Viktor Hatfaludi

Tired of losing hard-earned deals? Solve for Revenue Leak. In Clari’s 2024 Revenue Leak Report, RevOps leaders said leak happens at every stage of the funnel. - Creating: Poor and slow upsell pipeline tracking - Converting: Unsure where pipeline is dropping off - Closing: Slipped deals Don’t let Revenue Leak drag down another quarter – or another year. Download the Revenue Leak Report for more: https://lnkd.in/g9gnGrdz  

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Last week, I was chatting with a VP of Sales at a SaaS scale-up here on Linkedin. He complained about how "The sales team is so lazy" - they are not delivering - "They are not being accountable". This entire conversation made me feel frustrated as F. Then I started asking: "So, how are you working with them to help them?" "So, what ICPs are you guys targeting?" "So, what buyers are you targeting?" "So, what training are you giving them?" "So, what methodology are you using?" After digging a bit we found: 1. They had 7 ICPs - sort of, with no industry focus per salesperson and very undefined. A real ICP is not the number of employees... 2. They had no real buyer personas, only titles. 3. They had no clear USPs PER ICP and Buyer Persona. 4. They had no process for DISqualifying their deals. 5. Their pipeline was filled with OLD stale deals that just kept being moved forward 6. They had discovery meetings with anyone who would take them. This was mainly because of how their incentive models look for their BDRs. 7. They did demos in the first meeting always, even though they call it a "discovery". 8. They implemented Basic Meddicc - not tailored to their business - a year ago, and their numbers actually took a hit and still haven't recovered. 9... I can go on and on. My point is: Your salespeople are NOT lazy. You are running your teams to fail all on your own. Do you agree, that sales leaders need to do better? #DoBetter #BeMore #SaaS #Sales

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Why does outbound fail for so many? 🚫 It’s not the strategy—it’s the execution. Here’s the hard truth: most fail because they rely on assumptions instead of insights. Here’s where they go wrong: Unrealistic expectations 📉 No clear process for testing strategies 🧪 Failing to adjust messaging based on feedback 📝 The biggest mistake? Calling with assumptions about a prospect’s pain points and missing the mark entirely. This leads to trying to “convince” prospects of problems they don’t even have. The solution? Align with your prospect’s reality. ✅ Understand where they’re at. ✅ Acknowledge their situation. ✅ Highlight areas where others in their position are making progress. Outbound works far better than most people think. The issue? They either give up too soon or miss what success actually looks like. Focus on connecting, not convincing. 💡 Happy Prospecting :)

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Ever had your #product team in your #sales demo? If you ask sales teams - this is what you hear: 😩 This feature is missing, that's why i lost my deal 😩 Product does not deliver in time 😩 Our solution is too buggy If you ask product teams - this is what you hear: 😩 Sales people are annoying, they always want something 😩 Sellers don't know, what the customer really want 😩 We don't share our roadmap with sales Not always. But in many companies #sales and #product teams are not working hand in hand. And that's a shame. Because there are many good examples, that cross collaborative teams are more successful. If you're interested in how to better collaborate with your #product team. You better listen to the latest episode of Sales & Pepper | Interviews 🎙️ 💡 Share your #sales and #product alignment hacks in the comments.

