Lessons in Revenue Leadership: Building Repeatable GTM Motions from Series A to Scale

Lessons in Revenue Leadership: Building Repeatable GTM Motions from Series A to Scale

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Featuring Avtar Varma (Benchling, ex-Sonar, ex-people.ai) | Moderated by Raj Chauhan

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As part of the Scaling SaaS series, we sat down with Avtar Varma, a seasoned revenue leader who’s helped build go-to-market functions in high-growth SaaS companies including Benchling, Sonar, and Data. In this conversation, Avtar unpacks what it really takes to shift from product-led growth (PLG) to sales-led enterprise motion and where teams often get it wrong.

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1. The shift from PLG to enterprise isn’t just a strategy, it’s a rebuild

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"It really takes a complete reorchestration of the go-to-market organization." - Avtar Varma

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Many high-growth SaaS companies hit a key inflection point where PLG alone won’t sustain the next phase of growth. For Avtar, moving upmarket was a deliberate choice, but it came with serious operational rewiring.

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Transitioning to a top-down sales motion isn’t just about adopting MEDDIC or changing pitch decks. It demands deep alignment across functions and time to execute:

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"It takes on average, 12 to 18 months to really get the engine humming. And it’s critical to align your entire leadership team, not just sales, to that timing." - Avtar Varma

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2. Your first line managers make or break the strategy

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"If they’re not aligned and don’t have that buy-in, then it’s just not gonna work." - Avtar Varma

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One of the biggest gaps Avtar sees is in execution. It's easy to set the strategy from the top, but if frontline sales managers aren’t on board, it falls flat. Translating methodology into motion requires managers who understand the why and can coach teams accordingly.

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3. Cadence is King

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"Everyone knows whether you're an SDR, BDR, AE, SC, exactly what you're doing any day, week, month, quarter." - Avtar Varma

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A consistent operating rhythm is foundational for scale. At Benchling and previous companies, Avtar built cadence into the DNA of sales operations - PG Mondays, forecast lock weeks, win/loss reviews, quarterly retro loops - so every team member knows exactly where they should focus.

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4. Invest early in enablement (even if it’s just one person)

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"You cannot scale without having that function built." - Avtar Varma

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If you’ve got more than five sellers, you need enablement. Avtar highlighted the importance of onboarding programs that are tightly aligned with the new sales motion. He credits leaders like Ariel Margulis at Benchling and the team at RevLogic for reducing ramp time and increasing productivity through operationalized enablement.

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5. Don’t let ‘heroics’ fool you into thinking you’re ready

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"When people put the individual reps in to hit the target, then on paper - yes, it looks great that you hit the target before the quarter is up, but it doesn’t mean it’s predictable or that there’s regularity." - Avtar Varma

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One big red flag: when deals close at the last minute thanks to executive Hail Marys or reps pulling overtime. That’s not scale, it’s closer to luck. Building true GTM readiness means predictability.

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6. Embed analytics within RevOps, not Engineering

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"The Engineering team is typically really good at the analysis and data science, but doesn’t have the go-to-market experience or understanding of the business." - Avtar Varma

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Avtar is passionate about where analytics should live. When the BI function sits too far from revenue, it can take much longer to get something usable that you can gain insights from. 

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7. Sales metrics aren’t just for pressure, they’re for problem-solving

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"Managers will come in and yell at the scoreboard if you didn’t hit your 10 meeting target that week rather than actually diagnosing the problem by looking at how many internal meetings they’re having, if the messaging is off or if they’re calling the right people." - Avtar Varma 

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Avtar warns against turning dashboards into compliance tools, especially if leaders don’t understand the why behind the numbers.

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8. Before hiring for scale, tune the engine first

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"Without process and discipline, growth just amplifies chaos." - Avtar Varma

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Avtar’s advice to post-Series A/B teams: Don’t rush to add headcount before you’ve nailed your foundational systems. You need:

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• CRM hygiene
• A functioning data warehouse
• A repeatable onboarding program
• Consistent team cadences

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9. The ICCE hiring method for sales leaders 

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When it comes to the DNA of effective sales leadership, Avtar lives by the ICCE framework:

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• Intelligence
• Character
• Coachability
• Experience

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Look for people who’ve done it before, or who show a deep drive to learn and master your unique playbook:

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"They might be great managers somewhere else, but if they haven't done this before, or don’t want to learn, that’s where it falls flat." - Avtar Varma 

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Final takeaway: Scaling revenue is never about a single play - it’s about orchestration

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From data to enablement to frontline management, getting the foundations right is the difference between “hitting quota” and building a machine that actually scales.

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"You really need to tune the engine first." - Avtar Varma 

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If you liked these highlights, you love the full 20-mins webinar - watch it here. 

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Think & Grow is a people-led global growth consultancy, partnering with high-growth tech founders to sustainably scale their business and team with strategy, execution and advisory services. 

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