Leandra Fishman is the Chief Revenue Officer at Apollo.io, a leading go-to-market solution for sales and marketing teams. Apollo.io is one of the fastest-growing companies in SaaS, with 9x ARR growth since 2021 and currently valued at $1.6 billion. Leandra brings over 30 years of experience to Apollo.io. Most recently, Fishman was the CRO at Intercom, which during her tenure ranked No. 35 on the 2022 Forbes Cloud 100 List with over $200 million in annual revenue. Previously, as the SVP of Sales and Success for SendGrid, she led the company through a successful IPO and helped double its market cap in its first year as a public company. As an executive consultant, she has executed projects ranging from developing sales and marketing strategies for startups to creating business plans and serving in an advisory role for venture capitalist firms and board members. Discussed in this Episode:Apollo's product-led growth (PLG) model and how it enables a great customer experience.Balancing self-serve and sales-assisted motions to drive growth across segments.The role of AI in enhancing sales productivity rather than replacing salespeople.Advice for salespeople on redefining success and being kind to yourself.Leandra's unconventional journey to becoming a CRO and lessons learned along the way.Highlights:(10:25) The power of Apollo's PLG model in driving growth.(13:13) Balancing self-serve and sales-assisted motions.(18:01) How larger deals can come through with minimal sales interaction in a PLG model.(23:47) The future of AI in sales as an enhancement rather than replacement.(29:46) Leandra's journey from starting in sales to becoming a CRO.(44:15) One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that Leandra thinks is bull$***.(49:30) One thing that is working for Leandra in go-to-market right now.Guest Speaker Links (Leandra Fishman):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/leandra-fishman/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Sponsors:Brought to you by Upland Altify. A leading provider of AI-enhanced sales solutions, Altify is designed to help revenue teams work smarter. This Salesforce-native suite of sales solutions empowers seller productivity, streamlines workflows, and uncovers hidden opportunities – all leading to significant revenue growth - learn more.Brought to you by IPS. Most recruiting firms fill an order, but IPS is a different breed of search firm. They dig into your business to understand its current state and the future vision and are relentlessly in pursuit of the very best leaders, sales people, marketers, and engineering talent out there. The GTM Podcast The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Scott Barker, GTMfund Partner, 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.Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content.

Dennis Lyandres is currently an Advisor at Iconiq Growth. Before that, Dennis spent 8.5 years with Procore during which time Procore grew from $10m to over $900m+ in revenue and went public on the NYSE. Dennis started at Procore as EVP of Sales in 2014, before moving to the CRO role in 2018 where he was responsible for driving revenue across all customer-facing functions including Sales, Marketing, Customer Success, Rev Ops, Procore.org and Business Development. Before joining Procore, he held various sales and sales management roles at Cloudera and Pentaho. Discussed in this Episode:Applying the concept of Price's Law to identify and maximize the impact of top talent in an organization.Go-to-market strategies for vertical SaaS companies to win in their market, such as going hyperlocal and focusing on multi-product.The importance of hiring for potential and experience with scale over domain expertise.Personal growth lessons on reframing your relationship with drive and ambition.Highlights:(13:23) Applying Price's Law to identify and maximize top talent.(18:13) Overcoming HR pushback on programs for top performers.(28:35) Rallying the whole organization around key customer accounts.(32:02) Go-to-market strategies for vertical SaaS: going hyperlocal and focusing on multi-product.(55:15) One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that Dennis thinks is bull$***.Guest Speaker Links & Referenced Resource (Dennis Lyandres):LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dlyandresICONIQ Report: Sales Leadership, A Hiring Blueprint Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Sponsors:Brought to you by Upland Altify. A leading provider of AI-enhanced sales solutions, Altify is designed to help revenue teams work smarter. This Salesforce-native suite of sales solutions empowers seller productivity, streamlines workflows, and uncovers hidden opportunities – all leading to significant revenue growth - learn more.Brought to you by Vanta. With Vanta Questionnaire Automation, go-to-market teams can complete security reviews up to 5 times faster, helping you close deals in less time than ever. Over 8,000 global companies use Vanta to streamline security questionnaires and close deals fast. Visit vanta.com/gtmnow to learn more.Brought to you by IPS. Most recruiting firms fill an order, but IPS is a different breed of search firm. They dig into your business to understand its current state and the future vision and are relentlessly in pursuit of the very best leaders, sales people, marketers, and engineering talent out there. The GTM Podcast The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Scott Barker, GTMfund Partner, 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.Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content.

