique mechanisms to do that.’

‘You are seen by a very particular set of people as being able to solve a very particular problem that is unique to them and that they don't feel can be adequately solved by someone else. You are famous for that thing and that doesn't mean that people just know your name, it means that they know you as a promise and resolution to some core problem they have.’

‘Nobody has the bandwidth to be able to be expert in 17 different niches and different ways of doing things which is essentially what you're asking your sales team to do if you don't give them clarity of position.’

Links and Resources

Brendan Dell LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendandell/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMFund website - www.gtmfund.com

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Analysts have been saying that another economic downturn could be coming soon, so the fear of a recession in 2023 has been steadily rising.

Joining us on the podcast today to talk about this topic is Erik Kostelnik, the current CEO and founder of Postal. He is an award-winning entrepreneur and sales leader that has founded and scaled multiple tech companies that have led to hyper revenue growth and major capital investments.

Erik gives his take on the possibility of a recession by explaining indicators like the IPO traffic jam, the commercial real estate situation, and rising debt.

What you’ll learn:

The value of strong network (and how to build one)

Reading the current economic downturn

The three most important company metrics and why you prioritize them

Highlights

(2:40) The value of your network. (How to prune and develop a strong network)

(9:27) Erik’s take on the current down market/looming recession

(10:50) Why it is going to be difficult for unicorns to IPO

(14:00) Why commercial real estate leasing could be a cliff

(21:40) The experience that changed the trajectory of Erik's career

(35:33) What Erik would do different in his career

(39:39) How to attract great talent in the down market

(42:48) The three most important company metrics

Average revenue per employee.

Customer Acquisition Cost

Customer Lifetime value

(43:02) Why you can’t sacrifice your average revenue per employee and customer acquisition cost for bad talent

(46:20) Summary of Erik’s career learnings

Quotes

“...we're as good as our network.”

"You've got to keep your people close, and especially those that you value, keep them even closer. You select your own network.”

“You need to keep your flock small. Try to make sure they're not just sheep. Make sure you have some wolves in there, bears, unicorns, and all these different animals that don't just lead each other.”

“Find your own group and make sure you're not following the pack.”

“I have 100 families that I'm responsible for. I take that very seriously. I want those 100 families to be better off tomorrow than they are today. And so whenever a family joins my company, whoever it might be, the woman or the man, that they can say that, hey, tomorrow we're going to be better off than we are today, either financially or from an experience standpoint or from a benefit standpoint.”

“You cannot sacrifice your average revenue per employee or your cost to acquire a customer for bad talent, whether that's on marketing, on CS, on sales, and engineering. Quality has actually now overtaken the need for quantity because of the lack of capital.”

“Every single layoff that's happening right now is because they hired a bunch of people really fast and they said, you know what? We hired a bunch of C players, couldn't get them up, and they're gone. That that's wasted capital; that's wasted time.”

Links and Resources

Erik Kostelnik’s LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/erikkostelnik/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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“80% of the battle in building a great sales team is won or lost by hiring the right people.” — Suresh Khanna

Joining us on the podcast is Suresh Khanna, the co-founder and COO at Pieces.

He is the former CRO and president of AdRoll Group, where he led the go-to-market strategy, scaled sales, success, and support teams from 10 to 400 people, and increased revenue from about $3 million to over $150 million when he left.

Suresh also established award-winning training and development programs that helped the company win Best Place to Work multiple times

In this episode, you will learn:

How to build a performance culture that works
How AI advancement could impact go-to-market and agencies.
How to maintain raw energy while scaling

Highlights:

(5:12) – Suresh’s background and story
(10:00) – Why Suresh turned down a once-in-a-lifetime McKinsey job at 26
(12:22) – Suresh’s experience at Google
(13:22) – Why Suresh left Google for AdRoll
(14:39) – Suresh’s success at AdRoll
(14:39) – Suresh founding Pieces
(17:00) – AI advancement and its potential impact on go-to-market and agencies
(25:21) – How to build a winning performance culture
(28:54) – How to find and hire people wired for greatness
(34:01) – How to train managers to make better hiring decisions and scale the hiring process
(38:29) – How to reduce new hire ramp-up time
(44:20) – How ADRoll created a winning self-policing culture
(46:20) – What Suresh would do differently
(49:15) – How to keep the raw energy when rapidly scaling
(53:32) – The number one reason startups fail
(57:30) – Summary of Suresh’s career learnings

Quotes

“…marketing functions, sales functions, support functions, product, really every function, even engineering—everything I think will be reimagined with AI at the center.”

