Returning to Roots: Navigating Early-Stage Sales Leadership

Are you building a sales org from scratch? Or rebuilding one in the middle of an AI boom? If so, this episode is your field guide. CJ sits down with Ethan Schechter, SVP of Global Sales and Customer Success at Qodo (and the guy who helped take Snyk from $0 to $100M+ in revenue), to talk about the wild days of early-stage sales leadership. Ethan shares how he navigates “basecamp” moments and the “smile” and “cry” days of year one. He explains his approach to hiring for a new org, building internal trust while over-communicating, designing incentive structures for the early days, trading dollars for speed through discounting, and staying competitive in the fast-changing era of AI. The episode ends with an entertaining roast of LinkedIn’s cringe posts, from fake ARR math to self-given nicknames and beyond.

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LINKS:

Ethan Schechter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethanschechter

Qodo:

https://www.qodo.ai

CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222

Mostly metrics:

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TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Preview and Intro

(02:07) Sponsor – Navan | Rillet | Pulley

(06:10) Ethan’s Career as an Early-Stage Sales Leader and Understanding Equity

(10:04) The “Basecamp” Mindset and Restarting Strong

(12:33) Building Out Your Rules of Engagement

(14:25) Sponsor – Brex | Aleph | RightRev

(18:45) Navigating the “Smile and Cry” Days of Year One

(24:03) Ethan’s Approach to Hiring for a New Org

(27:38) Building Trust With Founders as a New Sales Leader

(30:19) Incentives: Creating a Commission Plan for the Early Days

(34:10) Why You “Can’t Divide Zero”: Handling Deal Splits

(35:52) Other Early-Stage-Isms or Philosophies

(38:52) Discounting at an Early-Stage Company

(41:17) Selling in Today’s Environment: Competitive Trap-Setting

(44:47) Budgets for AI Products: Experimental ARR

(45:50) Monthly Deals and Decision Cycles in the Current Environment

(47:33) Remaining Competitive in the Era of AI

(51:08) The Lighter (and Cringier) Side of LinkedIn

(1:03:01) Wrap

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#SalesLeadership #StartupSales #SalesStrategy #SalesCompensation #discounting

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