Dave Boyce is a go-to-market–focused technology executive, author of Freemium, and longtime SaaS operator and board member. Over two decades leading and advising B2B companies, he’s helped founders navigate the shift from sales-led to product-led, from gut-driven to instrumented, and now from manual GTM to AI-assisted systems. Today, Dave teaches revenue architecture and PLG through Winning by Design’s Growth Institute, works with leadership teams on Bow Tie–based growth models, and is all-in on how AI will reshape GTM as a true engineered system.Discussed in this episodeWhy classic sales & marketing playbooks haven’t caught up to how modern buyers actually buy.How the Bowtie model exposes the real levers of growth that funnels hide.Why PLG-style thinking is now essential even for sales-led and enterprise motions.The 3 first principles of freemium: empathy, generosity, and metrics.Where AI can reliably outperform humans across the customer journey, and where it absolutely shouldn’t.How to design hybrid human + AI workflows using a clear data model, not vibes.What RevOps should own in a modern revenue architecture (and why it can’t just serve the CRO narrative).Hard-earned founder lessons from Fundly on reinvention, calling bets early, and letting go of old branches.Episode highlights00:00 — GTM is still running 20-year-old playbooks01:29 — “Sales, marketing, CS… the last unengineered engine”03:20 — The myth of “just add more heads”05:50 — The Fundly story: reinvention, too late08:30 — Why Freemium had to be written11:01 — Three first principles of freemium15:25 — Mapping AI across the entire customer journey19:29 — “Automate the predictable, humanize the exceptional”25:18 — What the Bowtie exposes that funnels hide27:25 — Building a “minimum viable BowtieThis episode is brought to you by our sponsor: ZoomInfoZoomInfo is the GTM Intelligence Platform built for sales, marketing, and RevOps.By unifying data, workflows, and insights into a single system, ZoomInfo helps revenue teams find and engage the right buyers, launch go-to-market plays faster, and drive predictable growth. With industry-leading accuracy and depth of data, it gives your team the intelligence advantage to win in compet

Brian Weinberger is the Chief Revenue Officer at Sisense, a leading analytics platform helping companies embed intelligence into every product experience. With over 30 years in sales leadership across New York’s tech scene, Brian has built and scaled go-to-market teams at every stage—from early-stage startups to category-defining giants like Yext, Segment, and Salesforce.Discussed in this episodeThe evolution of partner selling — from VARs to SIs to ecosystemsHow to know if partner selling fits your GTM modelThe delivery-first mindset that drives retentionDirect vs. partner motion: Microsoft vs. SalesforceWhy enablement is the #1 green flag for partner successPartner marketing: how to make resellers self-sustainingUsing AI to power future-ready GTM modelsThe case for hybrid work in high-performance sales culturesEpisode Highlights00:00 — The “year four” moment when partners are selling for you01:07 — 30 years of selling through partners in New York03:22 — Start partner strategy with delivery, not distribution06:32 — Why partner selling creates “superhuman” sellers09:59 — Salesforce vs. Microsoft: direct vs. reseller — and why the future is hybrid12:13 — The startup hack: sell delivery on your paper, subcontract partners17:16 — A 90-day playbook for integration partnerships21:39 — Hiring the right people to build a partner business27:18 — How Sisense runs delivery partners and an Australian reseller29:55 — White-labeling Snowflake: using resell to get the giant’s attentionThis episode is brought to you by our sponsor: BoomPopWe’re deep in event planning right now, as no doubt many of you are.Whether it’s an offsite, conference, or any other kind of event, BoomPop makes that happen with end-to-end planning all in one place.They handle everything from venues to experiences, so you can focus on the delights of meeting in person, not the logistics.Being part of GTMnow, you’re eligible for full-service event planning for just $99 per person (terms apply). Head to boompop.com/gtmfund to explore seamless support for your events.Follow Brian WeinbergerLinkedIn:

