Guest: Alex Poulos, CMO at Crossbeam
Laura is joined by Alex Poulos, Chief Marketing Officer at Crossbeam. Alex is a software engineer by training who transitioned into product management and later moved into marketing and leadership roles. He has extensive experience across all GTM functions and is an award-winning CMO with multiple exits.
In this episode, Laura and Alex delve into the importance of what Alex calls “radical responsibility” and the balancing act that CMOs must perform. Alex emphasizes that these traits are seemingly conflicting (humility and decisiveness, agility and conviction, etc.). He also explains his approach to driving influence cross-functionally, starting with an effort to understand other executives' priorities.
They discuss:
Connect with Alex:
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Book referenced in their conversation: Ecosystem Led Growth by Bob Moore
Timestamps
(00:00) -- Intro
(01:29) -- Alex's Non-Linear Journey to Becoming a CMO
(05:12) -- CMO's (seemingly) Conflicting Traits
(10:08) -- Building Self-Awareness as a Leader
(13:29) -- Dealing with Unknowns and Ambiguity
(14:39) -- Taking Radical Responsibility
(17:07) -- Focusing on What You Can Impact
(17:48) -- Radical Responsibility
(19:12) -- Cross-Functional Executive Relationships
(21:08) -- The Leverage of an Executive Team
(21:31) -- Building Alliances and Navigating Internal Dynamics
(22:34) -- Ownership and Solution-Oriented Thinking
(25:01) -- Product Market Fit and the Pull of the Market
(26:00) -- Beyond the Obvious: Are We REALLY Listening?
(26:55) -- Ecosystem-Led Growth and Partnerships
(30:00) -- Listening to Customers and Prospects
(31:51) -- Understanding Vertical Use Cases
(40:06) -- Closing: Influence Shout Out and Rapid Fire Questions
