Conventional vs. Diverse Sales Ops Modeling with Gabriel Hobbs, Head of Sales Operations at Tacton

In this episode of RevOps Demystified Podcast, Tom Hunt and Alex Freeman are joined by Gabriel Hobbs, Head of Sales Operations at Tacton. They discuss the fundamentals of sales ops success, conventional and diverse sales ops modeling, and tips to manage existing customers and win new ones.

• Gabriel’s LinkedIn
• Tacton’s Website

The journey of combining marketing and sales to streamline operations 

Gabriel started his journey in 2005 at DEGW (AECOM – Architecture and Planning) as a Marketing Coordinator. Following his passion for exploring the front face revenue generation component of companies’ “sales”, he started consulting Brands Ltd on their sales and marketing. 

In 2010, Gabriel joined Projectplace as a Country Marketing Manager. After three years, he was promoted to Director of Inside Sales. In 2014, Projectplace repositioned and rebranded itself as Planview, where Gabriel worked in Business Operations, Customer Growth, and Account Management for various countries. Projectplace, a.k.a Planview, served as a catalyst for Gabriel to combine his marketing and sales expertise and transform it into business and operational growth strategies. 

From 2017 until the present, Gabriel has worked at several renowned companies heading sales operations. He joined Tacton in 2021, where he currently serves as the Head of Sales Operations. 

Gabriel’s experience working with multiple companies in various leadership roles enabled him to curate customer-oriented processes, find solutions to customer problems, and streamline business and sales operations. 

Fundamentals of Sales Ops success 

In the past, the sales ops function has always been considered in a silo by most organizations. Still, with time, organizations have realized that sales ops success depends immensely on effective communication among different departments.

In contrast, the organization’s size, its operational processes, and how they are managed also play a vital role in sales ops strategy creation. Nonetheless, the modern sales ops streamlining tools and CRM ecosystem urges inputs from all departments to derive results based on aggregated information and data. 

Conventional vs. Diverse Sales Ops Modeling 

Every company takes a different approach to curate and plan its sales operations. Traditionally, there is a systematic, task-based approach to handle the sales processes, where the tasks are listed, assigned to relevant personnel, and ticked off as delivered/performed. 

However, at Tacton, Gabriel takes a diverse, rather conventional approach that focuses on customers, creativity, and innovation to streamline operations and grow sales. 

The diverse sales ops approach keeps customers and their problems at the centre of planning deliverables. Here are some of the core considerations of a diverse sales ops model:

• Every aspect of the customer needs to be analysed 
• Identify different ways to meet customer expectations
• Don’t play “by-the-book”, and explore every possible solution 
• Offer alternatives if a definite solution doesn’t exist

Tips for managing existing and winning new customers 

Existing customers: Gabriel and his team focus on creating customised solutions for customers’ needs, walking them through the solution, and consistently working on improving after-sales services to trigger renewals.

New customers: This should be the core focus of sales leads, where real business growth lies. Gabriel believes that exploring new customers has always inspired him. It provides organizations the ability to think and create out-of-the-box solutions, which ultimately turn into another product. 

“The art is not selling ice to the Eskimos but to the Saharians”

Key skills of a sales rep 

Some of the key skills to become a successful salesperson are:

• Get tasks done sooner
• Close more sales
• Understand the sales process
• Ability to lead the operational team
• Solve customer problems
• Bring back customers and increase sales

What is a Sales Ops Lead?

As a sales ops professional, you have to help the customer by every means possible. If you cannot solve the problem, you have to direct the customer in a different direction. 

Recommended episodes 

• Accelerate Sales and Rev Ops Efficiency Through Engaging Video Platform With Antoine Leprince, Revenue Operations Manager at EasyMovie
• Progression in a Sales Ops Role with Susan Metz, Senior Manager, Sales Operations at Turnitin
• A New Sales Ops Team Structure with Brian Chin, Director of Revenue Operations at Spring Health

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