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Account examples · fictional

One question that changes the plan.

Two fictional accounts, side by side: win a new account, or grow an existing customer. Choose where to start.

Choose an example

Both accounts and everyone named in them are fictional.

Win a new account · fictional

A target account, before any relationship.

Brannoch Grocers is a fictional regional grocery chain. Dev, an enterprise AE, has no customer relationship there yet and is still researching the account.

What Dev knows

  • Brannoch has announced it will combine its three store banners under one name next year.
  • A store-operations analyst attended one of his webinars.

What he doesn’t know yet

  • Who owns the consolidation program.
  • What is hard about it, and whether his product helps.
Dev’s first instinct“They’re consolidating, so they’ll need a new platform. I should get a meeting with the CIO.”
WinMinder
Which of those is something you know, and which is something you’re assuming? Who at Brannoch owns the consolidation, and what would make a first conversation worth their time?

What Dev learns

The consolidation is a fact. A need for his product is an assumption. Without knowing who owns the program or what is hard about it, a CIO meeting would be access without relevance. His plan keeps those unknowns visible instead of scoring them, and his first moves are about learning, not pitching.

After a first sessionQ3

Brannoch Grocers

Fictional
Working hypothesis

Combining three banners may make store-operations reporting harder to unify. To be tested, not assumed.

Five pillars
  • Executive Alignment Not yet assessed
  • IT Partnership Not yet assessed
  • Big Deal Strategy Not yet assessed
  • Key Use Cases Defined
  • Account Team Not yet assessed
Next moves
  • Ask the store-operations analyst what the consolidation is changing for her team.
  • Find out who leads the consolidation program.
  • Write a one-paragraph point of view on one use case to test in that conversation.
Open question

Who owns the consolidation program? Unknown.

The transferable principle

Separate what you know from what you assume, and earn the first executive conversation with a relevant point of view rather than a request for a meeting.

It applies in every account. At Calder Freight, Priya had the meeting; at Brannoch, Dev has none. In both, access alone is not evidence of alignment.

Fictional example. Brannoch Grocers and everyone named here are invented.

Grow an existing customer · fictional

Calder Freight: belief, question, insight, commitment.

Priya, an enterprise AE, has a growing deployment in the dispatch team at Calder Freight. One coaching question changes her plan.

  1. 1Belief

    “Executive alignment is in good shape. The CIO liked our roadmap.”

    Priya’s assessment: Engaged
  2. 2Question

    One meeting with the CIO shows access. What evidence tells us the relationship is tied to her priorities, not just our roadmap?

    Asked by WinMinder
  3. 3Insight

    The CIO meeting showed access. There has not yet been meaningful customer engagement around this strategy.

    Evidence supports: Activated
  4. 4Commitment

    With the VP of Operations, confirm the onboarding problem, how Calder tracks onboarding time today, and how to measure it. Then evaluate the dispatch deployment’s contribution and review the results with the VP by quarter end.

    Instead of: ask the CIO to sponsor a rollout

Fictional example. Calder Freight and everyone named here are invented.

Calder Freight · the session

What happened, step by step.

  1. What the seller believes

    Priya, an enterprise AE, has a growing deployment in the dispatch team at Calder Freight. Last month she met Calder’s CIO. Internally, Priya’s regional VP is briefed and has agreed to act as internal executive sponsor, and a solutions engineer is assigned to the dispatch work.

    “Executive alignment is in good shape. The CIO liked our roadmap and asked me to keep her posted. Next step: ask her to sponsor a company-wide standard.”

    Priya’s assessment:Executive Alignment · Engaged

  2. What WinMinder asks

    WinMinder
    One meeting with the CIO shows access. What evidence tells us the relationship is tied to her priorities, not just our roadmap?

    Then, one question at a time: What has she said she’s accountable for this year? Who on her team owns that result? What did she ask you to do next?

  3. What the seller realizes

    Priya knows the CIO’s stated priority: onboard new carriers faster before peak season. Nothing in the account connects to it. The dispatch deployment has never been measured against onboarding time, and the VP of Operations who owns that number has never been in a meeting.

    The CIO meeting showed access. There has not yet been meaningful customer engagement around this strategy.

    WinMinder’s view:ActivatedThe internal side is mobilized: her leadership is briefed, a sponsor is named and a solutions engineer is enlisted. Engaged would need meaningful customer interaction around the strategy, and nothing yet shows the CIO sees this work as part of her agenda. Priya agrees.

