RevOps Roundtable

Build a predictable, scalable revenue engine for your IPO. Discover how CFOs automate RevOps and boost valuations.Welcome to the RevOps Roundtable, hosted by John Garvens.In this episode, we dive deep into the ultimate IPO readiness playbook for modern CFOs. As your company eyes the public markets, your role must evolve from a traditional financial guardian into a strategic growth catalyst. We break down exactly how to scale your revenue operations, eliminate compliance risks, and build a predictable forecasting engine that Wall Street can trust.PANELISTSJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeSam Chung, Chief Customer Officer, SalesforceDavid Beebe, Head of Revenue Solutions, SalesforceCONTENTSThe Mature Revenue Engine: What a healthy, public-ready revenue architecture looks like before you file your S-1.The CFO Evolution: How to successfully transition from a financial guardian to an active growth catalyst.Hidden IPO Landmines: The most common revenue and cash flow pitfalls that stall IPO momentum and crush valuations.Leveraging AI Agents: How autonomous AI (like Agentforce Revenue Management) optimizes revenue workflows, secures compliance, and replaces messy spreadsheets.Metrics That Boost Valuation: A deep dive into Net Revenue Retention (NRR) and the core KPIs investors look for during the roadshow.The Long-Game Strategy: Actionable steps you can implement today to prepare your finance and revenue teams for an IPO years in advance.CHAPTERS00:00 Introduction: IPO readiness for CFOs01:54 Sam Chung: Background & finance + revenue ops perspective03:12 David Beebe: Revenue Cloud, product, and customer advocacy07:36 What makes a healthy, mature revenue engine for IPOs12:26 Systems that enable predictability, auditability, and compliance15:39 CFO as growth catalyst (not just financial guardian)23:26 Common revenue & cash-flow landmines (the “messy middle”)32:05 IPO timelines, monthly close cadence, and audit readiness risks35:25 AI agents: where they help in Quote-to-Cash and finance41:12 Agent use cases: quoting, contracts, billing, collections44:38 API-first architecture & headless integrations for scale49:55 Metrics deep dive: Net Revenue Retention & evolving KPIs50:25 How Agentforce Revenue Management drives NRR & analytics54:12 Selling the solution to your board: ROI, time-to-value, scalability56:05 Practical first steps today: team, architecture map, unify data58:09 Closing remarks, contact info, and next stepsLearn more about Garvens Consulting: https://garvensconsulting.com/

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeMicah Gerger, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Blue Robot DigitalGeorgii Saveliev, Founder & Salesforce Certified Technical Architect, Stratus CartaContent00:00 Introduction01:34 Participant Intros: John Garvens, Micah Gerger, Georgii Saveliev04:19 Origins: SteelBrick, Vlocity, & Agentforce Revenue Management History12:50 Prefab House vs. Home Depot: Out-of-the-Box vs. In-the-Box17:05 Agentforce Revenue Management Industry Accelerators23:12 The Importance of Human Experience in the Age of AI28:52 Strengths & Weaknesses: SteelBrick, Vlocity & RLM/RCA/ARM38:51 Deep Dive: Context Definitions, Expression Sets & Pricing Procedures47:38 What’s “In-the-Box”? — Key Revenue Cloud Modules54:37 DevOps & Data Migration Challenges: Deployments, Tooling & Legacy Data01:02:46 Favorite Features — OmniStudio/DRO, Advanced Approvals, Asset Model01:12:02 Tips for SteelBrick & Vlocity Veterans / Transformation Readiness & Closing

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeMicah Gerger, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Blue Robot DigitalJean-Michel Tremblay, Managing Principal, Aleysian, The Cloud Update on YouTubeContent00:00 Introduction02:02 Evolution of Commerce and Revenue Cloud10:23 Common Problems with Revenue Systems Interoperability13:23 Most Common Use Cases and Implementation Challenges23:50 Revenue Management and Field Service27:21 Product-Led Growth, Self-Service, and Headless Capabilities38:48 Where Commerce Shines: Orchestrated Checkout44:20 Custom User Interfaces and Optimal User Experiences50:15 Shameless Plug for Consulting Services51:25 Custom User Interfaces and Optimal User Experiences Continued55:55 Final Thoughts and Wrap-Up

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeDan Miller, Chief Financial Officer, RightRevZee Akbarali, Managing Director, AccordionBryce Baker, Managing Director, AccordionContents00:00 Introduction02:35 The CFO as a Growth Catalyst06:47 Transition from Spreadsheets to Modern Tools20:33 The Growing Complexity of Revenue Models28:24 Importance of Data Quality and Compliance41:00 Future of Revenue Recognition and AI51:51 Resources and Action Items for CFOs

