How to build RevOps without hiring a RevOps team

Why you don't need to hire RevOps (yet)

Here's the uncomfortable truth that most consultants won't tell you: If you're under £15M ARR with fewer than 30 revenue-generating employees, hiring a dedicated RevOps person is probably premature.

Not because revenue operations isn't important. But because what's broken isn't the lack of a person—it's the lack of a system that scales.

The premature hire trap

Most B2B founders hit a breaking point where RevOps feels like the answer:

• Leads are slipping through cracks
• CRM is a mess
• Your AE is manually working 40 leads
• Dashboards aren't telling you anything useful
• Marketing and sales blame each other for poor results

The knee-jerk reaction? Hire a RevOps person to fix it.

But here's what actually happens: You hire someone with "RevOps" in their title. They inherit chaos—dirty data, disconnected tools, undefined processes. They spend six months trying to clean up the mess while also being pulled into firefighting (why did this lead not route? Why is the report wrong? Can you fix this integration?).

The result? You've added headcount without solving the root problem. You've institutionalised chaos with a higher salary line.

What you actually need first

Before hiring RevOps, you need leverage—systems and automation that create a foundation strong enough to scale.

According to research from Leadle, automation can buy you 6-18 months of scale before RevOps needs to step in. That's not avoiding RevOps; it's building the infrastructure that makes a future RevOps hire actually effective.

Think of it like hiring a head chef. You wouldn't hire a Michelin-star chef to work in a kitchen without basic equipment, ingredients, or recipes. First, you build the kitchen. Then you hire the chef to optimise it.

The case for building first, hiring later

Companies that implement RevOps infrastructure before hiring a dedicated person see:

• Better ROI: Your eventual RevOps hire inherits clean systems instead of spending months on cleanup
• Faster time-to-value: They can optimise and scale from day one rather than building from scratch
• Clearer hiring criteria: You know exactly what skills you need based on what's working and what's missing
• Higher retention: RevOps professionals want to optimise systems, not become glorified CRM admins

As one founder put it: "We spent £80K on a RevOps hire who spent their entire first year just getting our data clean. We should have spent £15K on a consultant to build the foundation, then hired the RevOps person to scale it."

The RevOps committee approach

If you can't hire a dedicated RevOps person yet, form a RevOps committee—a cross-functional group that implements RevOps principles using existing resources.

How the committee works

Structure: 3-5 people meeting weekly for 60-90 minutes

Members:

• Marketing operations person (or most analytical marketer)
• Sales operations person (or most process-oriented AE)
• Customer success manager (preferably someone who tracks metrics)
• Finance/ops person (optional but valuable for forecasting and reporting)

Meeting cadence:

• Weekly tactical: 30 minutes to address urgent issues (data problems, routing failures, integration breaks)
• Biweekly strategic: 90 minutes to implement improvements, review metrics, plan initiatives

The committee charter

Document what the committee owns:

Process alignment:

• Lifecycle stage definitions (MQL, SQL, Opportunity, Customer)
• Lead routing rules and SLA enforcement
• Handoff protocols between teams
• Exception handling (what to do when things break)

Data governance:

• Required fields and validation rules
• Deduplication standards
• Data enrichment workflows
• Quality audits and cleanup schedules

Technology management:

• Integration maintenance
• Tool evaluation and procurement
• Access management and training
• Dashboard creation and reporting

Metrics and forecasting:

• Weekly pipeline reviews
• Monthly performance reports
• Quarterly business reviews
• Forecast methodology and accuracy tracking

The committee approach works brilliantly for 12-18 months, buying you time to scale revenue before hiring a dedicated RevOps leader. But eventually, complexity outgrows the committee model.

