Value Planner | Key Responsibilities and Required Skills

🎯 Role Definition

The Value Planner acts as a strategic advisor to both our sales teams and our prospective customers. Your primary mission is to quantify the economic impact of our solutions, translating complex product features into tangible business outcomes like increased revenue, cost savings, and risk mitigation. By building sophisticated ROI/TCO models and compelling business cases, you will empower C-level executives to make confident investment decisions. This is a highly visible role that directly influences revenue growth and establishes our brand as a true strategic partner, moving conversations from cost to investment.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Business Analyst / Financial Analyst
Management Consultant / Strategy Consultant
Sales Engineer / Solutions Consultant
Pre-Sales or Post-Sales specialist in a related industry

Advancement To:

Senior / Principal Value Planner
Manager / Director of Value Engineering
Director of Sales Strategy & Operations
Enterprise Strategy Lead

Lateral Moves:

Enterprise Account Executive
Senior Product Marketing Manager
Solutions Architect
Customer Success Director

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Engage directly with C-suite executives and key decision-makers at prospective client organizations to conduct in-depth discovery sessions and identify critical business challenges and opportunities.
Develop and deliver highly customized, compelling business cases and ROI/TCO (Return on Investment / Total Cost of Ownership) analyses that quantify the financial impact of our solutions.
Create sophisticated, dynamic financial models in Excel or other platforms to project potential value realization, cost savings, and revenue uplift for clients.
Partner with the enterprise sales team throughout the entire sales cycle, acting as the primary strategic advisor on value articulation and justification.
Translate complex technical features and product capabilities into clear, concise, and persuasive business language that resonates with both financial and operational stakeholders.
Lead executive-level value discovery workshops to uncover and prioritize customer pain points, strategic objectives, and key performance indicators (KPIs).
Author and present formal, board-room-ready reports and presentations that clearly articulate the "why" behind an investment in our platform.
Build and maintain a library of reusable value assets, including industry-specific benchmark data, case studies, value calculators, and financial templates.
Collaborate with Product Marketing to develop and refine our core value proposition and create sales enablement materials that empower the entire GTM organization.
Work closely with Customer Success teams post-sale to track value realization, ensuring the business case developed during the sales cycle is achieved and documented.
Provide expert guidance to account teams on navigating complex procurement processes and overcoming financial objections from CFOs and other economic buyers.
Act as the "voice of the customer" to internal Product and Engineering teams, providing feedback on customer needs and value drivers to influence the product roadmap.
Train and enable sales representatives and solutions consultants on best practices for value-based selling and conducting initial value discovery.
Analyze industry trends, market conditions, and competitive landscapes to provide strategic insights that inform our value positioning.
Develop and manage customer-facing value realization studies to create powerful testimonials and marketing collateral.
Support the creation of commercial proposals by providing data-backed justification for pricing and contract structures.
Standardize the value selling methodology across different segments and regions to ensure a consistent and high-quality customer experience.
Conduct A/B testing on different value messages and business case formats to continuously optimize their effectiveness in accelerating deal cycles.
Identify and document new sources of value within our product suite as it evolves, ensuring our value framework remains current and comprehensive.
Participate in key industry events and executive briefings as a subject matter expert on business value and digital transformation.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis to uncover new value narratives.
Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap by identifying key customer metrics.
Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements for better value tracking.
Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the go-to-market and product teams.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Financial Modeling & Analysis
ROI / TCO Business Case Development
Value-Based Selling Methodologies
Enterprise Software (SaaS) Knowledge
CRM Proficiency (e.g., Salesforce)
Business Intelligence Tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI)
Advanced Microsoft Excel / Google Sheets
Market Research & Competitive Analysis
Business Process Mapping & Optimization
Workshop Facilitation & Discovery Design

Soft Skills

Executive Presence & C-Level Communication
Consultative Mindset & Problem-Solving
Compelling Storytelling & Presentation Skills
Stakeholder Management & Influence
Cross-Functional Collaboration (Sales, Product, Marketing)
Strong Business & Financial Acumen
Analytical & Quantitative Thinking
Active Listening & Probing Questioning
Adaptability & Resilience in dynamic sales cycles
Strategic Thinking & Commercial Awareness

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's Degree

Preferred Education:

Master of Business Administration (MBA) or equivalent advanced degree

Relevant Fields of Study:

Business Administration
Finance
Economics
Information Systems
Engineering

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 5-10 years of relevant experience.

Preferred: Prior experience in a value engineering, business value consulting, management consulting, or strategic pre-sales role, particularly within a B2B SaaS or enterprise technology environment. Direct experience engaging with VP and C-level executives is highly desirable.