Mark Ghermezian co-founded Braze (BRZE) and led the company as it’s founding CEO, pioneering a new category. He is also the Founder and General Partner at m]x[v Capital, and Co-Founder and CEO of Gynger and Tildei, two companies that he incubated through the venture firm. He is a serial entrepreneur and successful investor with 20+ years of experience in founding, building, and investing in early-stage SaaS startups. Discussed in this Episode:Learnings from growing Braze .The behind the scenes on incubating two companies. How to identify and hire problem solvers who can execute independently.The value of delegating effectively to scale and empower your team.Navigating the challenges of raising funding and finding product-market fit.Building a strong internal BDR team versus outsourcing sales efforts.The role of conviction and intuition in entrepreneurship and investing.Highlights:(7:10) The domino effect of luck, timing, and key decisions in Braze's success.(21:55) Mark reflects on the humbling experience of taking Braze public and the role of his team.(28:30) Advice for founders on structuring their cap table and choosing the right investors.(36:41) Raising Gynger's Series A and how it differed from Braze's early fundraising.(45:09) A pivotal moment in Mark's leadership journey and learning to delegate effectively.(49:04) One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that Mark thinks is bull$***.(51:44) One thing that is working for Mark in go-to-market right now.Guest Speaker Links (Mark Ghermezian):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/markgher/m]x[v Capital: www.mxv.vc/Gynger: www.gynger.io/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Sponsors:Brought to you by Apollo. Ever wonder what automating your entire outbound workflow could do for your revenue team? Apollo.io brings this to life by centralizing your entire go-to-market execution in one platform. Sellers using automation in their outbound efforts see a 70% increase in open rates and 4x more meetings booked while saving hours on manual, tedious tasks. Brought to you by IPS. Most recruiting firms fill an order, but IPS is a different breed of search firm. They dig into your business to understand its current state and the future vision and are relentlessly in pursuit of the very best leaders, sales people, marketers, and engineering talent out there. The GTM Podcast The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Scott Barker, GTMfund Partner, 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.Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content.

Matt Breslin, Chief Revenue Officer at Upland, shares insights from his impressive 25-year career in software sales. He emphasizes the danger of blind spots in the sales process and the necessity of aligning with customer needs. Matt recounts a pivotal multi-million dollar deal that taught him the value of detail and relationship-building. He challenges conventional wisdom about sales pipeline coverage and discusses the importance of focusing sales teams on the right motions, revealing what truly works in go-to-market strategies.

Adriana Gil Miner, CMO at Iterable, discusses her extensive marketing experience and innovative strategies that drive customer engagement. She dives into leveraging AI and ChatGPT for alarming ad-testing efficiency, generating over 300 ads in record time. Adriana emphasizes the significance of post-sale marketing, often overlooked but crucial for customer retention. She also highlights emerging B2B trends, such as the essential role of SMS in communication. Tune in for insights on building authentic influence through community engagement and digital marketing evolution.

Andrew Johnston is currently the Head of Sales at Superhuman, where he leads the go-to-market strategy as part of the executive team. Previously, he built the Mid-Market and PLS motion at Scale AI and led the global sales team at SendGrid following its acquisition by Twilio and its IPO. Discussed in this Episode:The key differences between product-led growth (PLG) and product-led sales (PLS).When and why companies should consider transitioning from PLG to PLS.The challenges of combining distinct sales teams during an acquisition.How to effectively enable sales reps during a product expansion.The importance of understanding your ideal customer profile (ICP) for successful PLS.Strategies for moving upmarket, such as implementing paid pilots.Creating career paths and incentives for sales reps in different segments.Highlights:(9:50) Andrew's definition of product-led growth and how it differs from product-led sales.(12:16) The triggers for considering a transition from a PLG to a PLS approach.(25:00) The challenges faced when combining SendGrid and Twilio's sales teams post-acquisition.(32:49) How Twilio's unique "estimated ARR" commission structure impacted sales behavior.(35:55) Using SendGrid as a "trojan horse" to expand Twilio's presence in customer accounts.(42:00) One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that Andrew thinks is bull$***(47:09) One thing that is working for Andrew in go-to-market right now.Guest Speaker Links (Andrew Johnston):LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewfoxjohnston/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Sponsors:Brought to you by Apollo. Ever wonder what automating your entire outbound workflow could do for your revenue team? Apollo.io brings this to life by centralizing your entire go-to-market execution in one platform. Sellers using automation in their outbound efforts see a 70% increase in open rates and 4x more meetings booked while saving hours on manual, tedious tasks. Brought to you by IPS. Most recruiting firms fill an order, but IPS is a different breed of search firm. They dig into your business to understand its current state and the future vision and are relentlessly in pursuit of the very best leaders, sales people, marketers, and engineering talent out there. Whether you want advice, have one hard to fill role or a team buildout, we can't recommend IPS enough. The GTM Podcast The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Scott Barker, GTMfund Partner, 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.Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content.

