technical execution

 technical execution

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Technical Execution Steps 

Discovery & Technical Qualification

The goal here is to understand the "As-Is" state and define the "To-Be" state. Technical teams deep-dive into the customer’s existing stack.

• Inventory & Assessment: Cataloging existing workloads, databases, and networking configurations.

• Constraint Identification: Identifying security requirements (e.g., HIPAA, GDPR), latency requirements, and budget limits.

• Gap Analysis: Determining what can be "Lift and Shift" (rehosted) versus what needs to be "Refactored" (using cloud-native services like GKE or Cloud Run).

Technical Solutioning & Architecture Design

Once the requirements are clear, the team builds a blueprint.

• Reference Architectures: Utilizing Google’s 101 Architectural Blueprints to ensure best practices.

• Landing Zone Design: Setting up the "Foundation"—this includes Organization Hierarchy, VPC (Virtual Private Cloud) design, and Identity Access Management (IAM) strategy.

• TCO Modeling: Calculating the Total Cost of Ownership using the Google Cloud Pricing Calculator.

Proof of Concept (PoC) or Prototype

Before a full commitment, Google helps the customer "prove" the technology works for their specific use case.

• Success Criteria: Defining 3–5 "must-pass" technical hurdles (e.g., "Must be able to process 1TB of data in under 10 minutes").

• Sandbox Deployment: Creating a restricted environment to test specific features, such as Vertex AI for machine learning or BigQuery for data analytics.

• Pilot: A mini-production run with real (but non-critical) data.

Technical Validation & Security Review

Large enterprises require rigorous vetting before moving to the next stage.

• Security Assessment: Reviewing the Shared Responsibility Model to ensure the customer knows which security controls they own versus what Google manages.

• Compliance Check: Ensuring the solution meets industry-specific standards (e.g., SOC2, PCI-DSS).

• Performance Benchmarking: Stress-testing the architecture to ensure it can handle production loads.

Deployment & Migration Execution

This is the "heavy lifting" phase where workloads actually move.

• Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Using tools like Terraform or Google Cloud Deployment Manager to automate the build.

• Migration Waves: Moving applications in "waves" (e.g., Wave 1: Dev/Test, Wave 2: Low-impact apps, Wave 3: Mission-critical apps).

• CI/CD Integration: Setting up pipelines (Cloud Build, GitHub Actions) to automate future updates.

Optimization & Operational Handover

Execution doesn't end when the "on" switch is flipped.

• FinOps & Cost Optimization: Reviewing actual spend and applying "Committed Use Discounts" (CUDs) or rightsizing VMs.

• SRE Principles: Handing off the environment to the customer's IT team with Site Reliability Engineering best practices (monitoring via Cloud Logging/Monitoring).

• Support Onboarding: Ensuring the customer is enrolled in the appropriate support tier (Standard, Enhanced, or Premium).

Key Technical Roles Involved

Role                                                       Primary Responsibility

Customer Engineer (CE)                     The "Sales Engineer" who leads discovery and the PoC.

Solutions Architect                              Designs the complex, cross-product technical blueprints.

Professional Services (PSO)              Hands-on engineers who execute the migration and implementation.

Technical Account Manager (TAM)    Ensures long-term operational health and technical roadmap alignment.

Sales Methodologies

Here are the most common sales methodologies categorized by their primary focus.

Discovery & Question-Based Frameworks

These focus on uncovering deep-seated customer pain points through structured questioning.

• SPIN Selling: Focuses on four types of questions: Situation, Problem, Implication, and Need-payoff. It aims to help the buyer realize the severity of their problem before you offer a solution.

• Gap Selling: Centers on the "gap" between the prospect’s current state and their desired future state. The goal is to quantify the cost of inaction.

• Conceptual Selling: Developed by Miller Heiman, this treats the "product" as a concept. It focuses on the buyer's perception of the solution rather than the technical features.

Relationship & Consultative Frameworks

These focus on building long-term trust and positioning the salesperson as a trusted advisor.

• The Sandler System: Flips the script by prioritizing qualification over pitching. It uses "up-front contracts" to establish mutual expectations and ensures the buyer is just as invested in the process as the seller.

• Consultative Selling: A broad approach where the seller acts as a consultant. It prioritizes active listening and customized advice over high-pressure closing tactics.

• Customer-Centric Selling: Shifts the focus from the seller’s timeline to the buyer’s. It emphasizes situational conversations over generic presentations.

Insight & Disruptive Frameworks

These are designed for complex B2B environments where buyers may not even realize they have a problem.

• The Challenger Sale: Based on the idea that the most successful reps "challenge" the customer. They teach the prospect something new, tailor the message to their needs, and take control of the conversation.

