S5 | 414: Strengthening the relationship between Sales and RevOps with Bayley Fesler and Annie Jones from Xactly

Digital StrategyTechnologyConversational AI

Sep 1

About the Episode

According to Gartner, only 6% of Chief Sales Officers (CSOs) are extremely confident about their team's ability to meet or exceed revenue goals. This lack of confidence has a ripple effect throughout an organization, especially between the RevOps and sales teams who each believe they hold the best strategy to meet quota. Because of this, RevOps and sales teams often interact like vinegar and oil – they don’t mix well and struggle to see eye-to-eye.

How can we repair this relationship and encourage collaboration between the two departments? Today we’re going to talk about strengthening (and in some cases repairing) the relationship between RevOps and sales teams to drive revenue and re-energize sales teams.

To help me discuss this topic, I’d like to welcome Xactly’s Bayley Fesler, Director of RevOps, and Annie Jones, RevOps Business Partner.

About Annie Jones

Annie Jones has been with Xactly Corp since late 2022 as a Revenue Operations Business Partner where she supports the global sales org in everything from GTM planning, CRM management, sales forecasting and more. Annie has worked in the RevOps field since 2018 in quote-to-cash, data analytics and sales operations management in both public and private companies. She resides just outside of Denver, Colorado and enjoys cooking, spending time with friends and family, and hiking with her dog, Sammy.

About Bayley Fesler

Bayley Fesler has been the Director of Revenue Operations at Xactly since September 2022. In this role, Bayley is responsible for Sales Compensation, Quote-to-Cash, Deal Desk, and aligning the overall sales process to the GTM across people, processes & technology. Bayley has worked in Revenue and Sales Operations since 2012 at companies of varying sizes and stages. Outside of all things Revenue Operations, Bayley enjoys Soul-Cycle, live music, and travel.

Correction:

In the introduction, Annie Jones introduces herself and says that she joined Bayley at Xactly 7 years ago. They actually started working together at Marketo 7 years ago, not Xactly. Enjoy the episode!

Resources

The Agile Brand podcast website: https://www.gregkihlstrom.com/theagilebrandpodcast

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Synopsis

In the episode, the speakers emphasize the importance of effective communication and alignment between different departments within a business. They highlight that for a seamless customer experience, all departments must collaborate and work together. Without this collaboration, customers are unlikely to have a smooth journey with the company.

By adopting a holistic approach and considering the customer's journey from sales to marketing and customer success, businesses can gain a better understanding of any gaps or issues that may exist. For instance, they can identify timing gaps between inbound leads and lead generation, or engagement issues with customers during the renewal process. Bringing these departments together shifts the focus from blaming each other to everyone being invested in the success of the customers and their experience with the company.

The speakers also stress the importance of having diverse voices and perspectives in problem-solving. When departments operate in isolation, solely focused on their own goals, it creates a fragmented system where success is limited to specific areas of the business. Therefore, it is crucial for all departments to collaborate and ensure a cohesive and seamless customer experience.

Overall, the episode highlights the benefits of aligning different departments within a business, such as improved data insights, better identification of gaps or issues, and a more collaborative and customer-focused approach.

When departments collaborate and share data, they can identify gaps and issues in the customer journey and work towards resolving them. By taking a holistic approach and considering the entire process, teams can pinpoint timing gaps, such as the time it takes for inbound leads to be delivered to lead generation, or issues with engaging customers early enough when they are approaching renewal. This collaborative effort allows for a comprehensive understanding of the customer's experience and reduces the tendency to engage in finger-pointing or blame games. Instead, everyone becomes more invested in the success of the customers and their overall experience. Additionally, having diverse voices and perspectives can bring new ideas and approaches that may not have been considered before. This helps ensure that solutions work for the business as a whole, rather than just one part of it. Overall, when departments collaborate and share data, they can address gaps and issues in the customer journey, leading to a more seamless and successful customer experience.

Having diverse perspectives and voices in problem-solving can lead to innovative solutions that benefit the entire business. The episode emphasizes that involving different parts of the business in problem-solving allows for different perspectives to be considered. This diversity of perspectives brings fresh ideas and alternative approaches that may not have been explored previously. By including more voices in the decision-making process, the business can tap into a wider range of expertise and experiences, resulting in more creative and effective solutions.

Furthermore, involving different parts of the business in problem-solving ensures that the solutions work for the organization as a whole, rather than just one specific department. This holistic approach helps avoid a fragmented system where success is limited to certain areas while others struggle. By bringing together different departments and perspectives, the focus shifts from blaming each other to collectively investing in the success of the customers and their experience with the business.

Overall, the episode highlights the benefits of having diverse perspectives and voices in problem-solving. It emphasizes that by involving different parts of the business, innovative solutions can be developed that benefit the entire organization. This approach fosters collaboration, breaks down silos, and promotes a more holistic understanding of the customer journey.