Building Slack London: Growth, Challenges, and Lessons LearnedIn this episode, James Sherrett narrates the story of establishing Slack's London office, detailing the company's strategic growth and the beginning of its Customer Success practices. Starting with the first hire, Rav Daliwhal, James recounts the early challenges of locating suitable London office space and adapting to the emerging field of customer success. The narrative explores the evolving complexity of Slack's sales teams, reflecting on the company's gentrification and organizational changes. Significant customer acquisitions, office expansions, and the shift from a startup mentality to a structured enterprise come up. James also shares personal insights about the mistakes he made during this growth phase, shedding light on changes in hiring practices and the balancing act between retaining Slack's unique culture and striving for growth. The episode concludes with a teaser on prospecting candidates and further developments in Dublin.00:00 Introduction: The Slack London Story Begins00:25 Meeting Rav Dal: The Start of Customer Success02:21 Establishing Slack London: Challenges and Growth02:51 The WeWork Experience: Pros and Cons04:13 Building the Team: New Hires and Roles04:58 Growing Pains: Transitioning to a Sales Team06:25 Major Clients and Customization08:37 Office Expansion: Moving to Ying House12:50 Reflections on Leadership and Hiring Mistakes21:58 Conclusion: Embracing Change and Growth This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.slackstory.com
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I See London, I See France
Slack's European Expansion MissionJames Sherrett narrates the journey to various European cities, from Dublin to London, Paris, and beyond, to promote and expand Slack. He details the challenges and successes of targeting tech-forward organizations, adapting to the unique nuances of over 20 smaller markets, and overcoming skepticism towards new, US technology. Sherrett emphasizes the importance of talking with customers, shares anecdotes from his travels, highlights internal challenges with hiring, and discusses balancing work with family life. This episode captures some key moments of the mission to introduce Slack to Europe.00:23 Taking on the Mission: Spreading the Word About Slack01:43 Carving off European markets: challenges and opportunities02:33 Establishing a presence in London03:33 Customer Success stories: Sky News, Ocado, and more04:18 Hiring challenges and cultural insights04:49 Meeting GE in Cardiff06:20 TechCracker conference at Stirling Castle in Scotland13:44 Struggling with work and family during travel14:59 Reflections and personal sacrifices16:22 Conclusion: the shared mission This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.slackstory.com
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Meet the New, New, New Boss: Bob
Teenage Years of Slack and Finding a Sales LeaderIn this episode, James Sherrett narrates the journey of Slack in its formative years, focusing on the challenge of hiring a VP of Sales. As the company moved beyond its development-driven roots, it realized the need for an experienced leader who could steer the Sales strategy. Despite internal skepticism about Sales, the team embarked on a rigorous interview process, eventually landing on a top 1 candidate, Bob Frati. Bob's readiness to learn and adapt made him a strong fit, and marked a key turning point in Slack's strategy to scale up its Sales functions. This episode is full of the growing pains and excitement of evolving from a startup to a larger commercial entity.00:23 The Challenge of Hiring a New Boss01:46 Internal Struggles and Realizations06:12 The Search for the Right Candidate10:19 Interviewing Bob: A Standout Candidate14:47 Bob's Impact and the Future of Slack15:47 Conclusion: Expanding Horizons This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.slackstory.com
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Leaving Never Neverland
Growing Pains at Slack: Embracing Sales and Scaling UpJames Sherrett narrates Slack's realization we needed to grow up. But what did that mean? And how did we scale up our sales organization to match the increasingly complex demands of larger customers without losing what made the experience excellent for customers. Sherrett recalls some of challenges faced, solutions implemented, and pivotal decisions made. Key moments include adding specialized roles like solution engineers and customer success managers, then evolving our internal identity during an offsite meeting.00:17 Facing the need to grow up03:22 Preparing for change: the latest offsite04:29 Defining a team identity07:28 Competency traps and customer matching12:03 Sales Math: Oh, look, customer expectations13:49 Becoming Sales finally, an anti-climax15:34 Conclusion: Hello world This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.slackstory.com
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A Very Stewart Visit to Dublin
A Dublin Office Halloween: Slack's Journey with Stewart ButterfieldSlack's had its Dublin office, the first outside the Pacific Time zone. Now Slack CEO, Stewart Butterfield, came calling. Also: Hallowe'en. Also: Callowe'en. We reflect on Stewart's growing role and influence both within and outside Slack, including the 'cult of personality' surrounding him. The story finishes by contrasting Slack's values with those of Salesforce after the acquisition.00:00 Introduction: A Slack Story by James Sherrett00:48 Halloween in Dublin: riding the leprechaun01:25 Preparing for Stewart's visit03:04 All Hands meeting from Dublin06:13 Changes happening for Stewart and Slack's culture08:33 The One Mind theory of startups11:05 Style and substance and sprezzatura13:40 The Salesforce acquisition and cultural mismatch This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.slackstory.com
In 2013, I started as #9 on the Slack team. A Slack Story tells the best stories from the 7 years and 5 jobs that followed. The Podcast is those stories in audio form. Plus more to come.
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