Noah Marks has spent the last decade building the go-to-market engine inside some of the most recognizable names in B2B software — Salesforce, Okta, WalkMe, Udemy, and Diligent — and he's doing it again at ECI Software Solutions. He's also the co-founder of GTM Council, which started ten years ago as a dozen ops leaders comparing notes because nobody else would tell them the truth about the tools they were being forced to implement.

What makes Noah unique is that he sits on both sides of the table: the operator who is always a step ahead of what the software can actually do, and the executive who signs the checks. And he has landed on a conclusion that should make every vendor nervous. He doesn't want to buy products anymore. He wants to buy expertise.

In this conversation with LeanScale co-founder Anthony Enrico, Noah makes the case that the software industry is quickly becoming a services industry — that the technology moat is gone, that the next moat is thought leadership you can actually learn from, and that any product a CRO can vibe code over a weekend was never a product in the first place. Along the way: build versus buy, the margin math behind services-as-SaaS, the three weaknesses on every sales team he's ever audited, and how to become the pipeline czar at your company.

WHAT YOU'LL LEARNWhy Noah won't buy another vendor — and what he'll pay a premium for insteadThe compensation story: a six-person team, a seven-figure budget, and a problem that still landed back on his deskWhy so many GTM vendors stalled — great CEOs who never sat in the operator's seatThe build-versus-buy answer GTM Council keeps landing on: buy the infrastructure, build the intelligenceWhether services revenue is still SaaS — and what that does to the multipleThe margin math: what happens when 90% software margins meet real AI costsWhy the favorite product beats the best product every time"If you have a product that can get vibe coded by a CRO, you do not have a product"The three weaknesses Noah says he'll find on any sales team in the worldHow to become the pipeline czar — and why it's worth tens of millions at exit

CHAPTERS00:00 — Cold open + intro01:51 — "I don't ever want to buy a vendor again"04:31 — The $1M comp team that still handed the problem back07:26 — Why GTM vendors stalled: CEOs who never sat in the seat10:12 — Build vs. buy inside GTM Council12:55 — Is services revenue still SaaS?16:30 — The margin math: 90% software meets the AI bill18:38 — Favorite product beats best product20:50 — Full accountability: buy the outcome, not the tool25:18 — "If a CRO can vibe code it, you don't have a product"29:56 — Have a point of view or lose mind share31:50 — Buy the infrastructure, build the intelligence34:12 — The three weaknesses on every sales team40:41 — A CRO is an architect, not a VP of Sales with a new title44:34 — How to become the pipeline czar50:58 — The origin of GTM Council

ABOUT THE GUESTNoah Marks is SVP of Customer Success & Operations at ECI Software Solutions and the co-founder of GTM Council, a private community of roughly 150 senior go-to-market operators. He has spent the last decade building go-to-market engines inside some of the most recognizable names in B2B software — Salesforce, Okta, WalkMe, Udemy, and Diligent. GTM Council also produces Stacked GTM, the podcast Noah co-hosts with Andy Mowat.

ABOUT THE LEANSCALE PODCASTThe LeanScale Podcast is the show for GTM operators building the next generation of revenue infrastructure. Hosted by Anthony Enrico, co-founder of LeanScale.

▶ Learn more: https://www.leanscale.team▶ Follow Anthony on LinkedIn▶ Follow Noah on LinkedIn▶ Learn more about GTM Council and the Stacked GTM podcast

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I Don't Want Your Product. I Want Your Expertise. | Noah Marks, GTM Council

The LeanScale Podcast with Anthony Enrico

I Don't Want Your Product. I Want Your Expertise. | Noah Marks, GTM Council