Steffen Baermann
    DEEN

    Consulting

    Strategic consulting for sales, CRM and AI.

    Some companies come because something is wrong. Others because something fundamentally needs to change. Both call for the outside view — but they are two different tasks.

    Situation 1 — Intervention

    When sales isn't working.

    How to recognise it

    • Forecasts are repeatedly revised.
    • Pipeline and closed deals don't add up.
    • Quotas are missed.
    • Sales costs are rising faster than revenue.
    • CRM data doesn't reflect reality.
    • Customers are unexpectedly lost.
    • Deals die without a clear explanation.
    • Management doesn't get reliable information.

    The process

    1. Investigation.

      Data. Conversations. Observation. Depending on the problem, with the CEO, CSO, leaders, account managers, inside sales, finance — and, where relevant, with customers. The guiding principle: follow the trail. Not the stories.

    2. Diagnosis.

      A conversation, not a presentation battle. The diagnosis answers four questions: What is actually the problem? What mechanics are behind it? What causes it? Where is the biggest lever?

    3. Intervention.

      A maximum of three material initiatives. Not twenty measures. Not another large-scale project. The hard part is leaving things out. On request, I accompany implementation — not as a project manager, but as a corrective against relapse.

    Situation 2 — Transformation

    When sales needs to work differently.

    A sales system can work today and still not be built for tomorrow's reality. Customers buy differently. AI is changing research and decisions. Roles are shifting between inside sales and field sales. Growth demands different structures. Transformation therefore looks not at individual tools, but at the change of the system — across three areas of expertise.

    Sales Management

    Sales is an engine. Not a squad of salespeople.

    Strategy, organisation, roles, coverage, hunting and farming, pipeline, forecast, KPIs, incentives, customer journey, sales enablement — and the interplay of sales, marketing and service. The central question: is our sales system still built for the market we sell into today?

    CRM

    CRM is not an IT project.

    I am not the technical implementation partner for Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics or HubSpot. My question is a different one: how must CRM be designed, led and used so it actually helps sales? It's about processes, standards, data, accountabilities, adoption and leadership. Because as long as CRM primarily delivers control, it will never realise its value.

    AI in Sales

    Before AI changes the salesperson, AI changes the customer.

    Customer AI

    How is AI changing research, vendor evaluation, shortlists and decisions within the buying centre? This is where every serious AI strategy in sales begins.

    Sales AI

    Where does AI genuinely help sales — in research, preparation, lead qualification, proposals, forecasting and administration? And where is it just a toy?

    Sales Model

    What do both together mean for roles, organisation, leadership, skills and productivity? That's the real question — and it has no glib answer.

    Talk confidentially