This bonus episode dives into how Cristina Cordova (Stripe’s 20th hire, early leader at Notion, now COO at Linear) spots exceptional talent early, and how she pressure-tests whether a team and product are truly worth betting on. It’s a crisp, tactical look at evaluating “spikiness,” finding beloved products (even with limited data), and building GTM the right way from day one.Cristina Cordova is a seasoned operator who has scaled some of the most iconic companies in tech. At Stripe, she built and led partnerships that became a foundational revenue engine, including the pivotal deal with Shopify. At Notion, she helped turn viral adoption into a durable distribution strategy powered by community. Today, Cristina is the Chief Operating Officer at Linear, where she’s applying her experience building high-velocity GTM engines to the next generation of developer-first tools.This is a clip from the full episode with Cristina (an inside look at the judgment frameworks behind Stripe, Notion, and now Linear) and the practical filters every GTM leader can use to pick winners early.Discussed in This ClipHow to recognize “exceptional” even outside your own domainFinding early proof a product is truly beloved (signals > vanity metrics)Starting with a sharp market wedge, then earning the right to expandWhy founders who excel at something—anything—tend to excel at company-buildingWhat to expect from early operators: founder mode and bias to executeSales hiring for technical buyers (and why quotas can help earlier than you think)Aligning tightly with founders as an exec: relationships drive outcomesHow to assess GTM on day one: ride-alongs, raw customer feedback, ground truthHighlights00:00 — The difference between good and great—and how to spot it across functions00:12 — Why this clip hit: Cristina’s framework for identifying exceptional people early01:17 — Looking for skills you don’t have—and recognizing greatness outside your lane03:38 — Evidence a product is beloved (Stripe on Hacker News, Notion on Twitter)04:49 — Start with a wedge; win big later (why early enterprise skeptics don’t matter)07:54 — “Spikiness” and unconventional signals of excellence (Minecraft servers to sales)12:52 — What great early leaders do: see proble

Alex Clayton is one of the clearest minds in growth-stage investing, the person elite founders turn to when the market is noisy and the stakes are high. A General Partner at Meritech Capital, Alex has built a reputation for breaking down complex businesses with uncommon clarity, from his legendary S-1 teardowns to his frameworks on power laws, secondaries, and AI-native growth. Before Meritech, he honed his craft at Spark Capital and Redpoint, backing breakout companies like Braze, JFrog, Outreach, Pendo, Duo Security, and RelateIQ. A former ATP tennis pro and Stanford team captain, Alex brings that same discipline, pattern recognition, and competitive fire to evaluating the next generational companies.Discussed in this episodeWhy GAAP revenue and cash burn are the two metrics that quietly govern everything.How AI is changing growth rates, margins, and what “good” looks like in SaaS.The rise of secondaries, and why they now rival or exceed IPO volume.How to read an S-1 like a pro (and what Alex looks for first).Founder ownership, fund lifecycles, and how long companies really stay private.Why power laws in venture are getting even steeper in the AI era.How AI is reshaping pricing models from seats to usage and outcomes.Which iconic private companies are most likely to go public in the next 3 years.Episode highlights02:40 — Is the IPO window really back? 05:10 — Secondaries quietly outpacing IPOs08:10 — The only two metrics that matter10:56 — AI growth that breaks SaaS mental models26:20 — From “software” to “SaaS” to “AI”… and back again29:25 — Seat-based pricing vs outcome-based AI pricing34:55 — The capital tidal wave & longer private lives44:00 — Bubble vs biggest opportunity of our careers57:17 — What the rest of the 2020s look like1:03:41 — Why GAAP revenue + cash burn still winBrought to you by: AngelListHow did we build the GTMfund back office? Easy!We leveraged AngelList’s Rolling Fund product for Fund I, which was the perfect vehicle to scale up GTMfund in its first iteration. This structure allowed us to build our network, and add revenue leaders while we raised and deployed capital simultaneously, which was cru

Chris Degnan is the former Chief Revenue Officer of Snowflake, where he helped scale the company from pre-product to over $4B in ARR and more than $100B in market cap. Over his 11-year tenure, Chris built Snowflake’s go-to-market engine from the ground up, from personally running the first outbound campaigns to leading a global sales organization through four CEOs and one of the largest software IPOs in history.Today, he advises founders and revenue leaders on how to build high-velocity GTM teams, hire with grit, and scale with discipline. Chris is also the co-author of Make It Snow, the definitive playbook on Snowflake’s go-to-market journey, co-written with CMO Denise Persson.Discussed in this episodeThe early days of Snowflake: selling a stealth startup with no productHow to hire and identify truly self-motivated, gritty sales talentThe lessons from John McMahon that shaped Snowflake’s leadership DNAHow to build sales-marketing alignment that actually scalesThe near-death experiences that almost killed SnowflakeWhat great CEOs do differently, from Muglia to SlootmanThe power of focusing on new logo acquisitionThe evolution of sales methodologies: MEDDPICC, culture, and curiosityThe truth about AI’s “bubble”, and what’s real beneath the hypeEpisode highlights00:02:21 — Why join Snowflake pre-product and in stealth.00:05:36 — The original outreach script and what resonated with prospects.00:06:49 — Scaling from lists to SDRs; Degnan’s “8 meetings per week” rule.00:09:11 — Hiring for self-starters; the interview opener: “Tell me your life story.”00:12:49 — The feedback loop that kept a CRO in seat for 11 years.00:24:46 — The outage that almost killed Snowflake, and how leadership showed up.00:28:34 — New logo gates every quarter and why it mattered more than anything.00:34:05 — “Customer success is everyone’s job”: removing CS, monetizing PS, driving adoption.00:36:40 — Databricks: where Snowflake ceded ground and what they’d do differently.00:39:19 — Why going public was the right move for enterprise trust.This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: BoomPopWe’re deep in event planning right now, as no doubt many of you are.Whether it’s an offsite, conference,

