01
The solution is almost always in the problem itself
Pratz's foundational BCG lesson is to read the problem statement closely rather than jumping to answers. A broad ask like 'my sales are down' contains its own clues — the keywords 'sales' and 'down' — and sales decomposes into price and volume, which immediately branches the analysis into a small set of testable hypotheses.
Why it matters: Before pulling any data, decompose the ask into its drivers and let the words dictate your first hypotheses. Most RevOps analysis fails because it starts from a dashboard, not from a well-read problem statement.
RevOps LeadersRevenue Executives
02
The stated problem is usually a symptom — peel the onion
'Sales are down' is a symptom, not a root cause. Pratz gets to the real problem by bringing the right people into the room (head of pricing, supply chain, production), asking whether price or volume is the issue, and going deliberately broad before narrowing — pulling three to four years of history so the answer reveals itself.
Why it matters: Resist the urge to narrow too fast. Widen the aperture, gather historical context, and interrogate the symptom with the people who own the underlying levers before committing to a diagnosis.
RevOps LeadersRevenue Executives
03
RevOps has a head start on hypothesis-driven thinking
Unlike a generalist management consultant staring at a blank business problem, a RevOps operator already knows the industry and the motion — usually B2B SaaS — so the problem space is better scoped from the outset. That specificity is an advantage most operators underuse.
Why it matters: Lean into your domain: your starting point is already narrowed, so you can form sharper hypotheses faster than an outside strategist. Treat consulting rigor as an accelerant on top of context you already have.
RevOps Leaders
04
Decide whether you're diagnosing the past or framing the future
Pratz separates two modes: a backward-looking diagnostic ('sales were bad last year — what did we do wrong?') and a forward-looking strategy question ('how do we break into the enterprise segment?'). Which one you're in changes both the hypotheses you form and how much value the work returns; pure post-mortems yield limited results.
Why it matters: Name the mode explicitly at the start of any analysis. Whenever possible, reframe a diagnostic into a forward-looking question, because that's what actually shapes the go-to-market plan.
RevOps LeadersRevenue Executives
05
The operational cadence is the trap that kills strategic thinking
The biggest risk isn't a lack of skill — it's the operating rhythm. Once you get fixated on a template, a reporting format, and a fixed metric set, you stop asking how you'd frame the problem strategically. The urgent, repeatable work quietly crowds out the important thinking.
Why it matters: Be intentional about protecting bandwidth for deep work. Guard time to go deep with business partners across go-to-market functions, or the cadence will consume every hour you have.
RevOps Leaders
06
Ruthless prioritization: interrogate every meeting invite
Because RevOps teams are small and mighty, time is the scarcest resource. Pratz pushes back on meetings by asking, 'Am I absolutely needed? What's the agenda? Do you need me to bring something, or just listen in?' — and declines the passive hour whenever she can.
Why it matters: Treat your calendar as a strategic asset. Get comfortable pushing back on low-value meetings; a passive listen-in hour is an hour stolen from the analysis only you can do.
RevOps Leaders
07
Lean on leadership for air cover
RevOps often reports into a head of sales, commercial, or revenue — sometimes the CSO or CEO. Pratz keeps those leaders aware of what she's working on and what she's being pulled into last minute, and asks them for air cover when priorities collide, even when approaching senior leaders feels intimidating.
Why it matters: Maintain an open, transparent channel with the executive you report to. Their awareness of your load is what lets them shield your time and reinforce your priorities across the org.
RevOps LeadersRevenue Executives
08
Delegate only when it serves the person, not to offload work
Delegation matters if you manage a team, but Pratz is protective of her team's time and the multitude of things they already handle. She delegates only to the extent it actually develops or serves the person receiving the work — never just to move a task off her own plate.
Why it matters: Use delegation as a development tool, not a dumping mechanism. Guard your team's bandwidth as fiercely as your own, or you'll erode the very capacity you rely on.
RevOps Leaders
09
Macro is always a lingering hypothesis — focus on the controllables
In her Slack mid-market playbook work, the 2020–21 boom flipping to the mid-2022 downturn meant the macro environment was always on the hypothesis list. But because macro is outside your control, the useful energy goes into internal controllables: qualification, sales enablement, new ROI metrics, value props, and more tailored demos.
Why it matters: Acknowledge macro, then move past it. Concentrate hypothesis testing and action on the levers you actually own, which is where a downturn is won or lost.
RevOps LeadersSales Leaders
10
RevOps should feel the agency to surface blind spots
A good RevOps function helps leaders see around blind spots and into areas they don't look at regularly. Pratz flags things proactively — sometimes it's just a flag, sometimes it's 'we should get ahead of this' — and stresses that operators should feel licensed to ask for data and dig in without asking permission.
Why it matters: Claim the mandate to investigate. The org's closest-to-the-data function has a responsibility to raise issues early, before a quiet problem compounds into a major one.
RevOps LeadersRevenue Executives
11
Communicate as a strategic partner, not an alarm bell
Surfacing a problem is a communication craft. Pratz frames it as 'I'm seeing something I want to bring up, let's have a conversation' rather than sounding alarms or making a leader feel accused. Bringing a thoughtful recommendation — and anticipating how the leader will react — keeps it collaborative, not accusatory.
Why it matters: Package hard findings with polish and a proposed path forward. The delivery determines whether you're seen as a partner who protects the business or a threat who points fingers.
RevOps LeadersSales Leaders