Episódios
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Austin Hughes is the founder and CEO of Unify, a platform helping high-growth teams turn buying signals into pipeline. Previously, Austin led the growth team at Ramp, where he scaled the org from 1 to 25+ and pioneered a product-led, experiment-driven GTM approach. With a background in investment banking and venture capital, Austin brings a uniquely analytical and first-principles mindset to modern B2B growth.
Discussed in this Episode:
Why you should run marketing like productDistribution is a startup's best friendHow Austin’s content strategy turned LinkedIn into a hyper-efficient channelWhy the best growth hires today are ex-engineers or investorsHow AI is redefining go-to-market motionsHighlights:
04:00 Ramp’s growth org: running 100+ experiments per quarter
08:45 Why LinkedIn became Unify’s silver bullet
11:30 Austin’s content creation workflow (and why he doesn’t use AI to write)
13:00 Technical vs. traditional growth marketers—how to hire for impact
17:00 Using Unify to merge 1st & 3rd-party data into a signal pipeline
20:30 How automation + human-in-loop GTM creates leverage
24:00 Austin’s Carta example: what perfect relevance looks like
27:00 What broke in outbound and why signal-based selling is the fix
32:00 When startups should start ingesting signals
36:30 Culture of experimentation: “failure is just a data point”
39:00 How Unify is using AI internally for GTM and support ops
43:00 What’s coming next: AI-relevant messaging, BDR collaboration tools
47:00 The end of traditional marketing roles—and what comes next
Guest Speaker Links (Austin Hughes):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/austin-t-hughes/Unify: https://www.unifygtm.com/Host Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/Newsletter: https://substack.com/@sophiebuonassisiWhere to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/Twitter/X: https://x.com/GTMnow_YouTube: /@gtm_nowThe GTM Podcast (on all major directories): https://gtmnow.com/tag/podcast/Thanks to our Sponsor: Unify
Timely enough, Unify is also launching something big today — Unify for Sales Reps, their new AI-native system-of-action built to help sales teams work smarter and move faster. With powerful features like an AI research assistant, manual sequence steps, a browser extension for prospecting, and an all-in-one tasks dashboard, it’s designed to handle the busywork so sellers can focus on what really matters.
Learn more about Unify for Sales Reps: unifygtm.com/blog/introducing-unify-for-sales-reps
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
What’s actually working in go-to-market right now? In this live panel from the GTM Fund AGM, three early-stage leaders from three exceptional companies—Centari, Atrix AI, and Gaiia—break down how they’re closing enterprise deals in some of the most challenging verticals: legal, pharma, and telecom. From viral LinkedIn content and founder-led dinners to the now-infamous "donut drop" strategy, this episode is packed with practical, first-principles GTM plays you won’t find in a sales playbook.
Kevin Walker (Centari) – Founder & CEO of Centari, a legal tech platform providing deal intelligence to large law firms and, soon, financial services. A former M&A attorney at Paul Hastings, Kevin brings deep insider knowledge to solving complex legal workflows.
Vera Kutsenko (Atrix AI) – Founder & CEO of Atrix AI, a platform helping medical affairs teams at pharma and med device companies capture and operationalize real-world insights. Vera has become a thought leader in AI for regulated industries—recently authoring a viral book on AI in medical affairs.
Stephen Farnsworth (Gaiia) – VP of GTM at Gaiia and early GTM leader at Workato and Outreach. Gaiia is an end-to-end ERP, billing, and CRM platform for independent internet service providers (ISPs), tackling a niche but high-value market with massive infrastructure needs.
Discussed in this Episode:
Centari built trust with top law firms by pairing deep domain credibility with a thoughtful, relationship-driven sales approach.Atrix AI sparked inbound demand by turning a single viral LinkedIn post into a full-length book on AI in medical affairs.Gaiia chose not to hire SDRs, focusing instead on high-ACV deals and personalized outreach in a tightly defined TAM of telecom providers.Gaiia’s “donut drop” strategy—personally delivering treats to rural ISP offices—created brand awareness and unlocked new pipeline.Both Centari and Atrix AI scaled founder-led sales by hiring a Chief of Staff to operationalize and extend GTM efforts.Atrix AI uses educational AI workshops to qualify buyers, build trust, and stand out in a noisy vendor landscape.Centari combats pilot fatigue and skepticism in legal tech by showing deep empathy, hiring former lawyers, and proving value early.Highlights:
03:00 – Why Atrix AI scaled founder-led sales with viral content and thought leadership
06:00 – The accidental (and wildly successful) AI & medical affairs book launch
08:00 – Centari’s early GTM strategy: legal empathy, cookies, and product conviction
11:00 – Gaiia’s high-ACV model and why SDRs don’t make sense for their TAM
20:00 – The Donut Playbook: creating pipeline by showing up IRL
23:00 – Why Chief of Staff was a critical early hire for scaling sales ops
27:00 – How Gaiia is thinking about building community in a slow-moving vertical
28:00 – What’s next: repeatability, vertical expansion, and community infrastructure
Guest Speaker Links:
Vera Kutsenko LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/verakutsenko/Stephen Farnsworth LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-farnsworth/Kevin Walker LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kpwalker1/Host Speaker Links (Paul Irving):
LinkedIn: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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
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Dennis Lyandres is an Advisor with ICONIQ and a Board Member of Speedchain and CaptivateIQ. Dennis amassed incredible insights through his experience as the Chief Revenue Officer of Procore, where he helped grow the company from $10M to $900M+ in revenue and guided it through a successful IPO. At Procore, he led all customer-facing functions—Sales, Marketing, CS, RevOps, and BD. He’s now an investor, advisor, and board member to iconic B2B SaaS companies, and one of the most respected voices in GTM for vertical SaaS.