“I think it (performance culture) is more about finding people who are wired for greatness, who yearn for that, understanding them and their motivations, and supporting them to put them in a position to thrive. If you find people that are wired like this, they want to be somebody, and they feel cared for and supported, boy, that creates like a magical culture where there's like urgency and rawness.”

“As leaders you can demand excellence from people. And you can hold people accountable to performance because they hold themselves accountable; they want to be something.”

“80% of the battle in building a great sales team is won or lost by hiring the right people.”

“You can build all the pipes and automation and A/B testing frameworks you want and look at all the data you want. At the end of the day, the most important thing you can do, the biggest lever is finding people that have that primal drive to be awesome and be somebody.”

“What an amazing signal that sends to new hires when you get in and everyone around you is sharing knowledge.”

“I see startups failing because they're not solving a problem that is a burning fire for their target audience.”

Links and Resources

Suresh Khanna LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/khannasuresh/

Pieces: https://code.pieces.app/

Kasa Indian Eatery: https://www.kasaindian.com/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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If you are interested in sales, leadership, making bets in business, and managing the expectations of both teams and executives, this episode is for you.

There is no one better positioned than Dini Mehta to speak on these topics. Dini is the former CRO of Lattice, a people management software for growing companies.

She’s an operating partner at Operator Collective, bringing together 150+ of the world’s most successful tech operators from a variety of backgrounds as Limited Partners (LPs), each with current experience building, growing, and running the world’s most admired companies.

Additionally, Dini serves as a mentor, advisor, and angel investor.

She discusses her journey from hating sales to deciding on it as a lifelong career, how her leadership and collaborative skills have grown, and how she dealt with loss of control as a leader during the pandemic.

Highlights

(3:57) Dini Mehta’s background

(6:28) Dini’s take on AI

(9:10) How did Dini decide to get into sales?

(15:24) How should founders plan for their incremental growth?

(18:49) Making bets on business

(21:47) Deciding on whether to make a bet or shelve it

(25:49) Dealing with change during the COVID Season

(32:50) How to deal with loss of control as a leader

(40:23) How to articulate the need to adjust expectations without seeming like you’re avoiding a challenge

Quotes

‘What I tell folks that join my teams or people that are struggling with their career and feeling like they don't know how to get to their big goal of becoming a CRO or a CEO is start small, give yourself room to experiment and learn and then figure it out as you go because your ‘why’ will change’

‘If you don't see 12 months before that you need growth, you are going to dip in your numbers’

‘Every bet has to earn the right to take on more resources.’

‘When I first became an operator, I thought I didn’t need experience, you just need to be great at data. As long as you're great at analysis and pulling insights from data, you can make great decisions. Now I know that experience plays a huge part in the balancing act of pattern matching.’

‘If you are doing your annual plans and building your expectations off of last year's growth, you’re setting yourself and your team up for failure.’

Links and Resources

Dini Mehta LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dinimehta/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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In this month’s bonus episode, Max Altschuler and Scott Barker share updates and insights into what’s going on in the venture capital landscape.

How do companies stay afloat during a recession? How do they build the right foundation to set themselves up to operate efficiently? When is the right time to ‘restart the car’? These and more are the questions they answer in this update.

Highlights

(1:06) - Thanksgiving

(3:18) - The latest from GTM Fund

(3:56) – Why is capital going to more experienced leaders?

(7:25) - Tough times are the most rewarding

(9:11) - Setting the right foundation for long-term sustainability

(12:35) - When to restart the car (Focus on growth again)

(16:15) - Get in touch with GTM

Quotes

‘When the tide goes out, you see who's been swimming naked.’

‘A lot of companies are cutting right now. You cut fat, then you start to cut muscle, then you start to cut bone and when you start cutting muscle, it gets harder to win the race when you start cutting bone. It's hard to win when you cut off leg.’