Michel Tricot is the co-founder and CEO of Airbyte, the open-source data movement platform he launched in 2020. Before Airbyte, Michel led integrations and served as Director of Engineering at LiveRamp, where he scaled the teams and pipelines that synced massive data volumes. He also helped build rideOS as a founding engineer and Director of Engineering. Michel has spent 15+ years in data infrastructure, with a focus on commoditizing data pipelines and giving teams control and sovereignty over their data. Discussed in this episodeWhy Airbyte launched open source first (catching engineers “at the search”)Project-market fit vs. product-market fit, and why they’re differentThe content engine: founder-led writing, shipping slides, and radical transparencyTurning interest into community: 25k+ Slack, champions, and hiring from withinThe near-misses: hiring ahead of PMF, support-heavy community, cloud complexityGoing upmarket: enterprise motion, longer cycles, and team ramp realitiesAI wave → agents as “data consumers” and what it means for pipelinesReplatforming for control & sovereignty, not just “more connectors”This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: ZoomInfoZoomInfo is the GTM Intelligence Platform built for sales, marketing, and RevOps.By unifying data, workflows, and insights into a single system, ZoomInfo helps revenue teams find and engage the right buyers, launch go-to-market plays faster, and drive predictable growth. With industry-leading accuracy and depth of data, it gives your team the intelligence advantage to win in competitive markets.It’s trusted by the fastest-growing companies and has become the category leader in GTM Intelligence.Learn more at zoominfo.com.Follow Michel TricotLinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/micheltricotX (Twitter):https://x.com/MichelTricotWebsite:https://airbyte.com/AirbyteHost linksLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/X (Twitter):

Tessa Whittaker is the VP of Revenue Operations at ZoomInfo, where she leads a 70-person global team powering one of SaaS’s most efficient $1B+ revenue engines. Over the past decade, she’s helped architect the systems, cadence, and AI workflows that underpin how ZoomInfo operates at scale.Tessa is known as one of the most thoughtful operators in tech, bringing structure, clarity, and rigor to how GTM organizations run. Her work sits at the intersection of data, process, and execution, proving that with the right operating cadence, even the most complex go-to-market systems can move in rhythm.Discussed in this episodeBuilding a personal operating system (Salesforce's V2MOM, Notion, weekly reviews) that maps vision → methods → measurable actions.“Operating rhythm” for GTM: the meetings, reviews, and enablement that create predictable execution.Color-coding calendars to align time with quarterly KPIs (and fixing misallocation).Counterintuitive up-market move: automate down-market so scarce humans focus on enterprise.AI intake & prioritization agent: compressing 10–15 hrs of RevOps scoping into one interaction.Democratizing creation: org-wide agent “hackathons,” usage leaderboards, and adoption lessons.Health OS during sprints: cut alcohol, protect sleep, simplify to sustain output.What to buy vs. build; auditing tech stacks; avoiding (and accepting some) agent sprawl.Episode highlights00:00 — Systems beat motivation; why cadence creates consistency.01:36 — RevOps as connective tissue of SaaS; the “invest earlier” regret.03:58 — From EA to SVP-level ops leader to VP RevOps: the long workback.06:51 — Why operators obsess over simplifying complexity.12:24 — Time as the scarcest resource: color-coding calendars to goals.20:05 — The RevOps operating rhythm at ZoomInfo (and how AI slots in).21:48 — Going upmarket? Automate downmarket first to free resources.31:19 — Intake agent: collapsing 10–15 hours of back-and-forth into one interaction.36:48 — Democratizing creation: internal agent hackathons and a usage leaderboard.44:30 — The Alchemist and reframing growth: get uncomfortable to keep climbing.This episode is brought to you by our sponsorsThe best talent isn’t actively job huntin

