I don't feel like writing a novel but have a tendency to do so since I think all the minor facts paint the picture but here we go.
I've been at the same company for a solid tenure and have risen through the ranks from SDR to ENT AE. From a "just went public company" back to private in one of the largest PE acquisitions of the pandemic years. I've seen so many phases and worked with so many great people, but the last major shift happened last year in the first RIF to hit sales, and luckily, I found myself a promotion to ENT AE with a piss-off 5% "take it or leave it" raise.
I had to work for someone who I wasn't thrilled to given their bulldog reputation. Forced to leave my mentor's side and start with a new manager. Then the new manager got canned because they pissed everyone off and eventually crossed the wrong person. Then, I went without a dedicated manager(and, more importantly, mentor) for months. I had no success in my NN accounts despite tons of hem-and-haw conversations and meaningless partner meetings, and the customer accounts I was given were honest trash. My one major account was in a legal battle as soon as I got it, the ARR eclipsed all of my other accounts. The other midsize accounts that hadn't been nurtured for 2 years (little to no upside) and i fought to squeeze out what I could. On top of that, I had a significant personal loss that I won't share more of due to fear of doxxing, but I've powered through and still managed to deliver rev for the company.
I finally got a new manager who I can tell is just not my style and has brought maybe 1 good idea to me since starting, and they, of course, don't know shit about the platform or nuances of our processes (pre-sales, legal, deal desk, collateral, tools, etc) as I have accumulated over my tenure. My prior mentor was a wizard both in our product space and everything X company. They were a true partner to my business and I'm still reeling from not having that still, a year later.
So here's the real dilemma: I don't want to leave (or be forced out) because I deeply believe the product and innovations we've made are game-changing. I've seen and felt the excitement of the direction of the product however, the GTM culture has taken a nose dive off Everest down to the Mariana Trench. CRO is clearly in panic mode, having delivered 3+ years of lackluster results against our targets and probably the target of being replaced, with this being a stain on their career as a C-level leader, and that panic is being equitably (LOL) spread across literally everyone. I've held on this long, and feel like if I can just outlast the next RIF (PIPs were handed out but I didn't get one, still "received" the message though), there will be a new dawn (see SaaS hangover from 2022-2024) to enjoy fruits of surviving economic austerity and continuing to apply and grow my knowledge in the space.
TLDR - another burnout story, this wasn't even close to a novel by my standards ;)
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