GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart and Rod Cherkas, author and CEO of HelloCCO explore how customer success has evolved into a key driver of growth in SaaS businesses.Rod draws on his extensive experience as a customer success leader at companies like RingCentral, Marketo, and Gainsight to inform the discussion. He shares insights from his new book, REACH, and explains how SaaS companies implement this framework to fuel top-line growth and generate expansion revenue.Key Takeaways from this Episode Include: Leveraging Customer Success as a Growth Engine Adopting the REACH Framework Utilizing AI as a Transformational Tool for Customer SuccessAbout Rod CherkasRod Cherkas is a highly regarded consultant to CEOs, CCOs, CROs, and their customer-facing leaders. He has held post-sale executive roles at several customer-centric organizations, including Intuit, RingCentral, Marketo, and Gainsight. Currently, he is the Founder and CEO of HelloCCO, a strategy consulting firm that collaborates with innovative companies across various industries to develop, execute, and scale strategies for their customer-facing functions. Rod's work focuses on improving customer retention, increasing profitability, and optimizing productivity. He is the author of the bestselling books, "The Chief Customer Officer Playbook" and "REACH: A Framework for Driving Revenue Growth from Your Existing Customers."To learn more about Rod to go - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rodcherkas/ or https://rodcherkas.com/

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart connects with Peter Ahn, a Sales Performance Coach, to explore the growth challenges and opportunities facing executives at early-stage and SMB companies.Together, they discuss strategies for scaling revenue, aligning teams, and driving growth in today’s dynamic markets.Peter highlights common sales challenges faced by both product-led growth (PLG) and sales-led growth (SLG) companies, regardless of size.He explains that buyers, no matter how they engage with a company, are primarily interested in understanding the company's vision and perspective on the future. Peter emphasizes the importance of thought leadership and aligning philosophically with buyers, advocating for a focus on solving buyer problems rather than overemphasizing vendor solutions.Key Takeaways from this episode include: Building resilience during economic uncertainty Achieving cross-functional sales alignment Developing an authentic sales strategy Adopting buyer-centric approachesAbout Peter AhnWith over 15 years of enterprise sales experience, Peter Ahn has worked at industry-leading companies such as Google, Dropbox, Slack, Front, and Twingate. His expertise extends beyond corporate giants; he has collaborated with over 40founders to help build sales teams and strategies from the ground up. As a Korean American tech sales coach, Peter is an active voice in promoting full inclusion and representation of Asian Americans in leadership. His unique superpower lies in transforming strategic frameworks into actionable steps that drive results while fostering an inclusive and diverse environment.To learn more about Peter Ahn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-ahn-47538511/

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart is joined by Marlon Davis, a Fractional Chief Product Officer with over 25 years of product management and product executive experience in healthcare, Insurtech, edtech and environmental sustainability. Marlon breaks down the unique demands of product leadership in private equity- owned companies.He shares why understanding the type of PE firm is crucial for role alignment. Marlon offers his perspective on how CPOs succeed by balancing customer-centricity with financial outcomes.He also shares his insights on how to support critical business impact metrics, maintain agility and work with an investor minded approach.Key Take Aways from this episode include: Value Creation Time Constraints Strategic Business Planning Focus on Profitable Growth Adapting to PE Firms for a better fitMarlon’s BioMarlon Davis is a product management executive with over 25 years of experience across various industries, including healthcare, insurtech, edtech, and environmental sustainability. In the last 15 years, he has focused on private equity-owned companies and startups, driving transformative product strategies, and introducing cloud-based and mobile-first solutions at Zywave, BenchPrep, MHC, and Brady. Notable launches include MHC NorthStar, BenchPrep Engage, and Brady LINK360, an innovative cloud-based EHS&S platform. His expertise in customer discovery, team leadership, and portfolio optimization has consistently improved product-market fit and operational efficiency.To Learn more about Marlon to go - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marlondavis/

