Rethinking Sales Roles: AE Versus SE

The landscape of go-to-market in the B2B SaaS world is shifting rapidly, but thankfully we’ve got just the person to help you get ahead and innovate.

James Kaikis is the Founder of GTMshift, Co-Founder of SolutionExec, Co-Founder of AI Sales Studio, and Host of The GTMshift Interview Series. James joins Matt Amundson and Craig Rosenberg to unpack the evolving role of sales reps, how to use the GTM Innovator’s Framework to stay up on AI advances, and why B2B SaaS companies must refocus their GTM motions on their customers.

Plus, James shares his top spots to eat in Chicago.

Also, Craig calls Matt a technical buyer, Matt rates Craig’s follicular health, and Producer Sam forgets how math works. 

Critical Takeaways

• Technical buyers have done extensive research before ever talking to you and know their problems better than you do. Stop running rigid qualification frameworks like BANT or MEDDIC that waste their time asking questions they've already answered internally. Instead, get straight to demonstrating how your solution solves their specific problem with their actual data, positioning yourself as a consultant helping them buy rather than a salesperson trying to extract information.
• Sales reps must be able to demonstrate the product themselves for lower-complexity solutions, especially when selling to other sales or marketing professionals. If you're selling sales technology but can't give a demo because "that's what SEs do," you've already lost credibility with your buyer. Invest time learning your product deeply enough to have hands-on conversations, or accept that AI-proficient competitors will replace you.
• Shift your focus from new logos to customer expansion. B2B SaaS companies are now generating more net new revenue from existing customers than new logo acquisition for the first time. Every customer you close should have a clear expansion roadmap within the first 90 days, with multiple upsell opportunities identified before implementation completes.
• Vertical SaaS represents one of the few remaining competitive moats as horizontal solutions get commoditized overnight by AI. Sales reps must develop deep expertise in specific industries—understanding regulatory requirements, workflow nuances, and sector-specific language that generic reps cannot replicate. For example, if you're selling into pharmaceutical, financial services, or manufacturing, you need to speak their language authentically or technical buyers will immediately dismiss you as lacking credibility.
• The traditional AE role that handled prospecting, discovery, demoing, forecasting, product knowledge, and closing is fundamentally broken because it asks too much of one person. Your role must narrow to being a customer-centric problem solver who builds trust and delivers value, while AI handles pipeline generation and SEs handle technical depth. Sales professionals who cannot adapt to this narrower, more specialized role will be replaced by solutions engineers who understand the product deeply and can build trust through hands-on demonstrations rather than sales techniques.

Chapters
00:00 - Episode Preview
00:50 - Checking in on Craig’s Follicular Growth, Grooming & Glasses
03:12 - Introducing James Kaikis, Founder of GTMshift
09:06 - The Life-changing Impact AI Innovation Had on James
23:17 - B2B SaaS has Forgotten about the Customer & Their Experience
31:18 -  The Changing Role of Sales Reps & Why Your Next Account Exec Should be a Solutions Engineer
41:02 - How the Next Generation of Sales Reps will be Trained & Interact with AI
50:11 - The Opportunity for Experiential Selling that AI Makes Feasible
59:04 - Quick Review of the Chicago Cuisine Scene

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Epic Quotes

• “We have lost sight in B2B SaaS of who matters.” - James Kaikis
• “Trust and value are the ultimate currency and this next wave of B2B SaaS.” - James Kaikis

Connect with James

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameskaikis/ 
• GTMShift Website: https://gtmshift.com/ 
• AI Sales Studio Website: 
• SolutionExec Website: https://solutionexec.com/ 
• The GTM Shift Interview Series: https://gtmshift.com/the-gtmshift 
• Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jkaikis 

Shoutouts

• Doug Landis: https://www.linkedin.com/in/douglandis/ 
• Doug’s Episode: https://open.substack.com/pub/thetransaction/p/overcoming-outbound-challenges-with 
• Antonio Garcia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antonio-garcia-18b912220/ 
• Mark Gustaferro: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-gustaferro-3894aa1a5/ 
• David Boskovic: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dboskovic/ 
• David’s Episode: https://thetransaction.substack.com/p/building-an-ai-first-go-to-market 
• MIT Study on AI Adoption: https://mitsloan.mit.edu/ideas-made-to-matter/productivity-paradox-ai-adoption-manufacturing-firms 
• Craig’s Episode on GTM Shift: https://gtmshift.com/the-gtmshift/everything-s-back-on-the-table-why-ai-is-revolutionizing-gtm-with-craig-rosenberg 
• Jeff Margolese’s Episode on GTM Shift: https://gtmshift.com/the-gtmshift/the-solution-exec-guide-to-navigating-the-great-ai-shift-with-jeff-margolese 
• Dave Brock: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davebrock/ 
• Dave’s Episode: https://open.substack.com/pub/thetransaction/p/really-knowing-your-customer-with?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web 
• Trivoli Tavern: https://www.trivolitavern.com/trivoli 

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