4th Generation Solution Engineering

In the beginning was the word. And the word was “demo”. And it was good.

That’s how it all began for me in 1985 when software pre-sales support wasn’t even a thing. As a young trainee computer programmer, I was dragged out of my cozy office cube to ride along with one of the company salesmen (yes, it was a predominantly male environment back then). I seemed to “know how this stuff worked” and, being of simple brain, could explain it in words that customers could actually understand. That was the start of a long and illustrious career in software pre-sales support, or sales consulting, or solution engineering, depending on the zeitgeist.

Very little is written about Solution Engineering. Compared to the relative cornucopia of text on selling and sales methodologies, our cherished profession still seems closer to Hogwarts' ‘dark arts’ than an established career choice. This short blog is my humble attempt at putting a ding in the Solution Engineering universe.

20 B.C. — Coventry, England

I started my career in the year 20 B.C. (Before Cloud).

As I reflect on 33 years in — what I believe to be — one of the best professions in IT, I can now see more clearly the massive transformations in Solution Engineering and why they emerged. In my view, we’re in the fourth generation of our craft. And it’s just as exciting as ever.

Before I begin describing where we are, let me take you on a rapid journey through time to understand the preceding three generations. (Note: This is based on my personal experience. Dates may differ and there is significant overlap across the generations. Each is a caricature, to emphasise my points.)

The First Generation — "Mad Men" (1985-95)

It’s safe to say that software pre-sales support wasn’t a fully recognised job back in 1985. Staff were borrowed from other departments, like software development or professional services. 

Technology: These were the days of character-based, 80-column, green screens. The best projection equipment available was an OHP (overhead projector) and a clear glass tablet on top that mirrored the screen layout. There was no PowerPoint. We wrote on acetate transparent sheets or photocopied pages of A4 onto them.

On-site demos were rare. For these you either needed to load your software onto the customer’s mainframe or minicomputer the day before, or transport some very heavy hardware. I was often a van driver by night and a software expert by day!

Modus Operandi: Demos consisted of starting at menu option #1 and working our way down the tree until we got to the end (or the customer waved a white flag). It was a case of “show up and throw up”. We knew no differently.

Software tended to be complex and unreliable. So the skill of the pre-sales support guy/gal was to make it look much easier than it really was, and to expertly handle any bugs or technical failures to minimise the impact. The old adage, "it's not what happens to you, but how you handle it that matters" had never been more appropriate!

In the first generation the primary objective of the pre-sales consultant was to educate. If customers understood it and liked it (and you had a good sales guy) you would seal the deal.

From the perspective of a young software developer, those smart talking, immaculately suited sales guys were the Mad Men of our industry.

The Customer: In the enterprise applications world, customers were generally automating existing processes and transactions. Since there were few configuration options, software vendors often had to commit to expensive bespoke tailoring of software, since the customer couldn’t and wouldn’t change their traditional processes.

Software selling was lucrative, but hard work. Sales cycles were prolonged as customers needed to be sure that the technology was a good fit. After all, they would need to live with it for many years. Cost of ownership was high. The software was usually heavily tailored for them, expensive to modify and upgrade, with substantial annual support and maintenance fees.

The Second Generation — A GUI Mess (1995-2005)

By now, software pre-sale support was becoming a recognised role, especially within larger corporations. They usually reported into the sales organisation. Sales reps often had their own pre-sales specialist and they operated like Starsky & Hutch (or Cagney & Lacey) for those with a good memory.

Technology: The graphical user interface (GUI) had arrived (hurrah!) and it was the dawn of the Internet (although there was much skepticism around its use for mission critical computing). And multi-tasking operation systems; what did we do before those?! Microsoft Windows in it's various versions was setting the standard for the next generation of PC-based software. On-premise business applications still ruled the roost, but thanks to Mr Moore’s Law, we all had super-fast laptops to show off our wares.

Modus Operandi: We could now take the technology to the customer and on-site demos became the preferred option.

