Breakwater Security: Sales Structure Transformation and Acquisition Strategy for a Cybersecurity Firm

When Breakwater Security Associates, a network security consulting firm, aimed to evolve its sales culture and enhance revenue from consulting services, they partnered with OneAccord to redefine roles, implement structured processes, and prepare the company for acquisition.

The Challenge

Founded in the 1990s, Breakwater Security operated in a rapidly evolving market encompassing internet services, hosting, outsourcing, and security, with a notable shift from product-based to service-based offerings.

The company’s objectives included:
Establishing a significant regional presence
Developing robust revenue streams
Implementing effective business processes
Achieving a strong business valuation for future acquisition

The existing sales team comprised 15-20 direct sales representatives who operated with minimal leadership, structure, or defined metrics, necessitating a comprehensive overhaul to meet these goals.

Our Approach

OneAccord delivered revenue realignment services over a three-year engagement, guiding Breakwater Security through the design and implementation of a comprehensive sales and organizational re-engineering.

Key initiatives included:

Developing a comprehensive revenue generation structure
Clearly defining roles and responsibilities within the sales team
Establishing accountability to results with measurable metrics
Creating tools for measuring critical sales activities
Producing a field-tested manual and internal sales training process
Forming an inside sales team partnered with a direct enterprise-level group
Developing channel partnerships to expand market reach

These efforts aimed to instill a culture of accountability and equip the team with the necessary tools and processes to drive sustainable revenue growth.

The Outcome

The engagement led to significant improvements, including:

A marked increase in critical sales activities such as cold calls, industry relationship building, and targeted account acquisition
Enhanced collaboration through the development of channel partnerships
Implementation of a scalable sales foundation
Achievement of the desired business valuation
Successful strategic acquisition by Perimeter Internetworking

These outcomes not only prepared Breakwater Security for acquisition but also positioned the company for continued success under new ownership.

Why This Case Matters

Breakwater Security’s experience underscores the importance of aligning sales structures with strategic business objectives. By redefining roles, implementing structured processes, and fostering a culture of accountability, companies can enhance their market position and achieve favorable outcomes in acquisition scenarios.