Selling the Cloud

Mark Petruzzi, KK Anderson, Paul Melchiorre
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Selling the Cloud delves into the stories of C-suite veterans in Sales, Marketing, Customer Success, and RevOps, revealing the secrets behind building successful SaaS empires. Each episode features seasoned leaders who walk through their career journeys, sharing the wins and lessons learned along the way. From mastering customer acquisition to leveraging AI-powered marketing and sales strategies, our guests provide actionable insights for driving growth and business success in the B2B SaaS space. Guided by a powerhouse team of co-hosts, including Mark Petruzzi, Paul Melchiorre, and Kristin "KK" Anderson, Selling the Cloud offers a front-row seat to the evolving world of Go-To-Market strategies. This podcast extends the insights from the best-selling books "Selling the Cloud" and "Data and Diagnosis-driven Selling", co-authored by Mark Petruzzi and Paul Melchiorre, making it your go-to source for the latest trends and practical tips in SaaS excellence.

  1. Ep. 107 - Building Revenue Teams That Thrive in the Age of AI with Amy Weber - Part 2

    28/12/2025

    Ep. 107 - Building Revenue Teams That Thrive in the Age of AI with Amy Weber - Part 2

    In Part 2 of this Selling the Cloud conversation, Amy Weber joins KK Anderson and Mark Petruzzi to go deeper into how modern revenue leaders should think about AI, outreach, hiring, and coaching. Amy challenges traditional sales motions like cold outreach and rigid playbooks, and explains how AI should be used to personalize engagement, free up seller time, and enable more meaningful one on one conversations. The discussion also dives into assessment driven hiring and coaching, unpacking why resumes are a poor predictor of success, how to identify true talent signals, and how leaders can reduce friction by understanding identity, motivation, and communication styles across their teams. This episode is a practical guide for CROs who want to build revenue teams that perform, scale, and adapt in a more human centered, AI enabled world. What You’ll Learn: Why cold outreach is losing effectiveness and what CROs should prioritize insteadHow AI can personalize messaging without removing the seller’s individual voiceThe right way to define ICPs based on engagement and impact, not volumeWhy playbooks should act as flexible frameworks, not rigid rulesHow assessment driven hiring reveals true talent signals beyond resumesKey differences between hunter, farmer, and CSM profiles and why misalignment hurts performanceHow leaders can reduce friction between managers and sellers through better coaching and communicationWhy understanding identity, emotional resonance, and motivation matters more than process aloneKey Topics: AI powered personalization in sales outreachICP refinement and engaged account strategiesFreeing up seller time for high value conversationsAssessment driven hiring and role fitCoaching frameworks for sales managers and leadersManaging conflict between sales leaders and individual contributorsIdentity based leadership and communication stylesPositive intelligence and managing saboteurs in high performing teamsGuest Spotlight: Amy Weber Amy Weber is a strategic advisor to growth stage and enterprise revenue teams and the founder of VEDA Sales Consulting. She specializes in aligning people, process, and purpose to drive measurable revenue outcomes. Amy works closely with CROs and executive teams to improve hiring, coaching, and leadership effectiveness using assessment driven insights and practical operating frameworks. 🎧 Listen now and follow Selling the Cloud for more conversations on building modern, revenue focused GTM teams in the age of AI. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    14 min
  2. Ep. 106 - Building Revenue Teams That Thrive in the Age of AI with Amy Weber - Part 1

    16/12/2025

    Ep. 106 - Building Revenue Teams That Thrive in the Age of AI with Amy Weber - Part 1