Discussed in this Episode:
Why the best SaaS companies align people, product, and GTM into one unified strategyUsing AI as a GTM advantage starts with a crawl-walk-run approachScaling multi-product in vertical SaaS means following the money and the painGTM leaders win when they speak product and co-own strategy with engineeringCustomer relationships are your most undervalued strategic growth leverYour top 5% of talent deserve a purpose-built strategy to maximize impactLean AI teams are redefining what’s possible with just a handful of operatorsHighlights:
03:00 Dennis’s journey as the Chief Revenue Officer at Procore: from $10M to IPO
05:00 The “People, Product, GTM” triad and AI-native orgs
07:00 Why vertical SaaS startups need a talent strategy (and most companies lack one)
09:30 Multi-product GTM strategy explained via Procore and other verticals
13:00 How Go-To-Market teams can show up better for product teams
18:00 Building deep customer strategy across functions in a B2B startup
23:00 Price’s Law and the T30 program for top performers within a revenue organization
24:30 Lean AI startup: what it is and what it isn’t
30:00 Crawl-walk-run AI adoption in Go-To-Market teams
Guest Speaker Links (Dennis Lyandres):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dlyandres/Speedchain: https://www.speedchain.com/ICONIQ: https://www.iconiqcapital.com/Host Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/Newsletter: https://substack.com/@sophiebuonassisiSponsors: TriNet
Every early-stage founder is told to focus on product and growth. But behind every product launch and revenue milestone is a team – and building that team is one of the hardest and important parts of the journey.
“Build the team that builds the company.” – that is part of your go-to-market strategy responsible for growth.
Hiring the right people, keeping them supported, and creating the infrastructure to help them thrive is critical.
TriNet exists to make that easier. TriNet’s full suite of HR solutions is designed to support companies at critical inflection points – from early traction to scale.
Learn more at https://trinet.com/gtmnow
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Andy Mowat is the Co-Founder of Whispered, and is responsible for building incredible RevOps and GTM systems at unicorns like Upwork, Box, and Culture Amp. With over two decades of experience leading marketing ops, sales ops, and go-to-market infrastructure, Andy is a true pioneer of modern RevOps. Today, he’s building tools to help tech executives collaborate on company insights, search strategies, introductions, and the deepest database of unposted GTM roles anywhere.
Discussed in this Episode:
- Why 80–98% of VP and C-level roles are never posted—and how to access them.
- The importance of clarity: how GTM operators should articulate their focus to stand out.
- How venture networks and backchanneling drive most executive hiring decisions.
- The rise (and limits) of fractional work as a bridge between full-time roles.
- What AI agents are doing behind the scenes at Whispered to match execs to roles.
- Why company stage, growth rate, and CEO quality are critical in picking your next role.
- What GTM functions (e.g. RevOps, Demand Gen) are most in-demand right now.
Highlights:
04:30 Why most executive roles are never posted
07:00 How Whispered operates as a curated talent network
13:30 Why GTM execs struggle to articulate their focus—and how to fix it
16:45 The right way to build a target company list
21:00 Engaging your network and VC talent teams the right way
28:00 What AI is (and isn’t) changing about hiring and team structure
34:00 How to evaluate growth-stage companies and pick winners
36:30 Head of vs. VP vs. CRO: The real meaning of title across company sizes
41:00 Most common mistakes execs make in their job search
44:30 Using customer advocacy and growth loops to scale Whispered
46:00 Is email dead? Why it's still critical to GTM and talent outreach
Guest Speaker Links (Andy Mowat):
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amowat/
- Whispered: https://www.whispered.com/
Host Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/
- Newsletter: https://substack.com/@sophiebuonassisi
Where to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
- Website: https://gtmnow.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/GTMnow_
- YouTube: @gtm_now
- The GTM Podcast (on all major directories): https://gtmnow.com/tag/podcast/
Sponsor: QualifiedQualified is the Agentic Marketing Platform with the world's leading SDR agent, Piper the AI SDR. Marketing teams trust Piper to autonomously drive inbound pipeline at scale, delivering real-time engagement and conversion. Trusted by top brands like Asana, Box, Brex, Clari, GE Healthcare, and more, Qualified is redefining how companies generate pipeline in the age of AI.
