Hunters and Unicorns

The Playbook Universe Episode 18 | Mike Earnest - Building Power Teams

Unleashing Leadership Potential: Insights from Mike Earnest, VP of Worldwide Sales at Wiz As the VP of Worldwide Sales at Wiz, Mike Earnest has achieved unparalleled success, rising from a sales representative to a leadership role in just 4-5 years. His journey is a testament to the power of hard work, dedication, and a profound understanding of what drives sales. In this article, we'll delve into Mike's insights on leadership, sales, and management, exploring the essential principles that have fueled his success. Understanding Customer Pain Points: The Key to Unlocking Success Mike's approach to sales is centered around understanding customer pain points. Rather than focusing on features and functionalities, he emphasizes the importance of identifying and addressing the underlying issues that impact a company's bottom line. This empathetic approach has allowed him to build strong relationships with clients and drive meaningful sales. Building a High-Performing Sales Team: The Earnest Formula Mike's leadership philosophy is built around the concept of "inspect and improve." He emphasizes the importance of setting high standards and continually evaluating and refining processes to achieve excellence. He also believes that leaders must "earn the right" to inspect by aligning their goals with the organization's objectives. The Art of Coaching Conversations: Empowering Team Members Effective coaching conversations are critical to Mike's leadership approach. He encourages leaders to focus on progress, solutions, and improvement rather than criticism or blame. By doing so, leaders can empower team members to take ownership and drive results. The Power of Accountability: Setting and Tracking Goals Mike stresses the importance of setting goals and holding team members accountable for achieving them. By working together to establish clear objectives, leaders can ensure that everyone is aligned and working towards the same goal. People Matter: The Importance of Human Relationships In an era of automation and technology, Mike believes that human relationships remain essential. Leaders should prioritize communication, empathy, and understanding to foster a culture of collaboration and trust. Leadership by Example: Setting a High Standard Mike emphasizes the importance of leadership by example. Effective leaders set a high standard and inspire others to do the same. By modeling the behaviors and values they wish to see in their team members, leaders can cultivate a culture of excellence. The Role of Data: Informing Decisions and Driving Success In a large organization, data and metrics play a crucial role in decision-making. Mike advocates for using data to inform decisions, continually evaluating progress, and making adjustments as needed. A Personal Approach to Leadership Mike believes that leaders should rely on real-time feedback and collaboration to drive success. By fostering open communication and empowering team members, leaders can create an environment that fosters creativity, innovation, and growth. In conclusion, Mike Earnest's leadership philosophy is built upon a foundation of empathy, understanding, and empowerment. By focusing on customer pain points, building a high-performing sales team, and leveraging data to inform decisions, he has achieved remarkable success. As leaders, we can learn valuable lessons from his approach, applying these principles to drive our own leadership journeys.

Carlos Delatorre - Get to Elite!

Developing World-Class Talent: Leadership Lessons from Carlos Delatorre CRO at Harness

Carlos is a successful serial entrepreneur who has scaled multiple companies from $100 million to $1 billion in revenue through his focus on developing talent. In this podcast interview, he shares his journey and philosophy around nurturing grit, commitment and embracing mistakes.

Carlos' Talent Development Philosophy Carlos reflects on nurturing talent over decades by spotlighting strengths and developing people beyond their current roles. He discusses specific examples like Jessica Roman and Matt McClernand who he challenged outside of their experience, furthering their leadership abilities. Carlos emphasizes the importance of grit, commitment to excellence and learning from failures.

Evaluating Growth Opportunities Carlos looks for "angry markets" with differentiated products and scalable, aligned teams when evaluating opportunities. He chose Harness due to the massive potential in automating developer workflows and its product-led growth model.

Prioritizing Inclusive Cultures Carlos evolved to prioritize developing talent and building inclusive cultures. He organizes teams like internal startups to drive rapid innovation.

Insights on Scaling to $1B Revenue Carlos shares that scaling 10x requires optimizing processes through data-driven priorities and leveraging strategic channels like hyperscalers to accelerate growth.

In closing, Carlos' enduring passion and infectious energy for developing world-class teams shine through. His lessons offer a blueprint for leadership and sustained success.

The Playbook Universe Episode 17 | Josh Reiner - The United state of Europe

Proven Career Journey in International Business

The podcast episode profiles Josh Reiner, current VP of EMEA at SaaS company Wiz. He discusses his career path, having started at BMC where he was part of a reverse takeover by BladeLogic. Josh then transitioned to roles at AppDynamics and Zscaler, learning valuable lessons about collaboration under executives like Dally Rajic.

 

Establishing Clear Goals and Optimizing Processes

As the leader of Zscaler's UK team, Josh emphasized the importance of having a shared vision. Their goal was to gain 3 million users on the platform. To work as one global organization, he optimized handoffs between teams through open communication and incremental weekly improvements. By publishing regular updates on progress, the entire company remained aligned.

