Podcast Summary: Owning the Outcome

Episode: HubSpot's New Chief Sales Officer on Partners, AI, and Upmarket
Host: Sarah McDevitt (Sr. Director of Partner Strategy, HubSpot)
Guest: David Cohen (Chief Sales Officer, HubSpot)
Date: August 27, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation with David Cohen, HubSpot’s new Chief Sales Officer, about the evolving role of HubSpot’s partner ecosystem, the impact of AI transformation, and opportunity areas as HubSpot pushes further upmarket. Cohen, a veteran in both consulting and sales, shares his thoughts on aligning culture and strategy, the power of partners in complex change, and how HubSpot and its partners can "grow better together" in an AI-first world.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. David Cohen’s Background and Values

• Origins: Began career at Anderson Consulting, founded his own consultancy, major sales leadership at LinkedIn, recently joined HubSpot (01:36–02:30).
• Motivation for Joining HubSpot:
  • Sought a world-class team and a mission-driven, values-aligned culture.
  • “My two by two matrix is loving the work you do and loving the people with whom you do it. And if I find myself in the top right corner of that two by two, then I'm in the right place.” (04:55, David Cohen)
• Early Impressions:
  • "I'm even more excited about the company that I joined... what I thought I was signing up for is what I've actually purchased." (05:56, David Cohen)

2. The Power and Evolution of the Partner Ecosystem

• Partner Impact Measured:
  • "The data is incredibly telling when it comes to when our partners are involved with our customers. We just see better results across the board... higher retention rates, better usage, shorter sales cycles." (08:50, David Cohen)
• Comparison to Management Consulting:
  • Partners are likened to management consultants guiding clients through technological and business transitions.
  • “When I think about partners, I actually put them in exactly the same world that I came from... shepherding our customers through this period of significant change.” (00:00, David Cohen)
• AI as an Inflection Point:
  • Partners are crucial for helping customers adopt and derive value from AI, just as consultants were during previous shifts like on-prem to SaaS.

3. Strengthening the Joint Sales Motion

• Challenges Identified:
  • Massive partner network and distributed sales teams create complexity—hard for reps to find the ‘right partner for the job’.
  • Need smarter partner-to-opportunity matching, where AI could play a pivotal role (12:46, David Cohen).
• Advice for Partners:
  • “Show us what you've done. Give us the stories, the anecdotes, the white papers, the case studies... that helps us identify the right partner.” (15:05, David Cohen)

4. Balancing Speed, Depth, and Customer Value

• Sales Philosophy:
  • “The way to win bigger deals is to solve bigger problems... you start peeling back the onion until you've gotten to the core of the issue.” (17:09, David Cohen)
  • Trade-off: Fast, smaller deals vs. deep, complex solutions (18:22, David Cohen)
• Ongoing Improvement:
  • Both sales and partner teams are evolving—they strive to grow closer and get better at balancing speed with value.

5. What HubSpot Needs from Partners in an AI-First World

• Call to Action:
  • Partners should become AI-proficient, build repeatable AI-driven solutions, and bring unique value on top of what HubSpot offers.
  • Real-world example: Partners leveraging customer-specific data and workflows to deliver unique, repeatable solutions (19:18, David Cohen).
• Reinforcing Competitive Advantage:
  • “They have figured it out... they have taken the first step in becoming AI first.” (20:35, David Cohen)

6. Unifying Programs: Apps & Solutions Partners Upmarket

• Rationale for Unification:
  • "I don't believe that upmarket exists without the interplay between apps and partners. The complex needs of our upmarket customers are... indistinguishable from the app ecosystem.” (22:32, David Cohen)
• Future Vision:
  • App and partner ecosystems under one umbrella unlock quicker, more comprehensive customer solutions.
  • AI-driven apps are proliferating—HubSpot and partners must discern which create real results and move fast to implement them (24:00, David Cohen).
• On the State of Play:
  • “It’s the first inning... this is such an exciting time.” (24:57, David Cohen).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On HubSpot’s Culture:
  • “It felt like I was at home in some ways... culture plays out in different ways and personal values play out in a whole host of different ways.” (04:13–05:44, David Cohen)
• Measuring Partner Value:
  • “We just see better results across the board... almost any metric that you look at is improved when you look at it through the partner lens.” (08:50, David Cohen)
• AI Transformation:
  • “There’s a tremendous appetite for AI adoption... but the how, I think, is still a big question mark for a lot of companies.” (11:57, David Cohen)
• Advice for Partners:
  • “Focus drives excellence... to the extent that our partners can say hey... here's what we're really great at, and here's where we're investing a lot of our resources...” (13:36, David Cohen)
• Partners Showcasing Results:
  • “Show us what you’ve done... the more examples we can bring, the better.” (15:06, David Cohen)
• On App Ecosystem:
  • "I like to say, where there’s a gap, there’s an app." (21:47, Sarah McDevitt)
• On Unification:
  • “The app ecosystem and the partner ecosystem are going to be under the same umbrella. Yeah, that probably should have happened a long time ago.” (23:09, David Cohen)
• Looking Ahead:
  • “It’s the first inning and I think this is like, it’s such an exciting time. Far more exciting than baseball.” (24:57, David Cohen)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• David’s Background & Values: 01:36–04:55
• Joining HubSpot, Early Impressions: 05:43–08:01
• Partner Ecosystem Value & Evolution: 08:50–12:04
• Improving Internal/Partner Collaboration: 12:46–15:05
• Balancing Speed and Depth in Sales: 16:26–18:22
• What HubSpot Needs from Partners (AI): 19:18–21:27
• Unifying Partner & App Programs, Upmarket Strategy: 21:27–24:54

Conclusion

David Cohen sees enormous opportunity in the evolving interplay between HubSpot, its partners, and the rise of AI. The keys: partners acting as consultative guides through complex change, collaborating smarter and faster with internal teams, and building repeatable, AI-driven solutions that differentiate both themselves and HubSpot upmarket. The message to partners is clear: double down on your expertise, showcase your impact, and lean into AI—there’s room at the top if you “own the outcome” together.