In conversation with Christian v. Strotha, Group Head of Sales Operations, Atos International
Digital transformation in sales: The tools that matter most
Christian von Strotha is Head of Sales Operations at Atos – a global leader in digital transformation. He brings his experience as a Chief Financial Officer to help the team understand where the value lies in each deal. Today, Christian gives sales teams the tools they need to succeed by getting them closer to their leads than ever before.
We are only just beginning to see the possibilities that technology is opening for sales teams around the world. For Atos, a leader in digital transformation, tools play a vital role in making sales strategies smarter. We caught up with the Head of Sales Operations to learn more about the ways that technology is fundamentally changing the way that sales teams perform.
Atos is a global business, spanning over 70 countries and with a large sales team of over 1,500 people. How do you ensure everyone’s approach to sales is consistent?
A significant focus of my role is governance. That’s making sure that sales teams are approaching clients in the right way. Governance is very important for staying compliant around the world, but for us this is more than a tick-box exercise – it is central to the way we run sales. We use processes to make sure we’re getting the most out of everyone’s time. It starts with pre-qualification, then workshopping approaches to win the client, deciding the right pricing strategy, and then reviewing how everything went, no matter the outcome.
Having a clear and thorough process means that our teams spend less time selling and have more time to invest in researching.
It’s clear that you bring a very process-driven approach to sales. In what ways do you ensure that the sales function still has that vital human touch?
In my experience, salespeople are like artists. They are generally very creative, and this is something we really want to encourage. Having a process in place gives people structure, but there’s also that workshop element where they can be creative. It’s a chance to explore different options and come up with innovative solutions.
With a clear process, we can make sure that no one veers too far away from the strategies that we know work. It’s important that our people are really listening to what clients need. If a salesperson thinks they know better than the client does, there is the danger that we’ll build and pitch a solution that doesn’t meet their needs. That’s a very quick way to make clients question the value we bring.
We make sure we’re listening to our audience from the very start of the sales process. Working closely with marketing, we really get to know our audience and make sure we’re only targeting people with messages and insights that are relevant. That could be success stories from the work we’ve done with a similar business or topics that their business is exploring. This targeted approach means that prospects can clearly see how we can make a difference to their business.
Which tools do you find most useful in getting a deeper understanding of your buyers?
AI is really changing the way we do things. It is making us much more focused. We’ve been piloting a project through which we are hoping to get more clarity on which leads are the right ones for us to chase. This has all been about deep learning. We’ve gathered information on deals we’ve won and lost, and then enriched this with publicly available data to identify patterns and other businesses in a similar situation.
We’re also getting a lot of value from tools that enable us to pinpoint more decision makers. Sales teams often focus on the C-suite employees, but these are not the only people who you need to win over. By learning about the team further down the hierarchy, we give everyone a picture of what Atos is all about. So, when we can to do our pitch, everyone is on the same page. Social media and LinkedIn Sales Solutions is fantastic for bringing us this visibility.
How about your salespeople – which tools do they value the most?
Personally, I get excited about insights that enable our salespeople to pitch with as much information as possible. But I know that my salespeople are most pleased when I can take admin tasks off their desks. They want to be out there meeting people, getting to know their challenges, discussing new opportunities and bouncing ideas around with them. Inputting information into systems gets in their way, but it’s vital for governance and visibility. That is why automation is increasingly important for us. We still want that data, but we want to make it as quick and easy for salespeople to input and access.
Technology is already opening up so many possibilities for your sales team. What other gaps would you like to see tools filling in the future of sales?
I’d like to see more automation. Wouldn’t it be great if you could scan a business card and immediately get that person’s details in your email contacts, LinkedIn Sales Solutions and Salesforce CRM tool, so you don’t have to do it three times?
It’s also becoming increasingly important that we have the right tools to support hybrid working. The challenge is giving everyone visibility – not to monitor people but to empower them to do everything they need to, wherever they are. People want flexibility and have proven that it won’t impact their productivity, so it’s our responsibility as leaders to support them to do their best work.
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