Quel est le rôle d’un responsable technico-commercial ?

A technical sales manager sets the environment and conditions so that her/his team thrives and they become better sales engineers - that’s it. How? That’s the part without an obvious answer, but here goes my contribution: - Defining a direction and way of doing (more than goals) - Eliminating stones on the way of her/his team (technical and process issues, interfaces with other teams…) - Getting down to the mud when necessary to facilitate and show on-the-job expertise -… letting the team fail some times (and this is the most difficult for me)

Todo esto es correcto, pero para saber acerca de todos estos temas mencionados, que son bastantes profundos, se debe tener un bagage de experiencia real, y ese por lo general se logra en el día a día de trabajo y de muchos años de interactuar con tanta gente, resolución de problemas, conocimiento técnico de lo que realizas, y saber actuar en el momento justo.

As manager/leader, we don't tell people what to do, we help them do what they can. KPI = Keep people interested, informed, involved, and inspired

This article uses the term Technical Sales Manager. Along with the myriad of titles for our presales roles, there are probably just as many titles for the leadership positions; SE Manager, Director of Solution Consulting, Head of Presales, etc. Regardless of the title, the responsibilities remain the same. To lead and grow the presales professionals on their team. An important aspect is to have a career development plan and work with each team member to understand their aspirations on career growth. SE leaders must audit the meetings their team delivers as this gives an opportunity to provide coaching and feedback. Finally, SE leaders are typically the people charged with solving conflicts between the SEs and their sales counterparts.

I believe my experience and success as a sales engineer are two of the biggest reasons for my success as an SE leader. The most important job is supporting your team. It's impossible if you don't know how to do the job. The need for a "strong technical background" is relative to the technical needs of the solution you are selling. Leaders don't succeed based on their technical abilities - they succeed based on their people skills. The soft skills such as empathy, active listening, humility, and delivering feedback and coaching are critical abilities for today's leaders. Do some research on "servant leadership", read Leaders Eat Last, and follow Simon Sinek for more great insight on leadership.

Lo teoría es muy importante, la lectura, sed de aprendizaje y estar actualizando tu cerebro casi a diario es vital para esto, pero así mismo tanta experiencia en la calle, con gente, situaciones dificiles, fracasos tanto tuyos como de otros, hacen que forjes tu coraza y te vuelvas más sólido para cualquier situación que se te pueda presentar, y es ahí en dónde aplicaras todo lo aprendido, y a medida que sepas comunicar tus opiniones de manera acertada y convincente, te irás ganado poco a poco el respeto , administración y confianza de los clientes, eso es vital en una relación comercial.

Technical Sales manager has to perform multiple key activities. Some of them are as below. 1. Evaluate opportunities and identify product/services fitment for organization, analyze opportunities, obtain go decision 2. Assign best suitable SE and product engineer 3. Identify potential interdependencies across organization and assemble the team to support business opportunity 4. Identify the risks and possible mititgation options and prepare mitigation plan 5. Prioritize pipeline based on revenue potential and manage timelines 6. Identify upsell and cross sell opportunities and provide insights to sales 7. Coach and mentor team of SEs 8. Identify market trends and provide feedback to product terms

Cuando llegas a un punto dónde tú cliente confía en ti, dónde sabe que cuenta con tu apoyo técnico, sabiduría y experiencia, hoy el segundo paso es fidelizar esa relación, y hacerle saber que hasta en el más mínimo detalle estarás ahí. El cliente percibe un buen apoyo, y esa es una función importantísima de un Gerente Técnico de Ventas

Biggest Challenges for Sales Engineering Leaders: 1 - Resolving conflicts that arise between their SEs and their sales counterparts. This is usually around priority and calendar management or personality conflicts. 2 - Managing the launch of new features. Product teams like to push the newest stuff out as quickly as possible. It's critical that the SE team has what they need as part of this launch; messaging, demo assets, and technical documentation. 3 - Consistency of the user experience. Every sales engineer has a different style, but it's important to have consistency in how the team presents the solution to the buyers. This isn't about shared scripts, but shared stories. There are other challenges, but these are the most common.

I find the next list challenges high on my list: - Complex solutions & demanding customers: Juggling tech intricacies with high expectations. - Aggressive competition & shrinking margins: Standing out in a crowded, cost-conscious field. - Building & motivating tech-savvy teams: Guiding owls & code wizards to sales glory. - Navigating ever-changing landscapes: Adapting to tech trends faster than a chameleon. - Metrics & pressure, constant friends: Hitting quota while keeping spirits high.

Te vuelves un experto estudiando, aprendiendo, actualizandote, siempre a la vanguardia, y aprendes mucho en campo, en la calle, escuchado a expertos y a otros no tan expertos, resolviendo problemas, planteando soluciones, conocimiento de tu producto o servicio , conocimiento de tu cliente y su necesidad.

Here's an even simpler next step. Let your leaders know that you are interested in potential leadership roles. Even if there are not any roles currently available, let your manager know of your interest. Don't sit back and wait for someone to come to you. Here's how I landed my first leadership gig. I knew the current manager was leaving and I was very clear about my desire to fill the role. I took the time to write out a full SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis based on the team members and the current situation. I put together a 90-day plan with key milestones at 30 and 60 days. These were initiatives and projects aligned to mitigate some of the threats outlined in the SWOT analysis. My approach worked! 😀

Leadership! I think a strong technical aptitude is beneficial but a strong leadership skillset is often undermined for this position. Leadership itself has many layers but it starts with being self aware of your own strengths and weaknesses and of your team. Once you identify these needs then you can build an effective team that overlaps each other's skillsets, creating a cohesive team. From my experience, I have the great opportunity to lead people with different personalities and technical aptitude and I have created a solid team that is willing to work for each other and build each other up. You work for people with people so start honing this skillset first.

Technical Sales Manager are Master Problem Solvers and yes leadership is an essential skill set to bring the right people to the “solution table”. In many instances this means bringing people together that would never imagine working together and doing it with tact and expedience. All in an effort to solve a problem.

Be an example and a leader, not only a manager of people. Be real. But be the kind of person that you look up to. Stay current with the technologies of your industry and the marketplace.

Here's my single best tip for success in Leadership! You (and your company) need to realize that the skills that made you a top performer as an individual contributor are NOT the skills that will make you a top performer as a Leader. Think about what leadership means to you. Reflect on the people in your career who were great leaders. Develop your point of view on leadership and determine the skills you need to grow and develop to become an effective leader. Anyone can become a manager. It's just about the administrative bits. Leaders inspire the best in their teams. Be a Leader, not a manager.

They have a detailed knowledge of the product and services they are offering, they know their market target and they know their competitors. With this they can explain the features, the suitabilities and also sell these products and services to their customers. Thus increasing the revenue of their company.