Sponsor Link: https://www.qualified.com/plus/category/ai-sdr-summit?utm_source=gtmfund
The GTM Podcast
Don’t miss The GTM Podcast dropping every Tuesday discussing true stories and experiences including trials and tribulations in the Go-To-Market world.
#career #jobsearch #techcareersThe 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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Rick Kelley is the former SVP of Gaming & App Monetization Solutions at Meta and Managing Director of Meta Ireland, where he led a $1B+ revenue organization & played a pivotal role in building out Meta’s go-to-market teams across North America & EMEA. Over his 15-year career at Meta, Rick was instrumental in driving international expansion, especially across Europe, the Middle East, & Africa—helping to localize strategy, scale high-performing sales teams, & bring new ad products to market. Today, he advises founders on global GTM execution, sales hiring, & how AI is reshaping the future of commercial organizations.
Discussed in this Episode:
The operational playbooks that scaled Meta’s ad salesWhy AI will shift how sales orgs think about headcount & human capitalThe three traits Rick looks for in great sales leaders—& how to spot them earlyWhy early-stage companies should prioritize hiring builders, not closersHow to segment go-to-market motions by customer journey, not just ACVWhy “coachable, humble, gritty” still wins—even in an AI-powered GTM worldHighlights:
6:30 How Meta scaled repeatable playbooks across SMB, Mid-Market, & Enterprise
10:00 The role of humility & coachability in building scalable teams
13:00 Why top sales leaders are systems thinkers—not just great closers
16:00 AI’s impact on headcount & how to scale without over-hiring
21:00 Making your first 5 sales hires count
25:30 Early-stage mistake: over-complicating GTM before validating demand
30:30 Why product & GTM must be tied at the hip—especially in AI-first companies
34:00 From Facebook to Meta: what changed & what didn’t in sales strategy
37:00 Final thoughts: GTM myths, leadership advice, & staying grounded
Guest Speaker Links (Rick Kelley):
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rickkelleyHost Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisiNewsletter: substack.com/@sophiebuonassisiWhere to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: gtmnow.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/gtmnowTwitter/X: x.com/GTMnow_YouTube: /@gtm_nowSponsors: UserEvidence
UserEvidence is the Cust
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Sean Whiteley is a three-time founder and the Co-Founder of Qualified, the AI pipeline automation platform purpose-built for inbound GTM teams. Previously, he founded GetFeedback (acquired by Campaign Monitor) and Kieden (acquired by Salesforce), where he also served as SVP & GM. With over two decades at the forefront of tech’s biggest transformations—from on-prem to cloud to AI—Sean offers a rare, long-term view on how to build companies and go-to-market engines in the face of massive disruption.
Discussed in this Episode:
Why the speed of AI adoption outpaces every previous tech waveHow the role of RevOps and team design is being reshaped by agentic systemsWhy today’s buyer journey is nonlinear, AI-assisted, and fully in controlTactical breakdown: how Sean mapped and tagged every task at Qualified for AI automationWhy success teams must sit at the core of GTM strategy, not as an afterthoughtThe most common GTM myth Sean is seeing today—and why it’s outdatedThe characteristics Sean looks for in long-term co-founders and GTM hiresHighlights:
02:00 Sean’s journey through on-prem, cloud, and now AI
05:00 Ops leaders as the new AI orchestrators inside GTM teams
08:30 From workflows to autonomous agents: how org charts are shifting
10:30 The “two-way doors” mindset for fast experimentation
13:30 The future of GTM: agents, trust falls, and buyer-led journeys
15:00 From personalization to “relevance at scale” in modern marketing
18:00 AI unlocks speed and efficiency—how that reshapes CAC payback and TCO
24:00 How Qualified created internal AI blueprints across every team
28:30 Inside the AI SDR: replacing manual inbound sales with 24/7 automation
32:00 Success is not post-sales—it’s the center of the GTM experience
36:00 Reinventing yourself as a founder through three companies
39:30 What still hasn’t changed: customer value and trusted partnerships
47:00 GTM myth: “We control the buying process”—why that’s dead
51:00 Where Sean learns about AI: customer conversations > thought leadership
Guest Speaker Links (Sean Whitely):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanwhiteleyQualified Website: https://www.qualified.comHost Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisiNewsletter: https://substack.com/@sophiebuonassisiWhere to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnowTwitter/X: https://x.com/GTMnow_YouTube: @gtm_nowThe GTM Podcast (on all major directories): https://gtmnow.com/tag/podcast/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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Navin Persaud is the VP of Revenue Operations at 1Password, where he leads a 30+ person team supporting a GTM org of 450+. With over 20 years of experience across RevOps, SalesOps, and MarketingOps, including time at IBM and high-growth SaaS companies, Navin has built a reputation as one of the sharpest operators in the game. He’s known for building scalable systems, ruthless prioritization, and a clear-eyed view of how AI is reshaping operations.
