The Wandering Tech Podcast

In this episode of the podcast, Paul interviews Brian Lewis, Co-Founder and CRO of Homerun Presales, about the evolution of pre-sales and the emerging technology landscape supporting the function. Brian shares insights from his nearly two decades of experience building and leading pre-sales teams, and now developing purpose-built tools for the pre-sales community. Also, Lidia is feeling guilty about making numbers up on the episode itself, so here are some of the metrics that Homerun Presales share on their website [https://www.homerunpresales.com/]: * Revenue: 15% increase in deal win rates * Velocity: 16% decrease in sales cycle durations * Productivity: 8 hours saved per SE/SC/SA per week * Ramp: 4 weeks saved onboarding new team members Connect with: * Brian Lewis on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianlewisphd/] * Homerun Presales on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/homerun-presales/posts/?feedView=all] * Homerun YouTube channel [https://www.youtube.com/@HomerunPresales] * Homerun website content library [https://www.homerunpresales.com/content-library] Connect with the hosts: * Lidia on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/lidia-vasileva/] * Paul on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulfharris/] * Website: solutionspathfinders.com [http://solutionspathfinders.com] Notable quotes: "If you're going to assign me and say, hey, if you close this customer, as the solutions consultant, you are going to stay with them throughout the entire customer journey... eventually all of your time is spent supporting your current customers, which means you have zero time to go out and find new ones." "Pre-sales teams, we are really good at selling our own stuff. And then we're horrible at buying stuff. We know all the rules. We know all the processes. We know the tips and tricks and best practices when it comes to enabling our own buying teams. And then you turn the mirror on yourself and you don't know what to do." Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way [https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way] License code: GD2AS1RU1MVSELY3

In this episode of The Wandering Tech Podcast, Lidia interviews Rob Dean, Head of Presales at the Access Group, about the changing landscape of pre-sales and technical sales roles. Rob shares valuable insights from his extensive experience leading world-class solution consultant teams. Key discussion points: * The shift from "masters of the mid-funnel" to a more central role in the sales circle * How the consumerization of B2B behaviour is changing buyer expectations * Creating inclusive environments for neurodivergent professionals in pre-sales * The importance of authentic leadership and building genuine professional networks * Career development inflection points at 12 and 24 months * Adapting to evolving buyer journeys and digital transformation Featured guest: * Rob Dean - Head of Presales at the Access Group [https://www.linkedin.com/in/robldean/] Connect with the hosts: * Lidia on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/lidia-vasileva/] * Paul on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulfharris/] * Website: solutionspathfinders.com [http://solutionspathfinders.com] Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way [https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way] License code: GD2AS1RU1MVSELY3

In this episode of The Wandering Tech Podcast, Lidia interviews Rob Dean, Head of Presales at the Access Group, about the changing landscape of pre-sales and technical sales roles. Rob shares valuable insights from his extensive experience leading world-class solution consultant teams. Key discussion points: * The shift from "masters of the mid-funnel" to a more central role in the sales circle * How the consumerization of B2B behaviour is changing buyer expectations * Creating inclusive environments for neurodivergent professionals in pre-sales * The importance of authentic leadership and building genuine professional networks * Career development inflection points at 12 and 24 months * Adapting to evolving buyer journeys and digital transformation Featured guest: * Rob Dean - Head of Presales at the Access Group Featured links & references: * Rob's Links: * Rob on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/robldean/] * The Access Group [https://www.theaccessgroup.com/en-gb/] * Connect with the hosts: * Lidia on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/lidia-vasileva/] * Paul on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulfharris/] * Website: solutionspathfinders.com [http://solutionspathfinders.com] Connect with us on LinkedIn and share your thoughts! Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way [https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way] License code: GD2AS1RU1MVSELY3

In this episode of The Wandering Tech Podcast, Lidia and Paul dive deep into the ongoing debate about the Chief Solutions Officer (CSO) role and its place in modern organizations. Drawing from their experiences at companies like VMware and various SaaS organizations, they explore whether this emerging C-suite position is truly necessary or just a 'nice to have'. Key discussion points: * The challenges of measuring trust and other proposed CSO metrics * How organizational structure influences pre-sales priorities and values * The evolution from traditional pre-sales to broader solution roles * Why infrastructure companies might approach technical sales differently * The balance between revenue focus and technical expertise * Compensation models and risk-taking in pre-sales roles Featured links & references: * James Kaikis' blog post on Test Box about CSO role: https://www.testbox.com/post/chief-solutions-officer [https://www.testbox.com/post/chief-solutions-officer] * Customer Success book mentioned in the episode: Customer Success: How Innovative Companies Are Reducing Churn and Growing Recurring Revenue [https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1119167965?ref=cm_sw_r_cso_sms_apin_dp_QP4ZK3Y32Z8R5XWPJ6ZF&ref_=cm_sw_r_cso_sms_apin_dp_QP4ZK3Y32Z8R5XWPJ6ZF&social_share=cm_sw_r_cso_sms_apin_dp_QP4ZK3Y32Z8R5XWPJ6ZF&starsLeft=1&skipTwisterOG=1] * Connect with the hosts: * Lidia on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/lidia-vasileva/] * Paul on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulfharris/] * Website: solutionspathfinders.com [https://www.solutionspathfinders.com/] Think the Chief Solutions Officer role is the future or are we barking up the wrong tree? Connect with us on LinkedIn and share your thoughts! Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way [https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way] License code: GD2AS1RU1MVSELY3

In this episode of the Wandering Tech Podcast, Lidia and Paul chat about DEMOFESTxLondon 2024 with Lidia going through the event in rapid-fire action. She shares highlights from the event, including the keynote by Consensus' new CEO, insights on demo automation, and strategies for scaling pre-sales impact. They discuss the evolving role of pre-sales, the growing importance of asynchronous buyer journeys, and key takeaways from presenters like Nikhil, Natasja, and Max. Lidia also covers the Women in Tech session and Rew's energetic closing talk. Please connect with us and leave us a review on your platform of choice. Want to hear more from us? Subscribe to our Newsletter: https://thediscoverydigest.substack.com [https://thediscoverydigest.substack.com] Links: Want to connect with us? Find us on LinkedIn: Lidia [https://www.linkedin.com/in/lidia-vasileva/] & Paul [https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulfharris/] Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way [https://uppbeat.io/t/mountaineer/milky-way] License code: GD2AS1RU1MVSELY3