Process Owner: Bryn LaRue
Last Updated: October 2024
SOP Linked: HERE
Sections of Document:
Process Overview
Timelines of Staffing Completion
Timelines of Staffing Release
Incoming Accounts Deployment Requirements
Steps in the Staffing Process
Operations x Staffing Comms Plan
Resources:
Activation Guideline Deck
Client Services Guideline Deck
Sales Guideline Deck
What the process is:
The Account Staffing Process ensures that accounts are staffed on time with the appropriate personnel to meet client needs.
This process involves multiple parties and teams working in collaboration to ensure seamless service delivery to retain our clients. This process ensures a cohesive process from the initial deployment to incoming accounts during the sales process to overcommunication on staffing needs and deadlines
All Staffing Parties Involved:
Sales
Client Services Staffing Team
Activation Staffing Leads
Operations Support
Staffing Rate + KPIs
Q4 Staffing Rate Goal:
60% staffed within 2 business days
40% staffed within 3-4 days
10% staffed within 5 days
Q1-Ongoing Staffing Rate Goal:
80% staffed within 2 business days
15% staffed within 3-4 days
5% staffed within 5 days
Ideal Timeline
Sales Team
Provide information as early as possible during the contract stage, with a Slack message labeled accordingly.
Client Services
Staff the Account Manager (AM), Account Director (AD), and Group Director (GD) within 2 business days of the ‘Ready to Staff’ trigger in Slack.
Activation Team
Staff within 2 business days after Client Services staffs AM,AD,GD.
Completion Expectations
1-2 Days: Great
3-4 Days: Okay
5+ Days: Poor
Team Release
Team Release after 14 days with no contract movement, 30 days for Enterprise.
Meet the team exception: If the client has met the staffed team we can hold the team for 30 days after the meet + greet but will be released after the 30 day mark.
*No contract movement is when a contract has not moved from the current stage it’s in to the next (ie: Legal to Signature)
Steps
Step 1: Deployment:
Sales to drop an accurate and complete Incoming Accounts Deployment using the template below to #incomingaccounts slack channel
The Sales Rep to drop when it gets added to the sales rep forecast in Salesforce
Slack Message heading to be labeled with:
🟢 Ready to Staff 🟢 - has a due date that is within 3-5 business days
🟠 Meet the Team Only 🟠 - Account Leadership - only need to staff account leadership or specific strategist required by client
‼️ Immediate Staffing Needed ‼️ (approved by VP [tag VP here]) - Needs staffing within 48 hours
🛑 Wait to Staff 🛑 - Dropping in for visibility but the account won’t close for a while, so will circle back when it’s ready to be staffed
✅ STAFFED ✅ - Deal Signed
For immediate staffing only: Once fully staffed, message heading can be updated to “STAFFED” by the original sender. (Bryn to tag in the thread to be done).
STAFFING DUE DATE GUIDELINES:
The staffing leads will have AT LEAST 48 hours to staff the account.
The only exception is if the deal is out for signature - the team will have 24 hours to staff + must be approved by a Revenue Org VP.
In Deployment under “STAFFING DUE DATE” it must be at least 2 business days
If approved by VP, it will be due tomorrow (not the same day) and must tag VP who approved the rush request.
Must have definitive tier + business unit (for ready to staff trigger)
If deal was dropped in ahead of time - when we are ready to announce the “ready to staff” trigger - Sales lead must confirm the channel mix
We would like to know if the mix has changed originally from what was dropped in so we can tag the appropriate team members
Proposed Template for Incoming Accounts
This section outlines the required information and format for deploying incoming accounts to the appropriate teams. The following details must be included in the deployment message:
Client Information
Client Name:
Website: [URL]
Time Zone:
Deal Status
Start Date:
Anticipated Close Date:
STAFFING DUE DATE (must be a date):
Business Focus
Business Focus: (B2B, Lead Gen, eComm/D2C, Omni-Channel/Retail)
Retainer:
Tier: (Core, Growth, Enterprise)
Channels:
Scope and Details
Media Plan Included: (Yes/No)
VABO: (Yes/No, if yes provide details on scope)
Dedicated or Basic Measurement Snippet: (Yes/No, if yes, indicate which one)
Link to Blueprint:
Link to Appraisal: (if applicable)
Client Profile and Personality
What is the client’s personality like?
Which channel do you think they will scrutinize/want to discuss the most?:
What is the current state of their business?:
On a scale of 1-5 how tough will they be on the partnership?
On a scale of 1-5 how savvy is the client with digital marketing?
Forecasting and Staffing Needs
Likelihood to Sign: (High, Medium, Low)
Client Expectations: (Any known expectations or requirements)
Audit Process Involvement: (Yes/No, if yes, provide details)
Preferred Contact Method and Frequency:
Additional Notes
Miscellaneous Notes: (Any additional relevant information)
Step 2: Deployment Review
Bryn to review deployment messages to ensure all fields have been completed within the same day of receipt.
If applicable, Sales lead will be tagged in the thread for any missing information and should be filled out within 24 hours.
Bryn to cross-reference the deployment message to the BluePrint to make sure the correct channels and staffing leads are accounted for.
Bryn to add account information to a Master Staffing Rubric [CS doc]to track the information, timelines, and staffing completion dates.
Step 3: Staffing Begins
If staffing due date is within 2 business days of deployment message, Bryn to ensure Staffing Leads are tagged and begin staffing.
Suppose the staffing due date is a future date. In that case, Bryn uses the Master Staffing Rubric [CS doc] to track when staffing is needed and recirculate the deployment message into incoming accounts channel using the ‘Staffing Needed’ heading and tag proper leaders.
After the ‘Staffing Needed’ trigger is sent, Client Services has 48 hours to assign AM/AD/GD. CS Staffing to drop the names of account assignments into the slack thread.
After AM/AD/GD have been staffed, Activation Staffing has 48 hours to staff activation leads. Activation Staffing to drop the names of account assignments into the slack thread.
Within 48 hours of full staffing completion, Bryn will update Powerview with this information.
Meet the Team Requests/Pre-Appraisal + Requirements
If the client requests to meet the team or have them on the appraisal, the sales lead to follow the below:
Drop into #incoming-accounts using the deployment template and Meet the Team Title
With VP approval if it’s pre-appraisal
Only staff client services team members of the following based on the thresholds below:
<$10k - 1 team member from CS
$10k-$25k - 2 team members from CS
$25k+ - 3 team members from CS
Must give 2 business day notice so that the team has ample time to staff and prepare for the meeting
Strategists will not be joining the team meetings unless specifically required by the potential client
After meet the team - we will trigger “ready to staff” with a 48-hour window (unless approved for 24 hours by the VP) that Bryn will repost and own comms in the channel
Releasing the Team
After 14 days with no client contract updates, Bryn will update Staffing Leads via Slack so that they can release the team that had originally been staffed, to open their availability for other opportunities.
Bryn to direct sender to update slack message to be titled:
❌ Deal Lost ❌
Sales to communicate any further contract updates to Bryn to redeploy trigger for staffing.
Operations x Staffing Leads Communication Plan
Bryn to monitor deployment messages in incoming accounts Slack channel.
Bryn to trigger and tag leaders in a thread of accounts ready to be staffed.
Bryn to correspond any missing or updated information about potential clients with the Sales Team.
Bryn to remind staffing leads of staffing deadlines in thread, in DM, etc.
Bryn to update Power View with account assignments within 24 hours of confirmation.
Jenna to update all staffing parties on KPI pacing every month + every quarter.
Showing our staffing rate
Showing our Pod Structure alignment
Sharing any actions or improvements for the next quarter