Peter Grant is the Chief Revenue Officer at You.com, the AI search and productivity platform reshaping how people find and create information. A veteran GTM leader, Peter has built and scaled revenue engines at some of tech’s most iconic companies — from Siebel Systems to Salesforce to C3.ai — working directly under legends like Tom Siebel and Marc Benioff. Today, he’s leading You.com’s charge against giants like OpenAI and Google, bringing precision, storytelling, and speed to the most transformative era in technology.Discussed in this episodeHow Peter defines “the biggest opportunity of our lifetime” in AILessons from working under Tom Siebel, Marc Benioff, and Rishi KhoslaHow to hire SEAL-Team-Six-level GTM talentWhy belief and speed are non-negotiables when competing with giantsYou.com’s differentiation strategy against OpenAI and GoogleHow to operationalize AI literacy and agentic workflowsThe ROI gap in generative AI adoption, and how to fix itBuilding products that stand on truthEpisode Highlights00:14 — The biggest opportunity in technology this century05:25 — Lessons from working directly with Thomas Siebel06:41 — How to hire “SEAL Team Six” sales talent10:24 — Why “train hard, fight easy” defines great enablement20:08 — The new sophistication bar for AI literacy in sales25:14 — How You.com differentiates against OpenAI & Google30:00 — Peter’s personal AI productivity system: 40 agents40:12 — Speed, truth, and trust: You.com’s go-to-market culture48:30 — The “war room” story: building a sales plan overnight59:45 — No easy days: why startup life mirrors special forcesThis episode is brought to you by our sponsor: BoomPopA quick pause to spotlight a partner that helps GTM teams actually connect—BoomPop.Your next big unlock might not come from another meeting… it’s from getting your team in the same room. BoomPop makes that happen with end-to-end offsite planning all in one place.They handle everything from venues to experiences, so you can focus on the delights of meeting in person, not the logistics.And as a listener of GTMfund, you’re eligible for full-service event planning for just $99 per person (terms apply).Head to

This bonus episode dives into how Rick Kelley helped scale Meta’s global sales organization (from 900 employees to 90,000) and the playbook behind building high-performing international teams.Rick Kelley is the former SVP of Gaming and App Monetization Solutions at Meta and Managing Director of Meta Ireland, where he led a $1B+ revenue organization and played a pivotal role in building out Meta’s go-to-market teams across North America and EMEA. Over his 15-year career at Meta, Rick was instrumental in driving international expansion, especially across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa—helping to localize strategy, scale high-performing sales teams, and bring new ad products to market. Today, he advises founders on global GTM execution, sales hiring, and how AI is reshaping the future of commercial organizations.This is a clip from the full episode with Rick, an inside look at how Meta built its $1B EMEA business and the lessons every GTM leader can apply to scale globally.Discussed in This Clip:The exact framework Rick used to decide which EMEA markets to enter firstHow Meta built a $1B+ regional business from just three salespeopleThe power of centralization in early-stage go-to-marketWhy you should plan every headcount allocation before hiringCreating “optionality” in your sales org to weather changeHow gaming became Meta’s fifth global regionWhen to localize sales teams versus staying centralizedWhy AI can make sales more efficient—but can’t replace relationshipsHighlights00:12 — Scaling Meta: from 900 to 90,000 employees01:22 — How Rick Kelley built Meta’s mid-market sales org from scratch02:15 — The data-driven framework Meta used to prioritize global markets04:50 — Why startups should build expansion plans before executing07:52 — Centralized vs. in-country hiring: Rick’s take for startups09:49 — The importance of sales ops and forecasting discipline13:32 — Hiring leaders who scale with you, not limit you14:59 — How AI will reshape (but not replace) sales relationships16:09 — From zero to $1B: lessons in efficiency, cost, and cultureThis Episode Is Brought to You ByZoomInfo is the GTM Intelligence Platform built for sales, marketing, and RevOps. By unifying data, workflows,

Guy Yalif is Chief Evangelist at Webflow and a veteran B2B marketing leader with 20+ years across Twitter, Yahoo, BrightRoll, and as co-founder/CEO of Intellimize (acquired by Webflow). He champions AI-driven optimization for sites and content, bringing a rare blend of aerospace-engineer rigor and operator experience from four successful exits to help teams win the shift from SEO to AEO.Discussed in this episodeWhy AEO is an evolution of SEO (and what truly changes)The shift from keywords to “clusters of questions” as the new topic modelWebflow’s four-part AEO framework: content, technical, authority, measurementTactics that moved the needle: adding FAQs + schema; prioritizing freshnessWhy PR/brand and plain-text mentions matter more to AI enginesHow to measure AEO: presence in questions, share of voice, and sentimentWhere to start: two moves any founder can ship this weekRisks of ignoring AEO and the early-adopter advantageEpisode highlights00:21 — “Your SEO resources are your AEO resources. This is an evolution, not a reset.”01:15 — Webflow’s AEO promise: answer engines are a massive arbitrage—akin to early SEO/SEM/mobile.03:00 — Why “ranking for keywords” is obsolete; topics = clusters of questions across the funnel.07:49 — The 4-part AEO framework: content, technical (schema & structure), authority, measurement.10:11 — Case study: Add ~6 FAQs + inline schema to product pages → half of new citations came from 6 pages; +24% organic in 2 weeks.15:23 — If you only do two things: (1) answer questions comprehensively, (2) add schema metadata.21:46 — Webflow data: AI-search traffic converts ~6x better than non-branded organic; unbranded share grew from 0% → 42% in a year.24:02 — How buyers actually use LLMs in-flow; why your website still matters (to humans and machines).29:58 — The learning curve is back: why AEO is resetting the playing field and rewarding curiosity.This episode is brought to you by our sponsor:ZoomInfo is the GTM Intelligence Platform built for sales, marketing, and RevOps.By unifying data, workflows, and insights into a single system, ZoomInfo helps revenue teams find and engage the right buyers, launch go-to-market plays faster, and drive predictable growth.W

