Crossing the chasm from growth IC to growth leader with Scott Tousley
"How can I advance my career working in growth?"
I’ve heard this question a million times in my coaching practice. Getting ahead in the growth world is tough. There’s no predefined ladder to climb, and no easy-to-identify set of skills to acquire and perfect. It’s even harder without role-specific mentorship (which most of us don’t have).
This is why I was so excited to talk with Scott Tousley. Scott has “crossed the chasm” from being a growth operator/executor/specialist to being a growth leader — an executive who represents the growth capability at an organizational level.
Scott is the VP of Growth at Persefoni, and his wide-ranging growth experience includes time at Reforge, HubSpot, co-hosting the Growth TL;DR podcast with Kieran Flanagan, and working on the Signals product with Brian Balfour.
In our convo, we talked at length about why growth roles tend to turn over so frequently, what makes a strong leader, and more:
Navigating the “messy middle” between senior IC and growth leader
How a lack of clear expectations and boundaries shortens role tenures
Why rapid feedback cycles are important, whether you are working on a landing page, a board presentation, your comms, or your vision
Four traits of strong leaders: simplify everything, empower everyone, learn from everywhere, and have a sense of humor
Watch below, or catch the show on Apple, Spotify, Google, or YouTube.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
Our guest is the current VP of Growth & Head of Marketing at Persofoni, the world's leading climate management & accounting platform. Scott Tousley has been in the growth space for a while, working with big companies like Reforge and Hubspot, and big names like Kieran Flanagan and Brian Balfour.
Along his career in growth, Scott transitioned from specialist to executive, referring to it as “crossing the chasm” from growth operator/tactician/specialist/executor to growth leader. Tune in as he shares his insight into the journey, leadership, and more.
Things to Listen for:
[00:18] Introducing Scott Tousley and his background
[08:50] Scott’s work at Persefoni and some of the challenges he experiences
[13:47] Why do growth leaders often have short tenures in companies?
[18:16] Learning and developing the skills that benefit a growth leader
[24:49] On feedback
[29:15] Patterns and traits of strong leaders that Scott wants to exemplify
[36:02] On work-life balance and how being a parent has affected how he prioritizes things
[40:55] On his career growth
[45:50] Connect with Scott
Resources:
A huge thanks to the sponsors below👇
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