Discussed in this Episode:
Why RevOps is the most essential team for scalable growthThe real signs that it’s time to hire your first RevOps leaderWhat AI is disrupting first in RevOps forecasting, enrichment, orchestration, and reportingThe rise of GTM Engineers and the shift toward intelligence-layer operationsTactical frameworks for combining AI insights with human judgmentHow RevOps should evolve from executor to strategic growth partnerHiring advice: what makes a great early-stage ops hire and how to test for curiosityHighlights:
05:00 - The sports field analogy: building the GTM pitch, not just playing on it
07:00 - AI is both the scariest and most freeing technology in ops today
09:00 - GTM Engineers and the orchestration opportunity ahead
11:00 - Product-market fit is the right time to invest in RevOps
13:00 Forecasting, enrichment, and demand routing—where AI adds leverage
17:30 -Why dashboards are dying and how ops will move to real-time insights
27:00 - How RevOps became a central GTM function
30:00 - Advice for founders on when (and how) to bring in ops leadership
33:00 - “Perfection is the enemy of pace”—a RevOps mantra
Guest Speaker Links (Navin Persaud):
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/navinpersaud/1Password:https://1password.com/1Password Careers:https://1password.com/careersHost Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/Newsletter:https://substack.com/@sophiebuonassisiWhere to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website:https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/Twitter/X:https://x.com/GTMnow_YouTube:@gtm_nowThe GTM Podcast (on all major directories):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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Mike Walrath is the CEO and Chairman of Yext, a publicly traded digital presence platform that helps businesses manage and synchronize their digital presence across search engines, maps, apps, and voice assistants by ensuring that information like locations, services, FAQs, and brand content appears accurately and consistently wherever customers search.
He also co-founded WGI Group, LLC, to provide growth capital to early and expansion stage startups in enterprise software, consumer internet and digital media industries. Previously, Michael was co-founder and Chairman of Moat Inc. which was acquired by Oracle in April 2017. In 2003, Michael founded Right Media - the world's first open exchange for digital advertising. He served as Chairman and CEO of the company until its acquisition by Yahoo! in July 2007. At Yahoo!, he was responsible for the operation of the global advertising marketplaces organization.
Discussed in this Episode:
Why marketers must now structure content not for humans, but for machines.How Yext evolved from managing listings to powering AI-ready data pipelines.Actionable steps SaaS companies can take to optimize for AI agents and search diversification.The role of hyperlocal data, competitive analysis, and personalized content in GTM strategy.Why software innovation must start with intelligence, not workflow.The decline of seat-based pricing and rise of outcome-based models.Highlights:
[00:07:30] – How the iPhone created geo-aware fragmentation, and how Yext was born.
[00:10:00] – Why Google still checks MapQuest (and what that means for SEO today).
[00:11:30] – “We have to rebuild the digital presence for machines, not people.”
[00:14:30] – The new battleground: how AI engines like ChatGPT shape discoverability.
[00:18:00] – Practical data strategies for local businesses and SaaS marketers.
[00:22:00] – Why structured data is the foundation of AI-first marketing.
[00:26:00] – Bespoke GTM: why no two locations (or campaigns) should be the same.
[00:29:00] – The shift from product-led to intelligence-led SaaS development.
[00:31:00] – Seat-based pricing is dying – how to move to value-based contracts.
[00:34:30] – Mike’s advice: get radically honest about macro changes, not just tactics.
Guest Speaker Links (Michael Walrath):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-walrath-b63166/Yext: https://www.yext.com/Host Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/Newsletter: https://substack.com/@sophiebuonassisiWhere to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Marcy Campbell is the Chief Revenue Officer at AppFolio, where she leads sales and client services with a focus on delivering unified, end-to-end customer experiences. With over 30 years of experience scaling revenue teams across FinTech, SaaS, cloud computing, and communications, Marcy has held executive roles at Boomi and PayPal—where she led an 800+ person global team. Her deep expertise in aligning sales, customer success, and operations makes her a standout leader in the GTM space.
What happens when a CRO owns the entire customer journey
Discussed in this Episode:
How AppFolio’s Unified Customer Experience (UCE) platform aligns marketing, sales, and customer service.The evolving role of the CRO and the importance of owning the entire customer journey.Why customer experience is a competitive differentiator in vertical SaaS.Tactical tips for early-stage startups on aligning go-to-market motion with product-market fit.The importance of cross-functional “stream teams” for accelerating GTM initiatives.How Marcy builds inclusive leadership cultures and mentors rising female leaders.Why how you make the number matters as much as making the number.Highlights:
10:30 The Chief Revenue Officer's (CRO) responsibility to understand and optimize the entire customer journey.
12:30 How the Unified Customer Experience (UCE) platform was formed and how it works.
16:00 End-to-end GTM orchestration across sales, marketing, product, and CS.
22:00 Results from the UCE initiative: accelerated deal velocity and customer retention.
26:30 Advice for startups: identifying your ICP and fixing pipeline fundamentals.
29:00 How to scale with customer empathy and GTM precision.
31:00 Advocating for women in sales leadership and building inclusive teams.
36:00 Marcy’s communication strategy for managing a 600-person org.
39:00 Marcy's favorite business leadership tactic: “Take a beat” before reacting.
