GTM 173: The PLG→Enterprise Playbook: Turning Product Signals into 9-Figure Revenue with Adam Carr

Jan 7, 2026

Adam Carr, Chief Revenue Officer at Apollo, dives into the world of product-led growth (PLG) and enterprise scaling. He shares insights on how to layer sales over a PLG foundation to maximize revenue. Adam emphasizes hiring for long-term talent density, seeking candidates with curiosity and system-thinking abilities. He introduces a bold new model by replacing traditional customer success managers with go-to-market engineers, and discusses how AI can enhance GTM operations. Celebrating customer value realization over mere contracts is his key takeaway.

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INSIGHT

PLG Is The Acquisition Engine

PLG is primarily an acquisition and signaling engine, not the monetization layer.
Layering sales onto PLG captures signals and aligns stakeholders to monetize usage effectively.

ADVICE

Hire For Talent Density, Not Speed

Hire for talent density: define must-haves for the next 12–18 months before interviewing.
Slow hiring to prioritize quality over hitting short-term headcount goals.

ADVICE

Hire Curious, Coachable Team-Players

Prioritize curiosity, coachability, ownership, and teamwork when hiring.
Seek self-starters who disrupt processes before competitors do.

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Adam Carr is the Chief Revenue Officer at Apollo, where he’s scaling revenue by layering sales on top of a $150M+ ARR product-led growth engine. Previously, Adam helped scale Miro from a PLG-led company into a global sales organization, contributing to its growth into a $17.5B business. He’s known for building systems-driven GTM teams that turn product signals into durable revenue.

Discussed in this episode

Why PLG is gravity (signals + acquisition) and sales is the monetization layer
The “one-team” model to prevent PLG vs. sales cannibalization
Building talent density (and why slowing hiring can be the fastest path)
Hiring for curiosity, coachability, ownership, and team-first execution
The “architect / systems thinker” profile for modern sellers
A new post-sales model: CSMs → technical GTM Engineers + intervention-led journey
Using customer journey milestones to drive expansion and prevent churn proactively
AI in GTM: streamlining manual work so humans focus on better conversations

Episode highlights

00:00 — PLG is about signaling + acquisition (not monetization)

01:30 — “PLG isn’t the monetization way… it’s layering sales.”

02:41 — Talent density: hire for the next 12–18 months, not just “today”

04:50 — The soft skills that scaled Miro: curiosity, coachability, ownership

08:38 — Why Adam hires “architects” (system thinkers) instead of just sellers

10:41 — The mindset shift: celebrate value realized, not contracts signed

15:41 — Replacing CSMs with “go-to-market engineers” + an intervention model

19:14 — Turning PLG signals into PQA/PQL routing (and reducing the “noise”)

29:26 — “100M ARR is late” — when to start layering sales into PLG

Guest links

LinkedIn (Adam Carr):https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamhcarr

Follow Sophie Buonassisi (Host)

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi
X (Twitter): https://x.com/sophiebuona
Newsletter: https://thegtmnewsletter.substack.com

Where to Find GTMnow

Website: https://gtmnow.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow
X (Twitter): https://x.com/GTMnow_
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GTM_now
Podcast Directory: https://gtmnow.com/tag/podcast

The GTMnow Podcast
The GTMnow Podcast is a weekly podcast featuring interviews with the top 1% GTM executives, VCs, and founders. Conversations reveal the unshared details behind how they have grown companies, and the go-to-market strategies responsible for shaping that growth.

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