Kieran Flanagan is the SVP of Marketing at HubSpot and Co-Host of Marketing Against the Grain. A longtime operator and investor, he’s at the forefront of how AI is reshaping go-to-market. With a background in engineering and years leading growth and marketing teams, Kieran now spends his time building, experimenting, and sharing lessons on how prompting, agents, and personality-led growth will define the next era of software companies.Discussed in this episodeWhy prompting and context engineering are the most important skills for GTM operatorsHow “vibe prompting” accelerates learning and output with LLMsThe three keys to building AI fluency inside teamsMeasuring ROI from AI across sales, marketing, and operationsWhy every professional is now a manager (of AI agents)How websites will evolve into multimodal closing mechanismsThe rise of personality-led growth in B2B marketingWhy curiosity and persistence matter more than ever in an AI-first worldEpisode highlights00:46 — The 100x difference between good and bad prompting03:57 — The rise of “context engineering” as a GTM skill07:22 — Kieran’s 3-part framework for AI fluency inside teams09:31 — Why “vibe prompting” is as powerful as vibe coding11:00 — How AI boosts conversions & deal velocity in sales workflows15:10 — Using ChatGPT memory as a personalized prompting coach22:19 — Everyone now manages a PhD-level AI intern31:12 — The 3 biggest shifts coming to GTM: influence, AI optimization, multimodal37:42 — Why AI makes human creativity more valuable than ever43:06 — The grind, reps, and curiosity as the ultimate AI skillsBrought to you by: MutinyAre you a B2B Marketer running campaigns for target accounts? Then you know the struggle: tedious and manual processes, endless delays to get things live, and sales feeling like you’re not doing enough.That’s where Mutiny comes in. Mutiny is the fastest place to launch breakthrough campaigns for your target accounts. AI agents research your accounts, build personalized landing pages, and scale everything from LinkedIn ads to sales handoffs, all in one seamless workflow. No more stitching tools together. Just smarter, more impactful campaigns powered by real data. Launch in days, not weeks.

Cristina Cordova is a seasoned operator who has scaled some of the most iconic companies in tech. At Stripe, she built and led partnerships that became a foundational revenue engine, including the pivotal deal with Shopify. At Notion, she helped turn viral adoption into a durable distribution strategy powered by community. Today, Cristina is the Chief Operating Officer at Linear, where she’s applying her experience building high-velocity GTM engines to the next generation of developer-first tools.Discussed in this episodeWhy Cristina joined Stripe without knowing what an API wasBuilding Stripe’s early partnerships and salvaging the Shopify dealHow Notion pioneered community-driven growthLessons on brand, design, and investing for the long termWhat Cristina looks for in exceptional founders and operatorsHow Linear is scaling GTM with AI-driven prioritizationThe difference between “keeping the lights on” and transformative leadershipCristina’s frameworks for evaluating product resonance and customer loveEpisode Highlights00:43 — The rare superpower behind Cristina’s career: joining breakout companies early2:46 — Why Cristina joined Stripe without knowing what an API was12:22 — On Cristina’s first day, Shopify walked away from Stripe’s deal — and how she won them back16:55 — How Notion scaled by making consumer use free and fueling community-driven growth20:52 — Why investing in brand early is a leading indicator of durable growth25:27 — Cristina’s framework for spotting beloved products in the market37:53 — How Cristina applied lessons from Stripe to build Linear’s GTM from scratch47:30 — Where AI fits into GTM: prioritizing opportunities, not replacing humans56:01 — Why Linear built high-quality swag kits for early customers58:28 — Where to follow Cristina’s journey todayThis episode is brought to you by our sponsorHarmonic helps you discover the best startups way ahead of the competition. We use it at GTMfund, as do thousands of investors at firms like USV and Insight. GTM teams at companies like Notion and Brex also rely on the platform to stay ahead.Harmonic tracks m