    In this episode of Selling the Cloud, Mark and KK sit down with Amy Weber, founder of Vetta Sales Consulting and strategic advisor to GrowthStage and Enterprise revenue teams. Amy specializes in aligning people, process, and purpose so strategy translates into real performance. She shares why many revenue organizations stall not because of tools or plans, but because of role confusion, misaligned talent, and leadership gaps. Amy breaks down how to design roles that reflect reality, how to hire and coach based on true behavioral identity, and why companies must stop promoting top reps into leadership without assessing desire and capability. She also explains how AI can power a stronger customer experience by removing low value tasks and freeing sellers to focus on discovery, executive access, and relationship building. This conversation hits the core of modern revenue growth: the right people in the right roles, operating in a healthy, human selling system. What You’ll Learn: The three fastest tells that your people or role design are brokenHow to distinguish hunters, farmers, and CSMs without relying on personality stereotypesWhy top performers burn out in “Frankenstein” job descriptionsHow to test for core sales behaviors using identity based assessmentWhy leadership is not a reward and should not be given based on quota attainmentHow AI can support human selling by automating research, follow up, and content prepHow to create operating rhythms that ensure AI actually frees time, not adds more dashboardsKey Topics: Role design and talent fit for revenue teamsBehavioral identity vs personality in hiringMisaligned promotions and the manager IC divideWhy customer success is undervalued and misunderstoodModern client experience and relationship driven sellingPractical, tool agnostic ways to use AI for research and personalizationOperating cadence changes that make AI adoption realAvoiding analysis paralysis when implementing new technologiesGuest Spotlight: Amy Weber Amy Weber is the founder of Vetta Sales Consulting and an advisor to high growth revenue organizations. She helps CROs and CEOs fix the people's side of revenue through role clarity, talent fit, and leadership development. Her work replaces outdated activity goals with clear rhythms and systems that actually change behavior, increase productivity, and create healthier teams. Amy also advises organizations building AI for talent decisions. Resources and Mentions: Cisco sales story on customer experienceMedium content repurposing with LLMsTalent identity and psychometric assessmentsOperating rhythms for revenue teamsRelationship led selling frameworks🎧 Listen now and follow Selling the Cloud for more GTM insights from leaders driving the future of revenue. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    22 min
  3. Ep. 105 - Turning Personal Networks Into Pipeline: Inside the Relationship Intelligence Era with Drew Sechrist - Part 2

    07/12/2025

    Ep. 105 - Turning Personal Networks Into Pipeline: Inside the Relationship Intelligence Era with Drew Sechrist - Part 2

    In this episode of Selling the Cloud, Drew Sechrist, CEO and co-founder of Connect the Dots and longtime Salesforce veteran, joins Mark Petruzzi and KK Anderson to unpack what it really means to build a relationship intelligence layer that changes how your team goes to market. Drew shares why his own career win stories at Salesforce led him to build Connect the Dots, and how mapping real relationship strength can turn stalled enterprise deals into closed revenue. He breaks down the nuance of activating networks at scale, aligning incentives around introductions, and embedding relationship data directly into the existing workflow so new processes do not die on the vine. From Monday pipeline reviews to executive access and stuck late stage opportunities, Drew explains how the best revenue teams treat relationship intelligence like the air they breathe. What You’ll Learn: Relationship Intelligence Fundamentals: What it really means to build a relationship intelligence layer and why it is a different go to market motion than cold outbound.Incentives and Activation: Why simply seeing who knows whom is only half the game and how incentive alignment, compensation, and context determine whether relationships actually get activated.Workflow, Not Side Quest: Practical ways to embed relationship data in tools like Salesforce, Slack, and email so managers naturally coach around it in pipeline reviews.From Story to Playbook: How one trusted introduction at Salesforce unlocked a seven figure deal and how that kind of magic can be turned into a repeatable team playbook.Modern Deal Strategy: How to use relationship maps and heat maps to unblock late stage deals stuck with finance, legal, or executive signoff instead of just hoping the contract gets approved.Key Topics: Building a relationship intelligence layer for GTM and revenue teamsThe nuance of relationship activation and incentive alignmentWhere relationship intelligence should live in the RevOps and sales tech stackUsing Salesforce embedded views, alerts, and APIs instead of forcing new UI and heavy change managementDesigning Monday pipeline reviews that start with “who do we know” and “have we connected the dots”Why LinkedIn connections alone are noisy and how signal based relationship scoring changes the gameMoving from manual “who knows who” exercises to scalable, AI powered relationship mappingGuest Spotlight: Drew Sechrist Drew Sechrist is the CEO and co founder of Connect the Dots and a former Salesforce executive who rose through the ranks during the company’s hyper growth era. His experience closing large, relationship driven enterprise deals at Salesforce inspired him to build a platform that operationalizes the power of real networks for modern revenue teams. Today, Drew helps companies turn hidden relationship capital into measurable improvements in win rates, cycle times, and deal size. Resources and Mentions: Company: Connect the DotsConcept: Relationship intelligence and relationship heat maps for GTMBook: The Tipping Point by Malcolm GladwellPlatform Ecosystem: Salesforce, Slack, email, and RevOps systems as primary surfaces for relationship data🎧 Listen now and follow Selling the Cloud for more GTM, sales leadership, and AI driven revenue insights from leading voices in enterprise growth. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    19 min
  4. Ep. 104 - Turning Personal Networks Into Pipeline: Inside the Relationship Intelligence Era with Drew Sechrist - Part 1