40:00 What’s outdated: The belief that only numbers matter in sales.
Guest Speaker Links (Marcy Campbell):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcyc/Appfolio: https://www.appfolio.com/Host Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/Newsletter: https://substack.com/@sophiebuonassisiWhere to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/Twitter/X: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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Oji Udezue was most recently Chief Product Officer at Typeform, where he led product strategy across the company’s growing suite of tools. Previously, he was CPO at Calendly, where he helped scale one of the most beloved PLG tools in the market. Before that, he was Head of Product for Creation and Conversation at Twitter, leading core features like Tweets, DMs, and Spaces. At Atlassian, he led all communication products, including the launch of Atlassian’s first post-IPO product.
Oji also spent years at Microsoft, building foundational experiences across Windows, Outlook, Hotmail, and Internet Explorer.
In addition to his product leadership, Oji is the founder of Kernel Fund, an early-stage fund supporting startups across Africa. He writes about product, growth, and leadership at his newsletter Product Mind and is the author of the upcoming book Building Rocketships—a guide for high-growth product teams.
Discussed in this Episode:
When to hire your first PM (and what to look for).Why great product teams include marketing from day one.A framework for picking winning startup ideas.How AI is changing how we build (not just what we build).What product leaders can learn from Microsoft’s Longhorn failure.Why 3x better isn’t a nice-to-have — it’s a must.Highlights:
04:52 – Why marketing is essential to product leadership.
12:02 – How AI is transforming the process of building products.
17:07 – Common product mistakes founders make early on.
24:16 – Building Rocket Ships: Why Oji wrote the book.
31:08 – Framework: Where to fish for unicorns.
33:17 – The “3x better” rule for product value.
37:07 – The challenge of true product differentiation.
39:22 – What Microsoft’s Longhorn failure taught Oji.
44:51 – When (and how) to hire your first PM.
48:31 – The importance of fast, early customer feedback.
54:46 – How AI is changing go-to-market strategy.
57:32 – Why marketers must master signal in a noisy world.
Guest Speaker Links (Oji Udezue):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ojiudezue/Kernel Fund: https://www.kernelfund.com/Product Mind: https://www.productmind.co/Building Rocketships (Book): https://a.co/d/0HGjf18SubStack: https://ojiudezue.substack.com/Host Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/Newsletter: https://substack.com/@sophiebuonassisiWhere to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https: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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Harmony Anderson is an entrepreneurial marketing leader with deep expertise in building global GTM strategies at growth startups. She is currently the VP of Growth and Marketing at Superhuman, the most productive email app ever made for teams. She has also led high-performing teams at Armada, Engine, Outreach, and ThousandEyes.
She is deeply passionate about creating world-class marketing campaigns, leveraging data-driven strategies to accelerate customer acquisition, engagement, and retention. She also drives extreme rigor around operational excellence and efficiency, ensuring GTM teams execute with precision using repeatable and predictable playbooks.
Discussed in this Episode:
How to develop unique positioning and messaging for an AI companyWhy UGC matters for your brand and how to get users to create content about your productThe impact of lightning marketing campaigns and follow-on 'thunder' campaignsThree core channels for launching a new B2B marketing programHighlights:
05:12 – The #1 mistake in AI messaging: sounding like everyone else.
07:24 – Use outcomes and data to differentiate your AI product.
11:06 – Why nailing 3-5 core use cases beats going broad or too niche.
12:38 – Turning website visitors into believers with demos and interactive content.
14:01 – How to keep up with a market that changes every week (hello, agentic AI).
15:08 – Building campaigns that fuel your narrative across every channel.
17:16 – Behind Superhuman’s most successful campaign ever: “New Year, New Inbox.”
20:04 – Unlocking 60% growth through user-generated content and affiliate advocacy.
21:38 – Why webinars and virtual events still drive real results (and feedback).
23:12 – How to keep your messaging fresh while staying focused.
25:11 – The difference between brand umbrella, campaign, and program — and why it matters.
27:02 – Harmony’s lean, high-impact program playbook for early-stage teams.
31:06 – Building a hype train: how to activate champions at launch.
33:01 – Hot take: marketing shouldn’t be measured by pipeline alone.
35:12 – Why NRR (not just pipeline) should be a marketing KPI.Guest Speaker Links (Harmony Anderson):
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/harmony-hickman-andersonSuperhuman: superhuman.comHost Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisiNewsletter: gtmnow.com/tag/newsletterWhere to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: gtmnow.comLinkedIn: GTMnowX/Twitter: @GTMnow_YouTube: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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Udi Ledergor served as CMO during Gong’s rise from new SaaS startup to industry dominance. By building a playful, human-centric brand with a lighthearted tone, he captured buyers’ attention and dollars and turned them into raving fans. He helped Gong go from zero to hundreds of millions in revenue, while achieving a multi-billion-dollar valuation. His book Courageous Marketing is officially out and you can buy it below in the show notes.
