For twenty years, Steve Caton kept meeting the same founder. Different city, different industry, same person: someone who had built a company that was working and had quietly become the only person who could close a deal. Being great at sales got them here. Eventually, their calendar became the ceiling on growth.

In this episode of the Sly Fox Podcast, Lindsay Sutula sits down with Steve Caton, founder and CEO of Altezza Solutions. After three decades leading sales for emerging-growth companies, Steve built Altezza to help founders get out of the sales seat while transferring the trust and knowledge they built there.

Steve and Lindsay unpack the founder-led sales trap: why selling is one of the most valuable classrooms a founder has and how to hand sales to someone else without disappearing from the process. Steve shares his own experience doing exactly that at Altezza and watching the pipeline double.

They also get into why hiring a salesperson too soon can set them up to fail. The offer has to be proven, the value clear, and the ideal client, messaging, and sales process defined. The real work is building a system that can keep closing deals without the founder at the center of every sales conversation.

About the Guest

Steve Caton is the founder and CEO of Altezza Solutions, where he embeds seasoned fractional sales professionals into founder-led companies. Before Altezza, he spent three decades leading sales for emerging-growth companies, including a decade at a Colorado software company that sold for over $70 million. He founded Altezza in 2020 after repeatedly seeing founders become the only people who could close. Altezza has since served more than 100 clients. Steve also hosts the Whiskey Is For Closers podcast.

Connect with Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scaton

Altezza Solutions: https://altezzasolutions.com

Key Takeaways

Founder-led sales eventually creates a ceiling. Selling gives founders firsthand knowledge of their buyers and offer. Staying the only person who can close limits how far the business can grow.

Build the foundation before hiring the salesperson. A proven offer, clear ideal client, strong messaging, documented sales process, and working CRM give the next seller something repeatable to step into.

Transfer trust without disappearing. The salesperson should lead while the founder stays close enough to share expertise and coach. Over time, the seller builds their own credibility and the founder can step further away.

A successful handoff changes the founder’s role. Steve saw his own pipeline double after handing sales to someone else. Eventually, Altezza’s biggest deal closed without Steve ever meeting the client. That freed him to focus on the rainmaking and relationships where he could have the greatest impact.

About the Show

The Sly Fox Podcast: Building an Authority Engine is powered by Top Fox Marketing and hosted by founder and CEO Lindsay Sutula. Most episodes are conversations with founders and leaders from across B2B, focused on the moments where something actually changed and the systems that let growth keep moving without the founder in every conversation. Subscribe at slyfoxpod.com.