CRO, Partner

John Auer

John has worked with some of the largest companies in the technology industry to lift sales, create preference and build loyalty.

His focus has been on the design and implementation of programs that engage channel partners, employees and direct sales teams. As a Managing Director of Sales Excellence in Private Equity, he built scalable processes and tools to advance the maturity of portfolio company’s sales and marketing teams.

Engagement Expertise

  • Strategic Advisory
  • Interim Leadership
  • Execution Expertise
  • Due Diligence

GTM Disciplines

  • Sales
  • Customer Success

Experience

Endorsement

John is a master of his craft, able to ramp up quickly in a new situation, see the patterns and the "forest for the trees," and act decisively. He's genuine and engaging and forms relationships quickly. He quickly became a trusted advisor to me because he could cut to the chase with what was most important and relevant.

Travis Everton CEO at PSI​

Case Study

Situation

Three years into their hold of this $240M Portco, we were contacted by this client out of frustration to understand why the company continued to miss its revenue targets, why they could not get accurate metrics on their board updates and what to do to prepare for an exit in two years.  The Portco continued to blame issues stemming from the pandemic however, as restrictions were lifted, little progress was being made.  The company had missed the previous year’s expectations by over $40M in revenue and a new leadership team (CEO and CFO) was brought in to turn the company around.

Solution Delivered

  • Reviewed the GTM strategy, talent, and performances of everyone on the sales and marketing teams.
  • Replaced the head of sales with an Interim CRO (who was eventually hired full time).
  • Developed a lead management process that reacted more quickly to customer inquiries with the right information.
  • Developed a new Opportunity Management process with defined stages based on clear exit criteria and verifiable events.
  • Clarified all job roles and developed a new organizational reporting structure that focused on accountabilities.
  • Developed and deployed a Marketing attribution process to better understand spend-to-results.
  • Rebuilt the CRM System, based on the customer’s journey, for shorter cycle times.
  • All workstreams completed within the 4-month target

Outcome

  • Senior Partner, at the final readout and BOD meeting, stated – “Some of the best work I have ever seen done here, We should have done this a two years ago.
  • Executive dashboards report real-time metrics for all stages of leads and opportunities and there is a clear line-of-sight for 3 forward looking quarters.
  • 3 months following the project, the Portco achieved 102% of their revenue target and followed that by 107% in the second quarter of 2022. (The first time they made their number in 3 years).
John Auer
Blog Post

Fall 2023 PE Round Table Insights – Success for Mid-Market Value Creation is Not What it Seems

Explore the exclusive insights from the Fall Round Table of managing directors. Dive deep into management approaches to drive the success of the sales and marketing Commerce Excellence leader. Learn how these Commercial Excellence leaders impact PE firms, tackle growth hurdles, and unlock maximum exit multiples.