What's the earliest stage a startup should consider hiring a revenue operations manager?

RevOps has a place early on because it can measure whether your attempts are working and save you resources spent going in the wrong direction.

However, sometimes it’s good to let a sales team of 1-3 run a bit loose at first with a few simple processes for the documentation of contracts. People tend to look for the fastest way to do things and allowing a few team members to test and develop their own way of doing things can provide good insights for when you bring in revenue operations. To keep results top of mind, get the team together at least weekly to talk about what feels like it’s working vs not.

If you’re running under a SaaS model, don’t wait to hire RevOps. Cross-functional systems and processes are crucial to retention.

Rev ops should be a Day 2 hire - the systems and tools a company are implementing from very early days (e.g. SFDC) would benefit from a dedicated operations person to ensure that things are being built for scale. I may be biased as an ops person myself, but I think it’s extremely important to invest in these resources early on. I’ve never talked to a leader who says ‘I hired my rev ops person too early,’ but have heard many people lament the opposite. Practically, I think that after a company has gone from founder-led selling and there is a sales leader with 1-2 sales reps on board, it is time to hire a rev ops manager.

The earliest stage at which a startup should consider hiring a RevOps manager is often earlier than most organizations currently do. Startups naturally have individuals juggling the various responsibilities that eventually fall under a RevOps team's purview. It's vital to consider when it becomes logical to consolidate these tasks and initiatives, which initially operate in silos across different go-to-market teams.

The signs that it's time to hire a RevOps manager typically emerge when the following areas become common discussion points:

1. Cross-Functional Collaboration: Startups start asking questions about how to foster cross-functional collaboration in their go-to-market initiatives. This collaboration becomes paramount for programs related to pipeline growth and customer retention. The question might be, "How can we enhance our inbound conversion rates?" "How do we build a better AE-CSM handoff?"

2. Integrated Tools: The need arises to ensure that tools are not just in place but also functioning seamlessly. This is where a RevOps manager can step in to streamline processes. This includes aligning marketing automation, CRM systems, and sales tools to work harmoniously. Often, the question revolves around simplifying the tech stack and addressing issues where tools were acquired but not optimally implemented. Or worse, buying tools for problems that already exist within the stack.

3. Standardized Business Language: Recognizing the significance of everyone in the organization speaking the same language when it comes to understanding business insights. This involves developing a shared understanding of critical growth drivers, funnel metrics, and scaling key performance indicators (KPIs). A common query is, "How do we unify Sales, Marketing, and Finance's definitions of an SQO/Win Rate/At Risk Customer?"

4. Effective Prioritization: The need becomes evident to ruthlessly prioritize tasks on a weekly, monthly, and quarterly basis. RevOps helps establish not just the "rhythm of business" but also calibrates business partners on what's happening now, what's coming next, and what's planned for later. This involves addressing questions like, "What are the critical priorities, and what are the smaller tasks we need to tackle to launch this new partnership and its value to our customers?"

In many startup scenarios, these functions are initially assigned to existing team members across various departments. While this might serve as a temporary fix, it often results in misalignment and inconsistent change management. As the organization grows, the need for a centralized RevOps perspective becomes apparent for efficient and scalable operations.

Delaying the hiring of a dedicated RevOps manager can put a startup behind the curve when it comes to scaling. It might require them to play catch-up hastily, impacting the organization's ability to pivot toward new growth strategies, such as redesigning a go-to-market organization or entering new markets. This acceleration phase can be challenging, as it involves reviewing, renovating, and sometimes completely overhauling artifacts of previous business processes. Establishing RevOps earlier can help avoid these hurdles and set the foundation for smoother growth.