    30/11/2025

    Ep. 104 - Turning Personal Networks Into Pipeline: Inside the Relationship Intelligence Era with Drew Sechrist - Part 1

    In this episode of Selling the Cloud, Mark Petruzzi and KK Anderson sit down with Drew Sechrist, CEO and co founder of Connect The Dots and longtime Salesforce veteran, to unpack why traditional ABM motions and high volume outbound are running out of gas and what comes next. Drew shares how relationship intelligence, warm introductions, and network aware playbooks are giving revenue teams a durable performance edge over cold, volume driven tactics. Drawing from his experience leading enterprise teams at Salesforce and now building Connect The Dots, Drew explains how to operationalize real relationships at scale, how to reimagine the role of the account executive as CEO of the territory, and why senior sellers should lead the shift from spray and pray to relationship driven go to market. What You’ll Learn: • Why ABM has reached peak utility and where it still fits in a modern go to market motion • How relationship intelligence and warm paths consistently outperform cold outbound and one to many ABM • Why the best enterprise sellers behave like CEOs of their territories and how that model broke during the growth at all costs era • How to design KPIs that expose when your current motion is tapped out and ready for a relationship first rethink • A practical 90 day approach to shifting from volume based SDR motions to relationship driven plays led by senior sellers Key Topics: • The limits of high volume ABM and cold outbound as primary growth levers • Mapping networks, scoring relationship strength, and surfacing warm paths into target accounts • Dreamforce era relationship building and how those habits still drive enterprise deals • The return of the account executive as CEO of the territory, not just a cog in the sales tech machine • Using AI and systems like Connect The Dots to make relationship based selling scalable and measurable • Reweighting your go to market mix across ABM, intent, and relationships instead of relying on mass spray and pray • How SDRs evolve into behind the scenes orchestrators of introductions, routing requests through executives and board members without breaking trust Guest Spotlight: Drew Sechrist Drew Sechrist is the CEO and co founder of Connect The Dots, a relationship intelligence platform that helps go to market teams tap into the power of real relationships at scale. Before founding Connect The Dots, Drew spent more than a decade at Salesforce during its hyper growth era, rising from one of the first account executives to leading enterprise sales teams. His career has been built on leveraging networks, warm introductions, and trusted relationships to win complex, high value deals. Resources and Mentions: • Company: Connect The Dots • Event: Dreamforce • Topics discussed: account executives as CEOs of their territories, relationship driven GTM, shifting off pure volume motions 🎧 Listen now and follow Selling the Cloud for more conversations on modern go to market, revenue leadership, and the future of relationship driven selling in an AI enabled world. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    23 min
  5. Ep. 103 - Operationalizing Process and AI for Real Sales Impact with Paul Fuller - Part 2

    25/11/2025

    Ep. 103 - Operationalizing Process and AI for Real Sales Impact with Paul Fuller - Part 2

    In this episode of Selling the Cloud, Paul Fuller, Chief Revenue Officer at Membrain, joins KK Anderson and Mark Petruzzi for a compelling conversation on how modern sales leaders can use AI to coach more effectively, eliminate wasteful pipeline rituals, and build real self-leadership within their teams. Paul outlines how high-performing sales managers are shifting from performative metrics to meaningful enablement; using AI to flag risk, generate insights, and equip reps to close complex deals. He also shares how sales leaders can establish operating rhythms, drive accountability, and lead with trust; all while reporting to the board with metrics that prove the business value of relationships. What You’ll Learn: AI-Enhanced Coaching: How to pair red/yellow flag systems with AI insights to pinpoint stalled deals and coach with precisioCadence of Accountability: How to replace unproductive pipeline calls with actionable, written commitments that build trust and executionManager Enablement: Why coaching the coach is the next evolution in sales performance systemsBoard-Ready Metrics: Which numbers matter most to prove relationships and strategic selling actually move the needlePractical AI Use Cases: Where AI drives effectiveness now (e.g., summarization, follow-up, personalization), and where it still falls shortKey Topics: Operationalizing AI in pipeline reviews and deal strategyMoving from activity tracking to outcome coachingSystems for continuous manager developmentReal intelligence vs. performative sales theaterCRO priorities in the AI era: focus, trust, proofEnabling full-cycle reps with better content, follow-up, and insightsMeasuring relationship impact: customer engagement, strategic touches, lifetime valueGuest Spotlight: Paul Fuller Paul Fuller is Chief Revenue Officer at Membrain, where he brings structure, strategy, and coaching to complex B2B sales organizations. A strong advocate for elevating leadership and execution within sales teams, Paul focuses on embedding process, insights, and AI into daily workflows to help reps and managers improve continuously. Resources & Mentions: • Company: Membrain • Book Recommendations: – The Greatest Sales Question Ever Asked by Brent Long – A Mind for Sales by Mark Hunter – The Speed of Trust by Stephen M.R. Covey – Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis • Sales leader to follow: Matt Green (Sales Assembly) 🎧 Listen now and follow Selling the Cloud for more real conversations with revenue leaders building tomorrow’s go-to-market playbooks. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    21 min
  6. Ep. 102 - Operationalizing Process and AI for Real Sales Impact with Paul Fuller – Part 1

