https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/Essays on revenue systems, distribution, and commercial architecture.enhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/channel-strategy-isn-t-a-thing.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/channel-strategy-isn-t-a-thing.htmlMon, 13 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000"Channel strategy" isn't a thing. It's three specific decisions: 1. Which partners to select. And what criteria to use to select them. Most companies use gut feel and existing relationships. Both are wrong. 2. How to manage partners after signing. Onboarding, training, QBR cadence, scorecard, comhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/at-omnicell-when-i-introduced-distributor-scorecards-two-of.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/at-omnicell-when-i-introduced-distributor-scorecards-two-of.htmlFri, 10 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000At Omnicell, when I introduced distributor scorecards, two of our partners pushed back immediately. They'd been selling for years without being measured. They saw the scorecard as a threat. I told them it was the opposite. The scorecard was how I'd make the case internally to give them more supporhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/in-any-commoditized-market-distribution-beats-product.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/in-any-commoditized-market-distribution-beats-product.htmlThu, 09 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000In any commoditized market, distribution beats product. Not sometimes. Not usually. Always. Once two products do the same job well enough, the buyer's decision collapses to: who do I trust, who do I know, and how hard is it to switch. None of those are product questions. All of them are distribuhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/most-planning-for-the-new-year-is-a-list-of-things-to-start.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/most-planning-for-the-new-year-is-a-list-of-things-to-start.htmlWed, 08 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000Most planning for the new year is a list of things to start doing. The more useful list is what to stop. Four things B2B operators should stop doing in 2027. Stop measuring content by engagement. Engagement is a vanity number. The metric that matters is whether the right named accounts remember yohttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/revenue-operations-is-the-most-misunderstood-hire-in-b2b.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/revenue-operations-is-the-most-misunderstood-hire-in-b2b.htmlTue, 07 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000Revenue operations is the most misunderstood hire in B2B. Companies bring in a RevOps person too late, give them the wrong mandate, and then wonder why nothing changed. Here's when you actually need one, and what they should own. When to hire. You need RevOps when the commercial system has more mohttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/there-s-an-exercise-i-run-with-operators-that-flushes-out-a.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/there-s-an-exercise-i-run-with-operators-that-flushes-out-a.htmlMon, 06 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000There's an exercise I run with operators that flushes out a lot of wishful thinking. The moat audit. For each thing your business does, ask: would a well-funded competitor with three years and decent talent be able to replicate this? If yes, it's not a moat. It might be valuable. It might be hardhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/three-things-i-think-reshape-b2b-commercial-models-in-2027.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/three-things-i-think-reshape-b2b-commercial-models-in-2027.htmlFri, 03 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000Three things I think reshape B2B commercial models in 2027. Not bold predictions, just where the lines I've been watching seem to point. One. The best reps get more valuable, not less. AI keeps absorbing the bottom third of sales work: research, first-draft outreach, notes, pipeline hygiene. That rhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/every-revenue-growth-problem-in-b2b-is-one-of-three-things.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/every-revenue-growth-problem-in-b2b-is-one-of-three-things.htmlThu, 02 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000Every revenue growth problem in B2B is one of three things. The companies that diagnose which one are quick. The ones that throw more sales activity at every gap are slow. The three levers. 1. Not enough customers. Coverage problem. The fix lives in market expansion, channel buildout, account-basehttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/the-most-underrated-career-move-is-being-early-to-a-thesis-a.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/the-most-underrated-career-move-is-being-early-to-a-thesis-a.htmlWed, 01 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000The most underrated career move is being early to a thesis and saying it out loud before it's obvious. Most people wait until an idea is safe before they attach their name to it. By then it's consensus, and consensus has no value. Everyone already agrees. There's no edge in saying what the room alrhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/tell-someone-your-distributor-is-underperforming-and-nobody.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/tell-someone-your-distributor-is-underperforming-and-nobody.htmlTue, 30 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Tell someone your distributor is underperforming and nobody bats an eye. Tell someone you're replacing them with a better-fit partner and everyone talks about loyalty. The wrong distributor costs you 18 months of market opportunity. Loyalty is not a commercial strategy.https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/15-years-in-commercial-leadership-here-s-what-i-actually-lea.