NPS I Love You by Catalyst

In this episode, Ben sits down with Casey Graham, Co-Founder and CEO of Gravy Solutions, the first-ever payment recovery solution for subscription-based businesses. Prior to launching Gravy, Casey founded the Rocket Company, which he successfully exited in 2016. During this episode, Casey opens up about how his grandfather's suicide initially led him to the path of entrepreneurship, how his successful company exit resulted in a deep depression, and his overall perspective on company culture and leadership. He also discusses the importance of understanding your big why, separating your identity from your role at work, and much more.

In this episode, Ben sits down with Alexa Gates, Demand Generation leader at Catalyst. During their conversation, Ben and Alexa discuss the value of being direct and upfront in all communications, and why it's essential for organizations to have a clear mission in mind from the get-go. Alexa explains how a role in demand generation can be compared to putting together the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, and how in many ways, the function acts as the connective tissue for all marketing teams. They also discuss how we are our own biggest competition and why it's important to check in and self-reflect regularly.

In this episode, Ben sits down with Sara Masson, the VP of Customer Success at leap tools, a company that's on a mission to revolutionize the retail experience through AR technology. Sara recently joined the company following the birth of her daughter. During their conversation, Ben and Sara discuss a wide variety of topics including parenting, customer success, company culture and even juggling work with breastfeeding. They offer candid views on building psychological safety in the workplace, hustle culture in the startup world, and how maintaining a healthy family and social life outside of work can affect the entire company culture.

In this solo episode, Ben discusses various aspects of tech culture. He shares his perspective on recent scripted drama series that have depicted tech startup culture like Super Pumped featuring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, about the founding story of Uber, WeCrashed featuring Anne Hathaway and Jared Leto, about the founding of WeWork, and The Dropout featuring Amanda Seyfried, about Elizabeth Holmes and the story behind Theranos. Exploring the narratives surrounding these companies and their origin stories, Ben shares his perspective on what's changed in the startup world in recent years, and the shifts he believes we'll continue to see over the next decade in tech.

This brief episode was recorded on the day Russia invaded Ukraine, and in it, Ben shares his thoughts on compartmentalizing work and life, making the most out of the time you have, and how people can best support each other at work when things like this happen.

In this episode, Ben broaches more hot topics in the tech landscape today. He discusses LinkedIn's new filter option, which allows users to remove political content from their feeds, the ongoing hiring crisis in the workforce today, the Metaverse and more. Ben also emphasizes the need for clearer pathways towards building a career in tech to usher in the next generation of the workforce.

In this episode, Ben offers his take on some of the most controversial headlines in the business world today. He discusses how Peloton recently laid off 20% of its staff (2,800 people), and why people are saying the way the leadership team handled the layoffs was tone deaf. Ben also discusses how Apple classifies every employee as an “associate” after they leave the company, regardless of what their title was while they were there, and why this could affect future job prospects. Last but not least, Ben explores the results of a recent LinkedIn survey about Gen Z in the workforce.

In this episode, host Ben Winn is back to discuss more key trends and developments happening in the SaaS community right now. He explores the impacts of inflation on wages and company-wide pay increases. Ben also discusses remote work and mental health, touching on a recent UK poll of 2,000 employees which found that only 41% were willing to raise their concerns with management.

In another special solo episode, host Ben Winn is back to discuss more key trends and developments happening in the SaaS community right now. He explores the idea of sabbaticals, which are now being offered as an employee perk at companies like PayPal, Adobe, Dropbox and more. Ben also discusses the overall sustainability of the remote work movement, and how it can be balanced with in-person collaboration and community. Finally, he touches on the importance of staying loyal to your company and trying to improve your current situation before throwing in the towel to move onto something new.

In this special solo episode, host Ben Winn discusses new key developments happening in the SaaS community. He explores the concept of the four-day workweek and how it may help to boost productivity, different time-saving strategies, and tips for any professionals who are hoping to make a change in their career in 2022. Finally, Ben rounds out the episode by emphasizing the importance of placing a strong focus on employee satisfaction for companies looking to make their mark this year.