    18/11/2025

    Ep. 102 - Operationalizing Process and AI for Real Sales Impact with Paul Fuller – Part 1

    In this episode of Selling the Cloud, Paul Fuller, Chief Revenue Officer at Membrane, joins KK Anderson and Mark Petruzzi to reframe how revenue teams win in complex, multi-stakeholder deals. Paul explains why many orgs over index on apps and one-off skills while under investing in operating rhythms, leadership habits, and relationship-driven execution. He introduces the idea of real intelligence as the who and why that guide the how, and shows how process plus AI inside the workflow can coach managers, focus reps, and change what happens every Monday morning. What You’ll Learn: Defining real intelligence: moving beyond tools to leadership, service, and wayfindingBuilding operating rhythms: weekly coaching, clean pipelines, and a cadence of accountabilityEmbedding insights in the workflow: checklists that coach, not just boxes to tickActivating AI where it matters: individualized multi-stakeholder follow ups and manager signalsProving what boards fund: focusing on measurable behaviors that move win rate and cycle timeKey Topics: Systems over one-off training for durable behavior changeProcess plus AI to guide day-to-day actions in CRMCoaching frameworks that reinforce who, why, then howMulti-threading effectively and right-sizing stakeholder engagementFrom performative pipeline calls to meaningful operating reviewsGuest Spotlight: Paul Fuller Paul is the Chief Revenue Officer at Membrane. He helps complex sales organizations operationalize process, coaching, and buyer-centric execution so managers can coach and reps can execute without bouncing across tools. Resources & Mentions: Fathom and Gong for call capture and summarizationMembrane workflow checklists and coaching cadenceWINS framework for servant leadership based sellingBooks: The Greatest Sales Question Ever Asked by Brent Long; A Mind for Sales by Mark Hunter; The Speed of Trust by Stephen M. R. CoveyLeader to follow: Matt Green of Sales Assembly🎧 Listen now and follow Selling the Cloud for more GTM insights from enterprise operators and CROs. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    23 min
  7. Ep. 101 – Unlocking AI’s Potential: Mastering the Art of Smarter Questions (Webinar Replay)

    11/11/2025

    Ep. 101 – Unlocking AI’s Potential: Mastering the Art of Smarter Questions (Webinar Replay)

    In this replay of Mastering Sales with AI, AGS Co-Founder Mark Petruzzi is joined by KK Anderson and Scott Stollwerk, Chief Sales Officer at Pest Share, together with Gabriella Koenig of Collective[i], for a lively and practical discussion on how AI is reshaping the art of selling. The conversation dives deep into what separates average sales teams from AI-empowered ones—and it’s not the tech itself. It’s the thinking. The panel explores how smarter questions, better hypotheses, and trust-driven selling can transform AI from a productivity tool into a true strategic partner. They share real stories from the field: how AI predicted buyer shifts before humans saw them, how teams replaced pipeline calls with signal-driven insights, and how great sellers now act like the CEOs of their own territories—with AI as their superintelligence. Whether you’re a CRO, RevOps leader, or AE curious about where to start, this session shows how to go beyond surface-level prompting and turn AI into an amplifier for strategy, trust, and results. What You’ll Learn: • Why AI transformation in sales is not about technology—it’s about better thinking and sharper questioning • The “value hypothesis” framework for creating AI-assisted prep before every customer meeting • How leading teams like Pest Share use AI to forecast, coach, and prioritize deals in real time • What happens when sales leaders replace pipeline reviews with AI signal reviews • How to coach teams to trust and collaborate with AI rather than resist it • Why the best sellers now operate like CEOs of their own pipelines—and how AI makes that possible Featured Speakers: • Mark Petruzzi – CEO, Accelerant Growth Solutions (AGS) • KK Anderson – Co-Founder, Accelerant Growth Solutions (AGS) • Scott Stollwerk – Chief Sales Officer, Pest Share • Gabriella Koenig – Moderator, Collective[i] Key Topics: • Prompting for insight vs. prompting for confirmation • From search to strategy: moving beyond AI as a shortcut • Trust, empathy, and human connection in the AI era • Smarter forecasting and self-coaching with collective data • Building AI-driven sales cultures that embrace change #SellingTheCloud #GetAGS #ReimagineGrowth #AIforSales See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    59 min
  8. Ep. 100 – Leading and Scaling Revenue Organizations When the Old Playbook Is Obsolete - Part 2

