From Workshop to Direction: Presales as the Compass, Not the Map

All presales professionals know this moment. You receive an email that says: “We’ve already decided on the architecture, we just need you to implement it.”

At first glance, this seems like a victory. The scope seems clear, the deal seems close, and the customer seems confident. You step in, ready to refine, validate, and execute. But halfway through the project, something changes…You realize that you are no longer guiding the process; you are simply following someone else’s roadmap. The decisions have already been made: the vendor, the platform, even the deployment model. You are there to adapt, not to shape.

And that’s when the discomfort starts to set in. You see inefficiencies (overlapping licenses, hardware overcommitments, security gaps), but the window of influence is already closed. You have to find solutions within the confines of a framework you didn’t define. In every pre-sales assignment, there is an invisible line that defines your true role.

On one side is the technician, the professional who reacts quickly, digs deep into problems, and solves them with precision. He is respected, even admired, but always downstream from the decision.

Follow the line — when you’re locked up!

And when that happens, when we wait for instructions, the risks quietly multiply.

The solution becomes hostage to decisions over which we have no influence.
Imagine you are involved in transforming a workspace after the equipment has been purchased, the licenses acquired, and the infrastructure predefined. You realize that the design could have been simpler, more secure, and much more scalable, but the choices have already been made. You can only optimize the details. It’s like being asked to paint a masterpiece on a paper napkin.

Price and features dominate the conversation, not value or strategy.
Once the customer has defined the “what,” the conversation shifts from “what result do we want?” to “how much does it cost?”. Suddenly, every differentiator (security, user experience, ease of management) becomes a box to check against a competitor. The transaction turns into a spreadsheet battle rather than a strategic discussion. And it’s a battle that no one wins.

Our technical expertise becomes a commodity, rather than a differentiating factor.
When customers see you solely as the person who configures and validates, your influence ends where the call for tenders begins. They will thank you for your demonstration, appreciate your precision, and then compare your work to that of another supplier’s “engineer.” The pre-sales profession becomes invisible. You are no longer the voice of insight; you are the delivery function.

The customer, feeling the pressure of their own choices, places that stress on us.
When the design they chose doesn’t deliver the expected results, their first instinct is to turn to the person responsible for implementation. You. You suddenly find yourself defending limits you never agreed to. What started as a “simple request” turns into a rescue mission, and everyone feels the tension.

Being the trusted advisor

On the other side is the trusted advisor, the one who is called in before the decision is made. They are not there to validate the architecture, but to help define why that architecture exists in the first place. Trusted advisors don’t start with product presentations, but with whiteboards. They draw, listen, and question. They map user journeys, business dependencies, and the invisible friction between IT goals and end-user reality.

Their role is not to impose a solution, but to bring clarity.

They are the ones who ask the questions that silence the room for a moment:

• “Does this really solve your business challenge?”
• “What will happen if your workforce model changes next year?”
• “Would there be an easier way to achieve the same result?”

These questions open the door to reflection, and that’s where transformation begins. Pre-sales consulting is not about multiplying slides or demonstrations, but about deepening discovery.

• It’s about organizing brainstorming workshops with business leaders to define what “project success” really means.
• It’s about organizing whiteboard sessions with IT architects to uncover integration weaknesses before they become deployment roadblocks.
• It’s about facilitating tactical discussions that turn assumptions into measurable objectives: security posture, profitability, user experience, sustainability.

This approach redefines the customer relationship. Instead of being “the one who knows the technology”, you become “the one who helps us see the big picture”.

You create harmony between IT, security, and the business. You guide the prioritization of what to develop and what not to develop. And you influence timing, helping customers act when readiness meets opportunity, not when urgency forces action. Too often, we start on the wrong side of this line, not because we lack insight or empathy, but because the system rewards responses rather than understanding.

We have been trained to show our value through precision: configurations, integrations, demonstrations that “just work.” But true value often lies in the moments before any configuration, when we question assumptions, simplify the journey, and anchor decisions in purpose, not habit.

Because when we don’t, the risks quietly multiply. The architecture solidifies before the cost-benefit analysis. The conversation boils down to features and price. And the customer’s vision becomes something we execute, not something we improve.

But when we show curiosity, the dynamic reverses. We are no longer followers of a predefined path; we become co-authors of the roadmap. And that’s when presales shifts from a technical role to a strategic force.

The real question

At the end of every assignment, it all comes down to a simple choice.

• Do you prefer to follow the guidelines, step in once the roadmap has been established, and solve problems defined by others?
• Or do you want to build the road, help define the direction before it is mapped out, and guide clients toward results that really matter?

Getting caught up in endless technical debates may seem useful: specifications, benchmarks, architecture diagrams. But the real value often lies beyond that line. It lies in the space where we challenge assumptions, question decisions made too early, and give clients the confidence to rethink their approach.

Because sometimes clients need to be challenged too. Not out of ego, but out of concern for their well-being. Because we are genuinely committed to their success. They don’t always see the long-term risks, the hidden complexity, or the best path forward that lies just beyond their current framework.

That’s where presales comes into its own: by holding up a mirror to them before they start building their wall.

“Pre-selling isn’t just about proving what works. It’s about defining why it should work.“

The next time you’re in that meeting, marker in hand, ask yourself this question: Are you there to follow the line or to build the road?