GUI designers now had a lot of rope to hang themselves with, and they used every inch. In vain attempts to follow a demo flow — the mouse pointer whizzing all over the screen — the audience’s heads jerked to and fro, often reminding me of pet dogs watching TV.

PowerPoint was the weapon of choice. Our demo nestled in a sandwich between our (too lengthy) intro slides and the closing call-to-action slides.

Pre-sales solution consultants customised the software to within an inch of its life. Demos were highly tailored and customer proof of concept (POC) workshops were the norm.

The Customer: For the first time, customers started to understand that software and IT was a point of competitive differentiation in their markets. They wanted to see their business processes reflected in our software and demanded the tools to do their own custom configurations (or pay big money for the system integration consultancies to do it for them). 

Second and third generation application buyers wanted to understand the total cost of ownership (TCO) and return on investment (ROI) of our apps. So pre-sales support consultants needed business skills as well as technical prowess.

The Third Generation — Cloud Zero (2005-2015)

The start date might be controversial, but for me this was when Cloud became mainstream. Sure, SaaS (software as a service) was becoming well established. And one of the biggest players in the Cloud apps industry, Salesforce.com, was older than a toddler, but cloud applications became truly prime-time for mission-critical computing in the mid naughties.

This was a seismic shift in the way IT was sold and consumed. No longer could traditional software providers rely on the sell-and-run approach of the on-premise world. The subscription based model and the linear scaleability of cloud computing represented a significant reduction in total cost of ownership (TCO). Suppliers needed to make their solutions sticky. They needed those annual subscription renewals.

Technology: Our demo tech was now super-slick. Powerful notebook computers that actually looked cool were now the norm, but with cloud all we needed was an internet browser. Things could still go wrong. Dodgy wi-fi and a lack of hard wired internet connections kept us on our toes. We still needed contingency plans.

New form factors started to proliferate; smartphones, tablets and even voice recognition. At last, the pre-sales support toy box was starting to fill with cool devices. Each had it's own quirks and required a different approach to demonstration, but linked together looked impressive.

PowerPoint was still our primary presentation tool, but all those bullet points and clip-art graphics were now looking tired. We needed to work harder to make eye-catching presentations.

For smaller deals, remote demos were routine. Near-shore contact centres could now effectively sell cloud applications without physically visiting the customer. The combination of cloud and web conferencing allowed nimble organisations to scale their sales and pre-sales support operations and drive efficiencies.

Customers could even cut the vendor sales team out of the loop by signing up for free trial versions of cloud applications; a popular offering from the larger vendors.

Modus Operandi: It was relatively easy for customers to conduct limited ‘live’ pilot projects and so sales cycles shortened. Gone was the cozy one-to-one relationship between sales reps and pre-sales staff and the ratio reduced. Pure play cloud vendors often had a three-to-one ratio of sales to pre-sales and distance selling with remote demos was commonplace.

Competition was fierce and pre-sales effectiveness was a major differentiator as the gap between winning and losing could come down to a few percentage points on an evaluation sheet. Specialist training courses by demo gurus (like Demo2Win) were a popular addition to the pre-sales support curriculum.

Demos were still tailored for the customers industry, but usually through user configuration templates. Major missing modules were bolted on through pre-built integrations with cloud apps partners. In fact, apps marketplaces allowed customers to choose their own bolt-ons.

The aim of the sales team was to maximise the total contract value (TCV) by giving customers enough confidence to commit to multi-year deals by offering generous discounts. (This strategy had the potential to cause customer satisfaction issues and significant churn rates if the cloud apps weren’t robust enough!)

The Customer: Customers had learned the lessons of bloated, over-customised on premise software and now appreciated the fixed, common business practice templates that came with modern cloud applications.

Rather than simply automating existing processes, cloud apps came with industry 'best practice' baked in. Advanced functions that were flexible and agile allowed organisations to move their business forward using reliable and robust solutions so they could concentrate on their core business competencies.

Impatient business departments, tired of waiting for their own IT backlogs to clear, could now procure applications themselves. And cloud vendors were happy sell small projects through the backdoor in a way not previously possible. The concept of 'land and expand' selling had arrived.

