From Overloaded to Optimized: Concierge Services and Deal Desks with Rob Bruce

In this episode, Jack Cochran and Matthew James are joined by Rob Bruce, a presales leader at Syndigo with 20 years of experience, to discuss an innovative approach to presales operations: the Pursuit Desk. Rob shares how Syndigo has built a dedicated "concierge team" that handles RFPs, security questionnaires, reference coordination, and other time-consuming tasks, freeing solutions engineers to focus on discovery, solutioning, and building customer relationships. The conversation explores how to operate at the "top of your license," the role of AI in scaling pursuit operations, and practical advice for championing similar initiatives at your organization.

Thank you to Elvance for sponsoring this episode: https://elvance.io

Follow Us

• Connect with Jack Cochran: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackcochran/

• Connect with Matthew James: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewyoungjames/

• Connect with Rob Bruce: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbruce/

Links and Resources Mentioned

• Join Presales Collective Slack: https://www.presalescollective.com/slack

• Book: "Selling is Hard, Buying is Harder" by Garen Hess

Timestamps

00:00 Welcome

04:29 What is a Presales Concierge

11:18 Presales culture

14:00 Working at the top of your diploma

17:10 How do you justify this

21:38 As focused as an F1 team

23:32 AI and the Pursuit Desk

Key Topics Covered

1. The Pursuit Desk Concept

   • Functions as a presales concierge handling non-customer-facing tasks

   • Manages RFPs, InfoSec documents, NDAs, reference coordination

   • Creates centralized control over messaging and responses

   • Operates on a global scale with cultural sensitivity

2. Operating at the Top of Your License

   • Focus on discovery, creative thinking, empathetic listening, and presenting solutions

   • Eliminate time spent on administrative tasks that don't require SE expertise

   • Reduce context switching and multitasking to maintain flow

   • Maximize value delivery to customers and the organization

3. Building the Business Case

   • Find an executive sponsor to champion the initiative

   • Measure impact through deal win rates and velocity

   • Consider creative budget reallocation (travel budgets, etc.)

   • Calculate ROI based on SE productivity and reduced burnout

4. The Role of AI in Pursuit Operations

   • AI handles first-pass RFP responses (80% completion)

   • Pursuit desk personalizes and adds empathy (final 20%)

   • Machine learning analyzes past deals for pattern recognition

   • Go/no-go scorecards based on historical data

   • Enables scaling without proportional headcount increases

5. Presales Culture and Values

   • Building trust through technical expertise and genuine personality

   • Being a "chameleon" who adapts to different buyer needs

   • Creating an environment where people feel welcomed and valued

   • Mentorship and knowledge sharing across teams

6. Preventing Burnout

   • Eliminating nights and weekends spent on RFPs

   • Reducing stress through better task distribution

   • Enabling SEs to focus on work they're passionate about

   • Creating sustainable workloads that retain top talent

7. Measuring Success

   • Tracking time spent on each RFP or pursuit activity

   • Correlating effort to win-loss rates

   • Building audit trails for continuous improvement

   • Creating dashboards for data-driven decision making