The company is creating Sales Engineering.
Leadership needs the mandate, first roles, engagement model and operating rhythm designed as one system.
Build the function
Build and Scale Sales Engineering
An engagement for leaders creating a Sales Engineering function or preparing the next stage of growth.
I work closely with the accountable executive or SE leader. The internal team carries daily implementation and organisational decisions.
Signals
When companies build or rebuild the function
A new region needs a repeatable foundation.
The team needs hiring, onboarding, customer work and cross-functional connections that fit the local stage.
The existing function is entering a new growth phase.
The leader wants capacity, management, enablement and commercial responsibilities prepared for greater scale.
A new leader takes over the function.
The leader inherits deals in progress, a team they did not hire and expectations from Sales and Product, and needs a plan for the first 90 days.
What we design
What the function design covers
Mandate and engagement model
Which deals get a Sales Engineer, from which stage, and what the account executive brings to the first meeting.
Coverage and capacity
How many Sales Engineers each market and segment needs, and when specialist roles such as Partner or Principal Sales Engineers are needed.
Roles by sales stage
Who leads what between Sales, Sales Engineering and Customer Success from the first meeting to the handover, written down as one agreement.
Sales Sales Engineering Customer Success written down as one agreement the first meeting the handoverOperating rhythm
Weekly deal sessions, team meetings, regional and global meetings, and joint business reviews with Sales.
The link to Product
A route for product requests from deals and Proofs of Value, and a regular session with Product about what affects current deals.
People
The people system
At Leapwork we assessed Sales Engineering candidates on value messaging, how they ran a meeting with executives, how they tied a demo to the customer’s objectives, qualification, and their style and creativity.
New Sales Engineers moved through onboarding milestones, from product foundation to their first discovery call and demo with a customer, then shadowed Proofs of Value, with a weekly review with their manager. Senior Sales Engineers took ownership of areas such as the demo environment, onboarding and best practices, so the team’s development did not rest on the leader alone.
Career paths in Business Value Consulting, Partner Sales Engineering and Principal Sales Engineering gave experienced Sales Engineers routes other than management.
Some of this material was written by colleagues in the team.
product foundation their first discovery call and demo shadowed Proofs of Value a weekly review with their manager routes other than management Business Value Consulting Partner Sales Engineering Principal Sales Engineering management
Training for managers
Leading Sales Engineers
- For
- SE team leads, managers and senior Sales Engineers taking on responsibility for the team.
- Format
- A training on your own hiring, onboarding and deal reviews, on its own or as part of a Build and Scale engagement.
Managers learn to assess candidates against a hiring standard, to run onboarding with milestones and a weekly review, and to coach in deal reviews through the three puzzles. It also covers which parts of the team’s development senior Sales Engineers can own.
What you keep
What remains after the work
Function charter
Mandate, scope, outcomes, responsibilities and the connections to the wider organisation.
Capacity and coverage design
A practical model for team shape, market coverage and engagement choices.
Hiring and onboarding system
Role profiles, assessment criteria, interview structure, onboarding and learning path.
Operating handbook
Opportunity rhythm, enablement, team routines, handovers, metrics and implementation priorities.
Experience
I joined Leapwork to build Sales Engineering from zero, hired and developed an international team and helped shape the wider commercial organisation around it.
Full background: Sales Engineering enablementBefore you write
Questions about building the function
Can this support the first SE leader?
Yes. The work can create the initial mandate, hiring system, operating rhythm and leadership agenda.
Who owns implementation?
The accountable internal leader owns implementation and organisational decisions. I create the design, working material and leadership support around it.
For ongoing advice after the design work, see Advisory for Sales Engineering Leaders.
An assignment can start with a focused diagnostic and design phase.
If you think I could help, write to me or give me a call.
I answer as quickly as I can.
The first step is a short call or a coffee. In Copenhagen I am happy to come to your office.