Tom Dunlop is cofounder and CEO of Summize, a CLM solution, and a former General Counsel for high-growth technology companies.
In 2018, our company launched a new approach to contract lifecycle management (CLM) that disrupted the market. From our headquarters in Manchester, U.K., we quickly scaled across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. I say this not to boast but to set the stage for what came next: the inevitable move into the U.S. market.
We didn’t want to merely set up offices; we wanted to create a U.S. hub and second headquarters. To do so, we created a plan entailing four distinct phases. The following drills down on each, offering insight into our thoughts at the time, advice based on what did and didn’t work and how it facilitated the opening of our Boston headquarters in 2023.
Phase One: Picking The Right Location
We chose Boston for many reasons. When we tested our ideal customer profile (ICP), we learned there was a high concentration of companies matching these criteria in the region. Most influential, though, was its similarities to Manchester, U.K., in some fundamental ways.
For instance, both cities appreciate education and startups, resulting in a healthy pool of talent. Then there’s that Boston Strong spirit highlighted by the city’s response to the Boston Marathon bombings—Manchester also suffered an arena bombing just a few years later. As a result, both cities have unique grit and tenacity. Basically, you’re looking for your geographic cousin, one that’s a familiar and flattering match.
Find that location, and you’ll find candidates who likely share your beliefs and ethics. This will enable your culture to take root and naturally grow with the new entity itself.
Phase Two: Building A Founding Team
It was essential that we built a team to go to the States and execute our strategy. Big companies usually hire locally and expect recruits to roll out plans they’ve been testing. We took a different approach, sending employees who had been with the company for a minimum of two years, which, due to accelerated growth, amounted to much more real-world experience.
Look for specific character traits when assembling your founding team. Be sure candidates culturally bleed your values. Select employees that co-workers come to with problems, and further, they should be engaged in distilling your company culture.
Then, task your team with replicating your existing cultural foundation. The first handful should set the culture for the next 10. That group should do so for the next 20 and so on. This evolving process is a good way to naturally achieve the right fit.
Phase Three: A New Approach To New Customers
When it came to building our customer prospecting base, we set up sales and outreach campaigns that mirrored our highest-performing U.K. and EMEA initiatives. We pinpointed which converted best, use cases that resonated most and, from a pure sales funnel perspective, which produced the highest deal value. Most importantly, we understood the type of customer we wanted, enabling us to build out the right go-to-market (GTM) strategy.
It’s best to start from scratch. Don’t think that just because an approach had worked before—in terms of such things as verticals, messaging and product functionality—it would resonate in another market. What you shouldn’t do is look to existing customers and ask, “Can we now work with your U.S. office?” This will only provide false validation when you really need to know if a GTM strategy would work in a new region on its own. You won’t get the right feedback riding on the coattails of existing customers.
Another area I recommend emphasising is developing referenceable customers in your new market. Set your sights on targets in at least three distinct verticals—this will prove you have a viable solution. When you can replicate GTM motion across your verticals, you’ll be ready to invest money abroad.
Phase Four: Adjusting By Region And Market Maturity
Next comes the test and evaluation phase. Foremost, we wanted to understand how educated the market was on CLM technology. To this end, activities that produced the best results included sitting in on prospect calls, testing different scripts and identifying pain points and use-case examples that would hit home. Also critical was assessing the maturity of their CLM knowledge, as this varied significantly by region.
For example, we found the U.S. market was more mature. There wasn’t a need to educate prospects on the value of CLMs as in other parts of the world. For the U.K. market, we had to lead with CLM education and then lean into our competitive differentiators and a new approach. In the U.S. market, prospects were already up to speed, likely because competitors had spent hundreds of millions educating the market for us.
Invest in healthy due diligence upfront. It can allow you to make effective course corrections that’ll keep you from going down rabbit holes that eat up time and resources and stall plans.
Owning It
At the start, our founding team was from the U.K., with two exceptions. As we’ve grown, the balance of British to American staff has shifted organically. There are now twice as many U.S. staff, and this ratio will continue to evolve in the same direction. We found the best talent to hire are those who believe a company has a purpose and that they do, too. They know they’ve got a role to play, and it’s toward a mission they believe in. They also understand how they’ll contribute.
To further encourage this, don’t be afraid to give staff ownership—that includes a stake in the game. Consider opening a stock option pool to all employees, which shows you walk the talk. Trendy offices and sensational benefits aren’t necessary and can actually lead to a culture of entitlement that’s impossible to reverse. Companies wave shiny things to get people in, knowing full well it won’t boost retention.
We, on the other hand, were in this for the long haul. If you are, too, building mutual commitment is essential for expansion success.
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