While we often implement this through our Fractional RevOps services, here is the complete DIY framework for building your Series A revenue operations stack.
You just raised your Series A. The board wants to see 3x growth. Your sales team is scaling from 2 to 8 reps. And your current tech stack is... a spreadsheet and founder intuition. It's time to build real revenue operations infrastructure—but how much is enough?
1. The Series A RevOps Challenge
Series A is the awkward adolescence of startups. You're too big for founder-led everything, but too small to justify enterprise tooling. The temptation is to either stay too lean (and create chaos) or over-engineer (and waste capital).
Series A RevOps Requirements:
- • Pipeline Visibility: Know what's closing this quarter with confidence
- • Rep Productivity: Understand activity metrics and conversion rates
- • Lead Routing: Distribute leads fairly and quickly as team scales
- • Process Enforcement: Ensure reps follow the playbook consistently
- • Board Reporting: Generate investor-ready metrics without manual work
The goal isn't the fanciest stack—it's the stack that enables predictable revenue with the least friction and cost.
2. The Lean Stack: HubSpot + Zapier
The lean stack prioritizes simplicity, speed of implementation, and cost efficiency. It's ideal for teams under 10 salespeople with straightforward deal structures.
Lean Stack Components ($500-2K/month):
- • HubSpot Sales Hub Starter: CRM, pipeline management, basic automation ($50/user/month)
- • HubSpot Marketing Hub: Lead capture, email sequences, basic attribution
- • Zapier: Glue between tools for custom workflows ($100-300/month)
- • Calendly/Chilipiper: Meeting scheduling and routing ($15-50/user/month)
- • Apollo or ZoomInfo Lite: Basic prospecting data ($100-500/month)
Pros: Fast to implement, low cost, minimal training. Cons: Limited customization, basic reporting, may need replacement at scale.
3. The Enterprise-Ready Stack
The enterprise-ready stack is built for scale from day one. It's appropriate when you have complex deal structures, regulatory requirements, or a clear path to 50+ person sales org.
Enterprise-Ready Components ($5-15K/month):
- • Salesforce Sales Cloud: Enterprise CRM with unlimited customization ($150/user/month)
- • Outreach or SalesLoft: Sales engagement platform ($100-150/user/month)
- • Gong or Chorus: Conversation intelligence ($100-150/user/month)
- • Clay or ZoomInfo: Full-featured data enrichment ($500-2K/month)
- • LeanData or Chilipiper: Advanced routing and attribution ($500-1K/month)
- • Clari or BoostUp: Revenue intelligence and forecasting ($1-3K/month)
Pros: Scales to 500+ reps, deep analytics, enterprise integrations. Cons: 3-6 month implementation, significant training overhead, requires dedicated admin.
4. Decision Framework
Use this framework to determine which stack fits your current stage and trajectory.
Choose Lean Stack If:
- • Sales team is under 10 people
- • Deal structure is straightforward (single product, simple pricing)
- • Sales cycle is under 60 days
- • No regulatory/compliance requirements for data handling
- • Limited internal technical resources for administration
Choose Enterprise-Ready If:
- • Clear path to 25+ salespeople within 18 months
- • Complex deal structures (multi-product, usage-based, enterprise negotiations)
- • Sales cycles over 90 days with multiple stakeholders
- • SOC2, HIPAA, or other compliance requirements
- • Dedicated RevOps/SalesOps hire planned
When in doubt, start lean. It's easier to migrate to enterprise tools than to undo the complexity of premature enterprise adoption.
5. Migration Planning
Even if you start lean, plan for eventual migration. The choices you make now will either ease or complicate the transition.
Migration-Friendly Practices:
- • Data Hygiene: Enforce consistent data entry from day one—it's cheaper to fix now
- • Standard Fields: Use industry-standard field names that map easily to any CRM
- • Process Documentation: Document workflows so they can be rebuilt in new tools
- • Integration Flexibility: Choose tools with robust APIs and export capabilities
- • Training Materials: Build training docs that describe process, not just tool clicks
The #1 migration killer is dirty data. A year of sloppy CRM entries creates months of cleanup work during migration.
The Bottom Line
Your Series A RevOps stack should be good enough to enable predictable revenue without becoming a project in itself. Most startups should start lean and migrate when the pain of their current stack exceeds the cost of migration.
Amplify. Automate. Accelerate.
This framework helps you build the right foundation without over-engineering. Focus on process first, tools second—the best stack is the one your team will actually use.
Need Help Building Your RevOps Stack?
Our Fractional RevOps team can help you select, implement, and optimize the right stack for your stage—without the overhead of a full-time hire.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this topic