FY26 The Account Plan Update – The Enterprise Whale
Strategic Growth Review & Forward Look
Prepared by: Matt Slonaker, Client Strategy Lead

November 2025

Dear reader:

This is the largest relationship in my current book — a Top-25 U.S. bank, already north of $10M ARR, and still a top growth engine we have.

We’re up 12% YTD (crushing last year’s 8%), pipeline has nearly doubled since I joined the stakeholder this spring, and we finally have a clean shot at a brand-new EVP in the bank in December. That’s the good. The hard truth: the untouched wallet is still massive, the incumbents are dug in like ticks, and the bank is aggressively building captive capability. If we rest on the relationships we already have, we’re toast.

Where the next $18M lives (realistic, named opportunities)

1. Consumer & Mortgage Lending – ~$5M
2. Payments & Payment Processing – ~$4M (December is make-or-break)
3. Digital Collections & Default Management – ~$3M
4. Contact Center / CX Transformation – ~$6M

Competitive reality
Four vendors own ~$60M+ of spend we can see. Most of it is classic labor-arbitrage or legacy transformation plays. Our entire bet is that “AI-first, outcome-based, captive-alternative” beats traditional BPO every single time. So far the scoreboard agrees.

What keeps me up

• Pricing compression on anything that smells like bodies
• Insourcing / captive threat (they’re standing up new centers again)
• Risk of being pigeon-holed as the “incumbent we already have” instead of the innovation partner they actually need

90-Day War Plan (no fluff)

1. Own the December Payments off-site with the new EVP — one killer idea, one fast proof, one dated next step
2. Land 2–3 new AI-first wins worth $1.5M+ ACV by Feb 28
3. Convert at least one active insourcing initiative into our captive-alternative model
4. Close enough of the current $5.2M pipeline to finish strong and carry real momentum
5. Add three net-new executive relationships who have never heard our story

Long game
Execute the above and this whale exits FY28 north of $75M–$80M with 25%+ CAGR. That’s not hope. That’s math based on whitespace we already have visibility into.

TEN BEST PRACTICES FOR CRACKING NEW RELATIONSHIPS INSIDE A WHALE
(These are the non-negotiables I live by — and the ones I see the best account teams actually do)

1. Hunt three levels above your current champion — every 90 days.
   Your VP sponsor today is tomorrow’s “legacy.” Force yourself to meet the EVP or Chief who just arrived and doesn’t owe anyone anything.
2. Never lead with your logo deck. Ever.
   First contact is a 150-word insight about THEIR P&L, THEIR regulator, or THEIR competitor. If you open with “who we are,” you’ve already lost.
3. Run “reverse demos” inside their four walls.
   Bring a live sandbox, plug it into their test environment, and solve a problem they’re screaming about in 45 minutes. Nothing builds credibility faster.
4. Map the org chart quarterly — and assume 30% of it is wrong the day after you finish.
   Re-orgs are the silent killer of land-and-expand. I keep a running “who’s new, who’s gone, who’s pissed” list and update it religiously.
5. Build a second champion before you need one.
   The day your primary sponsor takes a new role or gets sidelined, you should already have a peer who knows your value cold.
6. Use their language, not yours.
   Stop saying “RPA” or “digital transformation.” Say “how do we shave 18 days off mortgage cycle time so you hit your EPS target?” Speak to the bonus, not the tech.
7. Give away a $50K–$100K pilot like it’s free consulting.
   Best money you’ll ever spend. One quick, measurable win inside a new division turns skeptics into sponsors faster than any RFP ever will.
8. Bring the scary idea they’re afraid to say out loud.
   The new CDO wants to kill half their legacy contact-center vendors but can’t get air cover. Be the one who says it first, backs it with math, and offers to co-own the risk.
9. Co-create the roadmap with them, don’t present it to them.
   Host off-sites where half the ideas come from their team. When they own the vision, budget follows.
10. Celebrate their career wins louder than your own deal wins.
    Send the handwritten note when they get promoted. Fly in for the toast when they close their own big initiative. Loyalty is built in the margins, not the contract.

Do these ten things relentlessly and the whale doesn’t just grow — it starts pulling you into new oceans.

Let’s go hunt.

Matt Slonaker
Client Strategy Lead
Military combat veteran, mortgage banker, founder, and still addicted to big wins

[email protected] | whiskey and war stories always welcome