

Topline
Pavilion
The #1 podcast for founders, operators, and investors in B2B tech. Tune in every week to hear Sam Jacobs, AJ Bruno and Asad Zaman discuss and debate the trends, news, and developments impacting the B2B tech world. Enjoy the hot takes, strong opinions, and dry humor.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 12, 2023 • 8min
TOPLINE HOTLINE: How Do You Forecast Churn?
On this episode of Topline Hotline, the hosts answer a question about how GTM leaders forecast churn, and whether they rely simply on historic data or include things like customer health scores, rep feedback, time to first value, etc.

Oct 9, 2023 • 49min
E26: Kelly O'Halloran Shares Results from the QuotaPath Compensation Study
QuotaPath's Kelly O'Halloran shares findings from the company's recent compensation study, which found that it takes employees 3 to 6 months to understand their comp plan, and 39% of reps say that their comp plans don't meet key business objectives. The result - 90% aren't meeting quota. Hear more about the data, along with what it means for the broader tech industry, on this week's episode.

Oct 5, 2023 • 10min
TOPLINE HOTLINE: What should sales teams be doing to increase inbound lead flow?
On this week's Topline Hotline, the hosts answer a community question about what to do when inbound lead flow slows and your sales team has excess capacity - and specifically, whether the team should have a specialized role focused on inbound only. Submit your question by using #Topline on LinkedIn or in the #function_CRO channel in Pavilion, or by emailing topline@joinpavilion.com.

Oct 2, 2023 • 53min
E25: Peter Walker on the Findings from Carta's State of Startup Compensation H1 2023
Carta Head of Insights Peter Walker joins Topline to talk about key findings from the company's State of Startup Compensation Report for H1 2023, including what's happening with layoffs, why Q3 was the quarter with the largest number of startups dissolving or declaring bankruptcy, and how these trends are impacting employee attitudes around compensation, equity, and job mobility.

Sep 28, 2023 • 11min
TOPLINE HOTLINE: How much experience does an SDR actually need?
This week, the hosts discuss how much experience an SDR needs to be successful in the role. Hint: Traits like ambition, curiosity, and persistence matter more to the Topline crew than previous SDR experience.

Sep 25, 2023 • 44min
E24: 2024 planning, forecasting, and trends
This week, Sam, AJ, and Asad talk 2024 planning, positive signs in the market, their approach to forecasting, and employee attrition trends heading into next year.

Sep 21, 2023 • 9min
TOPLINE HOTLINE: Which SaaS metrics should I present to the board?
This week, the hosts discuss how to present to the board when you're still navigating product-market fit and the need to expand into new markets. Submit your question by using #Topline on LinkedIn or in the #function_CRO channel in Pavilion.

Sep 18, 2023 • 53min
E23: New CPI report, the impact of retention, and how to leverage CS
This week, the hosts talk about CPI increases, the impact of retention, how to effectively run customer success, and valuations.

Sep 14, 2023 • 8min
TOPLINE HOTLINE: Acquiring your first B2B customers
How do you acquire your first 10 B2B customers without funding? The hosts discuss reverse engineering, doing things that aren't scalable, and selling a solution.

Sep 11, 2023 • 59min
E22: Positive Economic Signals, Seasonality of Software Sales, and Aligning Objectives with Compensation
This week, AJ, Asad, and Sam discuss recent positive economic signals compared with the findings of Pavilion's latest Pulse survey, the seasonality of software sales, variable compensation, and aligning company objectives with incentives.