• Solution Selling: Focuses on diagnosing complex business problems and prescribing a tailored solution. It is ideal for highly customizable products.

Qualification Frameworks

These are often used alongside other methodologies to determine if a deal is actually worth pursuing.

Framework           Meaning                                                                                                                                Best For...

BANT                    Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline                                                                                         Quick, transactional qualification.

MEDDIC                Metrics, Economic Buyer, Decision Criteria, Decision Process, Identify Pain, Champion    Complex, high-stakes enterprise deals.

NEAT                     Need, Economic Impact, Access to Authority, Timeline                                                        Modern SaaS sales focused on ROI and impact.

CHAMP                 Challenges, Authority, Money, Prioritization                                                                           Shifting the focus from budget to the challenge first.

• BANT - Budget, Authority, Need, Timeframe

Force Management - Command of the Message

Command of the Message (CoM) is a value-based sales methodology developed by Force Management. It is famously used by elite tech companies like Snowflake, MongoDB, and Databricks.

While methodologies like MEDDPICC focus on qualifying a deal, Command of the Message focuses on the conversation—specifically, how to articulate your value and differentiation so clearly that you can charge a premium and win against tough competitors.

The Core Concept: Being "Audible-Ready"

The hallmark of CoM is making sales reps "audible-ready." This is a football metaphor: just as a quarterback changes the play at the line of scrimmage based on the defense, a CoM-trained rep can pivot their value proposition in real-time based on the specific pain points a customer shares.

The Value Messaging Framework (VMF)

The methodology is built around a structured discovery process that moves the conversation from "what we do" to "what you achieve." It follows a logical flow:

A. The "Before" State

• Current State: What is the customer doing today? (Tools, processes, people).

• Negative Consequences: What is the "bleeding" caused by the current state? (e.g., "We are losing $2M a year in lost productivity").

B. The "After" State

• Desired Future State: What does the customer want the world to look like?

• Positive Business Outcomes (PBOs): The quantifiable, measurable benefits of solving the problem (e.g., "Increase revenue by 10%" or "Reduce churn by 5%").

C. The Bridge

• Minimum Required Capabilities (MRCs): These are the specific features or abilities the customer must have to move from the Negative Consequences to the PBOs.

• Differentiators: How your "Required Capabilities" are unique, better, or different from the competition.

Trap-Setting Questions

A unique tactic in Command of the Message is the use of Trap-Setting Questions. These are discovery questions designed to highlight a competitor's weakness without "bad-mouthing" them.

• Example: If your competitor’s software takes 3 months to deploy but yours takes 2 weeks, you might ask: "How would a 3-month delay in seeing ROI impact your department's quarterly goals?" You have "trapped" the competitor by making deployment speed a "Required Capability."

The Three Essential Questions

Force Management teaches that every elite salesperson must be able to answer these four questions for any deal:

1. What problems do you solve for your customers?

2. How do you solve those problems specifically?

3. How do you do it differently or better than the competition?

4. Where have you done it before? (Proof Points/Testimonials).

MANTRA

It is a specific, repeatable verbal statement used by sales reps to ensure they are perfectly aligned with the buyer’s needs.

The Mantra acts as a "storyboard" for the deal. It is a summarized version of everything you have learned about the customer, played back to them to gain agreement before you move forward

The Structure of the Mantra

The Mantra follows a specific logic. It is usually phrased as:

"What I’ve heard is that your Current State is [X], which is causing [Negative Consequences]. You are looking to achieve [Positive Business Outcomes], and to get there, we’ve agreed you need [Required Capabilities]."

             OR

• • "What I hear you saying Mr./Mrs. Customer is that these are the Positive Business Outcomes you're trying to achieve ..

  • In order to achieve these positive business outcomes, we agreed that there are the Required Capabilities you're going to need ...

  • And you'll probably want to measure these required capabilities using these Metrics ....

  • Let me tell you How We Do it ...

  • Let me tell you How We Do It Better / Differently ...

  • But don't take my word for it ... (Proof Points)"

Why the Mantra is Critical

In the CoM methodology, the Mantra serves three major purposes:

• The "Check-Up": It proves to the customer that you have actually been listening. If the customer says, "Wait, that's not exactly what I meant," you can fix it immediately rather than wasting weeks on a proposal that misses the mark.

• A Tool for Internal Champions: When your "Champion" (the person inside the client company who wants you to win) needs to explain your solution to their boss, they often don't know how. You can give them the Mantra via email so they have a ready-made business case to share internally.

• The "Audible-Ready" Pivot: The Mantra is never "finished." It evolves. Every time you meet a new stakeholder, you recite the Mantra and ask, "What am I missing from your perspective?" This helps you gather more data and build a stronger case.

