Erik W. Charles is a distinguished Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) with over 30 yearsof expertise in driving revenue growth, market expansion, and sales performance optimization.
With a proven track record across Fortune 500 companies and high-growth startups, he specializes in aligning sales, marketing, and operational strategies to maximize profitability. Erik has played pivotal roles in global expansions, go-to-market strategy, and demand generation, making him a sought-after leader in revenue intelligence, sales performance management, and incentive optimization. His tenure at companies such as Xactly, Canon, Sun Microsystems, and Apple underscores his ability to launch and scale revenue engines that accelerate business growth.
Most recently, Erik served as CMO & Chief Evangelist at Xactly, where he drove marketing initiatives during a period of transformation, aligning strategies with multi-product pipeline growth. As VP of Business Operations in Japan, he spearheaded Xactly’s international expansion, recruiting top-tier teams, establishing market-specific sales strategies, and collaborating with major partners, including Salesforce, Oracle, and Microsoft. Prior to that, as VP of Product Marketing, he ensured market leadership through strategic positioning, competitive intelligence, and sales enablement. His leadership in product launches, market positioning, and lead generation has consistently resulted in double-digit revenue growth and market share expansion.
Beyond corporate leadership, Erik is a recognized speaker, investor, and board advisor, frequently presenting at Dreamforce, Argyle CFO forums, Sales 3.0, and the Sales Management Association. He is a certified Quote-to-Cash professional and a thought leader in revenue intelligence and sales force optimization. Erik’s career is defined by his ability to transform marketing functions into high-performing growth engines, build high-impact revenue operations, and execute innovative go-to-market strategies that deliver measurable business success.
Education and Experience
Areas of Consulting and Research
Analysis and recommendations for product positioning and messaging.
Sales and marketing roles, responsibilities, overlaps and key measures.
Identification of missing links, areas of improvement and focal points for improvement in customer acquisition and retention.
Design and communication of improved incentive plans with strong line-of-sight metrics and a combination of long-term and short-term incentives.