No senior marketing leader yet
There are good athletes on the team, but marketing has never had senior leadership. I’m often the first.
Fractional CMO & Advisor · B2B Software
Marketing leadership that moves your GTM.
I start with your story, then build the go-to-market engine around it. You get the strategy and hands-on execution of a CMO with three exits.
Who I work with
Most companies that bring me in look something like this.
B2B software companies, from pre-launch startups to established businesses.
A change at the top
The last marketing leader wasn’t the right fit, the company outgrew them, or they moved on. Finding the next one is taking time.
A big go-to-market moment
A major launch, a fundraise, a push into new verticals, or a repositioning that needs senior leadership to land well.
A leader ready for more
A strong marketing director who’s growing into a bigger role and would benefit from a senior advisor along the way.
Operator + consulting roles at
How I work
Here’s how an engagement usually takes shape.
I usually begin with positioning and messaging, then spend my time wherever your team needs it most.
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Positioning, narrative, messaging, and category development, captured in a blueprint your whole team can work from.
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How you’ll go to market: the ICP, segments, channels, and a marketing plan that supports the sales number.
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Integrated campaigns, content, and sales tools that carry the story into market and give sales air cover.
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Making sure the team and agencies are set up to keep it all running, including help with hiring.
All of it is aimed at the numbers you’re accountable for: qualified pipeline, shorter sales cycles, and revenue.
AI is embedded in how I work. I use AI agents and structured workflows across every part of an engagement, so I can deliver senior-led depth at the pace you need to move.
Ways to work
Two ways to work together.
Part-time and embedded in your leadership team as your marketing lead, flexing from strategy down to frontline execution as needed.
- GTM strategy, budget, and the marketing plan
- Positioning, messaging, and launch narratives
- Website, sales decks, and collateral
- Integrated and ABM campaigns that build pipeline
- Sales enablement and kickoff prep
- Hiring, coaching, and managing agencies
- Board and investor narrative
A senior advisor for you and your exec team, or for a marketing leader who’s stepping into a bigger role.
- 1:1 strategy calls, weekly or as needed
- Review of initiatives, plans, data, and campaigns
- Feedback on GTM strategy, messaging, and content
- Mentorship for a marketing leader who’s stepping up
- Support on hiring, org design, and planning
- Async access by email and Slack
About
20+ years building categories and repeatable B2B marketing engines.
David Karel
I’ve spent two decades building categories and repeatable B2B marketing engines across venture-backed and later-stage software companies.
Three successful exits as CMO. My experience spans CMO and marketing leadership roles at LinkedIn, Clari, Bizo, ClearGov, Crunchtime, Zenput, and SuccessFactors. I’ve built teams from first hires to acquisition, and helped scale GTM motions across SMB, mid-market, and enterprise segments.
The common thread across that work: clear ICP focus, rigorous messaging, customer-centered storytelling, performance discipline, and tight partnership with sales and product.
I bring that same operating experience to every client engagement: getting the message right, then putting the go-to-market engine in motion.
When an engagement calls for specialized capacity, I bring in a tight network of trusted operators across AI automation, design, video, MOPs, program execution and specific GTM domains.
In their words
From the leaders who hired me.
Dave first came in as a consultant, then joined Zenput as CMO. Over 4 years he built out marketing, helped scale our GTM, and established the company as the leader in the category he helped us create — all the way through acquisition. When I launched Fencer this year, Dave was the first call I made.
I’ve worked with Dave at multiple companies, and he is — without doubt — the best marketing executive I’ve ever worked with. A master at messaging. A prodigy at product marketing. A genius at lead generation. If you get the chance to work with him, don’t miss it.
The marketing engine and team Dave built at Bizo was instrumental to the company’s success. Having worked with him almost 7 years across Bizo and LinkedIn — as a marketing leader and practitioner — he’s among the very best.
Let’s talk
A 30-minute conversation about the state of your marketing and your go-to-market goals.
A working conversation about what’s running, what’s missing, and where to start. From there, we can see if there’s a fit.