 

Driving Accountability and Continual Learning

Josh stresses that frequent coaching sessions and publishing performance metrics kept employees accountable to goals. This also supported continual self-improvement. He looks for candidates willing to learn when hiring and prioritizes diversity to foster new perspectives in teams.

 

In Summary

Through empathetic leadership, Josh achieved significant growth while unifying remote functions. His insights offer a blueprint for maximizing collaboration across borders and building high-performing global organizations.

The Playbook Universe Episode 16 | Sam Costello - The North Star is the Customer

Sam Costello shares his career journey and insights on reinventing oneself to achieve success in sales and leadership roles spanning banking, top tech companies, and startups. Influenced by his father and grandfather's sales backgrounds, Sam earned a finance degree but ensured his first job involved sales. Early days working for his brother's landscaping business shaped Sam's customer-first mindset. This focus on customer success became central to his approach. A chance encounter opened Sam's eyes to tech sales. He pivoted to CA Technologies and learned enterprise software sales. Sam credits CA with providing his sales foundation. Major successes followed at Oracle, including a $30 million deal. But it was a conversation with that client's CIO that sparked Sam's interest in startups. He joined Perfecto Mobile and embraced mentorship from sales gurus Keith Butler and Rob Watson. Their MEDDIC mindset approach to sales transformed Sam's perspective to always focus on customer success. Sam stresses the importance of seeking feedback and remaining coachable to drive continual growth. Even today, he focuses on enabling his team. After Perfecto, Sam saw joining Harness and its mission as his next opportunity to make an impact. Though Sam remains dedicated to driving Harness's success, his broader purpose is helping people through work and philanthropy. He may start a foundation someday. For now, building something great at Harness motivates him. Key Takeaways: - Start with the customer's needs to drive success - Pivoting into new opportunities can unlock potential - Embrace mentorship from sales experts to evolve - Remain coachable and seek feedback to grow - Find purpose beyond your company's mission - Take risks to reinvent yourself throughout your career Sam's story provides inspiration for achieving success by putting customers first, leveraging mentorship, and continually reinventing your career. His insights apply to sales and beyond. It's a must watch!

Special Edition | Rick Kickert - Enablement Formula For Success

The conversation between Ollie, Simon, and Rick covers the evolving landscape of sales enablement and its crucial role in driving revenue growth. Rick emphasizes the need for sales teams to adapt to changes in technology and buyer behaviour, leveraging data and insights effectively to succeed in a competitive market. He discusses the productive capacity model, highlighting key components such as hiring, onboarding, pipeline generation, conversion, and customer expansion. Rick also shares insights into Rev-Logic's approach to providing revenue enablement as a service, leveraging technology and industry expertise to drive sales effectiveness. Throughout the conversation, there's an emphasis on the importance of continuous learning and collaboration within the sales community to stay ahead in a rapidly changing environment. The discussion concludes with reflections on the impact of enablement in driving predictable and repeatable success in sales and the value of learning from industry experts and peers through platforms like podcasts. Overall, the conversation provides valuable insights into the critical role of enablement in driving sales success and supporting continuous learning and adaptation within sales organizations.

Key Takeaways from the Entire Podcast:

1. **Introduction and Background**: Rick Kickert, co-founder of Rev-Logic, brings extensive experience in revenue enablement, having worked with influential leaders such as Dali Rajic. Simon and Ollie, introduce Rick, highlighting his energy and promise for an insightful discussion.

2. **Enablement Dynamics**: Enablement is defined as aligning with business goals and integrating them into the company's DNA. Rick's journey from a buyer to an enablement expert was driven by the opportunity to expand his skill set and professional network.

3. **Sales Evolution**: The focus should shift towards buyer enablement, adapting to changing buying behaviors, leveraging technology, and emphasizing product-led growth to provide unique and context-rich communication.

4. **Enablement's Role**: Establishing robust enablement programs, even in early-stage organizations, is crucial for scalability and long-term success. Continuous evaluation and adaptation are necessary to maintain productivity and reduce attrition.

5. **The Formula for Success**: Rick emphasizes making the go-to-market team as productive as possible to achieve revenue goals. The productive capacity model includes hiring, onboarding, pipeline generation, conversion, and customer expansion or consumption.

6. **Rev-Logic's Approach**: Rev-Logic aims to provide revenue enablement as a service, leveraging experienced operators in the field to help companies achieve their revenue goals. Continuous learning and collaboration within the sales community are emphasized for shared knowledge and insights.

Overall, the podcast provides valuable insights into the critical role of enablement in driving predictable and repeatable success in sales, emphasizing the importance of continuous learning and collaboration within the sales community.

