E33: What It Takes to Be a Revenue Leader in the AI Era with Mike Donohue, CRO of 11x

What happens when a company completely replaces its SDR team with AI? In this episode, Kyle Norton sits down with Mike Donahue, CRO at 11X, to unpack how digital workers—AI agents named Alice and Julian—now generate over 90% of the company's pipeline. Mike shares how 11X is pioneering an AI-native go-to-market model, where full-cycle reps are supported by centralized agent orchestration, and where growth marketing owns what used to be outbound sales. You'll hear how AI is reshaping sales roles, why traditional BDR hiring may soon be obsolete, and what CROs must learn today to stay relevant tomorrow. StackOptimise AI Course here New episodes of The Revenue Leadership Podcast with Kyle Norton drop every Wednesday. Stay ahead with the latest industry developments, emerging go-to-market trends, and valuable benchmarking data. Subscribe to Topline Newsletter for expert insights from Asad Zaman every Thursday. Tune into Topline Podcast, the #1 podcast for founders, operators, and investors in B2B tech. Catch full-length episodes every Sunday and bite-sized mini-episodes every Thursday, where our hosts sit down with top B2B tech leaders to unpack their biggest challenges—and how they overcame them. You're invited! Join the free Topline Slack channel to connect with 600+ revenue leaders, share insights, and keep the conversation going beyond the podcast! Key Moments: (00:00) Introduction (01:56) Current State of AI Adoption in GTM Teams (04:55) The Importance of AI for CROs (10:16) The Future of AI in Sales and Marketing (14:30) Understanding Digital Workers and Their Impact (18:57) Managing Digital Workers for Sales Efficiency (22:25) The Role of AI in Outreach (25:35) Determining AI's Fit for Different Markets (30:49) Best Practices for AI Adoption in Organizations (45:54) Learning and Adapting in AI (48:59) First Principles Thinking in Sales (01:02:42) The Future of Sales in an AI Era (01:07:54) Key Traits of Successful Revenue Leaders (01:11:49) Lessons Learned in Leadership