YoY growth positioned our client for its critical next chapter for which a VP Product was needed.

The Search Statistics 

  1. Number of days to the first round of resumes: 18
  2. Number of candidates considered: 27
  3. Number of candidates interviewed: 22
  4. Number of business days to complete the search: 106

 

The Search

Year-over-year revenue growth and the changing needs of the education industry positioned our client for its critical next chapter.

To unlock scale across the North American market, a VP of Product Management was needed. The incoming VP would be responsible for developing the product strategy and roadmap and would realize the opportunity to add value to school districts in the North American market.

 

The Client 

A Canadian edtech provider that serves K-12 school districts across North America.

 

Search Requirements 

All candidates were required to have experience working as the senior-most product leader of a software company, reporting to a C-level executive. They also needed experience defining and architecting a product roadmap, applying a build/ buy/partner strategy to enable growth at scale, as well as having shipped B2B SaaS enterprise solutions.

Candidates needed to be comfortable moving between a player/coach role and able to get into the weeds to become the company’s product expert. A practical leader able to manage in a pragmatic way to achieve near-term wins while working within a 1-3 year business plan.

Most importantly, our client needed a champion of Product Management best practices.

 

The Hire

This candidate had over 25 years of employment experience with 20 years spent in product management for various B2B SaaS organizations.

Experience leading product for a complex enterprise solution integrated into business applications and had a similar buying experience to our client’s solution. They had built and managed product teams larger than 10+ people while influencing product marketing and GTM strategy. Managed a multi-product portfolio which required a build/buy/ partner point of view on where to invest for greatest ROI

Past experience included identifying, evaluating, and leading the integration of 2 acquisitions and successfully leading the product growth/monetization roadmap, which ultimately resulted in an exit for the company.  

This US based hire had an Economics Degree, MBA & 2 Pragmatic Certifications. Since joining this candidate has gelled with the team and has started to develop a path forward for product and the product roadmap.

 

"Our search lead did a great job understanding our business and exactly what it was that we were looking for. Martyn Bassett Associates worked really well with our super fast-paced and high energy leadership team and delivered great candidates."

–– Head of Talent & Culture  

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When hiring our first CPO, we were looking to branch out beyond our network. The Martyn Bassett Associates team was able to source candidates that we were wanting, but unable to get on our own. We were presented with a wide range of fantastic candidates.

Robert Chen
Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Almi

What I love about working with this team is they’re there to help. I have weird requests, they jump on the phone and we figure it out. I need someone in a hurry, they hustle. I maybe need someone ages from now, they keep an eye out. I have a question about a salary, or am unsure about how to approach something – they know. We’ve used them for a few years, and we’ve had nothing but great experience working together. Wish I had found them a few years sooner.

Alan Smith
Co-Founder/CEO, Strategyzer

We were impressed with both the speed and the high-calibre of candidates we had to choose from. Martyn Bassett Associates really listen to what you’re looking for and the entire process is very smooth and stress-free.

Roger Barlow
CEO & Co-Founder, Diversys

The entire Martyn Bassett team was easy to work with and we were able to quickly develop an open and transparent partnership. Leveraging their strong expertise and extensive talent network, they helped us find the technology sales leaders and management services experts we needed.

Erin McLean
SVP, Marketing & Human Resources, Herjavec Group

A true value-adding partner in identifying talent. The team at Martyn Bassett Associates were quick to zero-in on our requirements and rigorous in pre-qualifying candidates for consideration. They are focused and fast! Their expertise and experience added value throughout the process and resulted in an outstanding final outcome for Roadpost. This is a team that will strive to exceed expectations.

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VP Marketing, Roadpost