High‑growth tech companies have forgotten how to develop elite sellers. They optimise for pipeline generation and hyper‑specialised roles.
In the early days—think Aaron Ross and the rise of sales specialisation—companies built hyper-specialized machines using people. It was innovative at the time, but decades later, we're still using the same blueprint. This has created a strange division: SDRs book meetings, AEs run demos and “close deals”.
The downstream implication is the creation of an army of people who can only book meetings, reflected in the reality that many SDRs fail to make it to AE themselves. They have minimal exposure to dealmaking since they aren’t in the room when deals are made, complex orgs are navigated, and competitive positioning is tested against real stakeholders. They generate opportunities without learning how those opportunities are actually won.
This path is destined for a disaster. Short term pipeline goals fail to develop commercial leaders. The best sellers are developed by working shoulder‑to‑shoulder with people who've done it before. But in many teams, SDRs sit in a separate pod, away from experienced dealmakers and away from the real action.
At Omnea, we have developed a different path. We don’t hire SDRs. Instead, we have Commercial Associates (CAs). CAs own the territory and build the playbook, go out win the market, and partner directly 1:1 with a senior commercial leader. This approach is the backbone of our company and the foundation of our GTM team. We train highly ambitious people to become outstanding AEs, future CROs, and founders.
"I started my career in investment banking which was miles away from selling. At Omnea, I’ve learned to master sales while working directly with the greatest salespeople in SaaS.”
- Aarin Popat, Former Investment Banker at Rothschild and now Commercial Associate leading the Nordics.
Work directly 1:1 with a senior commercial leader
CAs at Omnea do not just book meetings and hand off. They work across the full deal cycle, shoulder‑to‑shoulder with a senior commercial leader.
They run discovery, make presentations, create and respond to RFPs, navigate complex buying committees, and stay involved until the deal is closed. They see how strategy, product, and commercial terms come together in real deals, not just in training decks.
The model is built on apprenticeship: shadow → lead → own. CAs start by shadowing experienced dealmakers, then take the lead on specific parts of the process, and ultimately own full deals themselves.
The structure itself is nothing new. High performing human-capital driven orgs like Goldman Sachs (Investment Banking), Skadden Arps (Law), McKinsey (Consulting), Eghon Zender (HR), all follow this model. Even small family businesses follow this approach.
Because this happens in tight partnership with leaders who know how to close large deals, the ramp is fast. Our CAs are given responsibility and agency early. Many of them are promoted in under a year and go on to own meaningful revenue and close large deals early in their careers.
"I’ve been able to be the CEO of own my territory, with the autonomy to move quickly and make decisions without constant approval. I built the playbook for a vertical that looked nothing like the rest of the market, created a community from the ground up, and closed my first deals along the way. I did this while working with the most impressive team I’ve ever been part of.”
- Sam Telling, Former Commercial Associate, currently leading a professional services vertical.
Own the territory and build the playbook
There's no central script. Each CA owns a territory end-to-end, learns what works from the front lines, and turns those lessons into a playbook. They act like the CEO of their territory—building the playbook at the edge, where the real learning happens.
Our market is huge, but the path to winning isn’t uniform. Every community has its own buyers, pain points, and buying patterns. In some, the product is already understood; in others, you first have to educate the market on the problem we solve. Some communities are tight-knit; others are fragmented. Some require deep domain understanding; others are more straightforward.
That’s why the CA role matters and we don't want generic sellers. We want experts that our customers will trust—people with relevant stories, experience, and a true market understanding of their customer base.
Win the market
The Commercial Associate role is not an isolated specialist role nor a pure strategy role - it’s a commercial builder role where you’ll directly drive revenue and shape the business. You don’t need a B2B SaaS background, but you do need to be commercially sharp, relentlessly curious, and excited to operate like a founder.
Different channels work in different territories. In some markets, the best way to reach decision-makers is through targeted outbound calls. In others, the real leverage comes from attending third-party events where the right people are already gathering. And in some territories, we need to create our own spaces—roundtables, dinners, or community gatherings—to bring the market together.
Our CAs design the go-to-market approach for their territory and then run the motion day to day. They are responsible for the mix of channels, the narrative, the experiments, and the iterations.
The goal is not to "hit a meetings target" in isolation. The goal is to win the market and build something durable: relationships, reputation, and a repeatable motion that continues to compound.
Our Commercial Associates
We believe in the importance of talent density. That great people grow faster, and do their best work when surrounded by others operating at their level. We’ve kept the bar uncompromisingly high and interviewed more than 10,000 people to hire our first 50 Omneans. And we pair that with an equal commitment to care, craftsmanship, and pride in what we build.
Ben Champion: a repeat venture-backed founder who previously built Fygo, raising $4.5m in funding. He ultimately returned the capital to investors in order to join Omnea. Since joining, Ben has closed two of our largest deals, been rapidly promoted, and opened our US office.
Ollie: is our largest revenue contributor at Omnea and now runs a team of 8.
Dan: closed a 6 figure ARR deal in his first Q as a promoted AE.
Leon: CA promoted to AE to open our US office and now runs all BioTech.
They are commercially sharp operators who want to own markets, design repeatable motions, and grow into leadership quickly.
If this resonates, I urge you to find the right environment. One that invests in development and fosters a collaborative, coaching culture. And if you do it, make sure you can experience the scaling journey and truly feel your impact. And, if you already feel ready to start that journey, please join us at Omnea. We’ve created a Commercial Associate program to do exactly this and are hiring!