How to use it with MEDDPICC

If you use both systems, the Mantra is the Value Story that fills in the "I" (Identify Pain) and "M" (Metrics) of your MEDDPICC checklist.

• Mantra: What we say to the customer to build trust and value.

• MEDDPICC: What we track internally to see if the deal is healthy.

Selling Deficit Disorder (SDD)

Seller Deficit Disorder (SDD) is a business term used to describe the pre-existing negative bias that almost all buyers have toward salespeople.

Force Management defines it as the assumption buyers make before you even open your mouth: "You don't understand my business, and you aren't going to listen to me."

The 5 Symptoms of Seller Deficit Disorder

If a salesperson is "suffering" from SDD, they typically exhibit these behaviors, which confirm the buyer's worst fears:

1. "Show Up and Throw Up": The rep leads with product features and a generic pitch rather than asking about the buyer's specific business problems.

2. Lack of Active Listening: The rep is so focused on what they want to say next that they miss the nuances of the buyer's pain points.

3. Delegated to the "Basement": Because the rep sounds like a "product peddler" rather than a business consultant, they are delegated down to lower-level managers (who care about price) rather than the Economic Buyer (who cares about value).

4. Commoditization: The buyer can't see the difference between you and the competition, so the conversation defaults to the lowest common denominator: price.

5. Lack of Urgency: The buyer doesn't feel the "pain" of their current situation, so they decide to do nothing, and the deal stalls.

• 5 Symptoms of Seller Deficit Disorder - how to overcome them

  • Buyer Don't Believe you Understand the pain

    • T - Tell me

    • E - Explain to me 

    • D Describe for me

    • Trap Setting Questions

    • Differentiators - Unique, Competitive, Historic 

    • Need  - Solution - Risk

  • You have limited access within Buyer's Organization 

  • Your Solution is Perceived as Expensive

  • Your prospect can't differentiate between Competitive Offerings

  • You aren't Clearly Articulating Value 

  • Don't let the Competition get the Best of you

How to Overcome Seller Deficit Disorder

Overcoming SDD is about shifting from a "product-centric" mindset to a "buyer-centric" mindset. Here are the core strategies used in Command of the Message to "cure" it:

1. Execute "Elite" Discovery

Instead of asking "What keeps you up at night?", ask targeted questions that prove you've done your homework.

• The Goal: Make the buyer "stand in their own moment of pain." Use questions that uncover the Negative Consequences of their current situation.

• Example: "You mentioned your team spends 20 hours a week on manual data entry. What is that costing you in terms of delayed product launches?"

2. Use the Value Messaging Framework (VMF)

Map your solution to their specific Positive Business Outcomes (PBOs). This ensures you are speaking the language of the C-suite.

3. Lead with the "Mantra"

As discussed earlier, use the Mantra to play back what you heard. This is the ultimate "cure" for the "You don't listen" symptom. When you summarize their pain, their goals, and their requirements perfectly, the buyer’s guard drops because they feel truly understood.

4. Become "Audible-Ready"

Prepare yourself to answer the Four Essential Questions at any moment:

• What problems do you solve?

• How do you solve them?

• How do you do it differently or better?

• Where have you done it before?

5. Sell the "Gap"

Stop selling the product; start selling the distance between where they are (Negative Consequences) and where they want to be (PBOs). If the gap is large enough, price becomes a secondary concern to the value of closing that gap.

Command of the Message vs. MEDDPICC

Many organizations use these together.

• Command of the Message is the Content: It’s what you say to build value and differentiate.

• MEDDPICC is the Process: It’s the checklist you use to ensure you’re talking to the right person and that the deal is healthy.

Client Value Canvas

The Client Value Canvas (commonly known as the Value Proposition Canvas) is a strategic tool used to ensure a product or service is perfectly aligned with what the customer actually values. It was developed by Dr. Alexander Osterwalder as a "plug-in" to the Business Model Canvas to help teams move beyond technical features and focus on product-market fit.

The Two Components

The canvas is visualized as two main sections: a Circle (representing the Customer) and a Square (representing the Value Map).

A. The Customer Profile (The Circle)

This side focuses on observing and understanding the client's perspective before you build anything:

• Customer Jobs: The tasks, problems, or needs your customers are trying to address (e.g., "managing cloud infrastructure" or "reducing monthly server costs").

• Pains: The risks, obstacles, and negative outcomes the client fears or experiences (e.g., "unexpected downtime," "security vulnerabilities," or "high latency").

• Gains: The positive outcomes or benefits the client expects or would be delighted by (e.g., "99.99% uptime," "automated scaling," or "intuitive dashboard").