Kyle Norton is the Chief Revenue Officer at Owner, the fast-scaling restaurant SaaS platform valued at over $1B. Since joining from Shopify, Kyle has helped grow the company from $2M to $50M+ in ARR by instilling a high bar for sales talent, building RevOps early, and driving a disciplined go-to-market strategy. A podcast host himself, Kyle shares deep expertise on sales hiring, leadership, and GTM AI, while keeping his focus on building a generational company.Discussed in This EpisodeWhy Kyle let go of half the sales team just 45 days inThe importance of setting a high bar for sales talent and cultural fitInvesting in RevOps and data foundations far earlier than conventional wisdomHow to reduce churn by narrowing ICP and saying no to misfit customersLessons from running hiring retros to assess interview process effectivenessThe balance between remote vs. in-office roles for scaling GTM teamsHow Owner approaches AI in go-to-market, starting with data over “shiny tools”Kyle’s leadership philosophy: servant leadership and building for growthEpisode Highlights00:44 — Owner’s journey from $2M ARR to unicorn02:01 — Kyle explains why he fired half the sales team just weeks into the role04:56 — Why Owner set a sky-high bar for early sales hiring08:13 — Kyle’s case for bringing in RevOps “too early” and why it paid off12:39 — Reducing churn by saying no to 30% of potential customers15:57 — Why hiring fit matters more than a candidate’s “pedigree”21:49 — What Kyle learned from running hiring retros on interview data30:25 — Owner’s AI GTM transformation: starting with third-party data48:34 — Kyle’s take on the remote vs. in-office debate for sales teams54:53 — His leadership philosophy: servant leadership + relentless coaching59:19 — Kyle’s essential reading list for sales leadersThis episode is brought to you by our sponsors:QualifiedPiper is the #1 AI SDR on G2.AI SDR agents are changing the future of sales. And Piper is leading the way.Piper is the top-ranked AI SDR on G2, trusted by hundreds of high-growth GTM teams — including many in the GTMfund community. She works around the clock to follow up with every lead, book meetings, and qualify prospects, all by reading real buy

Ghazi Masood is the Chief Revenue Officer at Retool, where he leads the go-to-market engine for the low-code developer platform. Previously he served as SVP & GM, Americas at Auth0 after leadership roles at Microsoft, Oracle, Polycom, and Nintex K2, and he advises several high-growth startups on GTM. A field-first operator, Ghazi specializes in layering sales onto product-led motions and building enterprise upgrade paths without breaking self-serve growth.Discussed in this episodeThe moment inbound stops being enough—and how to size the outbound gapWhy to bifurcate SDRs (inbound vs. outbound) and how to define lead sourcesProfiling inbound (more technical, SE-adjacent) vs. outbound (AE-track) talentStructuring self-serve as a permanent home vs. a stepping stone to enterprise“Ungate to upgrade”: using sustained overage/feature use as a right-sizing triggerPricing & packaging that pulls larger accounts to annual, committed plansThe “GTM engineer” model for AI-native, high-velocity companiesHiring pace, capacity planning, and the leadership principles that scaleEpisode highlights00:00 — Inbound eventually caps out; annual planning exposes the pipeline gap that outbound must fill.00:45 — What it really takes to add sales to a product-led motion—without breaking PLG.03:23 — First move: bifurcate SDR into dedicated inbound and outbound to drive focus and outcomes.04:18 — Nail definitions with Marketing: what counts as inbound vs. outbound (e.g., events ≠ inbound).06:37 — Decide the role of self-serve: permanent home for some segments vs. stepping stone to enterprise.09:41 — Ungated features as signals: after ~3 months of sustained overage/premium use, “right-size” the plan.12:09 — Why frictionless adoption beats hard gates—and how clear web docs make the convo non-adversarial.15:10 — When to move from pay-as-you-go to annual: sophistication and committed usage, not arbitrary timing.18:51 — Enter the “GTM engineer”: one person spans SDR → SE → AE → AM to capture massive inbound demand.25:36 — Frameworks that still work: MEDD(P)ICC and Solution Selling 2.0 for complex, multi-product deals.Sponsor – PursuitThe best talent isn’t actively job hunting. Pursuit helps companies hire elite go-t

Paul Williamson is a seasoned go-to-market leader and advisor best known for helping Plaid scale from $3M to $300M ARR. As Head of Revenue, he built and evolved Plaid’s go-to-market roadmap across product-market fit, upmarket expansion, and new verticals. With deep experience aligning GTM with product, he now advises founders on sequencing bets, building forward-compatible roadmaps, and scaling revenue organizations with intention.Discussed in this EpisodeWhy GTM roadmaps should be “forward-compatible”Iteration cycles in GTM vs. product roadmapsEarly lessons from Plaid’s rudimentary qualification processRecognizing high-value clients vs. anti-patterns in inbound leadsHow daily standups created fast GTM learning loopsShifting from PLG to sales-led motions with SDRs and routingSequencing GTM expansion: fintech → enterprise FSIs → embedded fintechCompensation design mistakes and their impact on sales behaviorEpisode Highlights00:00 — Why GTM roadmaps should be built “forward-compatible”01:53 — How Plaid iterated through 9–10 GTM versions in the first year05:12 — Plaid’s early qualification process: 4 simple questions07:28 — Why most inbound leads weren’t equal—and how Plaid spotted patterns10:01 — Using daily standups twice a day to refine GTM qualification14:32 — How Plaid’s GTM roadmap evolved from monthly to yearly cycles20:46 — Moving beyond partnerships to diversify top-of-funnel channels24:53 — Scaling into enterprise financial institutions with tailored product needs27:09 — Entering phase three: embedded fintech with customers like Tesla30:00 — Compensation design mistakes that slowed deals and created riskThis episode is brought to you by: HarmonicHarmonic helps you discover the best startups way ahead of the competition. We use it at GTMfund, as do thousands of investors at firms like USV and Insight. GTM teams at companies like Notion and Brex also rely on the platform to stay ahead.Harmonic tracks millions of startups and lets you search using simple filters or natural language to match exactly what you’re looking for. When you find a company that looks interest

