SELLEST OSAST
Summary/Episode Description:
In this episode of The Seat, Ray Erickson sits down with Chad Hickey, Founder and CEO of Givsly, for an unfiltered conversation about the career moments, mindset shifts, and late-night decisions that led him to build one of the most innovative companies in advertising today. He opens up about imposter syndrome at the executive level, what turning 40 unlocked in him, and how a volunteer dinner with the CMO of McDonald's China sparked the idea that became Givsly. Chad also shares his will-versus-skill hiring philosophy, what great sales leaders are getting wrong in today's environment, and why the rise of AI is the single biggest opportunity for hungry young professionals to prove their value. Whether you're an aspiring leader, a current executive, or a founder figuring it out in real time, this one's for you.
Key Themes:
- Will vs. skill building teams on hunger, not pedigree
- Scaling from startup scrappiness to $100M what year one of building really looks like
- Imposter syndrome at the CRO and CEO level, and why over-preparation is the antidote
- The founder's turning point
- Givsly's origin
- Values alignment as commerce behavior, not cause marketing
- Leading through uncertainty, the pandemic, pivoting products, and planning for every scenario
- Mentorship without titles, how great leaders shape others informally
- AI, human value, and why this is the moment for young sales professionals to double down
Chapters:
02:16 – University of Arkansas, journalism, and selling print ads in college
03:49 – What digital advertising looked like in its infancy
05:11 – Seven years at AJC, from $18 restaurant classifieds to leading digital sales
09:36 – Doing the job before you have the title
10:51 – Building the national team and scaling to $100M
18:54 – The CRO seat: P&L lessons, imposter syndrome, and learning from the inside
22:09 – Placed, the Snap acquisition, Italy, and the decision to found Givsly
33:25 – Mentorship, Andy Daidone, and knowing the details and the data
36:36 – Advice for aspiring sales leaders: run it like your own business
41:09 – Lightning Round
Keywords:
Chad Hickey, Givsly, values-based advertising, purpose-driven marketing, founder story, entrepreneurship, CRO, Chief Revenue Officer, ad tech, mobile advertising, location data, GroundTruth, xAd, Placed, Snap acquisition, sales leadership, revenue leadership, imposter syndrome, will vs skill, startup founder, media advertising, nonprofit, social impact, sales career advice, leadership development, mentorship, building a sales team, advertising industry, performance marketing, brand values, cause marketing, commerce behavior, podcast, career journey
Chad's Bio:
Chad Hickey is the Founder and CEO of Givsly, the leading values-based advertising and marketing platform. Since 2019, Givsly has contributed over $4 million to 500+ nonprofits while driving measurable results for hundreds of brand and agency partners, earning recognition in Fast Company's World Changing Ideas Awards. Prior to founding Givsly, Chad spent 17 years leading revenue teams in mobile and location advertising, including scaling GroundTruth to over $100 million in annual revenue and leading sales at Placed through its acquisition by Snap.
Ray's Bio:
Ray Erickson is the host of The Seat, a podcast featuring 1:1 conversations with revenue leaders across media, marketing, and advertising, unpacking the early days, mentors, setbacks, and pivotal moments that shaped how they lead today. Ray is a sales leader with over 20 years in ad-tech, CTV, and digital media, and currently serves as the first NYC sales hire at Intuit MediaLabs, where he is building out the company's east coast presence. He created The Seat to sharpen his own leadership edge while paying it forward to the next generation of aspiring sales leaders.
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LinkedIn: The Seat Podcast (LinkedIn Page)
Host: Ray Erickson (LinkedIn)
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