Why We’re Retiring Drive, Betting Big on IRL, and Hiring Humans in 2027 (w/Exit Five CEO Dan Murphy)

#410 | Drive was an extremely popular B2B marketing event for three years straight - it sold out in 24 hours its first year and got 800+ people to come to Vermont. And we’re retiring it anyway. In this rare episode, Dan Murphy (CEO) and Dave Gerhardt (founder) take you behind the scenes of Exit Five’s event strategy and what we’re doing instead of Drive. You'll get a sneak peek into our next big bet: small, intimate events in cities like NYC, SF, Boston, Houston, and Toronto, plus an executive retreat. Dave and Dan also discuss Exit Five's origin story and its growth with no VC money. They also reminisce about the cold email that turned into Dan’s role as CEO. Finally, Dan shares how he runs Exit Five, why he doubled the team in 2026, and why AI won’t replace marketing jobs in the future.

Timestamps (00:00) - Why we're retiring our super popular Drive Event (that once sold out in 24 hrs)

(04:01) - What we're doing instead in 2027: intimate events in hub cities and an executive retreat

(06:22) - Why we didn't turn Drive into a trade show

(09:45) - How to know when to kill something that works

(13:40) - The cold email that made Dan an accidental CEO

(17:48) - Growing with no VC money and doubling the team in 2026

(18:59) - Dan's leadership hacks for running Exit Five

(26:28) - Will AI replace marketing jobs? Dan's predictions

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