Sage News and Discussion

Here's another one for you ... Is everyone aware that Sage reps are assigned to customers and not to partners now? So if you identify an opportunity that's in a different state and, god forbid, you need to involve Sage in the opportunity, you will need to introduce yourself to a brand new Sage representative. This will go swimmingly, I'm sure. From Sage's perspective, examine that new model. The account managers are assigned territories and customers. Sounds a hell of a lot closer to a direct sales model than a partner based model.

Bumping for your viewing pleasure.

Huh! Weird!

Yes - I've seen the slide deck. Didn't they also change the name from partner advocate to something more customer friendly. I'm also told that one of the key internal reasons for discourse with execs is that ""they are too partner friendly"" ....

Are you referring to the ""Focus On Customers - Regional Sales Managers and Sales Specialists work with customers in regions"" part of the channel and sales alignment broadcast 4/18? And what does ""too partner friendly"" mean?!?

Really, does this affect you? How much do you use the Sage Sales rep on normal deals? This is a non issue to me.

Honestly it affects us all because it highlights Pascal's drive for Sage to work direct. It has zero to do with whether we use them or not. The inside people are now essentially assigned to customer territories and not partners. The next step is they will be tasked with calling customers on a regular basis. This is going to create nothing but channel conflict and problems. Yet another example of Pascal's complete disregard for the channel.

An interesting comment from Ed Kless earlier this week when we were talking about Sage's promos expiring but really never expiring (or something like that). We all said Sage sucks and he agreed saying, ""I've quit emailing them about it because they never respond. And if Pascal were sitting right here in front of me, I'd say the same thing.

Hmmm - The next Avalara employee?

The part about the direct customer contact by Sage that really slays me is their ignoring Mr. Parieto's rule. By encouraging direct customer contact, they are inviting a huge time-vs-payoff issue. Dealing directly with the 20% of customers that will create 80% of the problems doesn't mean that those are the same 20% that create 80% of the opportunities. In order to create satisfactory service to the time-bandits, they will take resources from the other, more profitable, customers ... create dissatisfaction where it really matters. I doubt that Kless will go anywhere on his own as long as he gets to do roughly what what he does now. I don't know exactly what his own revenue model is, but I get the sense that Sage comp is a decreasing % of his total. I also think that Sage sees his role as a significant flag to the channel. So, if he is gone some day, I think that would signal the icing the cake that is in the oven. As I've said before, I think Pascal will be gone before Summit 2014..

If Pascal's gone it will be because of a sale of NA. #prediction

Hmmm. Interesting idea. I see what you mean. That situation I think is intertwined with Sage being acquired by another. As time goes on, I have a harder time seeing how that would happen, unless the acquirer was after some thing outside NA. I will point out that CEO's often get brought in to fix certain broad problems. I can see how his strategy would result in boosting new customer rev (Sage rebranding is part of my thinking), but then not controlling COS. He could be then ""promoted out"" and somebody else brought on that issue. I dunno. I, like most of you, have come to the conclusion that it is what is, at least for the next couple years. Brave New World.