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I did an informal poll on CSM vs Sales commission splits. I was pleasantly shocked to see that over 95% of companies do not have Sales take a commission on renewals unless it’s a particularly challenging one; the AE is there to help with it as a “bounty renewal”. in this case, the AE gets a % but is not taken from the CSM. Other interesting data points: "Commission on upsells and renewal made up 30% of the total compensation package. However, the exact commission % was determined by dividing the 30% by $$$ into the total ARR managed by the CSM." What metrics should this be based on? Most followed this model to Typically, companies that are earlier in their CS maturity will base this off a few leading indicators (adoption milestones, EBRs, etc.), and then move to comping on lagging indicators (retention, expansion, NRR, etc.) once their leading indicator activities have been proven. The following are examples of metrics you can use, not an exhaustive list: Leading: QBRs and/or EBRs (attained vs scheduled) Product adoption milestones (product dependent) Lagging: Net Revenue Retention (NRR) - this is likely the most common Retention Expansion Advocacy (hard to make this scale across large teams and mixed portfolios - this is better as a SPIFF or annual metric to Bonus on) From there, you can determine the weight of each metric on the bonus. I'll give an example using a bonus that is achieved by a renewal retention goal and an NRR goal. Criteria for 100% Bonus Attainment: 90% Renewal Retention (50% weight) 125% Net Revenue Retention (50% weight) "This keeps it pretty simple with two priorities. Retain and Expand Revenue. The Retention goal being assessed separately ensures CSMs don't have significant churn masked by massive upsells. In this example, if a CSM had 85% Retention and 115% NRR, they'd end up at 93.22% to goal for their overall commission/variable comp."

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I did an informal poll on CSM vs Sales commission splits. I was pleasantly shocked to see that over 95% of companies do not have Sales take a commission on renewals unless it’s a particularly challenging one; the AE is there to help with it as a “bounty renewal”. in this case, the AE gets a % but is not taken from the CSM. Other interesting data points: "Commission on upsells and renewal made up 30% of the total compensation package. However, the exact commission % was determined by dividing the 30% by $$$ into the total ARR managed by the CSM." What metrics should this be based on? Most followed this model to Typically, companies that are earlier in their CS maturity will base this off a few leading indicators (adoption milestones, EBRs, etc.), and then move to comping on lagging indicators (retention, expansion, NRR, etc.) once their leading indicator activities have been proven. The following are examples of metrics you can use, not an exhaustive list: Leading: QBRs and/or EBRs (attained vs scheduled) Product adoption milestones (product dependent) Lagging: Net Revenue Retention (NRR) - this is likely the most common Retention Expansion Advocacy (hard to make this scale across large teams and mixed portfolios - this is better as a SPIFF or annual metric to Bonus on) From there, you can determine the weight of each metric on the bonus. I'll give an example using a bonus that is achieved by a renewal retention goal and an NRR goal. Criteria for 100% Bonus Attainment: 90% Renewal Retention (50% weight) 125% Net Revenue Retention (50% weight) "This keeps it pretty simple with two priorities. Retain and Expand Revenue. The Retention goal being assessed separately ensures CSMs don't have significant churn masked by massive upsells. In this example, if a CSM had 85% Retention and 115% NRR, they'd end up at 93.22% to goal for their overall commission/variable comp."

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What separates world class CS teams from the rest when it comes to driving expansions and NRR? Constant, great discovery. These CSMs are constantly learning more about their customers. Not just at the start of the relationship. Is your CS team nailing discovery? Three questions serve as a great litmus test (especially for enterprise CSMs). 1️⃣ STRATEGY: What is your customer's strategy? 2️⃣ INITIATIVES: What initiatives have they targeted to execute that strategy? 3️⃣ IMPACT: What's the impact of delivering those initiatives and executing on that strategy? What's the impact of NOT delivering? The best CSMs know the answer to these questions, and are constantly refreshing and challenging their understanding of these. #customersuccess #cs #csm #accountmanagement #am #nrr #expand #expansion #discovery #sales

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Speed to lead is important, no doubt. But what about after the demo is booked, the chatbot responds, or the email is sent? Is speed less crucial then? People rarely discuss this - the focus is usually on initial scheduling. I believe speed at this stage is even more critical because the prospect is no longer just a lead on the site—they have intent and are showing strong buying signals. Unfortunately, in many organizations, this time isn’t measured, and ownership of this stage isn’t always clear. As a result, it often falls to the SDRs, who are limited to tools like email or cold calls— AKA The Chasing Tools. In my mind marketing should own this time and focus on shortening it. Are you measuring this? Are you above or below the benchmark?