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart reconnected with Scott Sehlhorst, a product strategy expert leveraging over 30 years of product management, engineering, and software development experience helping companies improve productdecision-making and producing valuable outcomes for the business.Scott shares his views on how to use the “product trio” to balance speed with strategic precision in an environment of high uncertainty.The conversation also tackles the importance of business acumen, where product leaders must balance engineering execution with market strategy to avoid costly mistakes and optimize for long-term success.Key Take Aways from this episode include: Embrace the "Product Trio" Model Adopt Hypothesis-Driven Strategy Master Risk Management and UncertaintyScott’s BioScott is a product management and strategy consultant, leveraging over 30 years of product management, engineering, and software development experience to drive change in organizations. Scott helps companies transform the way they make decisions and deploy strategy to be more competitive and more effective. Scott has been teaching Competitive Product Strategy in Masters programs since 2012. In addition to improving organizations to better develop and utilize good product management, Scott is passionate about helping product managers develop the skills and practices needed in modern competitive environments. Scott started the Tyner Blain blog in 2005 to help people become effective at agile product management.To Learn more about Scott to go - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sehlhorst/

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart meets with Barrett King, Sr. Director of Revenue at New Breed, an Elite HubSpot partner. In his role Barrett leverages his previous 9 years of successful partner leadership roles at HubSpot.Barrett shares his insights on the power of partnerships in driving business growth. He explains how the best partnerships in the SaaS space can go beyond immediate revenue generation delivering the key ingredients for long term growth and hyperscale. King also highlights the impact of investing in partnerships, advising that the level and type of investment is linked to the company’s go-to-market maturity as opposed to a company’s size.Key learnings from this podcast include: Leveraging Partner Market Fit Partners as Customer Experts Shift Toward Intent-Focused MarketingBarrett’s Bio:Barrett King is the Sr. Director of Revenue at New Breed, an Elite HubSpot Solutions partner agency. Passionate about partnerships, innovative Go-To-Market strategies and high-performing teams, Barrett has more than 15 years of first-hand experience driving exceptional results for organizations of all sizes. A HubSpot veteran and six-time HubSpot President’s Club recipient who’s laser-focused on growth for both his team and the business he’s in, Barrett is an accomplished leader, featured speaker, and podcast host for ‘Outcomes,’ where he interviews industry leaders across the Go-To-Market space. With his diverse background, Barrett brings a uniquely fresh perspective to the GTM practice.To Learn more about Barrett to go https://www.linkedin.com/in/barrettjking

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart sits down with Suresh Madhuvarsu , a 4X founder and currently CEO of SalesTable, a revenue enablement and sales readiness platform. Together they explore the critical challenges facing modern sales teams and how to navigate them. Suresh shares his insights from conversations with 100’s of C-Suite executives on the strategic shifts that must be considered to maintain a competitive edge in today’s rapidly evolving market.Key Take Aways from this episode include: Enhancing sales performance through real-time feedback Building a learning organization – the impact of continuous improvement Harnessing AI tools for Real Sales Impact Revolutionizing Sales Management through data-driven insightsSuresh’s BioSuresh Madhuvarsu is a 4x founder and a product builder with a passion for innovation. He has over 20 years of experience in scaling businesses from startup to successful exits. He currentlyis CEO at SalesTable, a revenue enablement platform to stop quota misses. Suresh is also co-founder of Product 10X Accelerator, a mission-driven accelerator that backs founders building startups in HealthTech, EdTech and HRTech.To Learn more about Suresh to go - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sureshmadhuvarsu/

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart reconnected with Nils Davis, product management expert and author for another exciting interview.Nils put a spotlight on key factors impacting product managers in the B2B space. He also shares what he believes are the essential skills of product management success. It may a surprise to learn that Nils puts a premium on developing soft skills and the ability to communicate through storytelling.Key Take Aways from this episode include: Storytelling in Product Management a superpower How to avoid the feature factory Go-to-Market skills are a key differentiatorNils’s BioNils Davis is a seasoned product management expert and author on the discipline. He has seen product management defined in numerous ways over the years. Is it the CEO of the product? Owner of the backlog? The locus of business, user experience, and technology? Or is there a different, better way to think aboutproduct management?Based on over more than two decades of enterprise product management, including a stint managing a product for product managers, Nils's view is radicallydifferent. The fundamental component of successful products is the problem they solve for customers. In his articles, his podcast The Secrets of Product Management, and his book, The Secret Product Manager Handbook, he shares new, powerful ways for product managers to create more value.To find Nils on LinkedIn go to - https://www.linkedin.com/in/