The Playbook Universe | Alex Varel - Purpose Driven Leadership

In the dynamic landscape of leadership, individuals like Alex Varel, CRO at Multiverse, stand as beacons of innovation and purpose-driven growth. In a recent podcast hosted by Simon Kouttis and Ollie Kuehne, Alex shared profound insights garnered from his extensive career journey, highlighting pivotal moments, the significance of recruiting suitable individuals, and the art of maintaining a pulse on operations, especially in his role as a Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). Evolution of Leadership Playbook Alex's journey unfolds against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving leadership playbook. With notable stints as GVP at Zscaler and mentorship under Carlos Delatorre at MongoDB, Alex embodies the ethos of progressive leadership, driven by a blend of resilience, adaptability, and a relentless pursuit of excellence. Navigating Remote Work Realities The discussion delved into the transformative impact of COVID-19 on work dynamics, underscoring the need for leadership to provide support amidst challenging times. The transition to remote work has necessitated a re-evaluation of traditional approaches, emphasizing trust, autonomy, and the ability to maintain productivity amidst distractions. Old Guard vs. New Guard Leadership Exploring the dichotomy between traditional and modern leadership methodologies, Alex emphasized enduring principles of hard work and adaptability. However, he also underscored the importance of purpose-driven leadership, aligning personal objectives with broader societal contributions. Recruitment as a Game-Changer A pivotal moment in Alex's journey came with a realization of the criticality of recruiting and identifying the right talent. His interview approach focuses on establishing connections and delving into candidates' formative years to understand their motivations—a philosophy anchored in prioritizing intangibles like drive and coachability over experience. Multiverse's Path to Success At Multiverse, Alex champions a culture of excellence and inclusivity, driven by a shared commitment to achieving significant commercial outcomes while making a positive impact on the world. With audacious growth plans and a focus on talent recruitment and nurturing, Multiverse stands poised to redefine workforce transformation. Conclusion: Redefining Leadership Excellence In conclusion, Alex Varel's journey epitomizes the evolution of leadership in an ever-changing world. With a focus on purpose-driven growth, talent recruitment, and a relentless pursuit of excellence, Alex and Multiverse are poised to leave an indelible mark on the world of leadership and workforce transformation.

SPECIAL EDITION - Spencer Tuttle - Sales Rep to CRO in 8 years!

Join us in this engaging podcast featuring Spencer Tuttle, Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) of Redis, as he shares his remarkable career journey and imparts invaluable insights into the art of building and scaling organizations. Spencer takes us on a journey through his career, starting with his early days at BMC and later advancing into leadership roles at AppDynamics. Key takeaways from this segment include Spencer's emphasis on mastering each role he undertook. He underscores the importance of learning from exceptional leaders and peers at every career stage, amalgamating their wisdom to forge his unique approach. Spencer's transition to AppDynamics is explored, wherein he unveils his attraction to the company, driven by its exceptional team and the boundless potential of its technology. The evolution of the sales playbook, especially within the context of subscription software, is also a focal point of discussion. The episode delves into Spencer's perspective on pressure, drawing from his experiences at BMC. He articulates how embracing pressure can be a privilege and offers sage advice on taking personal accountability and delivering results. Spencer's journey into first-line leadership is unveiled, where he lays out the critical importance of transparency, team-building, and nurturing a culture that fosters growth and enablement. Alignment between organizational culture and individual expectations is another crucial theme, offering profound insights for both budding and seasoned professionals. Join us for this enlightening exploration of Spencer Tuttle's remarkable career journey and the profound wisdom he has gathered along the way. This podcast series offers a wealth of knowledge on mastering roles, transitioning to leadership, and navigating the dynamic world of business, all delivered by a seasoned expert with a wealth of experience. Don't miss this opportunity to gain valuable insights into building and growing successful organizations

Hunters + Unicorns Special Edition | Casey Ellis and Dave Gerry - Founder vs CEO, is 2 a crowd?

In this Special Edition episode from Hunters and Unicorns, we're treated to an engaging chat with Casey Ellis (Founder) and Dave Gerry (CEO) from the innovative cybersecurity company Bugcrowd. Casey, the pioneering brain behind Bugcrowd, takes us from his days of cracking codes to building a platform that empowers the good-guy hackers. Dave brings his rich tapestry of cybersecurity experiences to the table, painting a picture of how his past roles carved the path to his CEO position.

The duo dive into the story of how Bugcrowd transitioned from its founder-focused roots to a broader leadership horizon, unpacking the wins and hurdles of growing a company. Their camaraderie is a testament to how trust, respect, and diverse strengths can forge a strong leadership bond.

They also peel back the curtain on the art of cybersecurity sales, shedding light on the intricate dance of pitching to top security chiefs and the journey from the sales floor to the corner office. Both Casey and Dave are champions for cultivating a team spirit and a culture where everyone pulls together.