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeMeredith Schmidt, Executive Vice President & General Manager, SalesforceArun Abichandani, Senior Vice President, Product Management, SalesforceSam Chung, Chief Customer Officer, SalesforceTiffany Devlin-Drye, Director, Pierce WashingtonMicah Gerger, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Blue Robot DigitalJean-Michel Tremblay, Managing Principal, Aleysian, The Cloud Update on YouTubeContents00:00 Introductions and Fun Facts07:58 The Past, Present, and Future of Agentforce Revenue Management19:24 New Capabilities: Customer Use Cases33:57 Agentforce Revenue Management Billing42:47 Opportunities for Everyone48:44 Training, Documentation, and Certifications53:53 Keys to Success: How Everyone Wins59:03 Final Thoughts

2026 is shaping up to be the year of Agentforce Revenue Management. In this episode, John Garvens shares his reasons for believing that 2026 will be the year that Agentforce Revenue Management takes off.PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeContents00:00 Introduction05:01 Readiness: Product, Customers, and Partners08:52 Talent Pool: Large and Growing, More Needed14:58 Training, Enablement, and Certification19:18 CPQ End-of-Sale: Decision and Action Required24:24 Battle for Product-to-Cash28:13 Established RevOps Best Practices: Grow Up Together31:11 Customer Interest: All-Time High33:23 More Customers Than Expected: SMB, Commercial, and Enterprise37:30 Majority Net New Logos39:53 More Sellers: More Teams, More Verticals42:00 Conclusion

Holiday GiftLearn Agentforce Revenue Management, formerly called Salesforce Revenue Cloud, formerly called Revenue Lifecycle ManagementPanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeJean-Michel Tremblay, Managing Principal, Aleysian, The Cloud Update on YouTubeChris Hickman, Product-to-Cash Architect, PointClickCare, cmhtechconsulting on SubstackKhaled Halabieh, Principal Technical Architect, Stratus CartaContents00:00 Introduction08:58 The Agentforce Revenue Management Product Suite11:34 Product Catalog Management, Order Management & Asset Management18:21 Parity vs. Progress: Comparing two different products22:05 Flow Approvals vs. Advanced Approvals24:38 The Future of Flow: A friendly debate27:47 Product Catalog Management29:22 Apex Hooks: Jean-Michel’s favorite thing34:31 Salesforce Contracts Sold Separately: When you just need Contract Lifecycle Managment35:23 Revenue Cloud Billing: “Already a lot better than managed package [Salesforce] Billing”36:39 15,000 Quote Lines & Large Data Volume Considerations43:51 Words of Wisdom for the Revenue World44:33 Learn like a six-year-old46:26 Have a beginner’s mind, try things, don’t be afraid49:00 Keep learning, understand how and why49:33 Get used to discomfort and uncertainty, build your crew, give yourself grace

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeGreg Fiorindo, Vice President of Sales, Revenue & Commerce Cloud, SalesforceJosh Pearson, Senior Director, Salesforce, Pierce WashingtonJohn Lehrkind, Director, Solutions & Innovation, Pierce WashingtonRavi Maturi, Managing Partner, MN SquaredCameron Gilbertson, Lead-to-Revenue Consultant, Blue Robot DigitalTiffany Devlin-Drye, Principal Consultant, Pierce WashingtonJessica Roundy, Solution Architect, Roundy Cloud ConsultingMicah Gerger, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Blue Robot DigitalJohn Bishop, Principal Consultant, Pierce WashingtonContents00:00 Introductions and Fun Facts06:20 Dreamforce 2025 Revenue Cloud Highlights16:46 The Future of Revenue Cloud Careers30:22 Revenue Cloud Roadmap and Opportunities37:24 Transitioning from CPQ to Revenue Cloud43:46 Feedback for Revenue Cloud Product Management49:39 Advice to Net New Agentforce Revenue Management Customers57:57 Advice to Salesforce CPQ & Billing Customers1:20:29 ConclusionResourcesAgentforce Revenue Management (formerly Revenue Lifecycle Management, Revenue Cloud Growth, Revenue Cloud Advanced, and Revenue Cloud Billing)

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeMicah Gerger, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Blue Robot DigitalJean-Michel Tremblay, Managing Principal, Aleysian, The Cloud Update on YouTubeCC Chiderski, Solution Architect, CLD PartnersJanna Cenko, Salesforce Solution Architect, CPQ, ToastTravis Lee, Salesforce Consultant, TJL ConsultingContents00:00 Introduction02:30 Overview of Revenue Cloud and its readiness04:35 What skills do you need to implement and administer Revenue Cloud?14:35 Revenue Cloud and its interoperability with Commerce Cloud30:40 How do I know when Revenue Cloud is ready for prime time?33:33 Customer and partner perspectives on Revenue Cloud readiness37:18 Revenue Cloud Demo vs. Revenue Cloud Proof-of-Concept49:12 What does a real-life Salesforce CPQ customer think about Revenue Cloud?51:08 The value of advisory, proof-of-concept, and purchasing projectsResourcesRevenue Cloud: Proof of Concept or Period of ClarityMulti-Cloud Data Migrator

