From Diplomat to CCO: Mastering International GTM Expansion | Andrea Maurieres S6:E4

Written by Mike J Midgley | Oct 23, 2025 8:10:53 AM

Welcome to Season 6 of the Force & Friction Podcast, where we break down what really moves the needle in GTM, RevOps, AI, partnerships, and SaaS growth. Today, we're exploring international market expansion and building revenue teams across continents with Andrea Maurieres.

Her origin story begins with an incredible opportunity: convincing US tech companies to open offices in France while stationed in New York during the city's transformation into a tech hub.

This diplomatic background gave her a unique perspective on international business development, but the transition to tech executive required strategic reinvention through an MBA and hands-on experience across diverse markets.

We explore her 80-20 framework for international expansion, why you should start with "playground" markets, the critical importance of local presence versus remote operations, and her insights on building revenue teams across different company stages and cultural contexts.

Andrea Maurieres

Andrea is the Chief Commercial Officer at Harbiz, where she's tripled ARR and expanded to 7 markets while supporting their 5.5 million euro Series A.

But what makes her story truly unique is her journey from French diplomat to tech executive, she literally traded embassies for startups.

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Here are the core areas we discuss in today's episode:

1: The Diplomat's Advantage: From Embassies to Startups

Andrea opens by sharing how her diplomatic career became the perfect training ground for international business expansion.

"I was a diplomat in charge of convincing US tech companies. I was in New York... I really love tech, so I wanted to see San Francisco. And I love that job, because I was meeting incredible people... And at one point, you know, starting itching, like, I'm doing a consultancy job, I'm helping them. I want to be the one doing it, you know, like, I want to be the one in the company doing it."

This transition from advisor to operator required strategic career reinvention. When no clear path existed from diplomat to tech executive, she created one through an MBA and systematic skill building, demonstrating how unconventional backgrounds can become competitive advantages in international expansion.

2: The 80-20 International Expansion Framework

Andrea reveals her systematic approach to international expansion that balances innovation with proven success.

"For me, I have this rule, 80-20... 80% needs to be focused on what works extremely well in your business, and you're focusing on making it better... Then I take the 20, and in the 20 is full innovation, new countries, new product... I decided to approach the new country a little bit that I'm approaching the new product."

This framework prevents the common mistake of treating international expansion like building an entirely new company. By leveraging existing strengths while limiting changes to 40% of the product, companies can expand internationally without risking their core business.

3. Playground Markets: The Strategic Advantage of Starting Small

Andrea explains why successful international expansion begins with smaller, less critical markets rather than the biggest opportunities.

"For me, it's very important to always start with a small country, a country, like a... I'm calling it a playground. Because I will make mistakes, and I need to make all of these mistakes on the second-tier market, which is not the bigger one, because when I go to the bigger one, I need to bring it all."

This counterintuitive approach allows companies to develop international capabilities, test localization strategies, and refine their expansion playbook before entering high-stakes markets where mistakes are costly and recovery is difficult.

4. Stage-Appropriate Strategies: Why One Size Doesn't Fit All

Andrea shares hard-won insights about when physical presence is essential versus when remote operations can work, drawing from experiences across multiple continents.

"Having the ability to speak the local language and the cultural knowledge is key... we opened Argentina without being there. How did we did it? It was pandemic time... we could do it, we executed on the strategy. We had framework, we had planification... But we were missing a tiny part, and now, like, when I developed more countries, I realized that going there, being there, understanding, and having someone that speaks the language might be a key difference."

Her experience reveals that while remote expansion is possible with strong frameworks and analysis, local presence provides critical insights that can't be replicated remotely, especially for understanding cultural nuances and customer behavior.

5. The Future of Sales: Human Touch in an AI World

Andrea addresses the critical gap in how GTM strategies are often presented without consideration for company stage or resources.

"I worked for, yeah, IPO level, Series A, and then, Seeds to Series A, and now I'm advisor to, to seed level. And it's not adult-centric, because it's not the same resources. Not at all!... when you are early stage and very, C-level, you need to have a lot of framework, because you're always faced with something you don't know."

This insight challenges the common practice of promoting universal strategies without acknowledging that what works at IPO stage may be impossible at seed stage, and vice versa. Different stages require different approaches, tools, and expectations.

Learn more about Harbiz here:

Final Thoughts:

Andrea leaves us with powerful insights about the intersection of international expansion and female leadership.

"Too often, I'm the only woman in the room, and the higher we get, the more lonely we are. And I see something now, so I'm 40, I have a family. And I see a lot of women, stepping down, at my age... a product would be good if it's diverse, and it needs to be built by a diverse team. And a diverse team is gender, is age, is racial."

Her final message emphasizes that international expansion success requires diverse perspectives and that supporting female leadership isn't just about equality, it's about building better products and strategies through diverse thinking.

International expansion isn't just about scaling revenue—it's about building global capabilities while maintaining local relevance. As Andrea demonstrates, success comes from combining systematic frameworks with cultural humility, starting small to learn big, and recognizing that the skills needed for international success often come from unexpected backgrounds.

The future belongs to leaders who can navigate complexity with both strategic thinking and cultural intelligence, whether they started in embassies or startups.

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Mike Midgley runs a portfolio career, a dynamic hands on digital entrepreneur, founder of the Scrubbing Squad, NXD, strategist, public speaker, Winning by Design certified Revenue Architect and Host at The Force & Friction Podcast.

Mike has achieved multiple exits over a 30+ year career, raised Venture Capital and franchised his businesses 68 times.

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