In this episode, Ben sits down with Lloyed Lobo, the Co-Founder and President of Boast.AI., a company that automates access to research and development, tax credits and innovation incentives so companies can fuel their growth while preserving equity and avoiding red tape. During the episode, Lloyed shares the details of his non-linear founding journey, his thoughts on building brand equity, and how creating a strong sense of community can magnify a business's impact.

In this episode, Ben sits down with Liz Willits, the owner of Liz Willits marketing consultancy and the number one marketer on LinkedIn (according to her mom). Liz specializes in email marketing, copywriting, content marketing and demand generation, and she works across customer success, sales and marketing teams. During the episode, Liz explains the reasons behind her decision to operate as an independent consultant, why she uses LinkedIn as a tool for self-promotion, and the steps she took initially to bring her consultancy to life.

In this episode, Ben sits down with Melissa Kwan, the Co-Founder and CEO of eWebinar, a tool that automates webinars to free up more of your time. Melissa shares the fascinating story of how she became a digital nomad to travel the world, and what she learned from the experience of building eWebinar on a completely remote basis. She also offers some insightful advice about prioritizing happiness and building your career around your life, not the other way around.

In this episode, Ben sits down with Guillaume Moubeche, the CEO and Co-Founder of lemlist, sales automation and cold email software that helps companies personalize cold emails, automate follow-ups, and engage with leads across all channels. During the episode, Guillaume shares the company's unique growth strategy, the story of how the company nearly failed twice, and the philosophies he holds that have led him to success. He also shares the creative strategies the company used to bring the company from a $1,000 investment to surpassing $10 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR), all without raising any private equity funding or spending money on ads.

In this episode, Ben sits down with Eric Johnson, the director of the Center for Decision Sciences at Columbia University and the author of the newly released book, The Elements of Choice. During their discussion, Ben and Eric talk about the science of decision making, the tools that can be employed to steer decision making, and how it all applies to the larger context of tech and the customer experience. Eric provides an overview of the science behind human decision making processes, and how we can harness this knowledge to drive better outcomes.

Fred Reichheld is a Bain fellow and the inventor of NPS, or Net Promoter Score, which is a system adopted by thousands of companies around the world to measure customer loyalty. He's authored several bestselling books that have helped companies thrive in a customer-driven economy, and according to the New York Times, his work has put loyalty economics on the map. In this episode, Fred and Ben discuss strategies for measuring customer success and strengthening customer loyalty, as well as some of the themes from Fred's new book, Winning on Purpose.You can purchase Winning on Purpose: The Unbeatable Strategy of Loving Customers, on Amazon here.

Jack Ryan is the Partner Manager at SaaStr, the world's largest community of SaaS professionals. In this episode, Ben and Jack discuss Jack's journey of suffering a broken neck and numerous strokes, which led to his paralysis and near death. Jack tells the inspiring story of how through sheer grit and determination, he was able to overcome his injuries to regain full mobility and even climb Mount Whitney, the tallest summit in the continental U.S.

Mike Roberts is the Head of Marketing at Catalyst Software, AKA Ben's boss. In this episode, Ben and Mike discuss some of the projects they're most proud of in their careers so far, the importance of reflecting on our progress overtime, and achieving optimal work/life balance. They also touch on how they've cultivated careers they love, and the correct pronunciation of La Croix.

Leah Chaney is the founder and Chief Experience Officer of BetterGrowth, a consultancy that helps companies gain clarity on why sales are decreasing, churn is climbing, and employees are leaving by providing a step-by-step action plan. She's also the Founder of BreakoutCS, a community for CS professionals. In this episode, Ben and Leah discuss the stories behind BetterGrowth and BreakoutCS, some of the challenges she's faced while navigating her career as a queer person in tech, and how people and companies can support the growth of diversity and inclusion in the tech industry.

Stacy Schmitz is an Enterprise Account Executive at Catalyst Software. In this episode, Ben and Stacy discuss how she has seen incredible success in her career so far, reaching 200% of her quota last quarter. Stacy also shares her unique approach to sales, what motivates her, and how the industry has evolved in recent years.

Bradley Liou is the Head of Customer Success at Acquire, an app that's transforming e-commerce by creating unforgettable checkout experiences. In this episode, Ben and Bradley discuss the sabbatical Bradley took recently to support his wife who was struggling with postpartum depression and how it helped him realign his priorities. Bradley also shares the story of how he landed his new role at Acquire, and why the company is such a great culture fit.

