Bruno Barreto

I’ve reviewed 100s of discovery calls. The #1 difference between AEs converting 40% and AEs converting 70%+ of first calls is the number of problems discussed. And the top reps discuss fewer. Reps that don’t convert go wide, trying to find anything and everything to tie their product to. They think: “The more problems I find, the better chance I have of solving some of them.” Reps that convert go deep into the most important problems uncovered. They think: “I need to attach to a problem worth solving.” I built a discovery capture sheet that will help “guide” your conversations to go deep, instead of wide. You can get it here in this blog post (ungated and no cost - just make a copy): https://lnkd.in/gCaUJ4ZD

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David Klaassen’s post isn’t about theory. It’s about how GTM planning actually happens—and breaks—in real companies. And how Sigma helped him rebuild it into something smarter, faster, and fully aligned.

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The Clari-Salesloft merger represents one of the most significant SalesTech transactions in recent years and a key milestone for revenue orchestration. This combination creates a revenue orchestration powerhouse with 2,300 employees serving 5,000 customers. By my estimates, the merged entities generated over $450M in ARR last year. Their technology portfolio spans conversation intelligence, deal intelligence, revenue intelligence, and sales engagement. However, this investor-driven merger faces significant integration challenges, particularly given substantial technology overlap between Clari and Salesloft. Revenue orchestration is an emerging category blending conversation intelligence, deal intelligence, revenue intelligence, and sales engagement. Forrester coined the term in 2024, signaling its belief that the category would become a cornerstone of salestech consolidation by dedicating a Wave to it. Gartner echoed this trend with a similar label—Revenue Action Orchestration—though it has yet to release a Magic Quadrant or Market Guide. Revenue orchestration is propelled by two forces. First, businesses want to simplify and streamline bloated SalesTech stacks. Second, alpha vendors—a term coined by Craig Rosenberg in 2022 for well-funded startups aggressively expanding beyond their original mini-categories—are driving consolidation. The funding numbers make the latter imperative clear: Clari ($496M raised, $2.6B valuation), Gong ($584M raised, $7.25B valuation), and Outreach ($489M raised, $4.4B valuation) all need to create a market large enough to sustain their growth ambitions. While PE-owned, Salesloft faced similar pressure after Vista’s $2.3B majority acquisition in 2022, later merging with Drift, which Vista had acquired in 2021 for $1B. Despite these forces, revenue orchestration has grown more slowly than expected. The push to consolidate sales stacks has been talked about for years, but has remained a moving target. It mostly applies to tech companies with extensive salestech investments. Other industries are still in the early stages of adopting modern SalesTech technologies. In tech, consolidation has largely meant cutting software that didn’t directly impact revenue operations or consolidating vendors within the same category. Only in 2024 have we seen true consolidation projects emerge—like Reddit with Gong, SAP with Outreach, or IBM with Salesloft. The three largest players in the category—Gong, Outreach, and Salesloft—each hit a growth plateau around $300M ARR last year. While growth has resumed, the overall category lacks the tailwind needed to meet their ambitious targets. Could this merger be a catalyst to re-energize the category? I believe the real opportunity isn’t just consolidating SalesTech stacks in the tech sector but expanding into other industries. Together, Clari and Salesloft have the scale to pursue SalesTech’s next growth frontier. What’s your take? #salestech #revenueorchstration #consolidation

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Third-Party Maintenance is evolving—no longer just a maintenance fallback, it's becoming a proactive strategy that empowers IT leaders to: - Extend hardware lifecycles and reduce capital churn - Stay lean and agile compared to rigid OEM models - Drive cost optimization with flexibility TPM isn’t just about fixing failures. It's about unlocking value, resilience, and agility across your infrastructure.