Sam Blond is the former Chief Revenue Officer at Brex, where he scaled revenue from $1M to hundreds of millions in ARR. Prior to Brex, Sam served as VP of Sales at Zenefits, growing revenue from $1M to $70M in just two years. After his operating roles, Sam joined Founders Fund as an investing partner before leaving to co-found a new startup.Discussed in this Episode:Why investing early in sales ops and rev ops is critical for scaling revenue.How to generate demand through creative campaigns and a "concentric circles" approach.The risks of scaling sales teams too quickly based on flawed hiring models.What VCs look for in a compelling founder pitch, beyond just business metrics.Why focusing on generating pipeline is often better than optimizing conversions.How to leverage customer marketing and "raving fans" as an early acquisition channel.Highlights:[5:00] – Sam's incredible track record scaling Brex and Zenefits from $1M to $100M+ ARR.[13:58] – Outlining the most creative and successful demand gen campaigns run at Brex.[20:17] – The importance of sustaining a culture of creativity in marketing as you scale.[33:35] – Mistakes made at Zenefits: investing in rev ops too late, deprioritizing customer experience, hiring too fast.[43:45] – What VCs look for in founders when metrics alone aren't enough to get the deal done.[52:15] – One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that Sam thinks is bull$***[60:21] – One thing that is working for Sam in go-to-market right now.Guest Speaker Links (Sam Blond):LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-blond-791026b/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Sponsors:Brought to you by Flex. Flex is a finance super app built around a credit card with unique Net-60 day terms that enables businesses to make an investment today and pay it back 60 days later with zero percent interest. If your business growth is constrained by the cashflow you need for inventory, advertising, or something else, Flex could provide you with an interesting growth lever.The GTM Podcast The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Scott Barker, GTMfund Partner, 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.Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content.

Ralph Barsi is the VP of Sales at Kahua, a leading construction management platform. Prior to Kahua, Ralph held executive roles at Tray.io and ServiceNow. While at ServiceNow, he built and led a team of 230 people across the globe, during thecompany’s growth from from $1 billion to over $4 billion in revenue. Prior to ServiceNow, Ralph was the VP of Field Operations at Achievers (acquired by Blackhawk Network) and the Manager of Sales Development at InsideView (acquired by DemandBase). Ralph serves as an advisor to go-to-market leaders at Aircover, Scale Venture Partners, TopHap, and others. He is also a growth stage investor with the GTMfund. Barsi dedicates much of his time serving others. In addition to his work at Kahua, Ralphmentors and advises a host of SaaS leaders and leadership programs.Discussed in this Episode:The importance of implementing systems and processes in sales and life.How frameworks like SCQA (Situation, Challenge, Question, Answer) and PAR (Problem, Action, Result) can improve communication.Strategies for delivering difficult messages, such as during a reorganization or reduction in force.The value of staying in touch with former colleagues and playing the long game in relationships.Tactics for maintaining a robust contact database and regularly checking in with people.How to motivate and guide reps who are facing a challenging selling environment.The significance of chronicling your work and keeping a record of your achievements.Highlights:(8:28) Introduction of the quote "Every system is perfectly designed to get the results it gets" by Edwards Deming.(14:33) Discussion on using frameworks to communicate effectively with a large or small audience.(24:27) Ralph's journey from Compliance360 to Kahua and the importance of maintaining long-term relationships.(31:55) The system Ralph uses to stay in touch with his extensive network of contacts.(35:41) Strategies for shifting focus and moving forward when facing challenges or setbacks.(41:45) One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that Ralph thinks is bull$***(48:15) One thing that is working for Ralph in go-to-market right now.Guest Speaker Links (Ralph Barsi):LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralphbarsiHost Speaker Links (Scott Barker):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/The GTM Podcast The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Scott Barker, GTMfund Partner, 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.Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content.