Discussed in this Episode:
Why Marketing 'Best Practices' are broken for Brands that want to stand out.Marketers need to consider the long game and remember the 95/5 rule.When you should hire for experience versus potential.How to foster a culture of healthy risk-taking with your team.Highlights:
04:09 Udi's inspiration for writing his new book, Courageous Marketing.
06:02 The four most common reasons why marketing fails.
09:22 What marketers should be looking for when selecting a company to join.
13:55 The Problem with 'playing it safe' in B2B marketing.
23:07 How to market to both the 5% and the 95% of your buyers.
38:13 The Three Team Operating Principles for leading a bold and effective marketing team.
Guest Speaker Links (Udi Ledergor):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/udiledergor/Gong: https://www.gong.io/Udi's Book, Courageous Marketing: https://mybook.to/courageousmarketingHost Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/Newsletter: https://gtmnow.com/tag/newsletter/Where to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/Twitter/X: https://x.com/GTMnow_YouTube: / @gtm_now The GTM Podcast (on all major directories): https://gtmnow.com/tag/podcast/Sponsor: ZoomInfo’s GTM25 Virtual Conference—a free, half-day event on h
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Jeff Perry is a truly iconic revenue leader and the Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) at Carta, responsible for core software revenue across New Business, Upsell, Cross Sell, and Customer Success. Prior to Carta, Jeff led SMB Sales at DocuSign, and started his career at Oracle, where he rose from Strategic Account Manager to VP of Sales over a decade.
Discussed in this Episode:
How to turn coworkers into mentors—and why it matters.Moving from enterprise sales leadership to a startup environment.Why and when to build a solutions engineering team.The myth of the “18-month CRO lifespan.”Balancing empathy and accountability as a sales leader.Why automation isn’t always the best path forward.Highlights:
06:29 — Mentorship matters. Jeff breaks down how to find and approach mentors—even without a formal program.
12:42 — Lessons from selling servers that still apply to modern SaaS sales
15:02 — Leading through M&A: Inside the culture clash and how Jeff rebuilt a team post-acquisition.
19:07 — Carta’s GTM evolution: How Jeff scaled from one rep selling one product to multiple teams across three business lines.
28:34 — Scaling revenue from $20M to $450M: Advice for CROs entering growth-stage companies.
33:20 — Why “big company” people can thrive in startups—if they leave their playbooks behind.
36:15 — How to use PIPs to coach—not just cut—and what most orgs get wrong.
43:13 — Why the best sellers are quarterbacks, not lone wolves.
46:43 — Pick up the phone: Human connection wins in an era of AI and automation.
Guest Links (Jeff Perry):
LinkedIn: Jeff Perry Carta: carta.comHost Links (Scott Barker):
LinkedIn: Scott Barker Newsletter: The GTM NewsletterWhere to Find GTMnow (GTMfund’s Media Brand):
Website: gtmnow.com LinkedIn: GTMnow Twitter/X: @GTMnow_ YouTube: @gtm_now Podcast: The GTM Podcast (available on all major platforms)Sponsor: Pursuit
The best talent isn’t actively job hunting. Pursuit helps companies hire elite go-to-market talent on a non-retainer basis. As a key GTMfund partner, they equip sales and marketing teams with top performers.
If you're hiring for sales or marketing roles, reach out to Pursuit at pursuitsalessolutions.com/gtm or message a GTMfund team member.
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Hayden Stafford is the President and Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) at Seismic, where he oversees the global go-to-market (GTM) organization, including pre-sales, sales, customer success, services, partners, and more. Prior to joining Seismic, he served as President of Global Field Operations at Pegasystems. Before that, Hayden was Corporate Vice President at Microsoft, leading Global Business Applications (Microsoft Dynamics 365) for six years. Earlier in his career, he was an SVP at Salesforce and spent nearly a decade at IBM, ultimately serving as VP and Managing Director on Wall Street.
Discussed in this Episode:
What Satya Nadella taught Hayden about culture, clarity, and transformation at Microsoft.The exact playbook to move from SMB to enterprise—including partner enablement, segmentation, and incentive design.Why retention isn't just a CS metric—and how to build a sales team that cares about it.How to win in vertical SaaS, from breaking into financial services to owning the category.What it takes to close a $600M+ deal in the middle of a financial crisis.Highlights:
05:19 — How Satya Nadella sold his internal vision and rebuilt Microsoft’s culture from the ground up
13:13 — The partnership blueprint: how to scale with partners, not just transact with them
28:18 — Going deep in verticals: why Seismic dominated financial services while others avoided it
34:44 — How Hayden closed a $600M+ deal with Merrill Lynch after the 2008 crash
42:40 — Why retention should be part of your sales comp—and how to make it work
49:15 — The “Value Continuum”: a framework for aligning sales, services, and CS around business outcomesGuest Speaker Links (Hayden Stafford):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/haydenestafford/Seismic: https://seismic.com/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: https://thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Where to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
WebsiteLinkedInTwitter / XYouTubeThe GTM Podcast (on all major directories)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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Ray Smith is the VP of AI Agents at Microsoft. Previously, he was the Global VP of Product for SAP, CRM and Sales Cloud. Before that, he was the CEO and Co-Founder of DataHug, which was acquired by Calidus Cloud in 2016.
