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3 results for “lerg”
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The Quid Pro Quo Sales Deal: A Security Leader’s Survival Guide
(written by me, on a keyboard, without AI, like a psychopath)Dig if you will the picture:
You’re a senior security leader when you get that dreaded *DING* on Slack (or, God help you, Teams):
“Hi, $SecurityLeader, I’m Bob from Sales! I’m working a HUGE deal with MobHit, Inc. They want to talk with you about buying their industry-leading EDR before they move forward with us. When can I get you on a quick call?”
Here there be dragons.
Your first instinct may be: “What’s the harm? I’m helping the company.”
And maybe you are.
But understand what you’re signing up for.
Bob: “It’s just a quick call!”
It is almost never just a quick call.
To MobHit, you are now a sales opportunity. Expect follow-ups, demos, objection handling, executive escalations, and increasingly creative attempts to keep you engaged.
And once you crack open the QPQ door, Sales will notice.
There may be hundreds of sales reps in your company.
There is one of you.
They lose nothing by asking. You lose time, attention, and energy.
Also: how real is Bob’s “game-changing” deal?
Is this truly strategic? Or is Bob staring at a stalled opportunity and throwing a Hail Mary?
If you’re going to engage, add some friction. Ask Sales leadership to confirm the deal is strategic, qualified, and important enough to consume your team’s time.
Bob is highly incentivized to care about his commission.
Your calendar? Less so.
Bob: “This will help us win the deal!”
Maybe.
But suppose you buy MobHit’s SuperDuperAIPowered EDR and they buy your product.
Congratulations. You may have just politically tied two contracts together.
Want to change EDRs later? Downsize licenses? Consolidate vendors after an acquisition?
Now your security decision potentially affects someone else’s renewal.
And here’s the bigger question:
Is this even the best technology for your environment?
Your mandate is to protect the company, not make one sales opportunity easier.
Two years from now, the account teams who pressured you into the deal may be long gone.
You’ll still own the product.
Bob: “But they’ll give us a better deal!”
License cost is only one part of cost.
Replacing a major security platform means migration, retraining, rebuilding integrations, workflows, processes, and policies.
While your team is doing that work, what important work are they NOT doing?
You: “Fine. We’ll buy it and leave it as shelfware.”
Ah, yes. Harmless shelfware.
Until the QBRs start.
Then the renewal calls.
Then someone in Finance asks:
“Why are we spending $XXXX on a product nobody uses?”
TL;DR:
Should Security leaders always refuse QPQ deals?
No.
Sometimes there is genuine strategic value.
But ask the question Sales probably isn’t asking:
“Given my mandate and role, what is the BEST way for me to help the company?”
There are real politics here. Saying no can create friction. Align with leadership early. Be skeptical of eternally optimistic account teams.
And never confuse helping close a deal with making the best security decision.
Good luck, and may the procurement Gods smile upon you.
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Repeating Past Mistakes in the AI Industry
