Grit

Guest: Kevin Knieriem, Chief Revenue Officer of Clari

In this episode we cover what Clari does, how the business has transformed Kevin’s life, and what the company’s sales organization looks like today. (3:55)... How Kevin approached the interview process at Clari and what he discovered about how well the business’ leadership team works together. (8:07)... ‘The reverse pyramid’: A look at the leadership values Kevin brings to Clari and how the business’ didn’t hire any external recruiters when building its go-to-market machine. (13:00)... Kevin’s background working in sales at Siebel Systems. (19:42)... ‘Data is now the foundation of everything’: What “revenue operations” means to Kevin. (23:48)... What Kevin looks for in new hires and how selling has changed in recent years. (27:51)... Why Kevin believes that the single most important number to any company are sales forecasts and how Clari helps visualize business data for improved decision making. (35:46)... How AI is changing sales and why Kevin believes it’s still important for leaders to pay attention to their gut instincts. (43:07)... How Kevin defines grit. (46:45)

Show Notes

No matter how advanced sales technology gets, it’s still imperative for Kevin Knieriem to listen to his gut intuition when it comes to making business choices. And for good reason — his “Spidey senses,” as he jokingly calls them, are always accurate. 

But that doesn’t mean that artificial intelligence and advanced data analytics can’t help him and his team make better decisions. In fact, as Chief Revenue Officer of Clari, a company that makes software to help businesses visualize revenue operations, Kevin’s seen firsthand how getting a handle on data can make an organization thrive.

In this episode of Go to Market Grit, Joubin and Kevin talk about the various ways data analytics has changed sales as well as what Kevin looks for in new sales hires.

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What is Grit?

Grit explores what it takes to create, build, and scale world-class organizations. It features weekly episodes highlighting the leaders who are pushing their companies to make a difference. This series is hosted by Joubin Mirzadegan, go to market operating partner at Kleiner Perkins, a venture capital firm investing in history-making founders.