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/15-years-in-commercial-leadership-here-s-what-i-actually-lea.htmlMon, 29 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +000015 years in commercial leadership. Here's what I actually learned. 1. Growth requires structure, not just headcount. 2. Distribution beats product in any commoditized market. 3. The comp plan is your real strategy. 4. Forecast accuracy is an operational maturity metric, not a sales metric. 5. Hero https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/fifteen-years-in-commercial-leadership-taught-me-to-sort-eve.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/fifteen-years-in-commercial-leadership-taught-me-to-sort-eve.htmlFri, 26 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Fifteen years in commercial leadership taught me to sort everything into two piles: what compounds and what doesn't. The things that don't compound feel productive in the moment. A heroic quarter carried by one rep. A discount that closes a deal this week. A burst of activity that spikes the pipelihttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/i-ve-looked-at-a-lot-of-b2b-commercial-operations-over-15-ye.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/i-ve-looked-at-a-lot-of-b2b-commercial-operations-over-15-ye.htmlThu, 25 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000I've looked at a lot of B2B commercial operations over 15 years. Here are the most common gaps and what I actually see: 1. No documented sales process. Every rep runs their own approach. 2. No deal review cadence. Or one that never moves deals. 3. Comp plans that reward activity, not outcomes. https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/before-i-installed-the-qbr-cadence-at-omnicell-the-relations.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/before-i-installed-the-qbr-cadence-at-omnicell-the-relations.htmlWed, 24 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Before I installed the QBR cadence at Omnicell, the relationship between the company and its distributors was transactional. They received orders. They shipped product. They got commission checks. There was no regular conversation about pipeline, about what was at risk, about what support they neehttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/revenue-is-not-cash.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/revenue-is-not-cash.htmlTue, 23 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Revenue is not cash. People mix these up in commercial planning meetings every day, and the confusion explains a lot of what goes wrong in B2B businesses that look successful on paper. Revenue is what you book when you deliver. Cash is what arrives when the customer pays. In B2B with public-sector https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/what-everyone-told-you-about-picking-a-distributor.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/what-everyone-told-you-about-picking-a-distributor.htmlMon, 22 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000What everyone told you about picking a distributor: - Go with the relationship you have - Pick the biggest one in the territory - Trust your gut What nobody told you: - Strategic alignment (does their portfolio complement or compete?) - Commercial capability (real salespeople or order-takers?) - https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/every-commercial-system-you-ve-ever-admired.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/every-commercial-system-you-ve-ever-admired.htmlFri, 19 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Every commercial system you've ever admired. Every distributor network that looked impossible to replicate. Every forecasting process that ran like clockwork. Every sales org where no single person was the bottleneck. All were just decisions someone made and then held to. Nobody who built thesehttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/don-t-know-what-to-focus-on-as-a-b2b-commercial-operator.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/don-t-know-what-to-focus-on-as-a-b2b-commercial-operator.htmlThu, 18 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Don't know what to focus on as a B2B commercial operator? Here are 21 things worth your attention: 1. Document your sales process 2. Build a distributor scorecard 3. Install a weekly deal review cadence 4. Align your comp plan to the right outcomes 5. Track pipeline coverage, not just pipeline sizhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/most-b2b-companies-treat-channel-partners-the-same-way-they.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/most-b2b-companies-treat-channel-partners-the-same-way-they.htmlWed, 17 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Most B2B companies treat channel partners the same way they treated them five years ago. Sign a contract. Send them product information. Expect them to sell. Wonder why they're underperforming. A distributor is not a fulfillment layer. They're a commercial extension of your team. Train them thttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/i-ve-reviewed-a-lot-of-distributor-networks-over-15-years.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/i-ve-reviewed-a-lot-of-distributor-networks-over-15-years.htmlTue, 16 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000I've reviewed a lot of distributor networks over 15 years. Here's what the underperforming ones have in common: 1. Partners selected on existing relationships, not criteria 2. No structured onboarding after signing 3. No QBR cadence. Or one that's a slide deck read out loud 4. Compensation alignedhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/when-i-was-in-consulting-i-gained-20-pounds-working-80-hour.