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Aaron Katz has always led with quiet confidence. I first met him back in 2014, when we recruited him out of Salesforce to lead revenue at Elastic. Over the next six years as CRO, he helped grow the business from $5M to $500M, guiding it all the way to an IPO in 2018. In 2021, we uncovered the opportunity to spin out ClickHouse—then a beloved open-source project and the database for people who really know databases. The process wasn’t easy, but, by partnering with Aaron, we were able to get it done. Since then, it’s been remarkable to watch Aaron build ClickHouse into one of the fastest-growing companies in tech, leading an empowered, accountable, world-class team. His leadership style isn’t loud or showy—it’s steady, deliberate, and deeply human. A lot of Silicon Valley leaders take their cues from “larger-than-life” figures like Elon Musk or Steve Jobs. Aaron’s approach is closer to that of Tim Cook: thoughtful, low-ego, and happiest when the spotlight shines on others. That ethos is all over ClickHouse—an organization built on trust, clarity, and shared ownership. It’s a culture that scales because the leader at the top doesn’t need to take up all the space. Index just published a great profile of Aaron’s journey as a salesman, entrepreneur, and family man. Go check it out. https://lnkd.in/gyWE-zHX

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Selling enterprise SaaS and AI isn’t simple anymore. The tech is complex. The stakes are high. And the paper process alone can kill a deal if you don’t know how to manage it. Seasoned reps make the difference; especially when the customer’s ready to move, but procurement, legal, and compliance still need answers. It takes time to learn how to lead through that. To anticipate the friction. To guide internal champions and keep momentum alive. That’s why we invest in reps who work hard and keep improving. Because by year three, they’re not just selling, they’re navigating complexity, building trust, and delivering clarity when customers need it most. And that’s what gets deals across the finish line, with confidence on both sides.

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SaaS is evolving into AaaS, Agents as a Service. Instead of giving customers tools and asking their teams to run the process, we can now deploy agents that handle the workflow end to end, powered by APIs and data. This model scales without constantly adding headcount and delivers direct outcomes, not just features. How are you adapting to this shift, are you focusing on tools or agents for your users?

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Enterprise AEs aren’t losing deals to competitors. They’re losing them to capital allocation. In this market, business decisions are financial decisions. If you can’t explain cash-flow impact, margin implications, and payback …..calmly. You don’t have pipeline. You have activity.

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Horses for courses. Pick the right tool for the objective. Sometimes that might include agentic AI. Sometimes not. Thanks for sharing the insight in getting successful agentic AI projects implemented in enterprises scale organizations. How to drive faster AI adoption with Gemini Enterprise | Google Cloud Next '26 Dhyaanesh Mullagur sits down with Jeff Frick at the Egen Lounge, Google Cloud Next #Interview #AgenticAI #AI #GenAI #Egen #MenloCreekMedia #Google #GCP #GoogleCloud #Adoption #QuickWins

