PE firms conduct rigorous financial and legal due diligence, but their commercial diligence is often thin. They approve aggressive growth theses based on a sales organization that was never designed for, or examined on, its ability to deliver, leading to missed targets post-acquisition.
When revenue lags, the common reaction is to hire more reps. This compounds the problem by adding cost to a broken system. The correct sequence is to first diagnose commercial maturity, then fix the underlying infrastructure like sales processes, and only then add headcount capacity.
Promoting a top salesperson to manager is a common mistake because the skillsets are different. An effective sales manager is more like an engineer: analytical, process-driven, and capable of structuring pipelines and compensation plans. They build the sales machine; salespeople operate within it.
Relying on hiring salespeople with a 'black book' of contacts creates a fragile growth model dependent on individual heroics. When that person leaves, their relationships leave too. Companies should instead build a robust sales system that makes average salespeople productive, which is a durable, long-term asset.
In complex, long-cycle sales, the greatest financial drain is the resource investment in prospects who ultimately don't convert. A rigorous, multi-stage qualification process is crucial to identify and disqualify non-buyers as early as possible, preventing months of wasted effort and expense.