The Modern GTM Executive: The Rise of Chief Revenue Architects

July 2025

Author

Joey Brodsky
July 01, 2025

Hello and welcome to The Modern GTM Executive by Lunar Executive Search - read by 2,000+ leading Sales, Marketing, and Executive Leaders within Growth-Stage Technology businesses. We’re here to help people redefine their perspective on modern revenue acquisition models, understand what talent & skills are necessary to do so, and how to find the to 10% of GTM Leaders to execute. 

Is the Modern CRO Becoming Obsolete? 

Enterprise buying journeys are forcing a new breed of revenue leadership. 

There’s a quiet revolution happening in B2B go-to-market and it’s putting intense pressure on the traditional CRO model. 

A decade ago, the CRO was the ultimate sales machine: hired to build massive outbound teams, crank dials, push pipeline, and close big deals. But today, the way customers buy is wildly different:

  • Self-serve is creeping up-market. 

  • Community & peer networks shape vendor lists before a rep ever gets called. 

  • PLG & freemium motions mean the first “sale” often happens without sales. 

  • Enterprise deals still exist, but buyers expect hands-off education long before a demo. 

In our executive searches across AI, SaaS, and cybersecurity companies this year, we’re seeing a clear pattern: Boards aren’t looking for a pure sales leader anymore. They want a CRO who can design revenue architecture across multiple buying motions.

The new CRO mandate 

The modern CRO needs to: 

  • Build GTM engines that mix direct sales, PLG, inbound, partner, and even community-driven growth. 

  • Act more like a chief orchestrator of revenue ecosystems, working tightly with marketing, product, and customer success. 

  • Align the org around lifetime value, not just new logos. 

It’s a massive mindset shift from brute-force pipeline to strategic design of how buyers flow through your business. 
 
The most significant reason why this is happening? Buyers are increasingly more informed than they ever have been before. They have more access to data, case-studies, opinions of peers, pricing, visuals, etc – than they have ever had before in the history of buying literally anything. 
 
The role of the sales person (and the sales leader) is really not to inform and sell anymore. It's to attract attention, validate ideas, bring context to nuanced & relevant value, and help navigate procurement & pricing (but increasingly less so). This visual is a quick showcase of how quickly we have led to this.  

Skills needed to be successful in this model are changing, and Founders/CEOs are sourcing executive talent that aligns better for the future as these 'trends' become complete common place. A few things that stand out: 

  • Diverse, Non-Linear Career Paths: Executives are increasingly looking for sales leaders with varied backgrounds, such as experience across client acquisition models (e.g., outbound, inbound, PLG), hands-on roles in customer success (CS) and marketing beyond just alignment with counterparts, and even technical expertise from pre-sales, product management, or engineering roles. For example, McKinsey’s 2023 report notes that CROs with cross-functional experience drive 1.8x higher revenue growth in Fortune 100 companies. 

  • Proficiency in Data-Driven Revenue Architecture: Modern CROs must leverage analytics to optimize hybrid GTM strategies, integrating self-serve, PLG, and enterprise sales. 

  • Expertise in Content and Digital Engagement: With 75% of B2B buyers preferring rep-free experiences (Gartner, 2023), CROs need to oversee content strategies that educate buyers early. This includes managing digital touchpoints like SEO, webinars, and community platforms, as 88% of buyers start research online (Saleslion, 2023 – probably 99-100% today). 

  • And of course: Adaptability to Emerging Technologies: Across the market, CROs must understand how technologies like AI-driven personalization or intent data shape buying behavior. And this is just the start – they need to have experimental mindsets – be the type of person who is constantly exploring new tech, new markets, new engagement strategies, because who knows what's coming out next month/quarter/year. 

What this means for their teams 

This change is reshaping how CROs build their orgs. Here are the highlights and the data that supports them: 

  • Smaller, more specialized sales teams: 

    • Reps aren’t just cold-calling; they’re handling hand-raisers, expansion, or deeply technical solution sales. Reps aren’t just cold-calling; they’re handling hand-raisers, expansion, or deeply technical solution sales. Gartner’s 2024 report notes that high-performing B2B sales teams are 30% smaller than a decade ago, focusing on high-value, consultative roles over high-volume outbound. 

  • More technical talent: 

    • In SaaS & AI, AEs increasingly come from solution engineering or product backgrounds. Selling is consultative, not transactional. 

    • The rise of the Field CTO/CISO role is in-line with this as well – adding a new layer of technical selling to the team, more focused on community, engagement, and evangelism. 

  • A diverse GTM bench: 

    • You’re as likely to see community leads, content-driven evangelists, and marketing ops architects reporting into the CRO as old-school quota carriers. A 2025 WebFX study found that 70% of B2B companies now include community managers in GTM teams to leverage peer networks, which influence 75% of vendor selections. 