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Top 16 RevOps leaders who are sharing valuable insights on how RevOps is shaping up in 2026. Follow them to level up your career: 1. Jen Igartua Hosts the infamous RevFest conference and runs Go Nimbly, one of the best RevOps consultancies out there. 2. Jeff Ignacio Runs the RevOps Impact newsletter and shares honest takes on GTM, RevOps, and AI. 3. Mallory Lee VP RevOps at Zipline, talks about the reality of using AI in RevOps and calls out the fluff from what actually works. 4. Haris Odobasic Author of The RevOps Pendulum book and talks about how GTM strategy and operations work together. 5. Alexander Muller Founder of Revenue Enablement, talks deeply about how AI is changing the RevOps role. 6. Sean Lane Co-authored THE book on RevOps - The Revenue Operations Manual. Does he even need an intro? 7. Mollie Bodensteiner SVP Ops, Engine. Shares how RevOps leaders should navigate and think about AI. 8. Matthew Volm Founder of Eventful and RevOps Co-op. Calls out the uncomfortable truths about the RevOps role. 9. Justin Norris Runs the RevOps FM podcast and talks about how AI actually gets embedded into GTM workflows. 10. Sara McNamara Founding RevOps lead at Vector, talks about AI, tools, strategy, Clay, and all things RevOps. 11. Ryan Milligan RevOps turned CRO at QuotaPath, talks about how RevOps can start being recognized as the engine of the GTM org. 12. Darrell Alfonso Co-host of the Humans of Martech Podcast, also runs a weekly newsletter packed with MOPs strategies. 13. Tessa Whittaker VP RevOps, Zoominfo. Hot takes and amazing thought leadership on how RevOps is evolving as a function. 14. Cliff Simon CEO & Founder, Polaris Ops. Talks about how RevOps is moving towards strategy and growth with AI. 15. Andy Mowat Founder, Whispered - one of the largest communities of executives helping each other with insights, intros and unposted roles. 16. Leore Spira Fractional RevOps and GTM AI Strategy advisor, LS Consultancy. Calls out how companies want AI-backed answers but are not willing to do the RevOps work first🤷‍♂️ Other non-RevOps people on LinkedIn: 1. Peter Walker Who shares amazing insights from Carta's extensive startup database. 2. Anthony Pierri Because everyone needs help with positioning and messaging. 3. Harry Stebbings Who runs the 20VC podcast (and fund) and should be on everyone's feed! 4. Kyle Poyar To help you with everything pricing, GTM, AI and SaaS. Who am I missing? Btw, this is just Pt. 1, I'll be publishing Pt. 2 with so many more amazing RevOps leaders you can follow! __ PS: We hosted 100+ RevOps Leaders at our RevOps Lab podcast (link in my profile) so tried to focus on people who regularly post on LinkedIn

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NRR is the only CS metric boards actually care about. Most CS leaders walk into board meetings armed with the wrong numbers. CSAT. NPS. Ticket resolution time. These are operational metrics. They measure activity, not outcomes. PE boards evaluating a CS org ask one question before anything else: what is NRR and where is it headed? If you can't answer that with precision, you are not having a strategic conversation. You are giving a status update. Boards measure one thing: Is the revenue we already have growing or shrinking? That's Net Revenue Retention. GRR matters too, it directly impacts customer lifetime value. But when a board is evaluating the health of the business, NRR is the number that tells the real story. Here is what NRR actually tells the board: 🔑 Above 100%: Existing customers are worth more than you paid to acquire them.  🔑 Below 100%: You have a leaky bucket, no matter how fast sales fills it. 🔑 At 110%+: You have a compounding growth engine that does not require adding headcount. The CCO's job is to own the trajectory of that number. 🔥 Connect CS activity to expansion revenue, not just renewal rate.  🔥 Know which customer segments drive NRR up and drag it down.  🔥 Bring a point of view, not just a report. The CS leaders who earn a seat at the table stopped talking about customer health and started talking about revenue trajectory. NRR is the translation layer between CS work and business outcome. Own it. How do you present CS impact to your board? Are you leading with NRR or still defending activity metrics? #customersuccess #revenueretention #NRR

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🚀 From Lessons to Leadership: The Next Era of Sales Compensation Starts Now In 2025, sales comp teams learned to be agile, data-driven, and seller-centric. But 2026 demands a bigger leap from executing plans to shaping strategy. The future belongs to compensation leaders who don’t just administer payouts, but who steer revenue behavior, predict performance, and build trust at scale. Here’s the shift happening now 👇 ✅ From reactive reporting → predictive incentive intelligence ✅ From quota disputes → transparent pay and trust-building ✅ From plan design in silos → cross-functional revenue councils ✅ From mechanical comp plans → behavior-shaping engines ✅ From complexity → clarity and seller empowerment High-performing orgs are already: ✨ Using AI to model scenarios before rollouts ✨ Rewarding profitable + predictable growth (not just volume) ✨ Giving sellers dashboards, playbooks, and transparency ✨ Listening to the field and iterating in-year ✨ Training managers and comp teams like strategic athletes In 2026, the question isn’t: “Did your plan pay accurately?” It’s: “Did your compensation strategy create predictable, profitable revenue and motivated sellers?” Sales compensation is no longer a back-office function. It’s a strategic growth engine. And the leaders who embrace this shift will shape the future of GTM performance. 💡 The era of Strategic Sales Compensation Leadership has begun. If you're ready to lead it now is the time and want to understand how talk to ZenCentiv team to know more 👉 Read the full article through the link in the comments #ZenCentiv #SalesComp #RevenueLeadership #GTMStrategy #SPM #SalesOps #IncentiveDesign #RevOps #2026Ready #FinancialServices #AutomotiveIndustry #RetailLeadership #HighTech #ProfessionalServices #ManufacturingExcellenc #BankingInnovation #InsuranceIndustry