Essential automations that replace headcount

These automations deliver 70-80% of what a junior RevOps person would do:

1. Lead scoring and prioritisation

What it automates: Manually evaluating which leads deserve attention first

How to implement: Use your CRM's native scoring (HubSpot, Salesforce both have this):

Fit criteria (who they are):

• Company size matches ICP: +20 points
• Industry match: +15 points
• Job title (decision-maker): +15 points
• Geographic match: +10 points

Interest criteria (what they've done):

• Visited pricing page: +15 points
• Downloaded case study: +10 points
• Attended webinar: +10 points
• Opened 3+ emails: +5 points

Threshold: 50+ points = MQL

Time saved: 10-15 hours/week of manual qualification

2. Meeting scheduling automation

What it automates: Back-and-forth email scheduling

Tools: Calendly, HubSpot Meetings, Chili Piper

Implementation:

• Embed booking links in email signatures
• Add to website CTAs
• Include in email sequences
• Route to correct rep based on territory

Time saved: 5-10 hours/week per sales rep

3. Email sequences and nurture

What it automates: Manual follow-up and nurture touchpoints

Implementation:

For MQLs not ready to talk:

• 6-email sequence over 30 days
• Educational content (case studies, guides)
• Automated re-engagement based on activity

For no-show meetings:

• Automatic reschedule link sent
• 3-touch follow-up sequence
• Eventually mark as "not interested"

For closed-lost opportunities:

• 90-day re-engagement sequence
• Quarterly check-ins
• New feature announcements

Time saved: 15-20 hours/week across marketing and sales

4. Data enrichment automation

What it automates: Manual research and data entry

Tools:

• Clearbit (auto-enrichment in CRM)
• Clay (bulk enrichment workflows)
• LinkedIn Sales Navigator (manual but structured)

Implementation:

• Auto-enrich on contact creation
• Batch enrich existing database monthly
• Fill missing fields automatically

Time saved: 10-12 hours/week of research time

5. Reporting and alerts

What it automates: Manual report generation and issue detection

Implementation:

Weekly automated reports:

• Pipeline changes (what moved, what stalled)
• Forecast vs actual tracking
• Activity metrics by rep
• Marketing performance summary

Real-time alerts:

• High-value lead converts → Slack alert
• Deal stuck >30 days → Notify manager
• Health score drops → Escalate to CS
• Forecast commit changes → Alert leadership

Time saved: 8-10 hours/week of report building

Tools that do the heavy lifting

You don't need 15 specialised tools. You need a lean, integrated stack:

The essential three-tool RevOps stack

1. CRM platform (choose one):

HubSpot (recommended for £1-30M ARR):

• All-in-one: CRM + marketing automation + sales tools
• Easy to implement and maintain
• Native integrations reduce complexity
• Cost: £800-2,000/month for scale-ups

Salesforce (for £30M+ ARR or complex needs):

• More customisable but requires admin expertise
• Larger ecosystem of integrations
• Higher cost and complexity
• Cost: £2,500-8,000/month

2. Data enrichment (choose one):

Clearbit (best for automatic enrichment):

• Auto-enriches contacts on creation
• Reveals website visitors
• Integrates with HubSpot/Salesforce
• Cost: £800-2,000/month

Clay (best for bulk operations):

• 100+ data sources in one place
• AI-powered workflows
• Great for list building
• Cost: £500-1,500/month

3. Communication automation (choose one):

Slack + native CRM notifications:

• Free for basic use
• Real-time alerts
• Channel-based organisation

Zapier or Make (for complex workflows):

• Connects tools that don't natively integrate
• Automates multi-step processes
• Cost: £300-800/month

Total cost: £2,000-5,000/month

Compare this to hiring a RevOps person: £60K-80K salary + £15K-20K benefits = £75K-100K annually (£6,250-8,300/month).

The tool stack costs 25-60% of a full-time hire and delivers 70-80% of the value.

The bottom line: Build before you hire

Revenue operations isn't a person—it's infrastructure. And you can build 70-80% of that infrastructure using existing resources, smart automation, and a lean tool stack.

The 90-day roadmap works:

• Month 1: Clean data, prevent future mess, establish baseline
• Month 2: Align processes, automate routing, build handoffs
• Month 3: Create dashboards, implement forecasting, launch continuous improvement

You'll spend £2,000-5,000/month on tools instead of £75-100K/year on salary. You'll build systems that scale. And when you're ready to hire your first RevOps person, they'll inherit strong infrastructure instead of chaos.

By then, you'll know exactly what you need from that hire. And they'll deliver value from week one instead of spending months on cleanup.