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart was able to get a few minutes to chat with Phil Hornby, a highly experienced product leader, coach, and technologist with over 20 years of experience in a variety of roles and industries. Phil sheds light on the shifting dynamics within the profession and highlights the need for product teams to embrace a boarder and more commercial aspect of the role.Phil maintains the lack of “zero interest” investment has force the product management function, like a pendulum to shift to commercial and business outcomes.Key Take Aways from this episode include: What is shifting in the role of Product Management The Importance of Outcome-Based Metrics A Return to Marketing Roots A Need for Comprehensive Go-to-Market StrategiesPhil’s BioPhil Hornby is a seasoned product leader, coach, and technologist with over 20 years of experience. His mission is to help product leaders think clearly, make strong decisions, and take powerful action for high-impact outcomes. Phil has helped thousands of individuals across hundreds of companies, combining technical, business, and human skills to empower teams and leaders. His expertise lies in delivering complex solutions that elegantly solve customer problems at scale. His approach emphasizes collaboration, context-driven leadership, and continuous learning. He is currently writing "It Depends: The Secret Handbook for Making High-Impact Product Decisions in Context." Colleagues praise him for his practical insights and ability to inspire excellence.To learn more about Phil to go - https://www.linkedin.com/in/philhornby/

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart sat with Victor Brown, Founder & CEO of Xcellent Life, a digital health company transforming healthcare with innovative softwaretechnology.Victor shared his insight on a range of topics reflecting his journey as an early-stage Founder and CEO. Victor discusses the intersection of technology, health, and entrepreneurship.Key Take Aways from this episode include: Purpose-Driven Innovation: Improving quality of life through wellness technology. Navigating B2B2C - delivering value to consumers and corporations Emerging business model - healthcare is an industry ripe for disruption from treating illness to prolonging life.Victor’s BioVictor Brown is a seasoned leader with experience within both large global and start-up companies that deploy enterprise class software and sensor-based applications. Victor has driven business success as a leader and as a hands-on practitioner of best-practice approaches. Victor started his career with Schneider Electric ($35B company operating in 120 different countries) as an engineer and after 5 years transitioned to a marketing role. As a marketing leader, Victor had ownership of a line of software products; solutions where he spent another 6 years driving product growth year-over-year. After Schneider Electric, Victor joined his first start-up BPL Global, where he built an international product marketing team driving triple-revenue growth in a 3-year span. He has also worked as a consultant, where he founded APEX Strategy & Marketing to help small to midsize companies to develop go-to-market strategies and provide them with deep insights into best-practice approaches. More recently, Victor has served in various VP roles where he has driven business growth at both Tendril Networks and GridEdge Networks.To Learn more about Victor to go - https://www.linkedin.com/in/victorlbrown/To Learn more about Xcellent Life to go -- https://xcellentlife.com/

GTM Disrupted host Mike Smart had an exciting time reconnecting with Kevin Smith, the CPO at Therapy Brands, the leading provider of practice management, solutions for mental and behavioral health providers.Kevin gives listeners valuable insight as he shares his diverse career journey through roles in finance, strategy, and healthcare tech. His success has come from taking measured risks and pursuing diverse roles.Kevin emphasizes the fulfillment of his role leading a team with a mission-driven charter where products support caregivers in the mental health field.Key learnings from this podcast include: Continuous learning as a career advantage Ultimate fulfillment -- building Mission-Driven solutions Payoffs from taking measured career risks Identifying the Right Use Case for GenAIKevin’s Bio:Kevin is responsible for Therapy Brand’s product strategy, roadmap, and product launches. He has 25 years of healthcare industry experience, primarily in product management. He has spent his career working at both large, Fortune 50 companies to private-equity-backed SaaS companies. His knowledge base spans expertise in RCM, payments, and SaaS software. Prior to joining Therapy Brands, he held roles at Intel, Dell, Fiserv, MedAssets/nThrive, and most recently, Syntellis. Throughout his career, he has spent time giving back to the community by volunteering as a coach, teacher, and advisory board member of the University of South Florida Muma College of Business. Kevin holds both a BS in finance and an MBA from Indiana University, Kelley School of Business.To Learn more about Kevin to go https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinmsmith/