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Pete Kazanjy is the author of Founding Sales: The Early Stage Go-to-Market Handbook and the founder of Modern Sales Pros, an invite-only peer learning community focused on sales operations and sales leadership. He\u2019s also the co-founder of Atrium, a B2B SaaS company that provides data-driven sales solutions. Pete got his start in product at VMware and then dove deep into the art and science of sales. In today\u2019s episode, we talk about the importance of founder-led sales and how to methodically scale a sales department. He explains the difference between old-school sales and modern sales, which focuses on human connection and solving problems for customers. He also shares actionable tips to improve your sales technique and explains how to use data to monitor your success at different milestones in the sales process.

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Find the full transcript here: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/founder-led-sales-pete-kazanjy-founding

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Thank you to our wonderful sponsors for supporting this podcast:

\u2022 Vanta\u2014Automate compliance. Simplify security: https://vanta.com/lenny

\u2022 Flatfile\u2014A CSV importer that says yes instead of error: mismatch: https://www.flatfile.com/lenny

\u2022 Merge\u2014A single API to add hundreds of integrations into your app: http://merge.dev/lenny

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Where to find Pete:

\u2022 Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kazanjy

\u2022 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kazanjy/

\u2022 Website: https://kazanjy.svbtle.com/

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Where to find Lenny:

\u2022 Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

\u2022 Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan

\u2022 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

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Referenced:

\u2022 Founding Sales: The Early Stage Go-to-Market Handbook: https://www.amazon.com/Founding-Sales-Go-Market-Handbook-ebook/dp/B08PMK17Z1

\u2022 Brianne Kimmel\u2019s SaaS school: http://briannekimmel.com/saas-school/

\u2022 Modern Sales Pros: https://modernsaleshq.com/

\u2022 The Lean Startup: How Today\u2019s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses: https://www.amazon.com/Lean-Startup-Entrepreneurs-Continuous-Innovation/dp/0307887898

\u2022 The Four Steps to the Epiphany: Successful Strategies for Products That Win: https://www.amazon.com/Four-Steps-Epiphany-Successful-Strategies/dp/1119690358/

\u2022 Pete\u2019s presentation on founder-led sales: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAXIVAZJyPA

\u2022 Pete\u2019s guest post on Lenny\u2019s newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/sales-bottom-up

\u2022 The Cadence: How to Operate a SaaS Startup: https://medium.com/craft-ventures/the-cadence-how-to-operate-a-saas-startup-436aa8099e8

\u2022 Maker vs. Manager Schedule: http://www.paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html

\u2022 Amplitude: https://amplitude.com/

\u2022 Atrium: https://www.atriumhq.com/

\u2022 Greenhouse: https://www.greenhouse.io/

\u2022 Pete\u2019s ICP Template: https://www.foundingsales.com/2-product-marketing#building-narrative

\u2022 Marissa Fuhrer Bell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissafuhrer/

\u2022 Data-driven sales master class: https://salesnerds.atriumhq.com/msp-nailing-science-of-sales-figma-webinar-video

\u2022 The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement: https://www.amazon.com/Goal-Process-Ongoing-Improvement/dp/0884271951

\u2022 The Score Takes Care of Itself: My Philosophy of Leadership: https://www.amazon.com/Score-Takes-Care-Itself-Philosophy/dp/1591843472

\u2022 All-In podcast: https://www.allinpodcast.co/

\u2022 Encanto on Disney+: https://www.disneyplus.com/movies/encanto/33q7DY1rtHQH

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In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) How Pete met Lenny\xa0

(05:05) Pete\u2019s background

(07:20) Modern sales vs. old-school sales

(09:17) What is founder-led sales, and why is it so important?

(14:58) When to hire your first salesperson\xa0

(18:20) Why you should keep your in-person events to around 10 people

(19:34) What a sales motion is and why it needs to be updated regularly\xa0

(20:55) What are the leading indicators of success?

(23:54) Why founders don\u2019t need to be rock stars at sales

(28:28) Sales mindset changes\u2014the number-one tip to improve your sales

(33:30) How modern sales should focus on helping customers solve problems

(36:00) A few tips to help you get better at sales

(36:40) ICP and personas

(39:14) Why you should hire junior sales staff in the early stages

(45:40) Signs your new hires aren\u2019t a good fit

(47:38) The importance of using metrics for success

(49:33) Month-by-month expectations for sales hires

(51:19) Why work from home is bad for junior salespeople

(54:19) Why you shouldn\u2019t be afraid of sales

(55:19) Lightning round

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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.