Annelise Osborne is Chief Business Officer at Kadena, a Layer 1, POW blockchain where she is focused on upgrading finance. Annelise has 20 years of experience in traditional finance and seven years in digital assets. She is a thought leader, board advisor, university lecturer and author. Her book, From Hoodies to Suits: Innovating Digital Assets in Traditional Finance, hit shelves in June. Annelise holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA in Economics from The College of William and Mary.Discussed in this Episode:The impact of cryptocurrency market fluctuations on the adoption of blockchain technology.How digital assets and blockchain are upgrading finance and why it matters for businesses.The changing demographics and demands of Millennial and Gen Z investors.The potential for blockchain to revolutionize the future of work and compensation.Advice for transitioning from traditional finance or software to a career in Web3.The importance of community building and learning from others in the blockchain space.Highlights:[3:47] – Annelise explains the relationship between blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.[11:10] – The archaic nature of traditional finance and the need for modernization.[18:01] – How companies can generate revenue and find opportunities in the Web3 space.[26:02] – The main themes of her book "From Hoodies to Suits." [31:49] – The potential for blockchain to democratize access to venture investing.[41:49] – How millennials invest differently and the future of fractionalized investments. [44:11] – Blockchain's ability to trace data and enable real-time performance-based compensation. [51:17] – One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that Annelise thinks is bull$***[52:27] – One thing that is working for Annelise in go-to-market right now.Guest Speaker Links (Annelise Osborne):LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annelise-osborne-7611176/Book: From Hoodies to Suits: Innovating Digital Assets in Traditional FinanceHost Speaker Links (Scott Barker):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/The GTM Podcast The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Scott Barker, GTMfund Partner, 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.Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content.

David Greenberger leads CHEQ’s North America sales team. CHEQ is a cybersecurity platform primarily focused on protecting the Go-to-Market organization (preventing fake leads to sales team, skewed analytics from bots/malicious users etc). David is well-versed in building and perfecting Go-To-Market processes both from $0 and at 100 y/o companies. CHEQ is David’s 5th startup. Directly before CHEQ, David was in a leadership capacity at Hitachi Vantara, in the deep-enterprise Big Data / AI space. Prior to that he's built teams at Foursquare, Yext, Angi and Splash. Discussed in this Episode:The importance of trust in building effective go-to-market strategies.Navigating the transition from startups to large enterprises in sales roles.Strategies for hiring and developing sales talent with non-traditional backgrounds.The value of long-term relationships and "compound interest" in professional growth.Balancing internal and external relationships in large organizations.The resurgence of old-school, in-person tactics in modern sales approaches.Addressing challenges of invalid traffic and bots in digital marketing.Highlights:[13:35] – Insights on managing generational differences and career development in sales teams.[22:05] – David's experience transitioning from startups to a $90 billion organization.[25:50] – The story of a successful SDR who rapidly progressed to closing multi-million dollar deals.[37:49] – One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that David thinks is bull$***[40:04] – One thing that is working for David in go-to-market right nowGuest Speaker Links (David Greenberger):LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidgreenberger/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Sponsors:Brought to you by Flex. Flex is a finance super app built around a credit card with unique Net-60 day terms that enables businesses to make an investment today and pay it back 60 days later with zero percent interest. If your business growth is constrained by the cashflow you need for inventory, advertising, or something else, Flex could provide you with an interesting growth lever.Brought to you by Orum. Orum is an AI-powered live conversation platform designed to supercharge sales activity, connect sales teams, and drive more revenue over the phone. Orum’s platform includes an AI-dialer that automates the manual aspects of calling and get sales reps into more conversations, a virtual sales floor for teams to build camaraderie and learn from one another, as well as analytics and coaching tools to help teams improve together.The GTM Podcast The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Scott Barker, GTMfund Partner, 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.Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content.