Links and Resources

Max Altschuler: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxaltschuler/

Scott Barker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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In this week’s episode, we are joined by Chris Donato who shares his journey: lessons, losses, and wins in the Sales profession. Chris is the CEO of Esellas, a company that helps salespeople sell.

He discusses finding purpose in work, taking big risks in sales, and some lessons in his career. Chris shares stories from his experiences in turning a napkin idea into a $300-million contract, losing an $850-million deal, being instinctive in making business partnerships, being strategic in attempting to make a sale, and so much more.

In this episode, you will learn:

How to find purpose and create meaning in your work
How and when to take big risks in sales
How to transition from mid-market to enterprise

Highlights

(0:57) Introduction

(1:27) Why is there a drop in Gen Z workforce participation?

(4:30) Finding purpose in work

(9:05) A napkin idea worth $300 million

(14:50) How to turn a business problem into an opportunity

(20:45) Does it get easier to take big risks?

(22:44) What would Chris do differently now?

(25:50) Using relationship mapping to your advantage

(27:55) How to transition from mid-market to enterprise

(31:40) Lessons from a career in sales

Quotes

‘The joy is in the process, not the outcome.’

‘People should define purpose and take accountability for it.’

‘Whether you've originated an opportunity or the opportunity has come to you, be deliberate. When you decide to pursue something, be clear. You have a real chance to make a difference for that customer, not just to win it but to make a difference.’

‘People need to feel like they're doing something that is going to contribute to the greater good and if your business isn't drawing a correlation to something that's greater than itself than profit, you have a problem.’

‘Selling is never a straight line’

‘If you can figure out how to make people successful, make the money, and improve their business, the conversation changes.’

‘If you want not just a name but to make an impact, you've got to bet big and think big.’

Links and Resources

Chris Donato: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cmdonato/

Chris Donato’s website https://www.esellas.com/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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What is the most important thing you need to consider when working in tech? According to May Habib - it's always staying in learning mode, both yourself and your team. On this week's episode of the GTM Podcast we discuss this, plus how different members of the sales team can cater to different segments of customers and more.

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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How far can you get if you always seize the opportunity to stand up in a room full of people and thank them or tell a story? In this episode, Lars' Nilsson's story will tell us.

Lars is the VP of global sales development at Snowflake. Prior Snowflake, Lars was the CEO of SalesSource, a premier RevOps consulting firm. Before that he was the VP of Global Inside Sales for Cloudera. Lars and his team at Cloudera developed the sales methodology known as account-based sales development, which has transformed how businesses approach high-value targets, and is an integral part of most teams playbooks today.

Lars has also served in sales exec roles at ArcSight, Hewlett Packard, Riverbed Technology, and Portal Software, all three of which achieved IPOs.

Lars starts this episode by sharing what he learned early in his career at Xerox and the world-famous Xerox Management Training Program. He then talks about Cloudera's account-based sales development method, including how it started and why it was successful.

What you’ll learn:

-How to use personalization to your advantage

-How to speak among people in a way that brings them together

-What to look for when hiring a BDR

Episode Highlights

(05:00) Insights on nurturing young talent while fostering loyalty
(14:40) Cloudera's account-based sales development methodology: origins and early successes
(21:40) Insights on the power of personalization
(27:30) How to create a lasting impression in front of people and bring them together
(31:00) Why you should express gratitude or tell a story in front of people more often
(32:49) How to overcome fear and nervousness and find the courage to speak among people
(38:03) Things to look out for when hiring a BDR
(41:26) Summary of Lars’ career learnings

Quotes

“You do not have to go to college to learn how to sell.”

“It's really hard to not only find the right people, but then to create an experience where not only are you developing them, but you create loyalty and you want them to stay and continue working hard for you and your company.”

“It is an opportunity for anyone at the right moment, towards the latter part of it, to get up and give a moment of thanks.”

“You can't be afraid to ask for help. You can't be afraid to ask for a referral. You can't be afraid to ask for a recommendation.”

“That kind of fire in the belly, I can see from a LinkedIn profile from someone that is just about to graduate whether or not they have it.”

“Don't be afraid to ask for anything.”