  4. How the plan changes

    The company-wide ask waits, and the strategy now leads with the CIO’s goal. This quarter’s commitment follows the discovery sequence: first, with the VP of Operations, confirm the onboarding problem, whether and how Calder tracks onboarding time today, and how to measure it. Then evaluate the dispatch deployment’s contribution, and review the results with the VP by quarter end.

    Priya now has a customer-centered strategy and a concrete way to earn the next executive conversation.

Calder Freight · before and after

The same account plan, before and after the session.

Before the sessionQ3

Calder Freight

Fictional
Strategic thesis

Expand from dispatch to a company-wide standard this year.

Five pillars
  • Executive Alignment Engaged
  • IT Partnership Not yet assessed
  • Big Deal Strategy Defined
  • Key Use Cases Engaged
  • Account Team Not yet assessed
Key stakeholders

CIO: liked our roadmap; asked to be kept posted.

This quarter’s commitment

Ask the CIO to sponsor a company-wide rollout.

Open questions

None listed.

After the sessionQ3

Calder Freight

Fictional
Strategic thesisRevised

Earn a company-wide standard by proving we shorten carrier onboarding, the CIO’s stated priority before peak season.

Five pillars1 revised
  • Executive Alignment Activated
  • IT Partnership Not yet assessed
  • Big Deal Strategy Defined
  • Key Use Cases Engaged
  • Account Team Not yet assessed
Key stakeholdersAdded

CIO. Stated priority: onboard new carriers faster before peak season. There has not yet been meaningful customer engagement around this strategy.
VP of Operations: owns carrier onboarding. Not yet met.
Regional VP (internal): briefed; internal executive sponsor.

This quarter’s commitmentRevised

With the VP of Operations, confirm the onboarding problem, how Calder tracks onboarding time today, and how to measure it. Then evaluate the dispatch deployment’s contribution and review the results with the VP by quarter end.

Open questionAdded

Does Calder track onboarding time today, and how? Unknown. The first question for the VP of Operations.

Fictional example. Calder Freight and everyone named here are invented.

A customer-centered strategy, and a way to earn the next conversation.

Priya now has a strategy built around the CIO’s priority and a concrete path to the next executive conversation: discovery with the VP of Operations, evidence from the dispatch deployment, and a review of the results by quarter end. Next quarter, the coaching picks up from what she learns, so each session builds on the last.

Calder Freight · the working plan

Where the new commitment gets worked.

After the session, the action items live in the working plan, organized by pillar and quarter, alongside the one-page strategy.

Calder Freight · Working planFictional
Fictional example: Calder Freight working plan: strategy action items by pillar and quarter
QuarterStrategy action itemsNotesStatus
Executive AlignmentTie the relationship to the CIO’s stated priority: onboard new carriers faster before peak season.Activated
Q3Brief the regional VP and confirm her as internal executive sponsor; enlist a solutions engineerOwner: PriyaDone. The internal mobilization behind the Activated assessment.Done
Q3Meet the VP of Operations: confirm the onboarding problem, how Calder tracks onboarding time today, and a measurement approachOwner: PriyaFirst step of this quarter’s commitment. The VP owns carrier onboarding. Not yet met.Next
Q3Evaluate the dispatch deployment’s contribution to onboarding timeOwner: PriyaAgainst the baseline and measurement approach agreed with the VP.Planned
Q3Review the results with the VP of Operations by quarter endOwner: PriyaReplaces the sponsorship ask as this quarter’s goal.Planned
Q?Return to the company-wide sponsorship ask with the CIOOwner: PriyaHeld until the onboarding evidence exists.On hold
Big Deal StrategyEarn a company-wide standard by proving we shorten carrier onboarding, the CIO’s stated priority before peak season.Defined
Q?Make the case for a company-wide standardOwner: PriyaBuilt on the dispatch evidence, not the roadmap.On hold
Key Use Case DevelopmentConnect the dispatch deployment to carrier-onboarding time.Engaged
Q3Learn whether and how Calder tracks onboarding time todayOwner: PriyaUnknown. Part of the first VP of Operations conversation.Open question
IT PartnershipNot yet assessed. Kept visible rather than guessed.Not yet assessed
No action items yet.
Account Team CollaborationNot yet assessed. Kept visible rather than guessed.Not yet assessed
No action items yet.

Fictional example. Calder Freight and everyone named here are invented.

Try it on your account

Bring a target or customer account. Leave with a strategy you own.

A first session is estimated at 30–45 minutes. Request access and we’ll follow up by email.

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