When scaling a multi-product revenue organization, conventional wisdom suggests standardizing everything under a single operating model to drive efficiency and speed. Yet, as I learned in my recent conversation with Jeff Perry, CRO of Carta, this seemingly logical approach can be deeply flawed.
Jeff brings over two decades of revenue leadership experience to this discussion. After starting his career at Merrill Lynch, he spent 13 years at Oracle, rising from sales representative to VP of Sales. He then served as VP of Commercial SMB Sales at DocuSign before joining Carta six and a half years ago. For the last four years as CRO, he has overseen sales, solutions engineering, and business development.
Under Jeff's leadership, Carta has grown from $20M to $450M in ARR by taking a more nuanced path – one that challenges our basic assumptions about organizational design. Drawing on his experience building sales machines at Oracle and DocuSign, Jeff has crafted an approach at Carta that offers crucial insights for revenue leaders managing increasing complexity.
Listen to Jeff's episode on Apple and Spotify.
The Multi-Product Reality
Carta effectively operates as three distinct businesses under one roof. The core Corporations Business, representing roughly 67% of revenue, provides cap table management software to over 40,000 startups. This high-velocity business operates on rapid 14-day sales cycles and has successfully expanded through multiple add-on products including compensation benchmarking and tax advisory services.
The Fund Administration arm, contributing approximately 25% of revenue, serves venture capital firms with a comprehensive fund management platform. This business has grown to support 2,500+ VC firms managing over 10,000 funds, but operates on much longer 90+ day enterprise sales cycles. The business continues to expand through a sophisticated cross-sell motion.
Their newest venture, Private Equity Solutions, currently accounts for 10% of revenue and represents their most complex offering. This hybrid business serves both PE firms and their portfolio companies, requiring significant market education and combining aspects of both previous models.
The Organizational Design Challenge
The fundamental tension in multi-product organizations is between specialization and scalability. Jeff's approach at Carta provides a fascinating framework for navigating this challenge through three core principles.
Match Structure to Maturity
Each business unit requires a different operating model based on its stage of development. The Corporations business focuses on optimization and efficiency, having reached significant scale. Fund Administration emphasizes scaling and expansion, while the PE division prioritizes market education and evangelism.
Rather than force-fitting a single model across these diverse businesses, Carta adapts its approach through distinct marketing strategies, specialized sales motions, and tailored enablement programs for each segment. This flexibility has proven crucial to their success.
Strategic Specialization
A key insight from Carta is knowing precisely when to specialize versus generalize. Sales representatives remain dedicated to specific business units, allowing them to develop deep expertise in their market segment. Marketing campaigns and product positioning are similarly specialized to address the unique needs and buying patterns of each customer type.
However, Carta takes a different approach with their Solutions Engineers, who are being cross-trained across all products. This enables them to be flexible across multiple business units.
Evolution Through Data
Jeff emphasizes making structural decisions based on clear market signals rather than gut feel or previous playbooks. The initial specialization of their PE business, for instance, was triggered when they noticed 10% of their inbound demand coming from PE firms. This data-driven approach extends to team structure and service model decisions, with conversion metrics and customer feedback serving as key inputs.
The Leadership Framework
For revenue leaders managing similar complexity, Jeff's mental model provides valuable guidance. He starts with a relentless focus on inputs, noting that "the number will be what the number is. Are we doing the right things with the inputs on a daily basis?"
This philosophy extends to organizational decision-making, where Jeff emphasizes building consensus through options. Rather than pushing for immediate agreement, his team generates multiple potential approaches and involves key stakeholders in evaluation. Often, they land on hybrid solutions that combine the best elements of various proposals.
Customer experience serves as the north star for these decisions. Carta prioritizes smooth implementation over rapid closes, invests in specialized delivery teams for each segment, and maintains a strong focus on customer education and enablement.
Building for the Future
While every organization faces unique challenges, several frameworks can help guide multi-product strategy. Consider analyzing each segment through a Jobs-to-be-Done lens, mapping customer journeys across products, and establishing robust feedback loops. Regular assessment of sales process maturity helps identify areas for improvement. Modern technology can support this complexity through product adoption analytics, customer success health scoring, and revenue intelligence solutions.
Remember, the goal isn't to eliminate complexity but to manage it effectively while maintaining growth velocity. As Jeff notes: "I don't know that anyone in go-to-market has solved the exact right org alignment... You need to really dig in with the data and analytics of what's working and what's not working."
The key is building a system flexible enough to evolve while maintaining the focus and specialization needed to serve each market effectively. For revenue leaders managing increasing product complexity, Carta's journey offers valuable lessons in balancing standardization and specialization. The path forward isn't about finding the perfect model, but rather creating a framework that can adapt as your business grows.
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