Partnership Mastermind Podcast

In this episode of the Partnership Mastermind podcast, host Chris Lavoie sits down with Tricia Shea, Head of Channel Sales and Partnerships at Rain, to explore what it takes to build partner programs that actually generate revenue. Tricia shares how her journey from AE to channel leader shaped her approach, why she runs partner orgs like sales orgs, how she qualifies partners with the same rigor s...

Daniela Mallarino has built her career at the intersection of partnerships, integration and go‑to‑market strategy. In this episode, she sits down with host Chris Lavoie to unpack why customer experience should drive every technology partnership, how open ecosystems create more value than closed ones, and why tracking impact from day one is essential. Segments & highlights: Rapid‑fire warm‑ups:...

In this episode of the Partnership Mastermind Podcast , Chris Lavoie sits down with Hami Nasari from Aircall and Russell Bradley-Cook from HubSpot to break down one of the strongest co-selling partnerships in SaaS. Aircall and HubSpot have won Co-Sell Partner of the Year three years in a row , and this conversation gets into what actually makes a co-selling motion work beyond the usual “strategic...

Most partnership teams do not fail because the strategy is wrong. They fail because the operating system underneath the strategy is broken. In this episode, Chris Lavoie sits down with Antonio Caridad, Senior Director of Partner Revenue Operations and Strategy at LogicMonitor, for a sharp, tactical conversation on what actually makes partner revenue scalable. Antonio breaks down why partner ops is...

Most companies treat partnerships like a shortcut to pipeline. Jen Kalant breaks down why that approach fails — and what it actually takes to build a partner program that drives real revenue. In this episode, Jen (President & Chief Partnerships Officer at Sanguine) shares a clear, operator-level view on how partnerships really work: starting with the customer lifecycle, choosing the right moti...

In this episode of the Partnership Mastermind Podcast, Chris Lavoie sits down with Gabrielle Backman, Head of Partnerships at Teamtailor, for a sharp conversation on one of the most overlooked drivers of partnership success: Partner selection. Gabrielle makes the case that many partnership problems people try to solve downstream, like weak execution, low accountability, poor internal credibility,...

Most partner teams are busy. Very few are actually driving pipeline. In this episode, Chris Lavoie sits down with Christie Hickman (Head of Partnerships at ClearCompany) to break down what it actually takes to turn partner motions into revenue. The core shift is simple but uncomfortable: Stop treating enablement as the outcome. Start treating it as the starting point. Christie walks through the ex...

Episode — James Prince (Remote) The #1 Metric That Actually Drives Partnerships In this episode of the Partnership Mastermind Podcast , Chris Lavoie sits down with James Prince (Remote) to break down what actually separates partnerships that drive revenue from the ones that just look good in a deck. James is a systems thinker who doesn’t buy into the usual partnership metrics. Not logos. Not TAM....

Episode 35 — Chris Smith (Head of Channel Partnerships at Gusto) Why the Best Partner Leaders Think Like Capital Allocators In this episode of the Partnership Mastermind Podcast , Chris Lavoie sits down with Christopher G. Smith, Head of Channel Partnerships at Gusto , to unpack how elite partnership leaders think about building profitable, scalable partner programs . Chris brings a rare financial...

If you’re new to partnerships — or you’re a partnerships leader hiring / ramping first-time partner pros — this episode is a practical blueprint. Chris Lavoie sits down with Amanda Nielsen , creator of Pivot to Partnerships , a 4-week cohort designed to help strong GTM operators (AEs, CSMs, BDRs, marketers) transition into partnerships the right way — without guessing, and without needing the titl...

In this episode of Partnership Mastermind, Chris Lavoie speaks with Kyle Schroeder, Global VP of Partnerships at Movable Ink, about building partnerships that drive measurable revenue and long-term internal trust. Kyle walks through the evolution of Movable Ink’s partner operating model, the importance of aligning incentives with Sales, and the signals that indicate when it’s time to pivot your GT...

In this episode of Partnership Mastermind , host Chris Lavoie sits down with Dan Caldwell , Technology Partnerships leader at Klaviyo , to unpack what it truly takes to scale tech partnerships inside a major platform ecosystem. Dan shares hard-earned lessons from building a partner function that grew from early-stage motion to a reputable global engine — including partner prioritization, enablemen...

