How do you stand out when your feature list looks like everyone else's? In this episode, Jonathan Leaf, CRO of BambooHR, joins host Kyle Norton (CRO at Owner.com) to break down how he's built competitive edge in undifferentiated markets—from Softchoice to AWS, RingCentral, and now BambooHR.  

 

Jonathan shares how to:  

- Win when products look the same 

- Stay maniacally focused on a specific segment and ICP  

- Use values and leader visibility to drive accountability and performance  

- Build organizational rhythm that fuels execution

 

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Chapters:

00:00 Introducing Jonathan Leaf, CRO of BambooHR  

01:06 Career Journey: From SoftChoice to AWS to BambooHR  

03:14 Inside BambooHR: Scale, Customers, and Focus Areas  

04:35 Defining SoftChoice and Competing Without IP  

06:25 Competing in Crowded, Undifferentiated Markets  

09:37 Building Differentiation Through Mission, Focus, and People  

11:39 How Culture and Customer Experience Win Deals  

17:02 Being Prescriptive: Focusing on the Right Market Segment  

21:42 Hiring for Mission Alignment and Go-to-Market Evolution  

26:38 Testing and Validating Sales Profiles with Data and AI  

29:47 Inspecting Strategy and Operating Cadence for New Growth Bets  

39:12 Why Execution and Focus Win in Competitive Markets  

40:09 Positioning Products Beyond Features and Selling Peace of Mind  

43:15 Point-of-View Positioning and Radical Transparency in Sales  

47:19 When the Sales Experience Reflects Customer Experience  

49:29 Culture as a Revenue Driver and Operationalizing Company Values  

57:55 Maintaining Culture During Change and Leading with Visibility  

03:52 Building Alignment and Empowerment Across the Executive Team  

12:26 Lessons in Career Patience, Growth, and Self-Balance  

13:42 Quickfire: Leadership, Learning, and Hard-Earned Lessons