Understanding RevOps (Revenue Operations): What to Know

RevOps — otherwise known as revenue operations — is one of the fastest growing areas of the job market right now. It made LinkedIn’s top 25 fastest-growing roles list for 2024 and it’s no wonder why.

We’ll explain exactly what revenue operations is, why its role is, how to build a strong RevOps foundation, and common challenges you could run into.

What Is RevOps (Revenue Operations)? 

RevOps — an abbreviated version of the term “revenue operations” — is the alignment of sales, customer success operations, and marketing. Although it’s distinct from sales enablement, the overarching umbrella of revenue operations includes it as one aspect of strategy. 

What’s the purpose of RevOps?

The overall purpose of RevOps is to drive revenue growth with a unified strategy. It aims to optimize the customer lifecycle and improve the way a company functions. It’s a holistic approach that aligns internal teams to break down silos and encourage unification and open communication.

Why Is RevOps Important?

RevOps is important because it removes division among teams and boosts operational efficiency while driving revenue growth. Streamlining internal processes and optimizing cross-functional collaboration within a company can revolutionize brands and improve the customer experience for prospects and existing clients.  

Businesses that have misaligned teams or lots of silos that make communication difficult struggle, not just in terms of alignment but also in overall revenue growth. Revenue operations is essential for the success of a company, and provides a strong foundation customers can put their trust in.

How to Use AI for RevOps

Streamlining processes and prioritizing cross-team collaboration is easier said than done, especially with larger brands and companies. If you’re part of an organization looking to help with at-scale RevOps, Yoodli is be the solution you’re looking for. 

Yoodli is an online sales coach that uses generative AI to align teams with actionable feedback backed by data. It can facilitate revenue operations via processes like GTM alignment. 

For example, a company can use Yoodli for their RevOps team to get sellers on the same page with regard to methodology and brand language. Here’s how.

By taking advantage of Yoodli’s realistic sales roleplays, a revenue operations team can encourage GTM teams to build on and practice their skills with pre-existing scenarios, say, inbound customer discovery. Here, sellers can optimize customer interactions and experience by building on their existing skills and practicing new ones. 

While sellers practice, Yoodli observes and provides individualized metrics and insights. Using these insights, it offers personalized sales coaching feedback to get reps to the next level. Plus, these roleplays are totally customizable. Sellers can choose from various client personalities — from frustrated to skeptical to friendly or stressed — to put their skills to the test in a completely risk-free environment.

Yoodli facilitates the at-scale alignment needed for RevOps, allowing businesses to streamline processes and optimize the customer lifecycle that much easier.

Learn more about what Yoodli has to offer for revenue operations teams at https://yoodli.ai/. 

How to Establish a Strong RevOps Foundation

Some see revenue operations as the backbone of a brand, since it’s meant to lay a strong foundation for other teams to thrive. Here’s how your organization can build a solid RevOps foundation, whether you’re completely new to the term or you have an existing team.

Use data and analytics for goals and assessments

Although it may seem a little obvious, using data and analytics to build and implement clear goals is a must. Every goal — be it company-wide, team-wide, or individual — should be measurable and backed by data (think SMART goals). 

Folks should be using shared metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure not just revenue growth, but client satisfaction, too. 

Organizations should also lean on data when assessing any tools or processes central to the company. For example, brands can use data analytics to pinpoint areas for improvement. 

Make sure your brand’s revenue goals are aligned across teams, too — another critical aspect of a RevOps foundation. 

Prioritize alignment across teams

Alignment across teams should be a goal of any organization with RevOps. The misalignment of teams — namely sales, customer success, and marketing — can be a catalyst for many issues. 

For example, a revenue operations team might include members of sales teams, marketing teams, and people working in customer success. That way, everyone is represented and ready to participate. 

Be sure to invest in this team, too. That means taking the time (and money) to provide them with the resources they need to succeed. This could include technology like marketing automation tools, an integrated CRM, and platforms for customer success. Having everyone technologically aligned helps avoid any discrepancies between teams and further breaks down existing silos. 

Fostering a culture of open communication and collaboration will be essential. Everyone in RevOps needs to feel confident and empowered enough to share their thoughts and optimize cross-functional collaboration.

Put clients at the forefront

Having a client-focused RevOps team is another must. Everyone on the team needs to have an intimate understanding of customer success, client satisfaction, and the customer lifecycle. When your revenue operations approach is client-centric, an organization can: 

• Provide a consistent customer journey
• Boost client lifetime value
• Pick up on meaningful client insights
• Pinpoint any customer needs, wants, or pain points
• Establish client loyalty and improve customer satisfaction

4 Pillars of RevOps

When you’re building a strong foundation for revenue operations, it’s best to consider the widely recognized four pillars. While some consider the pillars of RevOps to be three-fold — including people, process, and platform — most orgs recognize four distinct pillars. 

The four pillars of RevOps typically include technology, data and insights, enablement, and operations. 

