How I Hire with Karrie Sanderson @ LiveRamp

Sharing our first How I Hire episode with Karrie Sanderson, Chief of Staff to the CMO at LiveRamp, who has built marketing teams across iconic brands including Coca-Cola, Starbucks, Pfizer, Smartsheet, and Typeform. Her approach to executive hiring combines strength-based team building with hands-on leadership involvement that most senior leaders avoid.

Takeaways for GTM leaders:

#1: Apply the "Hungry, Humble, Smart" Framework Beyond Technical Skills Karrie uses The Table Group's framework to identify candidates who combine intellectual capability with emotional intelligence and curiosity. As she puts it: "There's got to be a level of humbleness to you that you don't know everything. I look for people who are willing to say I don't know." This approach helps GTM leaders hire for long-term team dynamics rather than just domain expertise.

#2: Transform Departures into Strategic Team Optimization When senior roles open, Karrie doesn't automatically backfill the same position. Instead, she evaluates team composition gaps: "It's a moment in time to think, do I need to make some changes to my organization? Is this the right role? Am I just going to routinely backfill it?" This strategic pause prevents GTM teams from perpetuating structural weaknesses.

#3: Leverage Strength-Based Team Building from Day One Drawing from Coca-Cola's methodology, Karrie builds complementary leadership teams where diverse strengths prevent overlap conflicts. She explains: "You'd build these really sometimes quirky and unexpected teams, but they worked really well together because there wasn't a lot of overlap of what people were really good at." GTM leaders can apply this to avoid hiring multiple "maximizers" when they need "wonder and invention" thinkers.

#4: Conduct Initial Screening Interviews to Calibrate Recruiters Unlike most executives who delegate early-stage interviews, Karrie personally screens candidates to ensure proper recruiter calibration. "I probably more than most will take some screening interviews because it helps me understand... is the recruiter that I'm working with calibrating correctly?" This hands-on approach prevents misaligned candidates from reaching final rounds.

#5: Invest in Relationship-First Onboarding for Faster Long-Term Results Karrie prioritizes 2-3 weeks of relationship building before diving into deliverables. "That investment of a couple, two to three weeks... the rest of it will come much more quickly than if you jump in really quick. Like, here's all the decks on the plan and here's all the decks on the budget... it will seem faster but it's not." This approach accelerates performance despite appearing counterintuitive when roles have been vacant.

Listen to the full episode to hear more about Karrie's approach to navigating 2,000+ applications for senior roles and why case studies often backfire in competitive markets.

Share these insights with your GTM network, and if you're exploring new executive opportunities, check out Whispered for access to unposted senior roles.