Links and Resources

Lars Nilsson LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/lanilsson/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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What do you do to make your impact felt in a team of 700 people you're leading? Can it even be done? Is there a way for you to get to know every member of the team and for them to get to know you? In what ways do you ensure that your principles are followed when making decisions? That seems like a lot, doesn't it?

We’re joined by one who’s done it successfully. Ashley Hansen Grech, a mother of three, is the Chief Operating of Recharge, a company that empowers merchants through recurring commerce. She spent her first 12 years climbing the ranks at JPMorgan before joining Square (now Block) and becoming the Global Head of Sales for four-and-a-half years.

In this episode, she discusses how she manages teamwork, tasks, and decisions when there are several people involved. She describes how she makes her impact felt in a team of 700+, and how she succeeds at it.

What you’ll learn:

How to scale yourself
The value of frontline managers
Why it is important to prioritize shared values and principles over job skills when hiring

Highlights

(03:25) Google’s Project Starline and what it means for collaboration

(08:30) Ashley’s career story and what she would do differently

(16:21) The value of frontline managers

(19:36) How to coach frontline managers and set them up for success

(23:02) How to scale yourself

(24:05) Understanding principled decision-making and how to make it work

(27:38) How to make yourself known in a large company and keep accountable

(34:50) Ashley’s take on recruiting more women leaders

(35:00) Why "leadership traits” is a myth

(36:10) Why you should hire based more on personality and values, not simply jobs to be done

(40:22) Ashley’s summary of career learnings

Quotes

“Sometimes it's good to reassess because the things you thought were that important are not.”

“I knew that the key to the sales team and the revenue team scaling successes was support managers."

“…lead with principles. Have a very clear set of outcomes that you are making the decisions by. That way, other people can use those same principles to make the decision too.”

“...leadership is not just about execution. Although that is super important, but it's also about the quality of your thought.

“...challenging times, whether it's a financial crisis or difficult business problems to solve, or a failure, those are the greatest teachers.”

“We don't learn when things are good.”

Links and Resources

Ashley Hansen Grech’s LinkedIn

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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What's new in the world of venture capital and the GTM Fund? Get up to speed in this update as Max Altsuchler, the firm's founder and general partner, joins Scott Barker.

In this update, Max shares why first-mover advantage doesn't exist and cites examples where being first to market didn't help a company. He also talks about the deals and investments GTM Fund is doubling down on, why LPs are valuable for the future of the fund and the value of community to the fund.

Make it a point to listen in and discover the latest in the VC landscape and the GTM Fund.

Highlights

One thing you would be surprised about Max Altschuler
Deals that GTM Fund did
How founders are finding GTM Fund
Why first-mover advantage is not a real thing
Why LPs are important for the future of the fund
Investments that GTM Fund is doubling down on
Why community is important for the future of the fund
What’s next for the GTM community
The value of having more LPs in an area

Quotes

“First mover advantage is not a real thing. There was no advantage there.”

Links and Resources

Max Altschuler LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/maxaltschuler/

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday, discussing true stories and experiences, including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

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For many startups, growth is the ultimate goal. But sustainable growth is key to success in the long run. So how do you achieve it?

Many startups cave in to the pressure of growing too big too fast. They spend so much time and energy hiring and training and ramping people up, throwing the things they actually need to do, like figuring out their product market fit, positioning, and knowing their ideal customer profile to the backburner. It’s no surprise that many startups have terrible customer retention and don’t succeed.

In this episode of the GTM Fund Podcast, we are joined by Kyle Norton. Kyle was the VP of sales at Shopify, and now is the SVP of Sales at Owner.com and a super-active Limited Partner of GMT Fund.

Compared to trying to get so much done in little time, Kyle demonstrates how taking things slow while maintaining focus, patience, and prioritization will lead to more sustained success in the long term.