Join Partnership Mastermind for this exclusive, candid conversation with Bryn Jones, CEO and Co-Founder of PartnerStack, the world's largest B2B partner ecosystem platform. In this exclusive episode of Partnership Mastermind , Bryn Jones, CEO and Co-Founder of PartnerStack, breaks down what’s really driving the next era of B2B SaaS growth. As one of the original pioneers of the partner led movemen...

Billy McLennan, Director of Partnerships at Attentive and the first partnerships hire at Gorgias, joins Partnership Mastermind to share what it really takes to build and scale an agency partner ecosystem with revenue accountability. He unpacks the early Gorgias playbook (events + partner marketing as the scalable value lever), explains why “go deep with a few” is often a lazy default, and outlines...

Most B2B SaaS partner programs don’t fail because partnerships “don’t work.” They fail because the IPP is fuzzy, the onboarding is soft, and the forecast is fantasy. In this episode of Partnership Mastermind, I sit down with Cory Snyder, Head of Sales & Partnerships at Outbound Funnel, 2x exit leader, former partnerships builder at Sendoso and Teamwork.com, CSA board alum, and PartnerStack Par...

In this episode of the Partnership Mastermind podcast, I sit down with Marco De Paulis, Senior Director of Partnerships at Loop Returns, someone I’ve respected for years as the "Pipeline King." Marco is the definition of anti-fluff, and in this conversation, we strip away the vanity metrics to talk about what actually drives revenue and retention. We dive deep into the specific mechanics of Partne...

What does it really take to build a world-class SaaS partner program from scratch? In this episode of Partnership Mastermind, I sit down with Jennifer Rima, Director of Partnerships at Apollo.io, to unpack how she built Apollo’s entire partner ecosystem—starting as a literal team of one and scaling it into one of the most respected partner engines in SaaS today. We dive deep into the real work beh...

In this episode of Partnership Mastermind , host Chris Lavoie sits down with Scott Brinker, creator of the MarTech Landscape and one of the most influential voices in platform strategy. Together, they explore the mechanics of moving from product to platform, the power of long-tail partners, and the organizational rewiring required to build a truly customer-centric ecosystem. Brinker also shares hi...

In this episode of Partnership Mastermind , host Chris Lavoie sits down with Bryan Williams, founder of Hockey Stick Advisory and former ecosystem leader at Vend and Xero, for a masterclass on B2B SaaS partnerships and partner ecosystem strategy. Bryan shares how he went from building referral engines in UK gyms to running one of the most respected partnership advisory firms in APAC. He and Chris...

What does it really take to build a top-performing ERP partner motion inside a modern SaaS company? In this episode, I sit down with Colleen Shea, the force behind Commerce’s technology partnerships and one of the sharpest, most process-driven operators in the ERP channel. We go deep on her journey, from fashion & PR to Oracle sales to becoming a powerhouse in partnerships, and how she built C...

What does it actually look like to build a partner ecosystem that helps take a company from $60M to $700M+ and into IPO territory, and then turn that playbook into C-suite leadership? In today’s episode of the Partnership Mastermind Podcast, I sit down with Rich Gardner, former SVP of Global Strategic Partnerships at Klaviyo and now President at Pavilion, the global GTM community serving 10,000+ o...

Chris sits down with Noah Rahimzadeh (Head of Partnerships, Digioh) to discuss how to build and scale partner programs with limited resources while keeping relationships and revenue metrics front and center. They break down co-marketing playbooks, why every case study should include a partner, and how starting with tech integrations before agency relationships helps define your go-to-market ecosys...

In this episode of The Partnership Mastermind, I sit down with Nelson Wang, a proven leader behind the partner ecosystems at Cisco, Box, Miro, and Airtable, and the author of the acclaimed “Partner Principles” newsletter. Nelson shares the frameworks and mindset shifts that power world-class partnerships and customer-obsessed teams. We unpack what truly drives growth in B2B partnerships: why start...

In this episode of the Partnership Mastermind the Podcast, we sit down with Karolina Kondrat, Director of Partnerships at Domaine, one of the leading Shopify agencies in the ecosystem. Karolina’s story is one of evolution, from sales to partnerships, and she’s mastered the art of scaling impact through strategic collaboration. We dive deep into how Domaine built and sustained its leadership in the...

In this insightful episode of The Partnership Mastermind Podcast, host Chris Lavoie sits down with Lauryn Spence, VP of Agency Partnerships at Commerce, to unpack what it really takes to build and scale a world-class partner ecosystem in today’s B2B landscape. Lauryn shares her inspiring journey from SDR to executive leadership, offering hard-earned lessons for anyone look...