Pillar #1: Technology 

As mentioned above, the tools and technology used for RevOps are essential to building a solid foundation (or improving on an existing foundation). Technology is so crucial to revenue operations because the idea is to streamline processes, and tech is usually at the forefront. 

For example, some of the tools and tech teams use include: 

• CRM platforms, like Salesforce, Zoho, and HubSpot
• Sales enablement tools 
• Customer success tools like CustomerSuccessBox and Gainsight
• Marketing automation technology like Marketo and Pardot
• Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ) tools like Quote-to-Cash or Salesforce CPQ
• Data analytics tools

Pillar #2: Data and insights

Part of the reason technology is so integral to a good RevOps foundation is because data and insights are also a must-have. In fact, some experts consider analytics to be the backbone of RevOps. That’s because folks involved in revenue operations are often expected to create, keep up, and optimize processes for cross-collaboration and revenue generation. That would be impossible for any team without sufficient data and analysis.

Having real-time data and metrics that teams can use to draw conclusions is necessary for the success of RevOps.

Pillar #3: Enablement

Sales enablement, while distinctly different from RevOps, is also an important component of revenue operations. However, enablement goes beyond just sales. Someone working in RevOps would need access to other enablement and corresponding tools, like customer success and marketing enablement. 

To be successful, teams working in revenue operation need enablement in the form of technology, tools, information, data and insights, training and certification, and development programs. Without enablement, RevOps is much more difficult, as is the alignment of teams. 

Pillar #4: Operations

Perhaps not surprisingly, operations is another key pillar of RevOps, specifically optimizing operations. This could include tasks and streamlining processes such as: 

• Standardizing day-to-day processes and documentation
• Creating team-wide and company-wide best practices
• Ideating and implementing a solid operational methodology across teams

So, for example, folks in RevOps might make sure leads are followed up with in a time-sensitive manner and maintain an evergreen sales pipeline. 

Common RevOps Challenges

Even though there are tons of benefits, that’s not to say there aren’t challenges associated with sales coaching. 

One of the most common sales coaching challenges folks often run into is resistance from reps. Many people struggle with change, and some GTM teams struggle more than others. Overcoming resistance from sellers who aren’t interested in sales coaching (or who think they don’t need it) can be tricky. Identifying and recognizing a rep’s wins can be a good way to chip away at that resistance. 

Another issue that often crops up in sales coaching is budget constraints. Sometimes, companies don’t have a pre-existing budget for investments like sales coaching, so that presents a challenge. However, more affordable, at-scale options like Yoodli can cut costs where it matters.

RevOps FAQs

Here are the most commonly asked questions around RevOps and its purpose.

1. What does RevOps mean?

RevOps is an abbreviated term for “revenue operations.” The word comes from LeanData CEO Evan Liang, who coined it in 2016 while working with marketing and sales teams that were trying to better align their efforts.

2. Is DevOps the same as RevOps?

No, DevOps isn’t the same as RevOps. In fact, RevOps is more of a variation of DevOps, which is a marriage between development and operations. 

3. What does a RevOps specialist do?

A RevOps specialist can do many things. Their role might vary industry to industry, or even company to company. This person would likely oversee the revenue process from start to finish, and would align marketing, sales, and customer service to drive overall growth. 

4. What’s the difference between RevOps and FinOps?

The difference between RevOps and FinOps, or financial operations, lies in their respective roles. While the former aims to drive revenue growth, FinOps is responsible for making sure the business side of things translates into financial transactions. Folks in FinOps aim to streamline the finance workflows.

5. What problems does RevOps solve?

RevOps can help solve many different kinds of problems. For example, some of the most common issues RevOps can offer solutions for include: 

• Disconnection or misalignment between teams and departments 
• Rifts between marketing and sales teams and processes 
• Duplicative work between teams
• Mediocre or poor lead quality 

6. What skills do you need in revenue operations?

If you’re interested in a revenue operations, the most helpful skills you should plan to hone in on include: 

• Data analysis 
• Active listening 
• Project management 
• Effective communication
• Leadership
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Sales
• Business intelligence 

7. How can I start a career in RevOps?

If you want to kickstart a career in RevOps, the first step is to get work experience in an area like sales, business operations, marketing, or customer service. You’ll also want to pick up skills like the ones mentioned above and start networking with other folks in the revenue operations space.

The Bottom Line

Sales coaching is a valuable tool companies should plan to invest in, one way or another. No sales rep is perfect and everyone, regardless of experience, can brush up on and improve their skills. 

A sales coaching tool like Yoodli can make a difference in teams, from boosted confidence to increased revenue growth.  

Sources

• LinkedIn: “LinkedIn Jobs on the Rise 2024: The 25 fastest-growing roles in the U.S,” “The Essential Role of RevOps and FinOps in Modern Tech Organizations.”
• Forbes: “Revenue Operations Is The Fastest Growing Job In America. So What Is Revenue Operations?,” “RevOps Alone Won’t Fix Bad Sales Calls.”
• RevOps Lens: “4 Pillars of RevOps.”
• TechTarget: “Revenue operations.” 
• The Clueless Company: “The Expansive Role of a RevOps Specialist.”