B. The Value Map (The Square)

This side focuses on your technical solution and how it maps back to the circle:

• Products & Services: The specific technical stack, features, or services you are offering.

• Pain Relievers: Descriptions of how your product eliminates the specific "Pains" listed in the circle.

• Gain Creators: Descriptions of how your product produces the "Gains" the client is looking for.

Client Value Canvas  focuses on:

• • Why change ?

  • Why now ?

  • Why Google ? 

  • Who ? 

    • Challenges / Pains 

    • Threat

    • Risk 

    • Strategic aspirations

    • Gains

    • Enablers ->

The 5 Ps of Pitching (Tactical)

If you are looking for how to execute a specific sales call or presentation, the framework shifts to how you structure the conversation:

1. Problem: Clearly state the business challenge the prospect is facing.

2. Primary Reason: Explain why that problem exists (the root cause they might have missed).

3. Pain: Highlight the negative impact of that problem (lost revenue, wasted time, high risk).

4. Promise: Introduce your solution and how it specifically fixes the root cause.

5. Payoff: Quantify the result. What does their world look like after they buy? (e.g., "20% increase in efficiency").

The Classic Marketing Mix (Strategic)

Sometimes, "Sales Execution" is discussed in the context of the broader Marketing Mix, which provides the foundation for what the sales team is actually selling:

• Product: The features and benefits being offered.

• Price: The cost, discounts, and value-to-price ratio.

• Place: The channels where the sale happens (online, retail, direct sales).

• Promotion: The messaging and advertising supporting the sales effort.

• People: The quality of the sales reps and support staff delivering the experience.

Books

Whiteboard Selling - Corey Somers & David Jenkins

In "Whiteboard Selling: Empowering Sales Through Visuals," authors Corey Sommers and David Jenkins argue that the traditional PowerPoint presentation is "dead" because it fosters a passive, disengaged audience. Instead, they advocate for a dynamic, interactive approach using visual storytelling.

The core premise is that drawing live in front of a customer (on a whiteboard, a tablet, or even a napkin) forces the salesperson to be more conversational and allows the prospect to participate in the "creation" of the solution.

Here is a summary of the book’s key concepts and framework:

1. The Psychology of the Whiteboard

The authors explain that whiteboarding is superior to slides for several reasons:

• Engagement: It turns a "lecture" into a "collaboration."

• Progressive Disclosure: Information is revealed piece-by-piece, which prevents the audience from being overwhelmed and keeps them curious about what you will draw next.

• Retention: Visuals paired with spoken word are much more memorable than text-heavy slides.

• Human Connection: It removes the barrier of the projector screen, allowing for more eye contact and a more personal, authentic interaction.

2. The Five Types of Whiteboards

The book categorizes sales conversations into specific "whiteboard types," each with a different goal:

• Qualification & Discovery: Used early to map out the customer’s current environment and identify pain points.

• Why Change?: Focused on the "cost of inaction," illustrating the gap between the prospect's current state and their desired future state.

• Solution Whiteboards: Showing exactly how your product or service solves their specific problems.

• Competitive Whiteboards: Visually differentiating your solution from competitors without necessarily "bad-mouthing" them.

• Business Case/ROI: Mapping out the financial impact and value of the investment to justify the purchase.

3. Designing Your "Visual Story"

A major part of the book is a technical guide on how to build these stories. They suggest:

• The 3-Part Structure: Every whiteboard should have a clear Beginning (the current challenge), Middle (the transition/solution), and End (the business value).

• Interaction Points: Identifying specific moments where the salesperson should stop and ask the prospect to contribute to the drawing or confirm a point.

• The "Message Inventory": Before drawing, you must audit your sales messaging to ensure every icon and line you draw maps back to a specific value proposition.

4. Best Practices for Delivery

The authors provide practical "stagecraft" advice for salespeople who might be nervous about drawing:

• Simplicity is King: You don’t need to be an artist. Simple boxes, arrows, and stick figures are often more effective than complex drawings.

• Don’t Erase: Keep the story visible. If you must erase, it means your story is too long.

• Practice "Muscle Memory": You should be able to draw your core "Why us?" whiteboard without thinking, so you can focus entirely on the customer's reactions.

5. Organizational Enablement

The final section of the book is aimed at sales leaders. It discusses how to move an entire organization away from "Death by PowerPoint" by creating a library of "certified" whiteboards that every salesperson is trained to deliver consistently.

Key Takeaway

The book's ultimate message is that clarity wins. By stripping away the "crutch" of slides, a salesperson proves they truly understand their own value proposition and their customer's business, leading to higher trust and faster closing rates.

• Edward Tufte - Power of Visualizations

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