You'll also gain insight into:

Whether or not the e-commerce sector is a good place to put your money right now.
Why it's important to take care of your physical and mental health even as your startup expands
How to disagree with higher-ups in a way that fosters understanding and growth

Episode Highlights

(02:48) — Introducing Kyle Norton
(03:24) — Kyle’s transition from big tech to startup
(05:28) — Kyle’s take on the state of ecommerce SaaS today
(9:19) — How to start a company without getting out-innovated by a big player
(12:50) — Kyle’s career story and what he would do different
(13:28) — Why you should prioritize your physical and mental health
(15:20) — The need to be mindful of where you will scale
(16:10) — How moving slow drives sustained growth
(19:10) — Why you must be honest with your metrics
(20:53) — How to build a strong business foundation
(21:46) — The differences in goal setting and growth between big tech and startup
(26:17) — Learning to disagree well
(36:59) — How to determine the makeup of your sales hire
(45:56) — Summary of Kyle’s career learning

Quotes

“If you take a longer time view and look at that linear growth, it's still an amazing time to start a DTC brand or a software company.”

“There's so many opportunities for companies to solve problems for businesses…”

“Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.”

“…rushing and trying to do too, too many things too fast actually distracts you from doing the things that are really important to drive sustainable rapid growth, which is the foundations.”

“How can you necessarily think about the business holistically and long term if 50% of your comp is tied up in in very short term incentives?”

“Slow is smooth, as smooth is fast. Slow, being focus, patience, prioritization, will help you go faster in the long run versus scrambling around to do way too many things.”

“Just having a relentless focus on reading, listening, networking, having a mentor, having an open mind about things and trying to try to take ideas and concepts and patterns and mental models from wherever you can find them, and applying it to your own business—that's ultimately what's going to determine personal and company success. It’s your ability to grow and learn.”

Links and Resources

Kyle Norton LinkedIn

‘You can’t say that!’: how to argue, better, An article by Adam Grant

Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know, a book by Adam Grant

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know

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Top-line and annual recurring revenue (ARR) growth are commonly used to indicate a startup'ssuccess. There is increasingly an obsession with achieving high numbers in ARR among startups. However, these numbers can be so deceiving. To know whether a company is achieving success, you must ask how much was spent to create that growth.

In this episode, Brian Murray, partner and CEO of Craft Ventures and the co-founder of Cabal,joins Scott Barker to discuss his experience in the startup world and the metrics that define a successful startup.

To begin, Brian discusses the burn multiple and why it's a better indicator than ARR for gauging a startup's performance. He elaborates on the idea of intellectual honesty, the distinction between genuine and false signals, and the importance of recognizing the difference between the two when gathering information.

You won't want to miss out on Brian's insights into what he's learned from his time in the startup world, both the successes and failures.

Episode Highlights

(04:19) – How the venture capital landscape is changing
(04:45) – The concept of burn multiple: How much burn does it cost to generate one new dollar of ARR?
(07:31) – The relationship between companies and investors and how to get the most out of them.
(08:09) – The misconception that more employees mean more success.
(08:45) – The story that shaped Brian's career
(11:46) – The concept of intellectual honesty
(13:10) – How to discern true signals from misleading signals
(17:22) – Brian's achievements at Cotap
(21:39) – Brian's experience at Cabal and key learnings from there
(26:27) – Bitcoin as an inspiration
(27:25) – Why "contributor" is a more suitable word for advisor
(31:15) – How much you should leave for strategic investors in an early round
(36:10) – Brian's learnings in his career

Quotes

"…growing despite having fewer resources—those are the types of companies we get really excited about today, for sure."

"…the interesting thing about startups is that at great companies, there's a lot of mistakes that are made. And at failed companies, there is a lot of greatness that happens."

"If you as a company can be good about interpreting signals and infusing those into a feedback loop of product development and marketing and go-to-market and sales and etc., then I think you'll give yourself a much better shot at success."

"Compress time, create value."

Links & Resources

Brian Murray LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/brian-m-b6952b15/

Cabal - getcabal.com

Craft Ventures - craftventures.com

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

Follow GTMfund on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/company/gtmfund

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Host Scott Barker holds a jam session with regular guest, friend and mentor, Max Altschuler. Max heads up the VC firm GTMfund, which is focused on investing in hyper-growth B2B SaaS companies. He is also the founder of Sales Hacker and has written three books that encompass his knowledge and expertise in the sales industry.

Scott and Max talk shop on GTM staying true to the podcast’s storytelling format, including:

A breakdown of GTM’s three pillars: o The Fund o The community o The media – now launching as the third piece of the puzzle. “… I think there's a lot for us to showcase that's happening in our community.”