It took some IT departments a while to recognise that they were at the crossroads. They could become agents of change and embrace the cloud model, or be consigned to maintenance of their melting glacier of legacy software.

The Fourth Generation - The Age Of Advocacy (2015-present)

So here we are. The age of advocacy. Exciting times.

Today, cloud vendors need a sustainable model for customer success and loyalty. Customers need platform partners who can remove the cost and headaches of connecting cloud apps together. In short, customers needed to innovate, relying on vendors to integrate.

And we're in the age of digital disruption too, where creativity and innovation are key differentiators in most industries.

Cloud apps market consolidation is now rife as vendors vie for platform dominance to match ever-increasing customer expectations. The rapid shift to cloud computing is the biggest change in the economics of enterprise IT for over 60 years!

Technology: Our tech is now robust, scaleable and secure. Our third generation apps are still great to demo across many devices, but we're beginning to see Artificial Intelligence (AI). Machine Learning (ML) and Big Data playing an increasing role in our state-of-the art demo environments.

The key change in the 4th generation is that the Solution Engineer is now unconstrained by technology. The inertia of past generations has given way to a virtual tech nirvana. If you can imagine it, you can build it. Creativity and innovation rule.

Modus Operandi: Sales Engineers now need to be inspirational storytellers, painting a future vision of how customers can transform their business models in a fast and agile way; to respond rapidly to changing markets.

Sure, Solution Engineers still demo solutions, but in the context of a compelling narrative and partnership with the customer. Some will specialise in delivering customer workshops (such as human-centred design thinking, or customer/employee experience journey mapping); others will be have deep industry expertise.

Nowadays, vendors realise that a truly sustainable sales model can only be obtained through customer testimony and advocacy. Solution Engineering is about trust and confidence that the platform will take the customer's business where they want go. What better way to prove this beyond doubt than to showcase successful customers in a similar industry.

As Customer Success initiatives mature, Solution Engineers work equally hard to defend hard-earned subscriptions as they do to win new business.

The Customer: Cloud is no longer the shiny new thing. Customers expect it as the default delivery option for enterprise computing. But it isn't enough.

Customers can no longer afford the time and resources to get the tech working. They need to innovate and transform their businesses to compete in rapidly changing markets where disruption is commonplace. They now expect a platform that can be built like Lego blocks; each module seamlessly linking to the next, even if they're from different vendors.

Like real Lego, a bucket of blocks is no longer sufficient. Just as kids want the Millennium Falcon or the Starship Enterprise kit, customers want a vivid vision of their unique solution on the front of the box!

If vendors get it right, customers will not only become advocates, but life-long fans. This customer Fan Club will be the vendor's most effective marketing and sales machine. Solution Engineers will help facilitate this ecosystem in a broader way, playing their part in the community to ensure customers are happy and successful.

For the first time customers and vendors are on the same page. It's a win-win scenario.

To Infinity And Beyond ...

This was intended to be a very short blog about how Solution Engineering has changed over the years. But the more I thought about it the more I wanted to write. [Sorry, there is no book ... yet!]

So, where next for Solution Engineering? The accelerating pace of new technology together with rising customer expectations will ensure the next generation will come sooner than my neat 10 year cycle.

Undoubtedly, we'll need to learn new skills and approaches. More than ever, our vivid imaginations will be the limiting factor in how we can inspire and challenge our customers.

If you're new to Solution Engineering, congratulations. You have chosen a brilliant career path. If you're an established SE then take a bow. You're one of an elite profession who are transforming the way we sell business solutions.

Either way, strap yourselves in. It's going to be an exhilarating journey.

Over to you. I'd love to hear your stories, old and new. And your views on the future of Sales Engineering.

[A BIG thanks to my past managers and peers in pre-sales. You know who you are. But most of all to the staff that have worked in my various teams in the past. You are magnificent. And you're the future of Solution Engineering.]

I enjoy blogging about Customer Experience, Digital Marketing and, occasionally, Solution Engineering.

You can view my other blog posts here. And why not follow me on Twitter: @CxDaryn