BACKGROUND
The most memorable product launch that I led was for Salesforce, for its first artificial intelligence (AI) product ever, Sales Cloud Einstein. I had launched products before, but one of the biggest reasons this launch was a success is due to the go-to-market focus I brought to the launch from the start, in the planning phase. The preparation I received at my previous employer, Microsoft, ensured the launch was a collective success for all cross-functional teams involved.

In my experience, Salesforce demonstrated the strongest messaging, positioning, and narrative development skills of my previous employers. I learned a significant amount from the experts at Salesforce, especially as I worked through the AI launch.

And the skills I gained at Microsoft were very different, but no less important. Microsoft ensures employees build the skills, techniques, and frameworks to drive scale through the vast organization, sales teams, and ecosystem partners. Microsoft imprinted on me, among many other things, the critical importance of ensuring that the distribution teams (sales, channel, etc.) were fully enabled, certified, and supported to engage customers as quickly as possible to maximize revenue opportunities.

So when I had the opportunity to launch the first AI product at Salesforce, I was prepared to deliver a complete launch that supported the entire go-to-market (GTM) process.

That said, it wasn't without concerns or challenges. AI was still a relatively new concept, and most Salesforce account executives, BDRs/SDRs, solution engineers, customer success managers, etc., needed to learn about it and how it manifested itself within Sales Cloud. As a result, there was a steep learning curve that needed to be addressed, from product functionality to benefits and value, all the way through to pricing, packaging, and licensing. I was on a mission to ensure that this important and high-visibility launch would be actionable through the entire customer journey.

The result of the launch was very positive. We landed our first customer within 24 hours of launching the product and within three years, the product had generated $100M. It was an important step in Salesforce's journey to incorporate more AI into its platform.

Once I joined Talend to lead Product Marketing, I worked with my team to build a product release and launch operating model that extended from the Product org through to Sales, with Product Marketing in the middle as the connective tissue. We also refined our launch processes so that we could anticipate and prepare for launches better, work more efficiently as a cross-functional team, and deliver a more impactful launch.

The result was a cross-functional team that was more aligned, more aware and able to adapt to changes, and better messaging and positioning that was validated with select representatives in the Sales organization, customers, prospects, and industry / technology analysts. The impact of the preparation and alignment showed up in the messaging, and it also led to a significant and steady improvement in our brand-oriented media metrics like quantity of articles, message pickup, tone, and others.