Jenny He is the Founder and General Partner at Position Ventures, an early-stage venture fund that backs startups with strategic communications from day one. Previously, Jenny led comms at Square and has since helped hundreds of founders land coverage in top outlets like TechCrunch and Forbes. With deep expertise in positioning, storytelling, and PR, she’s on a mission to help startups craft differentiated narratives that drive credibility, legitimacy, and growth.Discussed in This EpisodeWhat PR actually is (and isn’t) for startupsThe difference between positioning, storytelling, and PR — and how they stack togetherWhen PR makes sense and when to hold back on announcementsStep-by-step process for landing coverage in top outlets like TechCrunch or ForbesHow to build authentic relationships with reporters before you pitchWhat makes something truly newsworthy: timeliness, impact, relevanceTactical advice for pitching, interviews, and amplifying coverage post-launchHow PR fits into the broader go-to-market motionEpisode Highlights00:00 — Positioning, storytelling, and PR defined02:23 — Jenny explains what PR really is and why startups misunderstand it06:39 — The first step before any PR push: setting clear goals11:37 — Example of a newsworthy founder story: building an AI radiologist from personal experience15:17 — The three elements of newsworthiness: timeliness, impact, and relevance17:42 — Why building warm relationships with reporters is crucial20:36 — Preparing for the interview itself vs. outreach22:47 — Amplifying coverage through your network post-publication25:07 — What PR agencies cost (and why no one can guarantee coverage)29:18 — Jenny’s #1 book recommendation on positioningThanks to Our Sponsor – Clarify:Clarify is the autonomous CRM built for founders and early-stage teams who want to build more pipeline, close more deals, and spend way less time on busywork.Clarify automatically enriches your contacts, captures leads from anywhere (even one click from LinkedIn), and keeps your pipeline up to date on its own, so you can focus on winning deals, not updating fields.If you’re looking to simplify your stack and help your team move faster, check out

James Roth is the Chief Revenue Officer at ZoomInfo, where he oversees a global revenue engine supporting over 37,000 customers and more than $1 billion in ARR. With a background in scaling hypergrowth teams and building enterprise go-to-market machines, James has helped reposition ZoomInfo from a sales tool to the foundational data layer for modern GTM teams. Under his leadership, ZoomInfo launched Copilot, its flagship AI product, and executed a bold shift upmarket — transitioning from transactional selling to a data-first, enterprise-driven GTM strategy.Discussed in This EpisodeHow ZoomInfo transitioned from transactional selling to enterprise go-to-marketThe "Good Co, Bad Co" framework for segment-specific product retentionWhy ZoomInfo changed its ticker symbol to GTMLaunching Copilot and driving $100M revenue in under 6 monthsHow internal AI usage became the go-to-market motionKey shifts in comp design and team segmentation for scaling upmarketUsing telemetry and real-time signal tracking to measure rep effectivenessLessons in long-term execution vs. short-term growth pressureEpisode Highlights00:00 — ZoomInfo's evolution from a sales tool to a data-first platform17:06 — Why data as a service is ZoomInfo’s fastest-growing business20:43 — How to build and apply the “Good Co, Bad Co” segmentation framework26:26 — The hard part about going upmarket? Aligning the full funnel org30:19 — Changing your ticker to GTM: A bold positioning play34:31 — Copilot’s $100M launch: The power of internal usage39:53 — Most AI tools show <5% revenue lift. Here's why43:29 — How ZoomInfo is operationalizing AI across the org48:29 — The signals > activity shift in modern sales measurement52:18 — What James wants future CROs to steal: Think long-term, build patientlyThanks to Our Sponsor – UserEvidence:UserEvidence is the Customer Evidence Platform that helps you collect feedback, surface proof points, and turn customer wins into bite-sized assets your sales and marketing teams can actually use. Capture social proof at scale. Arm reps with credible stories. Close more deals with trust.Learn more at: https://userevidence.com/gtmnow