  • Data Analysts Embedded in Revenue Teams:  

    • CROs are integrating data scientists and analysts into GTM teams to optimize funnels and track buyer intent. A 2023 McKinsey report highlights that companies with embedded analytics teams achieve 15–20% higher conversion rates in PLG and self-serve motions. 

  • Customer Success as a Revenue Driver:  

    • With PLG and freemium models, customer success (CS) teams are critical for expansion and retention, often reporting directly to the CRO. HubSpot’s 2024 Sales Trends Report shows that 60% of SaaS companies now tie CS metrics (e.g., Net Promoter Score) to revenue goals. 

  • Content Creators and Digital Strategists:  

    • To support the 90% of the buyer journey completed independently (Advertising Week, 2025), CROs are hiring content specialists and SEO experts to build educational assets. A 2024 cro.media article notes that 80% of enterprise SaaS companies rely on content marketing to shorten sales cycles by 20%. 

  • Partnership and Ecosystem Managers:  

    • In AI and cybersecurity, CROs are building teams to manage strategic partnerships (e.g., AWS, Google Cloud) that amplify PLG and enterprise sales. McKinsey’s 2022 analysis of CrowdStrike’s 65% ARR growth credits partnership managers for 30% of new customer acquisitions. 

The Path Forward for Revenue Leadership 

The B2B go-to-market landscape is no longer what it was a decade ago, and the traditional CRO role is evolving to meet these new realities. Buyers are more autonomous, digitally savvy, and influenced by communities, demanding a revenue strategy that blends self-serve, product-led growth, and consultative enterprise sales. This shift requires CROs to be architects of revenue, not just sales leaders, with the ability to orchestrate diverse teams and leverage technology to meet buyers where they are. 

For Founders and CEOs, this means rethinking how you build and empower your revenue organizations. Seek leaders with versatile backgrounds who can navigate hybrid buying motions, integrate data-driven insights, and foster cross-functional collaboration. Equip your teams with specialized roles—data analysts, content strategists, customer success experts, and partnership managers—to align with the modern buyer’s journey. The companies that thrive will be those that adapt now, building agile, buyer-centric revenue engines that anticipate the future of B2B buying. 

As these trends become the norm, the question isn’t whether the CRO role is obsolete—it’s whether your organization is ready to redefine it. The time to act is now: source talent, retool teams, and embrace the new era of revenue leadership to stay ahead in AI, SaaS, and cybersecurity markets. 

Latest Job Opportunities 

We've got a number of active opportunities across our portfolio of software clients at Lunar Executive Search currently. 

A few select openings: 

  • Head of Federal Sales - Cyber Vendor - DC Area 

  • Field CISO / Director of SE - Cyber Vendor - Remote 

  • Regional Sales Director - MSSP – TOLA 

  • Regional Sales Director - MSSP - TOLA 

  • Sales Director - PenTesting - Remote 

  • Enterprise Account Executive - Manufacturing SaaS - SouthEast 

  • Sales Engineer (Strategic Partnerships) - Cyber Vendor - Remote 

  • Sales Engineer - Cyber Vendor - Remote 

I'm also always looking to speak to great candidates for future roles: 

  • Chief Revenue Officer - Venture/PE-Backed - SaaS/Cyber/AI 

  • Chief Marketing Officer - Venture/PE-Backed - SaaS/Cyber/AI 

  • VP of Product Marketing - Venture/PE-Backed - SaaS/Cyber/AI 

  • VP of Partnerships - Venture/PE-Backed - SaaS/Cyber/AI

Highlights from The GTM Kickback! Podcast 

In the last month, we had 1 fantastic interview on The GTM Kickback!, with many more already booked and recorded on the way. 

Check out my interview with the great and powerful Lacey Miller - Optimizing for the AI Era: GEO, AIVO & the Future of Search | The GTM Kickback #80 w/ Lacey Miller

Want to be a guest? Ping me on LinkedIn! 😎 

We're looking for: High-performance GTM Operators, VC/PE Investors in SaaS, and Leading GTM Consultants for early stage technology businesses 

New to "The GTM Kickback!"? Subscribe to the podcast! 

This newsletter is powered by Lunar Executive Search - Finding Premier GTM Talent for Growth Stage Tech Businesses. 

We help disruptive technology companies grow. For venture-funded start-ups and PE-backed enterprise software firms, we have a track record in finding the Top 10% of Sales and Marketing Leadership Talent, and doing so swiftly. 

Reach out to me here: [email protected] 

 

Till next time, 

Joey