Maximizing LAER success: the role of professional services
In today’s evolving subscription and SaaS business models, team selling is imperative to success. Partners must balance efforts between acquiring new customers and retaining their customer base through renewals, while ensuring the proper adoption and utilization of the software. Though often overlooked, the professional services team can prove to be a critical component throughout the customer journey.
Some experts assert that services and customer success teams interact with customers at a rate 5-15 times greater than your sales team. These interactions typically revolve around solving customer or business issues and present opportunities for further customer expansion.
What are professional services?
When we refer to Professional services, we are talking about anything from a small engagement, such as customized training, to a large-scale multiyear implementation and migration project.
At Siemens, we follow the LAER (Land, Adopt, Expand, and Renew) model to guide our customer engagements. Today, we will present the importance of the professional services team during each customer engagement phase.
Land: setting the foundation for success
During the land phase, the professional services team should collaborate closely with the sales and presales teams to align on customer needs and define tailored solutions. By fully understanding customer expectations and the solutions’ capabilities, professional services teams can play a pivotal role in establishing a foundation for a successful partnership. Their proof-of-concept contributions and solution design are essential in closing deals and establishing trust.
Adopt: delivering value and desired business outcomes
At the adopt phase, the professional services team focuses on helping customers implement and adopt the solution. The professional services team develops detailed implementation plans, configures solutions to fit business objectives and prepares comprehensive custom training sessions that ensure user understanding and confidence. By creating a smooth transition during the go-live stage of the engagement, the professional services team can help accelerate the time-to-value as it guides customers toward their desired outcomes.
Expand: focusing on growth
In the expand phase, the professional services team proactively supports expansion opportunities, contributing to future planning and implementing new features or modules. By leveraging their understanding of the customer’s environment, the professional services team helps find additional value in the customer’s existing solutions, as well as new solutions that will pave the way for expansion and growth.
Renew: sustaining relationships
Successful project execution, appropriately managed customer expectations, seamless go-live experiences and delivery of tangible business value converts challenging renewal conversations into a simple process. As a key part of the renewal effort, the professional services team helps to identify upsell opportunities for services and solutions that produce additional customer value while delivering additional revenue for your organization.
Your secret weapon
Professional services can be the secret weapon to success in the LAER engagement model. From new customers to customers for life, the professional services team plays a multifaceted role in guiding customers to success, driving adoption, finding and supporting expansion opportunities, and simplifying the renewal process. Their expertise and customer-centric approach are essential for optimizing business value through the seamless delivery of solutions and services that accelerate the customer’s adoption and time to value.
Strengthen your business and drive growth through the LAER model by challenging your sales team to integrate professional services into your customers’ journey. Get started today by acquiring Professional Services certification from Siemens Partner Academy.
About the author
Scott Dibben is a Global Partner Development Executive at Siemens Digital Industries Software. He is a senior leader with extensive experience building Professional Services Organizations within the software industry partner channel, from creating to implementing service offerings and delivery mechanisms focusing on services in the SaaS LAER model.