Edward Chiu is the Co-Founder and CEO of Catalyst Software, a company that helps businesses centralize customer data, get a clear view of customer health, and scale experiences that drive retention and growth. In this episode, Ben and Edward discuss the company's mental health initiatives, Edward's “Hot Ones” video, and the incredible growth of Customer Success over the last 2 years.

Kris Rudeegraap is the CEO and Co-Founder of Sendoso, the leading sending platform that helps companies engage with customers throughout the buyer's journey. In this episode, Kris and Ben discuss how the best ideas often come from a problem that needs solving, working smarter not harder, and approaching business as a marathon, not a sprint.

Mike Murchison is the CEO and Co-Founder of Ada, the leading provider of AI customer support chat bots that automates millions of chat-based conversations per month for clients like TELUS, Coinbase and Shopify. In this episode, Mike and Ben discuss the company's origin story, their recent partnership with Zoom, and why simplicity is one of their core values.

Arjun Devgan is the VP and global head of customer success at Amplitude, an innovative company that's helping businesses manage and optimize innovation efforts with its digital optimization system. In this episode, Arjun and Ben discuss Arjun's efforts to raise awareness about invisible disabilities, and how we can all empower one another to speak up about our vulnerabilities.

Rand Fishkin is the CEO and co-founder of SparkToro, a software company that provides high-quality market research and audience intelligence. In this episode, Rand and Ben discuss the art of writing emails, Rand's experiences in the startup world, how to make sure you're being fairly compensated, and much more.

The last episode of season one is a solocast with the host of NPS I Love You and the manager of community and events at Catalyst Software, Ben Winn. In the episode, Ben reflects on the process of launching the podcast, what worked well and what could use some improvement for the next season. He also shares why they decided to launch the podcast in the first place, and why he's looking forward to season two.

Veronica Dasovich is the Senior Director of Customer Success at Heap, a digital insights platform helping companies build digital experiences. In this episode, Veronica and Ben discuss the pros and cons of pursuing an MBA in the tech space, developing critical thinking skills and levelling up your career by taking initiative and leading with compassion.

Kate Walsh is the VP of Customer Success and Support at Klaviyo, a Boston-based company that helps companies turn their ecommerce data into revenue with personalized multi-channel marketing campaigns. In this episode, Kate and Ben discuss how and when companies should begin developing partner programs, some of the valuable lessons Kate learned during her 11-year stint at HubSpot, and how Klaviyo will continue scaling up as the company grows.

Nate Gilmore is the Chief Revenue Officer at PandaDoc, a document automation software that streamlines the process of creating, assigning and reviewing proposals, quotes and contracts. In this episode, Nate and Ben discuss striking a balance between driving sales and strengthening customer relationships, motivating and incentivizing teams, and PandaDoc's approach to customer experience design.

Roberto Ortiz is the Co-Founder and CEO of Welcome, an award-winning virtual event platform. In this episode, Roberto and Ben discuss how the pandemic influenced the founding of Welcome, how to provide white glove customer service, and levelling up from a technology, design and performance perspective.

Emily Garza is the AVP of Customer Success at Fastly. In this episode, Emily and Ben discuss why happiness shouldn't be used as a customer success metric, the importance of consistent storytelling, and the value of clear communication and curiosity in business.

Kyle Clark is an Implementation Manager at Catalyst Software, and in this episode, Kyle and I discuss the one big question you need to ask before onboarding new customers, why you should ignore what your competitors are doing and how to launch new customers in a “healthy way”.

Codi Gill is the Vice President Client Success at TouchCare, and in this episode, Codi and I discuss how she has six kids whilst running a CS department, the importance of “taking yourself out of the whirlwind” and how Codi pro-actively ensures her team take sufficient time off.

Sultan Saidov is the Co-Founder and President at Beamery, and in this episode, Sultan and I talk about Beamery's proactive, people centric approach to recruitment, how to keep candidates engaged throughout the hiring funnel and how to evaluate the potential of prospective recruits.

