Speaker: Duarte Silva, VP, Strategy & Operations, Infraspeak
What challenge did you have before working with Pete & Emily?
Duarte Silva: Back in early 2020 we were hiring a VP Sales. Actually, we were in the final stages of hiring for that profile, but then the pandemic hit and we put the process on hold, but we knew that in order to accomplish our goals that were to raise a Series A there were still many things that we needed to build, to create change in our revenue structure, in our revenue organization. And that's why we decided to start working with Pete Crosby that supported us with both sales strategy, Go To Market strategy, but also helped us implement many frameworks and models that were paramount in that period. Especially to be able to lead a sales team of account executives. BDRs, SDRs, Account Managers, without a de facto leader.
What did you like about them and how they worked with you?
Duarte Silva: The best definition I find is of a journey where you are confident about the destination, but you also enjoy the the process of traveling. Actually, every conversation with Pete was super interesting. and insightful, of course, I remember that Pete had a ton of,not only frameworks and theory to share but also stories and actual facts, actual things that happened in his previous companies that actually helped us do better. And I challenged Pete many times on the spot with stuff that were happening at Infraspeak at the time. And while, yes, there were a couple of times of course that Pete couldn't find an immediate answer which is super normal. Most of the times he would bring some examples, some story, some question back that would put some light on what we were facing. Would give us new ideas, new ways of thinking and help us overcome those issues or challenges. So all in all, I would say that it was a pleasant ride, but very, very insightful. And very intense. Every call with Pete was packed with note taking, and lessons for the future. I still hold many of them and I still revisit them sometimes.
What results did you get with Pete & Emily?
Duarte Silva: Objectively, we did raise the Series A that we wanted to. And a few months afterwards, we hired a VP Sales that we wanted to. And so I'd say that that was the main success. But on top of that, I would say that if I look at the beginning and then at the end, what I see is a huge transformation in our revenue organization. I would find in the end a way more sophisticated, well prepared and efficient sales organization that was distributed by many countries and segments. So definitely, I would say that the results - raising the Series A and hiring the VP Sales that were where we started, speak for itself. But the impact of that period, I think it was very visible in the operation after that time.