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens Consulting, Garvens Consulting on YouTubeCC Chiderski, Solution Architect, CLD PartnersAlexandra Stehman, AI Strategy Lead, UptimaTravis Lee, Salesforce Consultant, TJL ConsultingContent00:00 Introduction03:07 Biggest Challenges with Revenue Cloud07:42 Implementation: Theory vs. Reality10:54 Migrating from Legacy CPQ Tools13:30 Hard Left Turns: Frequency and Significance15:35 Developers Required to Implement and Administer20:04 Hiring Dedicated Resources to Administer Revenue Cloud25:10 Advanced Approvals: Are They “Advanced”?32:10 Is Revenue Cloud “At Parity” with Salesforce CPQ?35:36 Context Definitions and the Absence of “Twin Fields”37:04 Should You Use Revenue Cloud?38:35 A Shameless Pitch for Advisory Services and Proofs-of-Concept (POCs)43:39 How would you think about the decision to purchase Revenue Cloud?

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens ConsultingMicah Gerger, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Blue Robot DigitalContents00:00 Introduction02:05 Salesforce CPQ End of Sale Announcement10:07 Migrating from Salesforce CPQ to Salesforce Revenue Cloud14:27 A functional AND technical transformation20:27 Metaphor: Salesforce CPQ vs. Salesforce Revenue Cloud24:34 RevOps Domain Knowledge + Technologist Mindset = Success32:28 Revenue Cloud Implementation and Migration Timelines and Deadlines37:25 Selecting a Revenue Cloud implementation partner44:27 Migrating to Revenue Cloud from other CPQ tools, custom tools, and spreadsheets55:16 PSA: Make a Slack workspace for your Salesforce friends56:37 Proofs of Concept (POCs) and Advisory Services1:04:05 Martial arts is more fun than Revenue Cloud

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens ConsultingJean-Michel Tremblay, Managing Principal, AleysianRavi Maturi, Managing Partner, MN SquaredJason Anderson, Founder & Senior Principal Advisor, Spherelight ConsultingTravis Lee, Senior Director, Revenue Systems & Processes, AvidXchangeMicah Gerger, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Blue Robot DigitalContents00:00 Introduction04:18 Summer ’25 Release Notes Discussion07:08 Default Catalog, Guided Selling, Enhanced Attribute Support, and Quote Visibility18:02 Transaction Management and Agentforce Integration26:50 Smart Approvals and Pricing Procedure Simulation34:09 Advanced Configurator and Constraint Engine34:42 Dynamic Revenue Orchestrator (DRO) Fulfillment Plans39:00 Collections and Licensing Considerations52:14 Final Thoughts and Future TopicsResourcesProduct Catalog ManagementSalesforce PricingProduct ConfiguratorTransaction ManagementUsage Management (Generally Available)Salesforce ContractsDynamic Revenue OrchestratorBilling

PanelistsJessica Roundy, Solution ArchitectJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens ConsultingTiffany Devlin-Drye, Principal Consultant, Pierce WashingtonJohn Bishop, Principal Consultant, Pierce WashingtonMicah Gerger, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Blue Robot DigitalContentsI spoke with Jessica Roundy, Tiffany Devlin-Drye, John Bishop, and Micah Gerger about Salesforce Revenue Cloud and its past, present, and future.We covered many topics, including what Revenue Cloud is and why it matters, how Revenue Cloud careers will evolve, how AI will impact revenue-centric and adjacent business processes, what excites us most about the future of Revenue Cloud, and more.00:00 Introduction04:15 What is Salesforce Revenue Cloud?11:40 Revenue Cloud Career Opportunities24:48 Revenue Cloud and Agentforce / AI

PanelistsJohn Garvens, Owner & Principal Architect, Garvens ConsultingJean-Michel Tremblay, Solution Architect, The Cloud UpdateWayne Salazar, Solution Architect, SimplusMatt Coker, Solution Architect, AmwintechContents00:00 Introductions: John Garvens, Jean-Michel Tremblay, Wayne Salazar & Matt Coker08:24 Salesforce Revenue Cloud at Dreamforce 202422:15 Salesforce Revenue Cloud: Winter ’25 Release47:15 Salesforce Revenue Cloud CareersResourcesGarvens Consulting YouTube ChannelThe Cloud Update YouTube Channel

Hello, and welcome to the RevOps Roundtable! I am your host, John Garvens, owner and principal architect at Garvens Consulting.The RevOps Roundtable is a discussion-based podcast about Revenue Operations, featuring thought leaders and notable executives discussing the commercial, operational, and technical challenges facing Revenue Operations teams today.The show aims to promote open and honest conversations and to offer practical solutions, guidance, and direction to RevOps professionals around the world. I hope you enjoy it!To ask questions, share feedback, or suggest show ideas, email me at [email protected].