GTM 44: Taking Tableau from $5 million in Revenue to over $1 Billion with Elissa Fink

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 whose 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 exercising 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.

Guest Speaker Link:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissafink/

Host Speaker Links:
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/
Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/

The GTM Podcast
The GTM 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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