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Question: Do you go for full-cycle sales reps or the SDR/AE combo? The truth is, as with everything "it depends". It's a market motion thing. Or more so, a company motion thing. In the early days full cycle AEs just make sense, on a company level and later in terms of market motions, in new markets you enter. You need to validate certain things before you hire SDRs 🎯. As you scale (the co or the local market), it can indeed be as Adam Robinson always says: "What works is to have your AEs calendars so full of demos that they have to stay up until 9 pm every night dealing with follow-up but they don’t mind because they are making SO MUCH money 🤑 ." Sometimes. Perhaps. That the theoretical and ideal situation is rarely a reality. The truth is more nuanced. You need to build towards having the possibility of having those calendars fully booked (by full cycle AE's) and then you switch to an SDR/AE approach - in some cases. Although, for example, high-ticket enterprise sales reps will do their own prospecting on a low volume of accounts (quantity) and go for quality, not letting an SDR be the first touch point (risk/seniority/authority). For Enterprise deals, full-cycle often makes more sense. Unless you can find SDR's who can back that up (rare). Executives of enterprise-size co's don't like talking to SDR's on average. Depends on what you sell and to whom. And where you are at as a company and locally in the market you operate. It's not black or white, as such. Doing this too early leads to AE's who don't (want to) prospect, are not fully booked, and blame SDRs for an unfilled calendar 📆 😢. Ultimately, every good sales rep. I know is always compulsively prospecting. Wether it be with an SDR that fills their calendar, up to enterprise AE's that have a "hitlist" or key account list. Every top salesperson, always has a little list somewhere, aside from all the leads that are generated for them. It's a quality indicator, if you ask me. That list of (bigger) accounts they want to close. Thanks to Derrick Thomas for his post on the matter, which led to me writing the above post, originally as a comment to his. What do you think on the matter? André Bressel, Koen Stam, Patrick Trümpi Greg Higgins Brendon Montgomery Misagh A. #sales #outbound #ae #sdr

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Revenue blindness is a condition that a 2/3 people in sales suffer from. When undiagnosed it can lead to... - Constant Peaks and Valleys - Scaling Suck - a 'Just do more' mindset - Hives - Dispair and Misery What is revenue blindess? When all that is looked at in terms of success is the revenue number. If you hit = Things must be good. If you miss = The team/individual/leader suck It's actually far more dangerous on the 'hit' side, and I see it all the time. A rep is hitting their number, but tearing down the culture, but it's allowed because of... Revenue blindess A team of 10 hits the number, but off the back of the manager or or 1 top rep, so the decision is made to scale to 30 even tho they have nothing proven in place... Revenue blindess It works the other way too. A team is hitting their marks, hitting the activity, working the deals, using strong messaging, and yet miss the number, because the number was unhittable. The number doesn't get changed, the people do. Revenue blindess. A rep IS crushing their number, but because of that they don't get the recognition, attention and support they want/need because well.. they are hitting the number Revenue blindess I talk about this with my leaders all the time, we can't fall into revenue blindness. We have to stay below the number to drive results. Behaviors. Issue Diagnosis/Inspection. Process. Skills. You - This is where BIPSY comes in. We have seen some amazing results over the last 6 months. We're talking some 2-3x type results. BUT We stay obsessed over what's causing them, not just the end result. This is the key. Revenue blindness is curable. If you know someone that suffers from revenue blindness ... Send them to the Sales Leadership Accelerator - it will take time.. but we can save them. https://lnkd.in/ejPDhZw4

