This blog is a summary of Dan Cook's Episode on the Revenue Mavericks Podcast. Visit the Mavericks Podcast Homepage to see the latest episodes.

A lot has changed in revenue organizations over the last 20+ years. The advent of the internet brought tools and systems that allow us to scale more strategically. These tools enable organizations to adopt a "Moneyball" mindset—focusing on the best levers inside a revenue organization to stimulate and scale growth. Gone are the days when you simply sent sales reps out to bring in results.

Despite the changes, I’ve observed that one consistent pitfall among RevOps professionals is relying on systems to solve problems without understanding the underlying processes they support. People think implementing a CRM will bring order to the universe, but anyone who’s implemented Salesforce knows it can create more problems than solutions.

The key to success lies in starting with an MVP (Minimum Viable Product)—such as building an early version of your system in Excel. This helps determine the features you need in your tools or, in some cases, build your own CRM with a third-party contractor to meet your specific needs. The same applies to your entire sales tech stack. If you know the system you want to automate or improve, and have MVP’d it, the chances of a big investment succeeding increase dramatically. This is where early investment RevOps is essential.

The Value of Over-Investing in RevOps Early

RevOps has become more than just a support function; it’s a critical part of a company’s scaling journey. Over the years, I’ve developed a deep appreciation for its value in scaling companies effectively. So, why do I put a premium on revenue operations? It’s because, in a world where companies often struggle with scaling—overhiring sales reps or breaking up territories too small to drive results—RevOps can be the difference between success and failure.

When done right, RevOps helps reduce risk and maximize upside. It allows organizations to scale thoughtfully and confidently by using data to guide decisions, as they should early on in the development of your MVP. A strong RevOps function ensures investments are made wisely, minimizing the floor on failure while raising the ceiling on success.

Survey Insights: The Role of RevOps in Scaling Sales Teams

To understand how best-in-class companies scale their revenue organizations, we surveyed several high-performing SaaS scale-ups. We focused specifically on how they scale their RevOps functions in relation to their sales teams.

What we discovered was fascinating. In the early stages—say, the first and second year of scaling, when a company transitions from validation to rapid growth—the common pattern was to maintain a ratio of roughly 6:1: six sales reps (including managers) for every one RevOps practitioner. Essentially, these organizations were overinvesting in RevOps relative to their sales team size, ensuring they had the right infrastructure, systems, and processes in place to scale effectively.

However, as these companies matured—typically after two or three years—this ratio shifted dramatically. At scale, we observed ratios closer to 30:1, where a single RevOps practitioner could support a significantly larger sales organization. By this point, the foundational work done in the early years—building strong systems, establishing scalable processes, and enabling efficient operations—paid dividends, reducing the need for additional RevOps headcount.

The takeaway here is clear: Best-in-class companies tend to overinvest in RevOps early, which gives them the confidence and capability to scale their sales teams aggressively and efficiently. With the right people in place, a strong RevOps foundation empowered these organizations to scale confidently, knowing their systems and processes could support rapid growth. Once that foundation was set, they could shift their focus to hiring more quota-carrying reps without constantly adding to their RevOps headcount.

Hiring for RevOps Success

When hiring for RevOps, it’s important to assess your own strengths and weaknesses first. Then, look for someone who complements your gaps and adds value in critical areas for scaling the business. 

Flexibility and adaptability are crucial. In tech companies, everything evolves—systems, processes, even people. Every 2–4 years, RevOps needs to reinvent itself: rewrite systems, processes, and sometimes rethink the team structure.

Early on, quantitative generalists shine. They handle a bit of everything and drive foundational work. But as the company grows, roles must specialize. Some generalists evolve; others may need to pivot or transition. When hiring, always ask: Am I hiring generalists? Can the generalists I hired earlier evolve with the organization? Or is the organization outgrowing them? Being intentional about this ensures that your RevOps team can keep pace with your scaling journey.

A hiring hack: Look for candidates with 1–2 years of experience in investment banking or consulting. Many are at a crossroads—deciding whether to continue in high-demand, high-hour roles or pivot to building something. They’re quantitative, adaptable, and bring a fresh perspective.

And to yourself, ask "Do I want to specialize? What excites me?" Some thrive in growth from generalist to specialist. Others prefer repeating the foundational phase at new companies. Know yourself, and embrace change. As long as you know what you want to be doing, you’ll always be able to provide value. 

Incentivizing RevOps: Finding the Right Success Metrics

One of the more ironic aspects of RevOps is that much of its focus is on designing compensation plans for sales reps—figuring out the right incentives and mitigating perverse incentives. However, it’s much harder to apply the same thinking to RevOps roles themselves. How do you measure success in a function that supports so many different areas of the business?

What I’ve found works well is starting by identifying the outcomes you want the team to facilitate. Especially in recurring revenue SaaS businesses, I think there are three critical factors. You can adjust the emphasis on these metrics depending on the year’s priorities—whether it’s heavy growth, retention, or efficiency:

  • New ARR: Just as the sales team is focused on driving new business, RevOps should be incentivized to enable that growth through effective territory planning and compensation plan creation.
  • Total ARR: This encompasses what you started the year with, what new ARR you’ve driven, and what you’ve retained and expanded. A comp plan that includes this metric encourages RevOps to think holistically about the customer journey—avoiding disjointed handoffs and ensuring smoother renewals or expansions.
  • Profitability: Tying RevOps roles to a measure like EBITDA ensures they balance growth with efficiency. Without this, there’s a risk of focusing solely on hiring more sales reps and driving growth at any cost, potentially leading to friction with finance. But with alignment around profitability and efficiency, RevOps can better support sustainable growth.

Final Thoughts: Building Confidence for 2025

For revenue leaders, your confidence in your sales team’s ability to hit their numbers starts with your confidence in your RevOps team. The success of scaling your revenue organization depends heavily on getting those early RevOps hires right. When RevOps is done well, the probability of success and scale increases dramatically, and the journey for everyone involved can be truly magical.

Invest in your RevOps function now, and the rewards will be worth it.