What is your advice for creating and/or improving the revenue operations process when joining a small but growing team?

Focus on getting the big systems in place first (on the sales side, for example, think CRM, data enrichment, sales engagement platform) and audit all the existing tools and processes currently in place. Ripping and replacing part of a tech stack is painful, but the earlier you make this decision, the easier it will be - so getting these tools procured and set up early-on is important. If you already have the main tech-stack pillars in place, ensure you have all the ‘future state’ tracking you’ll need (e.g. you may not need to report on stage by stage conversion rates right now, but you definitely will in the future, so ensure you are stamping the correct data points and stage details now to make life easier for future you). Meet with all of your direct (and indirect) stakeholders in your first weeks on the job - and make sure you have ongoing meetings with functional leaders. Identify their bottlenecks and pain points to help inform your first priorities - I guarantee there are some easy quick wins you’ll be able to knock out right away - this will put you in the team’s good graces and also help you create a backlog of larger items you can focus on in the next 30-60 days.

I think there are a few critical aspects to look at (and I would echo this even if it wasn't a small but growing team ;) ):

• Understand the Current State: Begin by thoroughly understanding the existing revenue operations process. Identify pain points, bottlenecks, and areas for improvement. Gather insights from team members and stakeholders to gain a holistic view. You can't build a great future state until you understand the current state and its issues/opportunities. It is SO critical that if this "small but growing company" has not yet thought about segmentation, you begin thinking about this too and strategizing what that should look like.

• Align with Business Goals: Ensure that the revenue operations process aligns with the overall business goals and objectives. Collaborate with key stakeholders to understand their expectations and priorities. You want to make sure your priorities are aligned nicely with the "North Star" goals/visions.

• Streamline and Automate: Look for opportunities to streamline and automate manual tasks within the revenue operations process. Identify repetitive or time-consuming activities that can be automated using tools or technology. Make your teams more efficient and effective.

• Implement Data-Driven Decision Making: Emphasize the importance of data in the revenue operations process. Establish key metrics and reporting mechanisms to track performance and make informed decisions. Leverage data analytics to identify trends, patterns, and areas for improvement. This can look like funnel reporting, P&L, Opex, etc. One of the biggest lesson I've learned through the years is establish your data/reporting early.

• Collaborate Cross-Functionally: Revenue operations involves multiple teams and functions, you are often going to be the "glue" between teams. Foster collaboration and communication across these teams to ensure alignment and a seamless flow of information. Careful about putting yourself in a spot you become the bottleneck of updates/comms. Help establish sharing/update rituals that can scale.

• Improve the Tech Stack: Explore and leverage technology solutions that can support and enhance the ops process. This could include CRM systems, marketing automation tools, data analytics platforms, etc. Choose tools that align with your specific needs and budget.

• Go To Market Plan: If there is not already an established plan for how to go to market with new features/products/etc at this company, create that process. What needs to happen before a customer even hears about the new product/feature? What enablement is needed for customer facing teams? What tracking must be in place? Etc.