Happy Halloween from GGR! š
Plus sharing our #hot-take on customer-facing roles...
Hi All!
Quick Market Update: last we checked in around summer, things were still pretty up and down. Now that weāre coming out of that summer haze, it does actually feel like thereās some real, positive momentum in the market. Weāve received more inbound in the past two months than weāve had in two years. Weāve also kicked off a number of new roles this past month (including several specifically on the GTM/customer-facing sideā¦.with more detailed thoughts below). Weāre hoping that things will continue to trend upward, but if thereās one thing this year has been consistent on, itās inconsistency! š
Check out some of the new roles that weāre working on below (and we are kicking off a few new ones that some of you will hear about soon!)
ā¤ļø Phil and the Golden Gate team
p.s. weāre due with our third kiddo tomorrow (baby girl š¶) so Iāll be gone for a bitā¦..feel free to bug Nick and Mia : )
How do we think about ācustomer facingā roles???
Youāll probably notice that we have a lot more go-to-market/customer success/growth oriented roles of late, as weāve been getting a larger demand from companies in recent years around this type of hire. Itās also a role that sparks the most questions amongst candidates. Is this a sales role? Does this role make sense for the ex-consultant/finance person? Where exactly does this fit into the organization? Does it carry a quota? How cross-functional is the role and how big of impact will I make? Am I just working with customers all day long? What would I do after? Here are some candid thoughtsā¦..
The tricky thing about these roles is that they are so varied, and you should always suss out the scope, the teamās position in the org, and who runs this team. Thereās definitely a version of this role thatās not an ideal fit for the strategic business generalist / ex-consulting type: rote, transactional, checking-of-the-box to ensure that the customer gets what they need.
But there is another version (the kind we like to work on) that makes these roles some of the most interesting out there, and can provide great learning experiences that lead to Product, GM, and Founder roles.
Whether called āCustomer Successā or āGTM Strategyā or āBusiness Developmentā or āGeneral Manager,ā these roles are not your traditional account manager at a big enterprise (e.g. Microsoft or Salesforce) where you are solely tasked with making sure the customer is happy and renewing.
Instead, youāre responsible for what I like to think of as a āmini-businessā within the company. You do product (on the front-lines with customers to understand what features they need and what problems your company can help solve, which ultimately drives product decisions and engineering resources). You do operations (building out scalable systems, tools and processes that hopefully allow you to automate yourself out of certain tasks in the future, once you can figure out whatās actually required).Ā You do marketing (putting together the collateral on how your product, and more importantly the value of the product, is communicated to customers). And you do finance (evaluating the investment of resources in a company, such as the cost of the deployment and how much revenue youāre getting).
One of my favorite memories from Bain was a client who said to me:
Whatās so interesting about a lot of these customer-facing roles is that it puts you at the center of both: making shit (product) AND selling shit (sales and account management).
However, like I alluded to earlier, these roles are great for some and not great for others. Here are a few things Iād think about to help you figure it out:
If youāre intrigued, youāre probably thinking about where these roles lead down the lineā¦..which can be many different places! Weāve seen all sorts of paths given how multifaceted these roles are. The main buckets Iād focus on are:
GTM / Customer: You could obviously double down on the customer-facing and GTM front, for example moving into leadership roles within Sales or Customer Success, or focusing on the operations behind GTM, like Sales Ops or Pricing/Monetization.
Product: Youāve been on the front-lines of customer needs and working closely with the product organization to actualize and implement them. People donāt think about this as much, but itās a common path, especially for people who donāt have previously technical or Product backgrounds (e.g., consultants and bankers).
Generalist BizOps/CoS: Youāre definitely not closing off the opportunity to lean into a generalist role after, especially roles like Chief of Staff or BizOps, where you can use your customer-facing knowledge to drive internal decision-making, or even go launch/build a GTM team elsewhere.Ā
Founder: Because youāve truly been at the critical nexus of what makes the business tick (sales and product!), these roles are great stepping stones for future founders.
As always, drop us a line if you have thoughts!
Open Roles
Check out a handful of roles working on below, but as always, you can review additional opportunities our Openings Page.
Collegevine [AI, EdTech]: Strategic Partnerships Lead
Collegevine is a Series B edtech company transforming the college recruitment process. Theyāre looking for a Strategic Partnerships Lead to own the customer-facing and go-to-market strategy for their new AI product (AI Recruiter). 3+ years of experience in consulting, banking, or startups. Remote-first.
Imprint [Fintech]: Business Development
Imprint is a Series C fintech company that partners with consumer brands (think restaurant chains, hotels, grocery stores, airlines) to launch co-branded credit cards. Theyāre hiring for someone on their Business Development team to support the whole go-to-market/growth engine (i.e., crafting multi-year deals with their partners). 2-4 years of experience in consulting, investment banking, or investing. NY-based, hybrid working model.
Fathom [AI Healthtech]: Client Success & Strategy
Fathom is a Series B healthcare automation platform powered by AI that automatically analyzes patient charts. Theyāre hiring for someone on their Client Success and Strategy team to work at the intersection of product, operations, and revenue growth. 5+ years of management consulting experience, and prior background with healthcare is required. Remote-first.
Thrive Health Tech [Healthtech]: Strategy & Operations
THT is an early-stage healthtech company that operates as a fully licensed FCC wireless carrier, partnering with healthcare plans to provide members with a free wireless plan. Theyāre looking for their first strategy & ops hire. 5+ years of relevant experience, with minimum 2 years in high-growth tech environments. NYC-based.
Some Content for Your Eyes & EarsĀ
š§ āBenchmarkās Eric Vishria on Where is the Value in AIā (20VC Podcast by Harry Stebbings): Great discussion with GP at Benchmark about the current state of AI and investing in the current market.
š§āSam Corcos, Co-Founder of Levelsā (The Tim Farriss Show Podcast): Some interesting takes on company culture, delegation, virtual EAs, and relentless focus. Some hot takes in there!