Stevie Case is the Chief Revenue Officer at Vanta, the $4B leader in trust management and compliance automation. Since joining in 2021, Stevie has scaled the company from sub-$20M ARR to north of $100M, navigated 40+ copycat competitors, rebuilt both pre- and post-sales engines, and led Vanta’s expansion from SMB into enterprise. A former world’s first female pro gamer turned tech sales leader, Stevie previously held senior roles at Twilio, where she helped grow the enterprise business to a $1B run rate. Discussed in This EpisodeHow Stevie’s path from pro gamer to CRO shaped her competitive edgeEarly-stage chaos at Vanta and the signs of undeniable product-market fitBattling over 40 copycat competitors with value selling and a “CIA” competitive squadWhy execution, not first-mover advantage, is the only sustainable moatThe challenges and lessons from scaling SMB sales and moving into enterpriseBuilding go-to-market experiments before committing product investmentTransforming post-sales into a growth engine and driving net retention upStevie’s view on AI in revenue operations and personal productivityEpisode Highlights00:00 — “Every business is subject to the laws of physics and math… Execution is the only moat.”03:07 — Stevie on becoming the world’s first female pro gamer and how competitiveness fueled her career.06:25 — The undeniable product-market fit that convinced Stevie to join Vanta.14:02 — Facing 40+ copycat competitors and learning that flashy marketing can’t beat sustainable growth.16:23 — Transitioning from transactional selling to deep, value-based discovery using MEDDPICC.18:30 — Creating Vanta’s “CIA” Competitive Intelligence Agency to win back customers.26:10 — Launching the experimental enterprise sales team and the patience it took to scale it.47:08 — Rebuilding post-sales into separate customer success and account management functions.50:56 — Vanta’s next big GTM bets: platform sales, public sector, and deeper enterprise expansion.53:27 — How Stevie is using AI in revenue operations and her own work life.Guest LinksLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steviecaseThanks to our Sponsor: QualifiedPiper is the #1 AI S

Gaurav Agarwal is the COO of ClickUp, where he’s helped scale the company 17x in two years and cut CAC by 3x—all while leading across marketing, product, sales, and services. Formerly in banking and product roles, Gaurav brings a rare systems-oriented mindset to growth. He’s known for connecting the dots across GTM, scaling PLG engines, driving incrementality with rigor, and building cultures of experimentation, ownership, and speed.Discussed in this episodeWhy growth is more about systems than marketingHow ClickUp scaled 17x while reducing CAC by 3xThe cultural shifts required to align GTM teamsIncrementality testing vs. attribution modelingBuilding a true sales motion on top of PLGInput KPIs as a driver of experimentation speedHow ClickUp is using AI across marketing and salesThe concept of GTM as demand creation vs. harvestingEpisode Highlights00:00 — Everyone is doing all the work—but you're winning by chance, not by design02:01 — Gaurav on seeing growth as a systems function, not just marketing13:33 — Culture alone delivered roughly half of the 3× CAC reduction at ClickUp15:53 — Gaurav defines incrementality testing vs. flawed attribution models29:27 — Setting input KPIs so squads deliver a “win every week” keeps momentum high32:53 — AI is being embedded across PLG + GTM workflows—from content briefs to deal signalsRecommended BooksShareholder Letters by Jeff Bezos ReferencedClickUp:https://clickup.com/• Gong: https://www.gong.io/• Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/• Robinhood: https://robinhood.com/Guest Links (Gaurav Agarwal):LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/gauravragarwal/Host Speaker Links (Sophie Buonassisi):LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiebuonassisi/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_nowThe GTMnow Podcast (on all major directories):

John Fernandez is SVP at Datasite, with a track record as GTM leader at Glia, ContentWise, and Diligent, having scaled teams through IPOs, acquisitions, and $1.4B in equity events. At Glia, John pioneered revenue marketing’s impact, driving 71% of pipeline and 60% of new business revenue from marketing. Connect with him for real-world GTM lessons, scaling playbooks, and unique frameworks for aligning marketing with revenue.Discussed in this Episode:How to architect a B2B marketing org that is truly accountable for pipeline and revenue, not just “influence”Aligning product, content, and campaign teams to ONE goal: pipeline creation (culture, incentives, and operations)The “Value Chain” framework for mapping marketing’s full-stack impact across the GTM engineJohn’s “4 Whats” Framework for operationalizing measurement: what's working, what's not, what's new, what's nextWhat’s broken about attribution today and why multi-touch measurement is often a red herringThe shift from SEO to GEO: How generative AI is re-writing digital discoverability and B2B content strategyAI in marketing without losing authenticity: human-in-the-loop, voice, and trust factors you need to watchWhy more Martech isn’t the answer (and the tech stack crisis facing GTM teams)Deep problem understanding as a GTM superpower (what chess can teach SaaS leaders about winning)Key moves for founders and GTM leaders facing today’s attention and signal problemGuest Speaker Links (John Fernandez):LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnfernandez/Datasite: https://www.datasite.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/The GTMnow Podcast The GTMnow Podcast is a weekly podcast featuring interviews with the top 1% GTM executives, VCs, and founders. Conversations reveal the unshare