CROs as Agents of Change - Sona Jepsen

In this episode of The Emblazers: B2B Leaders Igniting Revenue, hosts Amanda and Tim sit down with Sona Jepsen, Chief Revenue Officer at Curinos, to break down the complexities of leading a modern revenue organization. Sona shares her perspective from the CRO hot seat, detailing the strategic orchestration of sales, marketing, and customer success to drive sustainable revenue growth. She explains why pipeline generation, deal qualification, and revenue retention are the pillars of success and how today’s CROs must be both data-driven and deeply human-centered in their approach. As a board member of PayTech Women and an advocate for high-growth environments, Sona also dives into leadership strategies, change management, and the evolving role of AI in sales—offering essential insights for those aspiring to lead large-scale commercial teams. Tune in to learn: The real role of a CRO and what it takes to succeed in the seat How to orchestrate sales, marketing, and partnerships into a unified growth engine Pipeline strategy secrets—from top-of-funnel expansion to rigorous deal qualification Why AI is an efficiency enabler but not a replacement for sales professionals How to build your leadership brand and position yourself for career growth Links and Resources: Connect with Sona Jepsen, Amanda, and Tim Learn more about Curinos Subscribe to The Emblazers for more episodes featuring sales thought leaders Check out the Emblaze revenue community powered by Corporate Visions and start a free Insights membership today! Come see us in person at Emblaze Revenue Summit, April 15th-17th, 2025, in Denver, CO! Experience the ultimate, insights-driven conference for revenue growth leaders and their teams. Learn about Sona Jepsen Sona Jepsen is Chief Revenue Officer at Curinos, where she leads the company's commercial strategy and drives sustainable revenue growth through sales, client relationships, and business development. As a board member of PayTech Women, Sona is passionate about creating high-growth environments and empowering teams to navigate complex markets with both precision and empathy. Sona will share her expertise at the upcoming Emblaze Revenue Summit in Denver, CO, April 15-17, by participating in a forward-looking CRO panel discussion about leading teams in 2025 and beyond, as well as presenting a case study on how sales leaders are leveraging analytics and technology to drive consistent pipeline. Learn about Amanda DeVlugt A veteran of global learning and development, Amanda DeVlugt spent 15 years at Hilton crafting leadership programs and revenue growth strategies that transformed operations across international brands. Her expertise in delivering impactful training has reached over 5,000 professionals through 400+ workshops, while her innovative approach to learning has produced more than 200 educational videos on leadership, engagement, and technical processes. As a trusted advisor to top management companies and a skilled facilitator of agile methodologies, Amanda combines her passion for continuous improvement with a talent for creating transformative learning experiences that drive organizational excellence. Amanda is Director of Member Experience and Success at Emblaze, the revenue leaders’ community powered by Corporate Visions. Learn about Tim Riesterer As Chief Strategy Officer at Corporate Visions and Chief Research Officer at Emblaze revenue leaders’ community, Tim Riesterer is a pioneering force in developing customer conversations that break through the status quo and drive measurable business results. His innovative approach helps companies craft differentiated messages and deploy them through powerful self-service and sales-directed tools that consistently outperform traditional content strategies. A recognized expert in value creation and capture, Tim enables organizations to transform their customer conversations through proven methodologies that elevate their market position and drive sustainable growth.