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/when-i-was-in-consulting-i-gained-20-pounds-working-80-hour.htmlMon, 15 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000When I was in consulting, I gained 20 pounds working 80-hour weeks. AI is about to make that a choice, not a requirement. Here is the question almost nobody is answering: if AI makes you 50% more productive, who keeps the 50%? You, or the company? Back then, the whole model was billable hours. Youhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/for-fifteen-years-i-was-in-sales.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/for-fifteen-years-i-was-in-sales.htmlMon, 15 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000For fifteen years, I was in sales. I was good at it. I hit numbers, built pipeline, coached people to close. I thought that meant I understood how a business worked. I didn't. I understood one slice of it. The slice that brought money in. I had almost no idea what happened to that money after the https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/a-simple-test-for-any-b2b-business-would-it-function-if-the.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/a-simple-test-for-any-b2b-business-would-it-function-if-the.htmlFri, 12 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000A simple test for any B2B business: would it function if the founder took six months off? Most wouldn't. Not because the people are weak. Because the system was never built to run without one person at the center. Here's what that system actually needs.https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/linkedin-organic-is-probably-the-most-underpriced-acquisitio.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/linkedin-organic-is-probably-the-most-underpriced-acquisitio.htmlThu, 11 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000LinkedIn organic is probably the most underpriced acquisition channel in B2B right now. I say underpriced because the real cost is time and discipline. Most senior commercial operators won't spend either, consistently, over a long enough horizon. Here's the math. An operator posting twice a week, https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/at-ge-a-senior-manager-told-me-something-i-dismissed-at-the.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/at-ge-a-senior-manager-told-me-something-i-dismissed-at-the.htmlWed, 10 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000At GE, a senior manager told me something I dismissed at the time and use every quarter now: "If you cannot articulate why you would fund this initiative if it were your money, you have not earned the right to ask the company for it." Years later, every proposal I write starts with that question. Hhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/your-product-is-15-better-than-the-competition.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/your-product-is-15-better-than-the-competition.htmlTue, 09 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Your product is 15% better than the competition. Their distribution is 5x deeper than yours. You will lose. Not because the product loses. Because the buyer never sees it. Distribution does not just deliver the product. It decides who the product gets considered against. Most B2B founders find thihttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/the-medical-device-industry-taught-me-something-early-in-my.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/the-medical-device-industry-taught-me-something-early-in-my.htmlMon, 08 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000The medical device industry taught me something early in my consulting years. Two companies. Nearly identical products. One has 18% market share. The other has 7%. It's not the product. It never was. The 18% company spent years building distributor relationships, training surgeons, optimizing OR https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/most-sales-problems-aren-t-sales-problems.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/most-sales-problems-aren-t-sales-problems.htmlSun, 07 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Most sales problems aren't sales problems. They're architecture problems. A B2B revenue engine has four distinct layers. Most companies run all four informally through the same two or three people. That's not a commercial system. That's a hero culture. Here's the framework.https://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/at-omnicell-i-took-over-the-indirect-markets-business.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/at-omnicell-i-took-over-the-indirect-markets-business.htmlThu, 04 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000At Omnicell I took over the indirect markets business. Automated dispensing cabinets sold through a distributor network across territories with no direct sales. Project sales, not subscriptions. Every fiscal year, the number reset to zero. Back to square one. When I walked in, the business was doinhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/years-ago-a-distributor-told-me-they-were-going-to-drop-our.htmlhttps://abdallaelshahhat.com/writing/years-ago-a-distributor-told-me-they-were-going-to-drop-our.htmlWed, 03 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000Years ago, a distributor told me they were going to drop our product line. Margin too thin, training too hard, support too slow. I asked what would change their mind. They named three things, all operational, none discount-related. We fixed two. They stayed. Grew their book with us by 60% over 18