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Want to drive more expansion? Here's the playbook I learned at Salesforce - Find gaps with customers - Create offers to address gaps - Market this to your expansion list - Introduce offer in sales and CS mtgs - Lay the groundwork and spark interest - Start sales conversations with stakeholders - Close Expansion Opportunities and grow Accts! Whitespace is a key way to find those gaps. 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗗𝗨𝗖𝗧 𝗪𝗛𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗣𝗔𝗖𝗘 - What products does each customer have? - What products does each customer NOT have? - Which products have you yet to present to them? *This is pretty basic but so often not executed well! 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗞𝗘𝗛𝗢𝗟𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗛𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗣𝗔𝗖𝗘 - Which key stakeholders do you know? - Which key stakeholders do you NOT know? - Where can you open up new key relationships? 𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗟𝗔𝗣 - Where do these overlap? - You can sell a new product to an old contact - You can sell more current product to a new contact - But man is it easier to sell new products to new contacts Let me share some examples from my days at Salesforce: - VPs of Sales bought Salesforce (Sales Cloud) - VPs of Service/COOs bought Service Cloud - CMOs bought Pardot or Marketing Cloud - CFOs bought more licenses at discounts We had a different play for each product and each stakeholder. It wasn't this cut and dry though. Sometimes VPs of Sales bought Service Cloud or Marketing Cloud. CFOs often wanted the best contract terms and were my bread and butter for expansion, but it wasn't always them driving this. Most often, though, our relationship started with the VP of Sales who bought Sales Cloud and didn't really care about anything else we had to sell. This playbook is how Salesforce "landed and expanded" accounts and doubled spend for the average customer within 12 months of the initial purchase when I was there. More details in the 📰 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗢𝗽𝘀 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗹𝘆 📰 https://lnkd.in/ezX9iMjr ✌️

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Most first-time SaaS founders get tripped up on something critical: They can’t differentiate between their Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) and their Buyer Persona. 🤔 And this confusion can be costly. Your ICP is the broad overview of the type of companies that would benefit most from your product. Think of it as the “who” in terms of company characteristics: industry, size, revenue, pain points. Your Buyer Persona, on the other hand, is the “who” within those companies—the decision-makers and influencers who actually make the purchase. Here’s how to get it right: Start with Your ICP: Identify the companies that have the greatest need for your solution. Focus on the industries, company sizes, and challenges where your product can make the most impact. This is your North Star. 🌟 Drill Down to the Buyer Persona: Once you’ve nailed down your ICP, dive into the specific roles within those companies. Who are the decision-makers? What are their goals, fears, and challenges? Understanding this will help you tailor your messaging and approach. Align Your Messaging: Your ICP informs your overall strategy, while your Buyer Personas guide how you communicate and sell. Make sure your marketing and sales teams are aligned on both fronts to avoid mixed signals. Learn and Iterate: Don’t be afraid to adjust your ICP and Buyer Personas as you learn more about your market. It’s an ongoing process, not a one-time exercise. Getting this right is the foundation of scaling your business. Without a clear ICP and well-defined Buyer Personas, you’re shooting in the dark. What process did you implement to define your ICP and buyer persona? Drop it in comments below. #SaaS #StartupTips #IdealCustomerProfile #BuyerPersona #MarketingStrategy #SalesTips #CustomerSuccess #B2B #SaaSFounders #BusinessGrowth #TargetAudience #MarketResearch #SalesStrategy #LeadGeneration #StartupGrowth #Entrepreneurship

