RevOps Maturity Model
Recently, we published the Hyperscayle RevOps Framework. Hyperscayle defines revenue operations as the design and execution of Go-To-Market (GTM) processes and systems across the lead-to-cash lifecycle.
To us, this includes marketing operations, sales operations, customer success operations, channel operations, and finance operations. Ours is a holistic view, not thinking in terms of silos bolted together, but rather as steps of a unified process. We created the Hyperscayle RevOps framework to further structure our approach.
The categories of our framework include leadership alignment, process definition, team structure, systems & tools, and data foundation. These five categories cover all facets of a holistic RevOps program, and it’s a great framework to use to organize RevOps efforts and prioritize the right things.
But how can organizations assess the maturity of their RevOps capabilities as they scale?
Paired with our RevOps Framework is the Hyperscayle RevOps Maturity Model.
This model describes how an organization’s RevOps maturity evolves as they scale. The same categories from the RevOps Framework apply here. This article will dive into how the RevOps Maturity Model is designed, and how to best use it.
RevOps Maturity in a Scaling Company
As a company scales, every part of the organization will experience growth and change. As the complexity of the go-to-market (GTM) motion increases, the Revenue Operations team supporting them must mature as well. This means growing across all the categories of RevOps, from the increasing complexity of systems to the size of the RevOps team itself.
Note that we deliberately talk about RevOps maturity as tied to GTM complexity, not annual revenue.
While it is certainly true that a larger organization will probably need a more mature RevOps function, the real driver is the complexity of the GTM motion, not the number of dollars coming through the door each year. For example, a SaaS company with multiple SKUs and a complex target market might need a robust RevOps function before going for Series A funding, while a manufacturing company that only makes a single type of industrial water valve could grow to $100M annual business with minimal RevOps systems and process.
The right answer depends on the nature of the business and the market you are in.
Although each level of our RevOps maturity model is structured in columns, in reality, an organization is rarely at the same maturity level for every single category, and most will see some variation across a few different maturity levels at any given time.
For example, an organization might have hired a great RevOps director and 3-4 analysts - putting them at level 3 for the Team Structure category - but may also inherit a lot of tech debt - putting them at level 1 for the Systems & Tools as and Data Foundation categories.
This is one of the main sources of value for the RevOps maturity model because it allows you to focus on the different aspects of maturity and prioritize improvements accordingly.
When it Comes to RevOps Maturity - Invest like Goldilocks
Revenue Operations is one of the disciplines that is usually scaled incorrectly.
Even though it is tempting to think of the Optimized level 5 as 'the best,' that doesn’t mean every company should have that as their immediate goal. The answer to 'what good looks like' depends on the complexity of your GTM organization. You need to invest early enough, but not overinvest either. If you don’t invest in RevOps soon enough, your return on investment goes down for every incremental headcount in sales and marketing.
RevOps is a force multiplier for a scaling business, but the absence of it can be an anchor around the company’s neck.
Of all the categories, underinvestment in the RevOps team itself is the most common. All too often, companies hire one or two beleaguered analysts, with no RevOPs leader between them at the VP level, and expect them to implement and maintain a dozen different technologies as the business rapidly evolves its GTM motion. This means systems will be disconnected from business processes, constantly deepening tech debt, and the sole focus for the team is on firefighting with no time or ability to think strategically about RevOps.
On the flip side, the category most commonly over-invested in is Systems & Tools. As a company grows it will inevitably encounter new RevOps problems. All too often the answer is “there’s a tool for that,” and the company buys a new point solution and plugs it in. This creates an ever-increasing burden of system ownership and often introduces redundancy of multiple tools that overlap in functionality.
Companies also commonly overinvest in core systems. If you have a young GTM motion that’s relatively straightforward, you don’t necessarily have to run out and pay for Salesforce right away. HubSpot is probably much less expensive and will work just as well for quite some time. The money and time you save can instead be invested in R&D, Sales, Marketing etc.
Investing in RevOps is a crucial enabler of scale, but overinvesting before you need to just wastes resources that could be deployed elsewhere to accelerate growth.
RevOps Maturity Model - Prioritization Enabler
The RevOps maturity model is a powerful tool for prioritizing where you invest in RevOps. Most companies do not fall in the same maturity level for all categories. Instead, they probably vary by one or two levels in each category. Evaluating your maturity with this model lets you identify which categories have the most room for improvement and helps identify what level of maturity you should aspire to at a given stage.
Remember, further to the right isn’t necessarily better in this model.
You need to right-size your RevOps investment to the current stage and situation of your company. Overinvesting is almost as bad as underinvesting, so spend your resources wisely.
When used correctly, the RevOps Maturity model can empower RevOps leaders to prioritize investments and communicate the rationale behind their roadmap to the leadership team.
Watch this video of the presentation that Nick Rose and Ben Mohlie gave at the MOPS-APALOOZA event in 2023.
