ZoomInfo CEO Henry Schuck: Sales Cycle Elongation; Gratitude Journaling; Sales Layoffs | E964

Henry Schuck is the Founder and CEO @ ZoomInfo. From ZoomInfo’s founding moment, putting $25,000 on a credit card, Henry has led the company to today, with over $1BN in ARR, a market cap of over $10BN, and a team of over 3,600. This is one of the untold but truly great stories in software. ----------------------------------- Timestamps: 0:00 Who is Henry Schuck? 3:28 What are you running from/towards? 5:36 Henry’s Humble Upbringing 7:58 What if Henry had raised VC money sooner? 10:37 What do you know now that you wish you knew before? 12:11 How Henry Made his Daughter Cry 17:06 Is Frank Slootman wrong about work culture? 18:51 Is it important that employees feel safe in their jobs? 21:07 How to Talk to an Underperforming Employee 22:42 Why Henry Works So Hard 24:09 How to Beat People Who Are Smarter Than You 25:55 Henry’s Biggest Regret 28:13 Gratitude Journaling 32:03 How the Sales Cycle has Elongated 36:04 SaaS Sales Layoffs 38:30 Will we see a recession in 2023? 39:18 Being a Public Market CEO 41:23 How to Manage Employee Morale in a Volatile Market 48:55 Henry’s Favourite Book 49:15 Henry’s Biggest Strength/Weakness 49:45 Henry’s Biggest Mentor 50:13 Henry’s Favourite Board Member 50:44 Henry’s Guilty Pleasure 51:49 What do you believe that few around you believe? 52:43 What Henry Would Like to Change About SaaS 53:02 Henry’s 5-year Plan ----------------------------------- In Today’s Episode with Henry Schuck We Discuss: 1. From a $5,000 College Fund to Founding a $10BN Company: Why did Henry always believe early in life that he would be successful? Along the way doubt sets in, what did Henry do to combat that doubt when he questioned his own ability and potential? What does Henry believe he is running from? What is he running towards? How did seeing the work ethic of his single mother impact his work ethic with ZoomInfo? 2. Henry Schuck: The Leader: What does Henry believe is the difference between trust vs safety in team culture? Why does Henry believe safety is built through performance? How does Henry manage and communicate underperformance? How long do you give an under-performer? Why does Henry believe that happier teams outperform? What does Henry do deliberately and specifically to drive happiness in the business? ZoomInfo is magnitudes larger than some competitors who receive a lot more attention, how does Henry think about this? How does he manage his own ego as a leader today? 3. Henry Schuck: A Leader in a Changing Market: How does Henry maintain internal morale when employees see their stock options get smashed every day? Does it suck to be a public company CEO in the current market? What element is the worst? How are the buying patterns and behaviors of customers changing in 2023 vs 2021? How does this impact sales cycle, retention rates, upsell plans and the structure of the customer success teams? Dec 2023, will we be in a better or worse macroeconomic position? 4. Henry Schuck: Relationship to Money and Fatherhood: How does henry evaluate his relationship with money today? How has it changed over time? Why does Henry very rarely fly private planes? What does he believe this says about his values? How does Henry instill the same desire and worth ethic within his children despite being a billionaire? What does Henry know now that he wishes he could give to his 23 year old self founding the company? ----------------------------------- Subscribe to the Podcast: https://www.thetwentyminutevc.com/henry-schuck/ Follow Harry Stebbings on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HarryStebbings Follow Henry Schuck on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HenryLSchuck Follow 20VC on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/20vc_reels Follow 20VC on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@20vc_tok ----------------------------------- #HenrySchuck #ZoomInfo #HarryStebbings #20vc #venturecapital #businessadvice #saassales #techlayoffs