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We’ve been doing it wrong. The idea of sales has plateaued. And now, it's on a decline. Winners are glorified while losers sit in shame. The “all or nothing” mentality - where your worth is measured solely by deals. No deals? No holiday 🙄 No peace of mind. Just endless pressure. It’s a constant chase. In fact, it's a trap. And it happens every single year. Especially if it's the last quarter - The Final Sprint 👟 That cycle doesn’t just corner us - it drains us. Sales pros who should be thriving are merely surviving. Living quarter to quarter. Missing family moments. Burning out chasing after the next “yes.” ==================== But here’s the truth: that mindset is outdated. The landscape has changed. And so must we. Sales isn’t a sprint to the finish. It's supposed to be a journey we embark on with the customers. Sales is a discipline. A steady, intentional process built on trust, not pressure. The modern buyer doesn't want to be pushed. They want to be understood. They’re seeking partners. Not product pushers. Buyers still want to buy, but it has to be on their terms. They want to be part of the experience, not rushed through it. They want to feel empowered, respected, and credited. They still want to be influenced - but not forced. The painful truth? They won’t tell you that. They’ll walk away silently, leaving you chasing shadows. Deals slip through your fingers, and you wonder why. It’s not because they don’t need what you offer. It’s because you’re not meeting them where they are. We’re stuck in the old ways—pushing, while they’re looking for collaboration, not confrontation. The discipline is to step back and lead with your prospects, not ahead of them. ==================== Here’s an approach which allows me to preserve my mental health, bond with my family and achieve overall collective calm - so much so that it irritates the hell out of some of my managers 😄 🔷 Stop obsessing over the outcome Focus on the process. Every conversation teaches you something. Growth doesn’t only happen when deals close. It happens when you connect and understand. 🔷 Trust in Abundance There’s more than enough. More prospects, more opportunities, more success. The right opportunities come when you’re not desperate. 🔷 Detach from the Results When you stop chasing, things flow naturally. Real connections form. You learn what people need, not just what you want to sell. ==================== Don't end the year with burnout. Don't start the year with fear. Make the change and do the unthinkable. Stop Selling and Start Building. This is discipline. The discipline to stay focused, build real relationships, and trust that the right opportunities will come. The end of Q3 marks the beginning of the sprint. More importantly, it marks the time to prep for 2025. Start building the momentum NOW. Write, Share, Connect... And Grow 😎 Stop Selling Start Building ✌ Stories, Tips & PoVs > Sufi R.

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How do you define an MQL? And how does this compare to what other companies do? 🤔 Someone asked this question in the ROC Slack group recently, here's how the RevOps Co-op responded 👇 1️⃣ 2 out of 4 BANT criteria met Consensus here was BANT is the responsibility of the sales team, not the marketing team, so shouldn't be used. 2️⃣ Exceeds lead score threshold based on demographic and behavior data This was a popular choice. Lots of folks said an MQL should be a hand-raiser that meets some sort of grade / score threshold. 3️⃣ Based on account and title fit with ICP This can be the basis of a lead score or grade mentioned in number 2 above. ☝️ 4️⃣ Based on Minimum Viable Customer Profile (MVCP) This is basically a twist on number 2 and 3 above, but I thought it was intriguing. It's basically a more broad version of your ICP using secondary criteria. For example, if your ICP is a Fortune 500 account, your MVCP may be any company with > $50M revenue. Or if your ICP is HQ in the US, your MVCP could be HQ in the US, Canada, UK and Australia. What do you think - anything missing here for different ways to define an MQL? PS - thanks to Malorie Packard, Colby Ricker, Colin Illar, Jeff Ignacio, Jacqueline Freedman 🦋, Rex Biberston, and others for participating in this 🧵 #revenueoperations #revops #marketingops #marketingoperations #mops #GTMOps #alltheops #MQL

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Many VPs and Sales Heads are ignoring data-driven selling. Data is at the core of every successful sales strategy. Data-driven selling uses real-time, actionable insights to optimize every stage of the sales process—from prospecting to closing. And yet, I still see teams relying on outdated methods and gut instinct to forecast pipelines, prioritize deals, and set pricing strategies. That’s a recipe for missed targets. It is 2024, where buying cycles are longer, and deal complexity is higher. You can’t afford to make decisions based on "what worked last quarter." Here’s where CPQ and RevOps step in: With CPQ, sales teams no longer waste time in back-and-forth emails trying to lock down accurate pricing. Instead, they’re working with real-time data to configure complex quotes in minutes—not days. And RevOps? It eliminates silos between sales, marketing, and customer success, giving everyone a unified view of the revenue pipeline. No more "us versus them" mentality. Everyone is working off the same data set, aligned to the same KPIs. But here’s the thing: Data alone won’t save you. You need to use it effectively. Real-time insights should be driving your decisions, not hindsight reports. When you know which deals are at risk, which prospects need more attention, and which pricing strategies maximize deal size, you’re not guessing—you’re closing. Sales leaders, if you’re still making decisions based on last month’s results, you’re behind. Sales is now data-driven, and it has been like that for years now. How are you using data to shape your next move? #sales #revops