• How it all started: Max talks about how GTMFund came to be, its mission, and hypothesis.

“…you want to be able to diversify and pick winners.”

“…we don't really necessarily see it as a VC firm, we see it more as a product.”

• The importance of community to GTMFund and supporting portfolio companies. Max reveals his “superpower” and how the community got behind its portfolio companies.

“…I'm one of those believers… double down on your strengths and forget about your weaknesses…”

• Max shares a personal story on getting thrown into the “fire,” how it impacted him and what he learned from it all. And there may be some talk about…goats. “… no matter how big the company is, you know, obviously, you have to be resourceful.”

• And, Max answers listeners’ questions: how founders can tweak fundraiser strategies given the current environment. Plus, what he’s learned in his standout career; sharing golden advice on conquering challenges the easy way.

Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

Mentioned in this podcast:

Newsletter: GTMFund.com

Books written by Max Altschuler: Hacking Sales, Get Career Hacking, and Sales Engagement.

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In this episode of The GTM Podcast, we have Holly Firestone. She is in charge of creating the vision, strategy, and roadmap for the Venafi Community, which includes the Venafi Warrior and Jetstack Communities, on a worldwide scale.

Holly discusses her inspiring career journey, working with both Salesforce and Atlassian, and how she was involved in the growth of Community in two of these companies. She discussed her experience building this Community from scratch and talks about the misconceptions of having multitudinous people in the Community, and the ideal time to invest in the Community.

What We Discuss:

(4:05) Holly Firestone’s experience at Salesforce
(11:03) Growth of the User Group Program while working for Atlassian
(19:57) Why Community should not be a Marketing tool
(22:45) Why Community is not growing to executive level
(31:39) When to start investing in community

Items Mentioned In Today’s Episode:

Holly’s Community Centre of Excellence: Why Community Needs A Seat At The Table (And How To Get One)

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

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Knowing whether your opponents are coached by Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, or Urban Meyer is helpful when joining a football league. Scouting, practice, and game plans must all be adequately modified.

Developing a winning strategy and culture at a company is similar. To succeed, you must understand your competition and optimize your recruiting, strategy, and operations playbooks.

In this first episode of The GTMfund Podcast, we have a man who is an expert in developing winning playbooks, cultures, and strategies that put his competition on the back foot.

Mark Cranney is an enterprise go-to-market operator and three-time unicorn creator. Most recently, he was the COO at Skydio. He's also a founding operating partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and has been involved in the acquisitions of Opsware and Aster Data Systems by HP and Teradata, respectively.

What You'll Learn

How to create a winning culture 2. How to keep your competition at bay 3. How to hire talent that culturally fits your organization Episode Highlights

• (02:25) – Introducing Mark Cranney • (03:48) – Two books that shaped Mark's winning culture • (10:39) – How to keep your competition at bay • (14:10) – Three questions to ask when scouting for culture-fit talent • (15:46) – How to keep recruited talent motivated • (16:16) – "Process triumphs heroics." How Mark created and used playbooks to create winning cultures • (23:00) – Why you need to get more granular in your competitive strategy • (35:17) – How to create a winning culture without turning your team's culture toxic. • (37:18) – "If it's not a competitive environment, for me, that's toxic." • (39:09) – Mark's parting advice Quotes

"The winning general knows the outcome before the battle even starts."

"You got to go where you can win, particularly when you don't have a lot of arrows in your quiver. You've got to make sure you're spending time in the right places, from a segmentation and targeting standpoint, until you build up the muscle where you can expand into other scenarios."

"If it's not a competitive environment, for me, that's toxic."

"If you have eight hours to chop down a tree, are you going to spend eight hours hacking away with a dull axe? Or are you going to spend seven of them sharpening the blade and an hour chopping the tree down?"

"If you take a shortcut, there's always a consequence—and it's usually not a good one."

Links & Resources

Mark Cranney's LinkedIn

The Hard Thing About Hard Things, a book by Ben Horowitz

What You Do Is Who You Are, a book by Ben Horowitz

The GTM Podcast

Don’t miss The .GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.

And…monthly bonus podcast episodes dropping the first Thursday of every month.

The GTMfund website - www.gtmfund.com

The GTM Podcast: Recent Episodes

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