Most account plans are research docs that never drive pipeline. Learn the 15-call method sales leaders at Twilio and Okta use to crack enterprise accounts.
Although account plans are created with good intent, they fall short when it comes to influencing execution. Reps still go into calls feeling underprepared, with 42% of sales professionals reporting they don’t have enough information before making a call.
And if you think lack of data is the problem, think again. The real issue is that account plans are structured to collect information, not aid in practical next steps.
In this article, we’ll explore why traditional enterprise account planning fails to produce executive access or pipeline, and how a more execution-driven approach turns account planning into a repeatable system for generating insight, earning executive meetings, and building momentum.
At a glance, most enterprise account planning efforts look thorough. Reps document relevant insights including company overviews, org charts, recent news, competitive landscape, and product fit. They build decks, fill out CRM fields, and book account reviews.
Despite this effort, very little of that work translates into executive meetings, deal momentum, or pipeline creation.
The problem with traditional enterprise account planning is that the design is flawed. Most account plans are built as static exercises rather than living sales motions.
The consequences of this approach are hard to ignore:
In other words, the plan exists, but it goes nowhere.
Designed to support strategic account planning and account-based selling, account planning sounds great in theory. Unfortunately, in practice (also like so many other things), it often falls short. What should be a helpful sales tool turns into a research assignment for reps, one that’s completely disconnected from day-to-day selling, while managers and sales leaders wonder why their teams groan every time account planning comes up.
What reps really need to know is how to:
The bottom line is that if account plans don’t support these outcomes, they don’t support your team.
Most account plans are built on one person's perspective. But enterprise buying doesn't work that way with average buying groups now including 22 people. Different teams experience the problem differently, care about different outcomes, and carry different risks, which is why building account plans that actually work requires reflecting multiple perspectives across the organization, from the people doing the work to the people approving the spend.
In this section, we’ll walk you through how to build account plans that actually boost your bottom line, by incorporating a 15-person point of view using three simple questions.
Chances are, you’re familiar with the phrase, “the truth lives somewhere in the middle.” In enterprise accounts, that sentiment rings especially true. No single stakeholder has the full picture. Everyone brings their own priorities, incentives, and constraints, which means the real story only emerges when you find where the POVs overlap.
That’s exactly why Grayson Kimmel, Director of Enterprise Sales at Databricks (Previously at SailPoint), advocates for pressure-testing assumptions across the account instead of anchoring on a single voice.
"We're going to ask the same three questions of at least 15 people around the business. We're going to look for patterns and trends. Then we're going to create a straw man POV," he says. This approach aligns with the reality that deals over $250,000 require 19 stakeholders to close successfully.
When you uncover the same themes across functions, you get an insider look into the business priorities and how the organization actually operates.
By now you’re probably thinking, “That’s great but what are these magical questions that help me create a 360-degree view of the org?”
Don’t worry, that’s exactly where we’re going next. Drum roll, please . . .
After the conversations, the work is synthesis. The value comes from stepping back and asking what you now know that you did not before. Where answers repeat, you have a signal. Where they conflict, you have risk. Where language aligns, you have messaging that will resonate.
From that, you write a short, testable point of view. Not a summary of notes, but a clear hypothesis you can validate with executives. For example, statements such as:
The hypothesis can then be positioned and validated with executives.
“One of the things we focus on is giving our AEs permission to be wrong. When you come into an account, you have to have a point of view, but it doesn’t necessarily need to be the right point of view or resonate with the customer,” says Jake Kanter, RVP of Strategic Accounts at Twilio. “By coming in and saying, ‘here’s the way I’m thinking about your business today, here are the problems I see, and here’s how I think Twilio can help solve those problems,’' it’s okay if you’re off base. Having someone correct you and say, ‘that’s actually not quite right, we’re focused on a different area,’ starts the conversation and shows the prospect you have a vested interest in learning about their company and how it functions.”
When a POV is built from patterns across the account, it gives reps direction. Instead of reacting to requests, chasing meetings, or defaulting to generic follow-ups, reps have a clearer sense of what actually matters inside the account and what needs to happen next.
Here are some of the benefits of having a well-rounded POV:
This is the real value of a strong POV. It doesn’t just inform the account plan. It guides execution by answering the question every rep is trying to solve: what should I do next to move this deal forward?
And remember, it’s not about reaching perfection; it’s about taking the time to actively listen to prospects and truly understand their organization so you can speak their language, advise them appropriately, and help determine product fit.
