Candybox

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Quick question: Did anyone here actually *plan* to end up in RevOps or GTM Systems? I know I didn't. For me it was a happy accident. And since there are quite a few new faces here, I figured it's a good time for a quick reintroduction. I'm Kathryn, founder of Candybox. We're RevOps and GTM Systems experts who partner with scaling tech companies, and the VC and PE firms that invest in them. My path into GTM Systems started in technical customer support. I was the first regional support hire at a scale-up. I found myself naturally digging into the data: - How many tickets were we getting? - Which regions were they from? - How fast were we responding? - Why were so many being reassigned "out of region"? That curiosity turned into advocacy. I used the data to make the case for more resources, training, and product improvements. At some point, someone trusted me enough to give me admin access to Zendesk 😈 I built out all kinds of fun things - regional support queues, escalation processes, team dashboards. Then a role in the Business Systems team opened up. It was supposed to be based in the company headquarters, but I talked my way into it.  That was over ten years ago. As for how I ended up starting an agency? Well, that's a story for another post. But enough about me! How did you find your way into GTM Systems, RevOps, or Business Systems?

Choosing between a strategy or technical profile for your first RevOps hire? Valid discussion, but here's a different angle: Can they get things moving? Your first RevOps hire matters a lot. A lot of leaders ask, "Do we need a strategist or a systems builder?" Good question, and the order does matter. (And I've got thoughts on that for another post.) But that question misses something critical - especially if you're chasing lofty growth targets. Bias to action. You want someone who can: - Get hands-on fast - See the full GTM picture - Make progress with messy data and shifting goals - Start taking again before everything's perfect If I were hiring, I'd look for someone who: 👉 Moves quickly from discovery to action 👉 Takes analysis seriously but doesn't get stuck there 👉 Works backward from business goals 👉 Owns outcomes instead of waiting for direction You might not need a full-time RevOps hire yet. But you do need someone who gets things moving from day one.

There are two common mistakes startups make when it comes to their tech stack 👇 1. Choosing the cheapest tool with no foresight It works for a few months… until it doesn't. Your business evolves, and you bump up against the tool's capabilities. Then you're rebuilding, building custom workflows that break constantly to tide you over, before ultimately looking at another vendor anyway. 2. Going too complex too soon Leaders who come from technical or enterprise backgrounds often bring valuable structure and rigor. But that experience can also lead to overbuilding too soon. At early-stage companies, it's not uncommon to see "enterprise-grade" systems implemented before there's an enterprise to run them. You end up using 20% of the functionality and spending 10× the cost and/or time maintaining it. The best setups match where the business actually is today while giving you room to grow. Start simple. Plan for what's next. Pick tools that can scale with you instead of creating work you'll have to undo later.

The world would be a better place if people stopped pitting RevOps and GTM Engineering against each other. They’re not rivals. They’re teammates. RevOps = the architect 🏗️ GTM Engineering = the builder ⚙️ Together, they turn CRMs from static databases into real revenue engines. One without the other? You get silos, spreadsheets, and a CRM nobody trusts. We break it down in our article below!

One of the smartest moves a VC or PE firm can make for their startups? Push them to invest in RevOps early. With RevOps foundations in place, everyone wins: 👉 Investors get consistent, trustworthy views across the portfolio 👉 Operators unlock the insights they need to grow smarter, and set up to scale Firms should treat RevOps like their best friend.  They're the ones who can make sure portfolio numbers are reliable. When your startups don't prioritise RevOps, you end up with: 🟠 Inconsistent reporting 🟠 Messy revenue recognition 🟠 Numbers you can't fully trust If you make sure your startups implement RevOps frameworks upfront, you can standardise how revenue is tracked early on. Suddenly, you're comparing apples to apples across the portfolio: 🟢 Clean dashboards across every company 🟢 Reliable revenue reporting 🟢 Clearer insights into which customer segments drive growth vs. churn This is a huge strategic advantage. You can see where to double down on growth or identify shortfalls before they get too big. It means you stop flying blind with incomplete data and you start making decisions you can actually trust.

Most SaaS companies run HubSpot + Salesforce side by side. But without a clean integration, the handoff always breaks. You get: → Duplicate records → Messy data → Missed MQLs → Reports nobody trusts That’s why we're constantly rebuilding the HubSpot ↔ Salesforce integration for RevOps teams. Our framework delivers: → 1:1 record sync → Clean handoffs from MQL → Opp → Accurate, SaaS-ready reporting → Connected processes across the funnel → The chance to have re-MQLs who re-start their journey all over again. No silos. No messy data. No leadership blind spots. We’ve done this across dozens of SaaS companies. The needs are specific to every company. This not a one size fits all. But the results are the same: 👉 Full visibility, clean reporting, and a tech stack you can actually scale on. Check out the full HubSpot + Salesforce use case through the link in the comments.

Why should you care about duplicates in your CRM? Because it signals a wider systemic issue. Poor data quality isn't just frustrating; it erodes trust. Imagine scaling to $100M ARR while fighting these operational roadblocks: 📉 Unreliable pipeline and renewal forecasts no one trusts 🗣️ Multiple reps contacting the same accounts with different messages 💔 Fragmented or incomplete activity data 🥊 Cross-department battles over revenue attribution These aren't just small irritations. Those are issues that directly block growth. So how do you get started preventing that? 1️⃣ Get beyond the symptom to the root cause: - Audit your CRM setup, automations, and integrations (tools like Arovy and Elements.cloud can help) - Create data integrity reports to surface your biggest issues and where they occur - Get feedback from frontline users, not just leadership 2️⃣ Build a lean governance framework: - Assign clear ownership of data - Work to eliminate non-essential fields, records and integrations - Make compliance the easiest path (yes, easier said than done) - Review and refine periodically 3️⃣ Prioritise high-impact, low-effort wins: - Configure dedicated integration users for system syncs - Auto-populate fields wherever possible - Only automate processes that already work manually And remember as well - don't let the perfect be the enemy of good. You're aiming for reliable data that helps people make better decisions, not some kind of CRM utopia (as nice as that might be). --- At Candybox, we've helped dozens of B2B tech companies transform their Salesforce and HubSpot instances from sources of frustration into reliable growth engines. Feel free to ping me or connect to chat any time.