Ray breaks down why the rise of AI agents is a tectonic shift, how businesses are already seeing ROI, and what it means for SaaS, team structure, and go-to-market strategies. He also shares real-world use cases from inside Microsoft and partner companies, plus how founders and operators can build or adapt in this new AI-native era.
Discussed in this Episode:
What exactly is an AI agent—and how is it different from bots or automation?Why traditional SaaS pricing models (like per-seat) don’t work in the agent era.How enterprise teams are already deploying autonomous agents in production.The emerging architecture of multi-agent workflows.Which skills will matter most in an agent-first world (hint: think like a GM or growth hacker).Highlights:
06:53 What makes an AI agent different from bots and automation—and why it matters now.
15:33 How AI agents are changing the role of traditional software tools and UI.
25:15 Why legacy SaaS pricing models don’t work for agents—and what comes next.
31:12 Inside Microsoft CoPilot: Real-world agent use cases across sales, support, and strategy.
37:42 The most valuable skills in the AI era—from delegation to agent orchestration.
51:42 Why agentic AI makes customer relationships and long-term value even more critical.
Guest Speaker Links (Ray Smith):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raycsmith/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: https://thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Where to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/Twitter/X: https://x.com/GTMnow_YouTube: / @gtm_now The GTM Podcast (on all major directories):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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Jaleh Rezaei is the CEO & Co-founder of Mutiny, a company reimagining the B2B buying experience by transforming transactional relationships into meaningful connections through AI-powered personalization. Mutiny helps enterprises restore the human element in modern buying at scale, and is used by some of the fastest growing companies in the world including Amplitude, Snowflake and Qualtrics. The company is backed by Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global, and CMOs of companies such as Uber, Condé Nast and Salesforce. Prior to Mutiny, Jaleh was the Head of Marketing and Business Development at Gusto, where she grew the company from 500 to 50,000 customers over 4 years. She was the Director of Product Marketing at VMware prior to Gusto.
Discussed in this Episode:
AI-powered personalization is reshaping B2B sales and marketingAI-driven lead scoring improves quality and targets high-value prospectsAI anticipates and overcomes sales objections in real timeSales & marketing alignment: why it matters and how to achieve itThe risks of AI-driven outbound and how to avoid common pitfallsScaling 1:1 experiences efficiently with AIAI-powered buyer interactions and their impact on GTM strategiesHighlights:
03:27 – Why AI innovation is game-changing for founders building and scaling companies.
06:49 – How 1:1 sales personalization drives 14x higher conversion rates.
10:45 – AI-powered hyper-personalization is reshaping enterprise sales.
16:30 – The biggest AI mistakes in sales and marketing.
20:55 – Scaling white-glove experiences across all target accounts.
24:45 – Why CRM data is a mess and how AI finally fixes it.
28:14 – A masterclass in sales & marketing alignment.
31:20 – The real reason sales and marketing clash (and how to fix it).
42:10 – The most valuable AI use cases for B2B sales teams.
47:30 – How AI is changing B2B buyer behavior and what sellers must do.Guest Speaker Links (Jaleh Rezaei):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jalehr/Mutiny: https://www.mutinyhq.com/The State of Sales & Marketing Alignment Report: https://www.mutinyhq.com/reportHost Speaker Links (Scott Barker):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: https://thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Find GTMnow (GTMfund’s Media Brand):
WebsiteLinkedInTwitter/X[YouTube]( / @gtm_now)PodcastThe 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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Cassie Young is a General Partner at Primary Venture Partners, a $1B AUM early-stage venture capital firm in New York that has backed category-defining companies such as Chief, Alma, K Health, Latch, Alloy, Dandy and Vestwell.
Before joining Primary, Cassie was Chief Customer and Commercial Officer for Marigold (formerly known as CM Group), an Insight Partners roll-up of marketing technology software including Sailthru, Campaign Monitor, Delivra, Emma, Vuture and Liveclicker; Cassie assumed that role when Marigold acquired Sailthru, where she was Chief Revenue Officer.
Prior to Sailthru, Cassie served as VP Marketing & Analytics at Gerson Lehrman Group ("GLG") and as VP Marketing & Growth for Savored (acquired by Groupon). Cassie's time in tech dates back to 2006, when she joined TheLadders.com as an early employee and managed marketing and analytics for the company's subscription business. She began her career as a tech and media analyst at Citigroup Global Corporate & Investment Bank.
Discussed in this Episode:
The turnaround story of Cassie’s time at Sailthru and overcoming scaling challenges.How to rebuild and regain customer trust after technical failures.The importance of leadership alignment and transparency during times of crisis.How to effectively use Net Promoter Score (NPS) and what it really tells you.The value and impact of Customer Advisory Boards (CABs) in driving customer-centric growth.Why executive compensation should align with key business metrics for better team alignment.Creative tactics like video mailers and regional user groups to engage customers and drive product adoption.Highlights:
07:53 What happens when commercial scale outgrows your technical scale.
