Sales Engineering

Engineering leaders from larger companies often have had little practice with sales engineers, they are "another department". Engineering leaders of startups often have little experience with sales engineers, as they haven't yet interacted with them! In this article, we will give an overview of how sales engineers typically work at an organization as they get introduced and scaled. For startups below $20M, the answer typically starts as "no dedicated sales engineer" to "a few sales engineers", and really only by the time an organization hits $20M or so do sales engineers typically get formalized with their own leadership structure underneath sales, and "engineering" stop having much interaction with them.

Understanding Sales Engineering

Sales Engineers, or Solution Architects, act as the technical bridge between your company's products and the customer. They engage directly with client developers to facilitate account setup and address complex technical queries. As such, they play a pivotal role in supporting sales teams, helping to close deals and nurture customer relationships by providing technical insights and solutions.

Determining Sales Engineering Structure

For optimal performance, consider having one Sales Engineer or Solutions Architect for every 8 to 10 sales representatives. However, this ratio may fluctuate depending on the nature of your startup and the complexity of your product offering.

Sales engineers typically report through the sales organization, maintaining a secondary or "dotted line" link to the engineering department. This reporting structure ensures they remain abreast of all technical advancements, while focusing primarily on their role within the sales process.

Role of Engineering Leadership

Engineering leaders play a key part in hiring and training Sales Engineers. They have a unique ability to evaluate technical competence and guide the development of essential skills within this role.

In startups below the $20M threshold, the responsibility for training Sales Engineers often falls jointly to the sales and engineering departments, given the lack of a dedicated function at this stage. This collaborative approach leverages the sales team's client interaction expertise and the engineering team's technical knowledge, providing comprehensive training that equips Sales Engineers to excel in their role.

As your startup scales, effectively integrating Sales Engineers within your sales and engineering teams can make a significant difference in client satisfaction, sales success, and ultimately, company growth.