Remco de Vries is the VP of Marketing at inSided, and in this episode, Remco and I talk about everything you need to know to get started with community building—from getting buy-in, to selecting your tech stack, to more advanced community strategies that will directly lead to revenue growth.

Porter Williams is the Director of Customer Success at BetterUp, and in this episode, Porter and I discuss how to make your QBRs better than every other vendor, what Porter learned in his previous life as a performer that helps him in the tech world, and why role-playing might just be the one skill missing from your CS arsenal.

Mark Kilens is the VP of Content & Community at Drift, and in this episode, Mark and I discuss the content and community equation, why he hires for character and trains for skill and his personal operating system.

Sunil Joseph is the Vice President of Customer Success at Stack Overflow, and in this episode, Sunil and I discuss the impact of hiring a diverse team, why Stack Overflow holds ROI workshops with every customer, and what it really means to be product-led

EPISODE SUMMARY: Shai Ritblatt is Head of Partner & Customer Success at Sisense, and in this episode, Shai and I discuss their partner success program, building versus buying, how they prioritize feature requests and why he believes CS just stands for common sense.

Eric & Eli are the brilliant founders behind Speaker Labs, a leading public speaking coaching program. In this episode, Eric, Eli, and I discuss the science of talk, the power of storytelling, the biggest barriers people face when public speaking, and some ways you can think about improving your next presentation today.

Jaimie Buss is Sr. VP of Sales at Zendesk, and in this episode, Jaimie and I discuss sales & CS collaboration, leadership, battling stigma, and an epiphany Jaimie had that profoundly affected her life.

Debra Squyres is an expert in all things HR and Customer Success, and she is about to join HackerRank as CCO, supporting over 2,000 customers and 11 million developers. In this episode, Debra shares the worst question she was ever asked in an interview, what it means to be data-driven in HR, and her thoughts on the future of work.

Diana De Jesus is one of the top 100 CS strategists, co-creator of the Open Book of Customer Success, and a CSM at Catalyst Software. In this episode, Diana talks about tips, tricks, mistakes, and learnings around Customer Success, parenting, personal branding, and vulnerability.

Jeff Breunsbach & Jay Nathan are Director of CX and CCO, respectively, at Higher Logic. They are also the founders of Gain Grow Retain, one of the world’s largest CS communities that exploded in 2020. In this episode, Jeff & Jay talk leadership, customer experience, community building, and Jay’s dream of being in a Jimmy Buffet cover band.

Jon Johnson is a professional musician turned Senior Customer Success Manager at Splash. He also led customer success at Zinier and is a founding member of the BreakoutCS community. In this episode, Jon talks about his experience as a musician and the lessons it taught him that have allowed him to excel in Customer Success.

Matt Myszkowski is Vice President of Customer Experience at Cision, and led Customer Success at other organizations like SAP, Rant & Rave, and Autodesk. On this episode, Matt talks about change management, being opinionated, photography, and his favorite podcasts.

Lorna Henri is VP Customer Success at Modern Health, which has recently surpassed the $1 Billion valuation mark, officially making them a unicorn. In this episode, Lorna talks parenting, career paths, mental health, and the challenges of scaling quickly.

Daniel Hayward is Head of Customer Success for the Americas at LinkedIn. In this episode, he shares his thoughts on how leaders can support the mental health and wellness of their team members, how they can fight stigma with vulnerability, and how he personally is taking care of his mental health during the pandemic.

Jack Schafer, Ph.D., is a psychologist, professor, author, intelligence consultant, and former FBI Special Agent. He's conducted counter-intelligence and counterterrorism investigations, worked as a behavioral analyst, and has trained agents in the art of interrogation and persuasion. He’s also written some fantastic books, including The Like Switch and The Truth Detector. In this special episode, Catalyst CEO Edward Chiu speaks with Jack about how CS & Sales can uncover truth quickly, build relationships fast, and achieve desired outcomes.

Brian LaFaille is the Global Head, Customer Success Strategic Programs at Looker, a business intelligence platform that was bought by Google in 2020 for $2.6 Billion. In this episode, we explore unique ideas that blend the human touch with powerful data to drive customer happiness like behavior mapping instead of customer journey mapping, predictive analytics for Customer Success, and how the 5 love languages can apply to CS.