    04/11/2025

    Ep. 100 – Leading and Scaling Revenue Organizations When the Old Playbook Is Obsolete - Part 2

    In Part 2 of our conversation with Neil Graham, Chief Revenue Officer at Disqo, we dive deeper into how modern CROs must rethink their org design, marketing execution, and AI integration strategies to stay competitive in 2025 and beyond. Neil shares why curiosity, humility, and bias for action are now non-negotiables; and how his team is operationalizing those values inside a flat, fast-moving GTM system. From building AI-generated deal strategy sessions to deploying 24/7 agents on the website, Neil unpacks the real-world tools and team behaviors that are reshaping sales and marketing execution. This episode is packed with tactical insights for CROs leading through change. What You’ll Learn Flatter Orgs, Bolder Execution: How Disqo’s three-layer model speeds up decisions and drives alignment across marketing, sales, and delivery.Non-Negotiables in Revenue Teams: Why curiosity, humility, and action orientation matter more than ever, and how to screen for them.AI as a Revenue Multiplier: How Disqo uses AI for outbound personalization, content creation, and automated deal intelligence.Coaching in the AI Era: How Neil’s RevOps team leads enablement through data-driven strategy docs and always-on insights.Creating New Roles for the AI Age: Why Disqo now has a dedicated AI strategy lead embedded in RevOps, and how other CROs can follow suit.Key Topics Scaling outbound without bloating headcountRedefining RevOps to include data, process, enablement, and AI ownershipDesigning a leadership team that balances vision and executionThe future of SDR and BDR roles in an AI-enabled GTMUsing AI agents for 24/7 coverage and real-time buyer insightsBuilding culture through feedback, modeling, and EQ-based hiringGuest Spotlight: Neil Graham Neil Graham is the Chief Revenue Officer at Disqo. A proven growth operator and revenue architect, Neil has helped scale iconic brands like Salesforce, Siebel, and Jive. At Disqo, he’s building a flat, AI-accelerated GTM machine that prizes speed, ownership, and alignment over legacy hierarchy. Resources & Mentions Company: DisqoFrameworks: MedPick, DSF (Disqo Success Framework)Sales Tools: Gong, Clay, ChatGPT, AI agentsLeadership Inspiration: Carl Schachter, Eli Cohen, John BarrowsBook: Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman🎧 Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    23 min
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About

Selling the Cloud delves into the stories of C-suite veterans in Sales, Marketing, Customer Success, and RevOps, revealing the secrets behind building successful SaaS empires. Each episode features seasoned leaders who walk through their career journeys, sharing the wins and lessons learned along the way. From mastering customer acquisition to leveraging AI-powered marketing and sales strategies, our guests provide actionable insights for driving growth and business success in the B2B SaaS space. Guided by a powerhouse team of co-hosts, including Mark Petruzzi, Paul Melchiorre, and Kristin "KK" Anderson, Selling the Cloud offers a front-row seat to the evolving world of Go-To-Market strategies. This podcast extends the insights from the best-selling books "Selling the Cloud" and "Data and Diagnosis-driven Selling", co-authored by Mark Petruzzi and Paul Melchiorre, making it your go-to source for the latest trends and practical tips in SaaS excellence.

Information

  • Creator
    Mark Petruzzi, KK Anderson, Paul Melchiorre
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2025
  • Episodes
    107
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © © 2025 Selling the Cloud
  • Show Website
    Selling the Cloud