From Customer Success to CRO: The Leadership Lessons That Changed Everything

What if the traditional path to becoming a CRO isn't the only path?

In this episode of Hunters and Unicorns, Ollie Kuehne and Simon Kouttis sit down with Ozge Tuncel Ozcan, Chief Revenue Officer at Forter, to explore her unconventional journey from engineering and customer success to leading an entire revenue organization.

Ozge shares why revenue is much more than bookings and pipeline, how her experience across customer success, professional services, sales development, and post-sales shaped her leadership, and why listening to customers can become a CRO's greatest advantage. The conversation also explores customer retention, product feedback, GTM strategy, AI, and why companies need to connect innovation, sales, and customer success instead of treating them as separate functions.

In this episode:

• Ozge's unconventional journey to CRO

• Why customer understanding is at the heart of revenue

• How customer success shaped her sales leadership

• Why CROs need to think beyond bookings and pipeline

• Connecting product, sales, and customer success

• Using customer feedback to drive innovation

• Building a more cohesive GTM organization

• Why listening may be the most underrated leadership skill