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SaaS CEOs - Customer retention is crucial. But what about CSM retention? Think about it. Who's on the frontline, ensuring every customer extracts the maximum value from your product? Your CSMs!!! Now, imagine losing that top talent. Losing top CSM talent can be just as devastating as customer churn. As a SaaS CEO, you invest significantly in acquiring new customers. But do you have a strategy for keeping your best CSMs? These are the folks nurturing customer relationships and driving adoption, renewals, and expansions. If they leave, you are jeopardizing accounts, disrupting customer experiences, and ultimately bleeding revenue. Now consider the cost of high CSM turnover. High CSM turnover is expensive from hiring and training costs alone. But the bigger cost is potential churn as new CSMs get ramped up on those accounts. Customers may feel neglected and seek alternatives during the transition period. Don't treat your CSM team as a revolving door of entry-level roles. Just as you invest in customer marketing and success plays, invest in your CSMs through competitive compensation, growth opportunities, and initiatives that reduce burnout. Engaged, motivated CSMs will provide better customer experiences that reduce churn and drive more expansion revenue. Retention is a two-way street. Nurture the employees nurturing your customers' success. Your CSMs are the voice and face of your company. Don't let that top talent walk out the door to your competitors. Prioritizing their retention can pay massive dividends in customer retention and growth. I'd love to hear your thoughts! 🤔 Have you considered your CSM retention strategy? 🌟 Share your experiences, insights, or even questions below! Don't forget to engage with this post if you found it valuable. 👍 Join our insightful discussions by following for more content. 🚀 Let's prioritize our people together! 💪 #saas #customersuccess #csm #ceo #software

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6 ways to build a 100€ million ARR business. Why is it helpful to know what you're hunting? Each of the 6 ways require a different GTM strategy 👉 Different ICP 👉 Different Messaging 👉 Different Channels 👉 Different sales motion 👉 Different pricing Because of this requires a different way to build your company. ✅ Teams & Skills ✅ Product ✅ Metrics ✅ Growth tactics Thanks CJ Gustafson for sharing.

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When RevOps is really just SalesOps (And the CRO is really just the VP of Sales) 𝗦𝗔𝗟𝗘𝗦 𝗘𝗡𝗚𝗜𝗡𝗘 - Closing deals should work - Clear pipeline management process - Forecasting is as accurate as possible - But everything before & after is an issue 𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗞𝗘𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚 - Has different goals - Maybe the target is MQLs - Has their definition of MQLs - And their definition of SALs, SQOs - Has systems with different metrics - Their reports don't match sales' reports - Leads routed from one system to the next - With lots of things falling through the cracks - Classic case of marketing/sales misalignment 𝗢𝗨𝗧𝗕𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗 - Do SDRs report to marketing? - If so, we're misaligned there too - The goal may be meetings booked - So AEs have lots of leads and meetings - But maybe not the ones they really need - The ones that convert to pipeline/revenue - We have more misalignment & finger pointing - Do SDRs report to sales? - What content do they have? - What events and assets do they share? - What visibility do they have into engagement? - How does marketing align with their outreach? 𝗢𝗡𝗕𝗢𝗔𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚 - Sales is paid to close deals - How do they hand off customers? - What is the onboarding process? - Who builds/maintains that process? - What is done if sales drops the ball? - What is done if sales overpromises? - How are incentives and comp aligned? 𝗥𝗘𝗧𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 & 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗔𝗡𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡 - Which customers are easiest to retain? - Which customers are most likely to churn? - Which customers are the easiest to expand? - How is this data used to improve sales targeting? - How do we maximize NRR if sales is in their own silo? For me RevOps drives value by getting into the weeds and finding ways to generate more revenue with the resources available. That includes SalesOps and optimizing the sales process to close more deals. However, if we stop there we end up with an expensive and inefficient revenue engine with high CAC, high Churn and low LTV. We end up with different departments chasing different goals in different systems with different reports and different definitions of success. What would you add to this? Anything I missed? ✌️

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