15:53 Driving alignment through northstar metrics and incentives.
22:16 The best ways to measure customer trust.
34:10 Tips on setting up a Customer Advisory Board (CAB).
52:48 A fantastic multi-media mail campaign.
Guest Speaker (Cassie Young):
LinkedInPrimary VCHost (Scott Barker):
LinkedInNewsletterFind GTMnow (GTMfund’s Media Brand):
WebsiteLinkedInTwitter/X[YouTube]( / @gtm_now)PodcastSponsor: Pursuit
The best talent isn’t actively job hunting. Pursuit helps companies hire elite go-to-market talent on a non-retainer basis. As a key GTMfund partner, they equip sales and marketing teams with top performers.
If you're hiring for sales or marketing roles, reach out to Pursuit at pursuitsalessolutions.com/gtm or message a GTMfund team member.
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Jessica Gilmartin has nearly 20 years of go-to-market leadership experience, most recently serving as both the Chief Revenue Officer and Chief Marketing Officer at Calendly. Prior to that, she led marketing teams at an impressive array of companies, including Asana and Calendly. As the cherry on top, Jessica also built and sold a successful frozen yogurt chain in San Francisco.
Discussed in this Episode:
Taking an entrepreneurial approach to ownership in an organizationThe difficulty of selling to both midmarket and enterprise customersCultivating a culture of creativity and approachabilityHow to hire your first marketerHighlights:
06:29 How Asana moved from product-led growth to sales-led growth
18:00 Why refining your ICP is paramount for product-led growth
33:37 Fostering a culture of experimentation
40:23 Hiring your first marketer as a startup founder
Guest Speaker Links (Jessica Gilmartin):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicagilmartin/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: https://thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Where to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/The GTM Podcast (on all major directories): https://gtmnow.com/tag/podcast/Sponsor: Pursuit
The best talent isn’t actively job hunting. Pursuit helps companies hire elite go-to-market talent on a non-retainer basis. As a key GTMfund partner, they equip sales and marketing teams with top performers.
If you're hiring for sales or marketing roles, reach out to Pursuit at pursuitsalessolutions.com/gtm or message a GTMfund team member.
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Katrina Wong is the CMO of New Relic and a top marketing leader. She specializes in launching products, entering new markets, and scaling companies to the enterprise. With 15 years of experience at Twilio, Zuora, Salesforce, and SAP, she has led award-winning campaigns and helped six companies exit successfully.
Discussed in this Episode:
Why you should be using "marketing sprints"Importance of operational excellence and agility in marketingThe role of marketing in preparing for a successful exitIs 'fire fast' the right approach for managing your teamsHighlights:
07:08 Secrets to picking winners
09:30 Attaining operational excellence in startups
15:43 Marketing's role in successful exits
29:12 Transforming PIP programs for successful employees
31:26 Challenging the 'fire fast' mentality
35:20 The importance of team dynamics
40:24 Navigating getting acquired successfully
48:58 Tactics for modern marketing
Guest Speaker Links (Katrina Wong):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katrinawong11/New Relic Website: https://newrelic.com/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: https://thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Where to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/Twitter/X: https://x.com/GTMnow_YouTube: / @gtm_nowSponsor: Pursuit
The best talent isn’t actively job hunting. Pursuit helps companies hire elite go-to-market talent on a non-retainer basis. As a key GTMfund partner, they equip sales and marketing teams with top performers.
If you're hiring for sales or marketing roles, reach out to Pursuit at pursuitsalessolutions.com/gtm or message a GTMfund team member.
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. -
Joe DiMento is the Head of Go-To-Market & Industry Partnerships at Bain Capital Ventures. Previously, he was an operating partner at Fractal Software, helping launch vertical software companies and find product-market fit. Before that, he was the first non-founder seller at three startups, turning early traction into a repeatable sales motion. He began his career at Google and Bain & Company and holds an MBA from Stanford GSB.
Discussed in this Episode:
When to hire your first account executivesKey traits to look for in early sales hiresStructuring compensation for first sales repsShould you 'hire the buyer' to be your sales rep?Highlights:
05:03 When to hire your first sales reps.
13:17 Characteristics of top early-stage sales reps.
22:25 Designing a sales compensation plan.
31:55 Hiring for grit, curiosity & determination.
42:03 Fast-tracking your sales career.
Guest Speaker Links
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joedimento/Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/Newsletter: https://thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/Where to find GTMnow (GTMfund’s media brand):
Website: https://gtmnow.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gtmnow/Twitter/X: https://x.com/GTMnow_YouTube: / @gtm_nowSponsor: Pursuit
The best talent isn’t actively job hunting. Pursuit helps companies hire elite go-to-market talent on a non-retainer basis. As a key GTMfund partner, they equip sales and marketing teams with top performers.
If you're hiring for sales or marketing roles, reach out to Pursuit at pursuitsalessolutions.com/gtm or message a GTMfund team member.
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.
Visit gtmnow.com for more episodes and other interesting content. - Mostrar mais
