3 lessons for building and scaling a winning team

Nobody launches a legendary revenue career alone.

Whether you’re growing a startup from scratch or taking over an emerging company, you’re in the team-building business.

Over the last decade, we’ve scaled Clari from a small founding team to an organization of 700+. Along the way, we’ve taken essential steps to build and scale our winning team.

When done right, the collective efforts of a well-aligned team can really push the company forward.

Here are my three tips to get you started – specifically for going from 0 to 100 employees.

Remember, a legendary career is often a reflection of the strength and synergy within the team you’ve built.

1. Identify early attributes

Your first 25 hires have an outsized effect.

They establish the company culture. They help you break through business barriers. They often move on to key leadership positions.

Make sure you’re hiring right.

At Clari, there was a clear criteria we used for early hires. We looked for what I call “athlete generalists.”

Athlete generalists demonstrate:

• Deep curiosity about the problem
• Adaptability to wear multiple hats
• Ability to create something from nothing

We knew these positions were critical. We know someone who was coin-operated – only there for the money – would burnout and move on.

Instead, we reached for folks with an obvious “can do” attitude.

When hiring, focus on identifying candidates who not only possess necessary skills and expertise but also align with the company’s values and mission.

Investing time in finding the right people early can pay dividends in shaping a high-performing team that’ll drive the success of your company in the long run.

2. Look to data

From 25 to 100, hiring becomes data-driven.

You start to see patterns. Customer profiles, team needs, and value engineering opportunities emerge from the data set.

Use this data to inform your decisions.

At Clari, we talked daily about where the business was headed. We invested in critical roles and cutting-edge tools to inject growth. T

his included:

• Key technology to move the business forward
• Strong leaders and operators at every level
• Design processes to add the “wow” factor

We also established team routines to build internal culture and surface blockers.

• Check-ins. As leaders, we would randomly call team members to see how the week was going. These informal conversations bolstered trust and open communication.
• Town Halls. Similarly, we hosted informal town halls each week. No agenda, just an opportunity for team members to share their personal and work lives.

Together, these steps laid a strong foundation.

3. Map out growth drivers

Beyond 100 employees, growth drivers take center stage.

You need to become a student of these drivers. Understand where there’s opportunity in the market and how your company is positioned to capitalize on it.

The market moves fast. Your company needs to move faster.

At Clari, we obsessively chart growth drivers. We comb through company data to see where our current and projected levels of growth are coming from.

Examples include:

• Customer says they want higher net dollar retention
• Customer says they want to acquire for growth
• Customer says they want to penetrate global 2000

When we see the signs, we know there’s growth potential.

Beyond that, we continue to invest in emerging technologies. We were early on the AI train, and it continues to be an essential part of our plans for the future.

Growth drivers at the future of Clari. You better believe we’re watching them closely.

Strategically scale your company.

Every growth story involves brutal decisions and unexpected trials. But with the right people, you can break through barriers.

Remember:

• Nail your early attributes
• Make data-driven hiring
• Know your growth drivers

These steps will help you build a winning team and empower a legendary career in revenue.

Till next time,

Andy Byrne

CEO, Clari

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