In this episode of the CRO Spotlight, Warren Zenna welcomes Mike Genstil, CEO at ValueCore, to discuss a critical inefficiency in modern sales: the "value gap." Mike explains that too often, sellers rush to provide a price quote while buyers remain fixated on features, rather than starting the conversation by aligning on the specific problems the organization faces and what those problems are costing them.

Warren and Mike explore why "value engineering" isn't commonplace. Mike contrasts the role with the ubiquitous Sales Engineer. While organizations readily invest in Sales Engineers for technical validation, the Value Engineer—who handles the business validation—is often scarce and stretched thin. Mike argues this function is critical for justifying high-ticket solutions to a buying committee and proving impact beyond just features.

The conversation shifts to the process of value engineering, which Mike describes as the most effective form of sales discovery. He outlines the four key buckets that Value Engineers analyze to build a business case that resonates with a CFO: hard cost savings, team productivity gains, revenue acceleration (such as customer acquisition or retention), and strategic risk mitigation. This diligence helps the buyer champion the solution internally.

Finally, Mike discusses how technology platforms are making value engineering more scalable and integrated. He explains how AI can rapidly analyze public data, case studies, and even call recordings to build robust models. This technology allows pre-sales and post-sales teams to collaborate on value. They also cover how a strong value framework is essential for managing Proof of Concepts (POCs), preventing "tire-kickers" by agreeing on success metrics upfront.