Looking ahead, Bugcrowd's blueprint is all about upscaling the business, pushing the growth pedal to the metal, and branching out into untapped territories—all while honing their message to showcase their full suite of cyber-defenses beyond just bug bounties. It's clear that for Bugcrowd, the future's not just bright; it's groundbreaking.

Hunters + Unicorns | The Founders Edition - Pavel Dolezal #004

Welcome to Hunters and Unicorns; The Founders Edition. Today we welcome Pavel Dolezal, CEO and co-founder of Keboola. Our anticipation is high to learn more about the remarkable initiatives they are pursuing. Pavel's story is quite unique; although many companies typically originate from the West Coast or places like Tel Aviv, Kaboola's roots trace back to Eastern Europe. Join us as we delve into the beginnings and shed light on the evolving market dynamics, highlighting the emergence of companies like Keboola from that particular region.

 

Key Takeaways:

1. Pavel recounts his entrepreneurial journey, highlighting three ventures, including internet portals in the late nineties. He emphasizes the need for venturing beyond local borders and seeking co-founders with aligned moral and ethical values for a long-term commitment, emphasizing the importance of building a client-focused company.

2. The co-founder selection process involved identifying co-founders with a shared vision and technical capabilities. The motivation for founding Keboola stemmed from a desire to simplify data usage for businesses by integrating and orchestrating tools in a modern data stack.

3. Pavel emphasizes the need for hands-on understanding through customer interactions and initial implementations, debunking the idea of a sophisticated framework for startups. The two approaches to startup initiation are outlined, either addressing a specific problem within a familiar vertical or identifying a broader market need.

4. Initial efforts focused on reaching out, organizing events, and engaging with potential customers. Key customer, Tomas Chopra, provided crucial insights and challenged them to simplify complex processes for end-users.

5. They recognized a niche in retail, combining physical and virtual elements, and further explored industries like fast-food operations and banking. The validation process involved focusing on customers with large CRM and logistics systems.

6. They tested and refined their hypotheses, targeting different market segments and industries to understand market positioning. Bootstrapping helped in building a strong culture and a committed team, allowing them to adapt and scale when the time was right.

7. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the digital transformation, aligning with their market positioning. They emphasized the importance of understanding when to sell a finished product versus involving customers in the product development journey.

8. Hands-on involvement from the leadership is seen as crucial for rapid adaptation in a rapidly changing environment.

9. Different methodologies like Agile, Six Sigma, and Lean are selectively applied based on the development stage and requirements.

10. Olli Krebs, Keboola’s advisor, helped them refine their deal lifecycle and introduced a structured approach to evaluating deals, improving efficiency. They realized the importance of understanding who excels in what aspect and how to effectively utilize individual strengths within the team.

Hunters + Unicorns | The Playbook Universe - Olli Krebs #0013

🎙️ Insights from Olli Krebs: Navigating 30 Years in Sales 🌟

In our latest Playbook Universe episode, we had the privilege of speaking with Olli Krebs, a sales veteran with three decades of experience. During this time, he achieved notable milestones including 15 President's Club recognitions, involvement in five acquisitions, participation in one IPO, and membership in two Chairman's Strategic Advisory Council (SAC) circles. Notably, Olli was an integral part of the initial Blade Logic crew and was among the earliest hires in the European market.

Here are some key takeaways from this enlightening conversation:

1️. European Expansion: European software and SaaS companies are making waves in the US market, challenging Silicon Valley's dominance. Innovation hubs are emerging across Europe, fostering tech growth.

2. Value of European Investors: European investors offer guidance and experience, beyond capital, to startups.

3. Cultural Adaptability: Sales strategies vary due to cultural differences, emphasizing adaptability and understanding local markets.

4. Sales Training: Sales training should emphasize mastering the craft and understanding the company's ethos.

5. Managerial Transition: Transitioning from an individual contributor to a manager requires a delicate balance of relationships and authority. It's complex, requiring guidance and coaching to lead effectively.

6. Understanding 'Why': Emphasize understanding the 'why' behind methodologies, focusing on collaboration and individuality.

7. Sales Fundamentals: People buy from people; honesty and integrity are paramount in sales. Align with customer needs, provide solutions, and build strong relationships.

8. Key Traits: Confidence and adaptability are vital for sales professionals, especially in dynamic markets like cryptocurrency.

Olli's wisdom underscores, that sales, at its core, is about understanding customer needs, offering solutions, and building lasting connections. It's a journey of evolution, from traditional relationship-focused sales to a consultative approach, especially for enterprise solutions. Success lies in embracing change, upholding ethics, and embodying confidence. Thank you, Olli, for these invaluable insights! 🚀 #SalesLeadership #BusinessInsights #HuntersAndUnicorns