Carlos Caro: Generalist go-to-market pro
As Carlos sat on the airplane, he found himself at a critical juncture in his role as the launch lead for Lightbox, a new credit card prequalification engine from Credit Karma.
Despite his best efforts, the launch had hit a major roadblock.
At the moment, there was no solution in sight:
The internal legal team mandated a specific approval threshold for prequalified card offers.
The credit card issuers were intrigued, but they required more data to meet the approval requirement.
There wasn't time to integrate the necessary data before launch.
Carlos was stuck. Partners were hesitant to change their back-end systems. He couldn’t snap his fingers and get the data they needed. And legal wasn’t budging.
Carlos knew that he wouldn't be able to achieve his goal of onboarding partners to Lightbox without a solution. The pressure was mounting from every direction.
So he sat on the airplane, alone with the problem.
The quiet allowed Carlos to step back and see the big picture. He wondered: why did legal require that approval threshold. Was it just the pre-qualified language?
What if….they used different language?
After the plane landed, he picked up the phone and pitched the idea of using pre-selected language. He asked if a lower approval threshold would be allowed.
Legal says yes.
Partners say yes.
Internal product team says yes.
Heads nod all around the table; he had uncovered a solution that worked for everyone. Within 2-3 days, that unlock moment turned into an in-market launch.
Meet Carlos Caro. Company-builder / analyst / writer. His background across functions and generalist mindset enabled him to step back, look at the big picture and connect the right dots. When he shared his flash of insight from the airplane, everyone got it immediately. They just couldn’t see it without the generalist lens.
Carlos spent nearly two decades honing his generalist chops in financial services and fintech. He has a proven track record of success in scaling businesses and teams, launching new products, and building strategic partnerships. Today he focuses on innovative go-to-market strategies and shares his wisdom as a writer. Check him out on LinkedIn and on Medium!
Carlos has a few pieces of advice for generalists navigating a specialist's world
If you find yourself constantly going down rabbit holes, congratulations, you're a generalist! Embrace your curiosity.
Generalists have a CEO skillset that allows you to see the big picture and dive deep when needed (with or without the seniority)
It's beneficial to rotate and gain exposure to different functions and types of work early in your career.
While this approach may slow down your vertical progression, it can help you build a solid foundation. Be intentional when designing your non-specialist path.
Join us in Breaking the Mold: Generalists Who Thrive in a Specialist's World as we explore real-life examples of generalists connecting dots, innovating, and solving problems.