WSO2 is an open-source technology company providing API management, integration, and identity solutions to enterprises worldwide. Following an acquisition in 2024 by private equity firm EQT, WSO2 set the objective to grow from $120M to $300M ARR. Jeff Paul, former SVP and Head of Global Sales at WSO2, shares how SOAR is helping build the sales foundation to achieve that goal. 

WSO2 had a clear mandate to scale following acquisition. The company had built $120M in ARR on a product-led, largely inbound motion. That model had served WSO2 well to that point, but Jeff knew reaching $300M required a sales-led motion. Having worked with SOAR previously, Jeff knew we had the expertise required to help WSO2 achieve their goal.

“I really needed to bring somebody in that could really understand where we were from a skill level perspective, understand our offerings, how we sold today,” said Jeff. “And I had worked with SOAR Performance in the past. I knew that they knew how enterprise and B2B sales work. So I knew they kind of knew where we needed to be. But I really wanted them to understand where we were.”

The Challenge

WSO2’s growth target required the organization to make multiple shifts: from inbound to outbound, from product sales to solution and platform selling, and from reactive pipeline management to a proactive, sales-led motion.

Together with Jeff, we were introducing a fundamental shift in the way sellers and managers would do their jobs. Because of this, we knew we needed to invest heavily in upskilling the people on Jeff’s teams, not just in playbooks and models. “I mean, we’re asking them to triple the business. You don’t just do that by working harder. You’ve got to work smarter,” said Jeff.

When Jeff engaged SOAR, WSO2 was heading into the second half of the fiscal year with a lot of pipeline sitting in “best case” and “upside” rather than “commit.” With end of year approaching and sales kickoff six months away, the timing was perfect. Jeff saw the opportunity to workshop real deals, improve conversion rates, clean up pipeline, and start the next year right.

The Solution

SOAR’s engagement with WSO2 unfolded in three iterative phases:

Phase 1: Deal Clinics. Rather than starting with a training program, we started with the real pipeline. Working alongside Jeff’s team over an eight week period, we conducted intensive deal clinics on WSO2’s live opportunities, reviewing every deal through a MEDDPICC lens. We coached the team through shoring up deals in “commit”, then analyzing the “best case” and “upside” pipeline to identify what was real and what needed work. 

The results were immediate: deals were either progressed or cleaned out of the pipeline, giving Jeff’s team a precise understanding of where their deals and sellers stood, as well as giving the SOAR team a precise understanding of what the training program needed to address. “I didn’t want to do it through just interviews,” Jeff explains. “I didn’t want to do it just through role playing on fake scenarios.” Working on real deals made the whole engagement more effective.

Phase 2: Sales Kickoff Bootcamp. Building on everything learned in the deal clinics, we worked with Jeff to design and deliver a full sales kickoff in January. We hosted a dedicated day of manager training followed by a high-energy, two-day bootcamp for WSO2’s global sales team.

During our time with the managers, we introduced them to their new operating system. We laid out a complete management framework: 13-week quarter structure, rolling Q+1 and Q+2 pipeline views, coaching rhythms, and a system for driving predictable outcomes. The goal was to ensure that when the sellers walked out of the bootcamp with new skills, their managers had the infrastructure to reinforce and sustain them.

The two-day seller bootcamp that followed included 100+ sellers from Latin America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. We tracked WSO2’s full sales cycle, from lead qualification through technical and business proof points, with MEDDPICC woven throughout as the connective thread. We defined new sales stages, established exit criteria, and sellers worked through how to apply everything to their actual deals.

We spent two days really practicing how to engage in a sales-led motion. As Jeff put it: “The what and the why was pretty evident. What John and the SOAR team really gave the team was the how. How do they actually do these things? I know I need a champion. How do I get one?”

Phase 3: Reinforcement. What differentiates the SOAR approach is the post-SKO engagement; that’s where the real, lasting value comes. Not only did we create a Manager’s Handbook and a Rep Handbook for WSO2, but we are spending 12 months together post-SKO prioritizing reinforcement sessions to keep the methodology alive in day-to-day selling.

The Results

Four months into the engagement, Jeff said results were already showing up across the business.

The deal clinics moved pipeline immediately. “Commit” deals were shored up and closed, and a meaningful number of opportunities moved from “best case” and “upside” into “commit.” Equally important, deals that weren’t real were cleaned out, giving the team better data and more accurate forecasting to work with. “We cleaned up the pipeline,” Jeff said, “but the yield has gone up from what we do have.”

The management system gave the entire organization a shared operating rhythm for the first time. “Everybody top to bottom knows what we’re doing, why we’re doing it, when we’re doing it. What are we doing week one? Week seven? Week thirteen? Nothing’s a surprise to anybody now,” said Jeff. 

The team’s positive feedback was also significant. In a company that had historically invested its enablement budget in product training, the investment in sales skills development was notable to sellers. “The feedback that’s come from the team very consistently is that this enablement was for them as individuals, as sales professionals. And they really got that and they really appreciated that we’re trying to help them be better,” said Jeff.

What Made This Partnership A Success

When asked what differentiates working with SOAR, Jeff highlighted the experience of our team: “The team brings a lot of experience. This isn’t their first rodeo. Every member of the team is very senior and can earn their spot on the team right away. They’ve got command and control of the situation and their coaching and advice is spot on; delicate, but spot on.”

Jeff’s decision to start with live deal clinics rather than workshops or interviews was a deliberate choice that has paid off throughout the engagement. Because we understood WSO2’s real pipeline, real sellers, and real challenges before a single slide was built, the training that followed was grounded in a way generic programs never are.

Jeff could also point to documented deal progression, scorecards, and outcomes when going back to ask for budget. This is something that’s often missing from sales training investments.

The iterative nature of the relationship was also pivotal. “We didn’t just use the same approach the entire time. We kind of iterated on it and improved the approach.” And the weekly debriefs gave Jeff a trusted perspective on his own organization. “It was almost like some consulting for me on where the team is actually at,” he said.

That’s where the real, lasting value comes when you work with SOAR Performance Group. We provide ongoing hands-on support to all levels of your sales teams.

Thank you, WSO2, for choosing SOAR Performance Group!

Why This Matters

The shift from product-led to sales-led growth is one of the most common and most difficult transitions a scaling software company makes. WSO2’s story shows what that transition can look like when done right: start with real deals, build training from what you learn, equip managers to sustain it, and keep reinforcing. The result is a sales organization that operates with the consistency and discipline the growth target requires.

Ready to build a sales-led growth engine? Contact us for a free 30-minute briefing.