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SaaS has been in a crisis, and with ~$300B in market value wiped out last week, more are noticing. Customer Success will feel a disproportionate share of the pressure unless it levels up - fast. We wrote about the new standard for enterprise value in today’s market. https://lnkd.in/dAPr7zBE

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GTM orchestration is getting easier and it’s about time! With AI so much more is possible when paired with the best of the best technology company in SF (shameless plug I know). In the latest issues from Salesforce Ben we highlight so many ways you can win with AI and how RevOps can maximize your Plan. ✅ Standardize data as soon as it enters Salesforce, without hard-coded rules or manual cleanup. ✅ Take validation deeper to flag fake or junk field entries using AI that analyzes multiple fields together, not just syntax. ✅ Fill in missing data with AI-driven enrichment to identify likely account hierarchies and relationships. ✅ Deliver go-to-market signals directly to your reps in Salesforce to help them prioritize leads and personalize outreach. Next level has arrived.

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In today’s market, Solution Engineering isn’t a supporting act. It’s a strategic lever. When revenue slows, most teams look at sales motions, pricing, or pipeline generation. But often, the real inflection point sits before the opportunity even enters the forecast. That’s where Solution Engineers (Presales) come in. Done right, presales is where: 🔍 Discovery gets real 🧩 Complexity gets clarified 🎯 Value gets translated 💡 And bad-fit opportunities get filtered before they burn resources downstream But too often, presales is stuck in demo mode—overburdened, under-leveraged, and reactive. The best teams are rethinking this function as: ✅ A qualifying force, not just a technical one ✅ A voice of customer truth in GTM design ✅ A driver of win-rate, not just support for it ✅ And a key player in reducing Cost to Serve by setting up delivery for success If we want predictable revenue, we need purposeful solution design.

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Zendesk has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Forethought, which will take #ZendeskAI's ability to learn from every interaction and will amplify it across every channel and platform. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gwx6DSS3

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For Dal Sidhu, Head of Global Sales Compensation at Zoom, the difference is simple: Xactly listens. By taking the time to truly understand his team’s challenges, Xactly puts the customer first and delivers innovative technology to solve real problems. And when it comes to what’s next? Dal is especially excited about what Xactly will do with AI. http://spklr.io/6048D4rdq

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Now, the "How" meets the "Where." In product development, there has always been a gap between strategy and execution. You know the best practices in a strategy course, but when it comes to applying it, knowledge disappears. That’s why I’m so excited that Reforge is joining Miro. By pairing Reforge’s legendary frameworks with Miro’s innovation platform, we are building the ultimate engine for Product and Engineering teams. Today, we’re giving you the collective intelligence of the world’s best product leaders, matched with a seamless workflow. Thrilled to partner with Brian Balfour and Tom Willerer and the entire Reforge team on this mission.

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🚀 Onboarding isn’t just a program — it’s a productivity engine. The central challenge for any GTM onboarding team is simple to state but hard to nail: get new hires to full productivity and quota attainment fast. At Gong, we’ve been rethinking what it truly takes to make that happen. I sat down with Danica Schutt and Max Costello White from our GTM Onboarding team to unpack how we’ve structured our onboarding program to do exactly that. From flipped classrooms to AI-driven coaching and deep integration across RevOps, this team has built a machine that’s helping over 70% of new hires hit productivity targets faster than ever. If you’re building or refining your onboarding program, this is a conversation worth reading. https://lnkd.in/gWu_Qsdj

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