From spreadsheets to scalability: how one global VC firm transformed its CRM operations

Case Studies

From spreadsheets to scalability: how one global VC firm transformed its CRM operations

Narrate this article

1:06

Industry

Architecture

HubSpot Licensing

Marketing Hub Enterprise, Sales Hub Professional

About the business

A globally active venture capital firm who backs the world’s most ambitious founders from day zero

Project Timeline

6–9 months (pilot + phased rollout)

Integrations

Linkedin and Docusign

This globally active venture capital firm backs the world’s most ambitious founders from day zero. Operating across 25+ regions, their mission is to scout, support, and scale startups at speed. But legacy systems, fragmented data, and manual workflows were slowing teams down—and limiting their ability to operate as one global organisation.

The problem

Teams were juggling data across spreadsheets, Greenhouse, and Airtable. Without a unified CRM, lead management was manual and error-prone, handovers were clunky, and visibility was poor. Marketing lacked agility, with campaigns taking weeks to launch.

Problem 1:

Key founder journey data lived across disconnected systems, making it hard to track and report accurately.

Problem 2:

Lead routing and campaign launches relied on manual work, slowing response times and reducing engagement.

Problem 3:

Regional teams had no consistent structure, creating gaps in founder experience and operational reporting.

The solution

Engaging.io rolled out HubSpot Sales Hub Professional and Marketing Hub Enterprise, piloted across three regions before scaling globally. Custom CRM architecture, automation workflows, data migration, and platform integrations created a single, scalable foundation for scouting, sales, and marketing.

The Strategic Plan

The Implementation

Build a Global Framework, Enable Local Flexibility

Automate to Accelerate

Unify Data & Integrations

Empower Regional Teams with Autonomy

The process

Create a replicable rollout model starting with three pilot regions, then expand to 25+.
Standardise pipelines, objects, and processes while allowing regional customisation for market-specific needs.

Build a Global Framework, Enable Local Flexibility

The process

Create a replicable rollout model starting with three pilot regions, then expand to 25+.
Standardise pipelines, objects, and processes while allowing regional customisation for market-specific needs.

Automate to Accelerate

The process

Replace manual lead routing and handovers with automated workflows.
Introduce lead scoring and segmentation so scouting teams could prioritise top-tier founders instantly.
Shorten marketing campaign cycles by building reusable workflows and templates.

Unify Data & Integrations

The process

Consolidate siloed data into HubSpot as a single source of truth.
Integrate critical systems like Greenhouse, LinkedIn tools, and Docusign, ensuring seamless data flow.
Standardise data hygiene rules to maintain quality across 300K+ records.

Empower Regional Teams with Autonomy

The process

Deliver structured training and enablement so local teams could run independently.
Build modular marketing assets—landing pages, nurture flows, subscription types—adaptable to local compliance (e.g., GDPR).
Ensure leadership had real-time visibility into founder journeys, deal stages, and conversion velocity across all regions.

The Implementation

The project began with a phased rollout, starting in Australia, the US, and India. We mapped dual-role structures into HubSpot, creating multi-pipeline setups for different business units. Custom objects replicated Greenhouse ATS data, ensuring founder journeys were fully trackable.

Automation was layered in: round-robin lead routing, lead scoring based on founder archetypes, and workflow triggers for alerts and handovers. Marketing teams gained modular assets—region-specific landing pages, subscription types, and nurture workflows—all compliant with GDPR but flexible for local nuances.

Data was a cornerstone. Over 300,000 records were cleaned, deduplicated, and migrated into HubSpot. Integrations were established with LinkedIn tools, Docusign, and ingestion processes for scraped datasets.

By the end of the rollout, HubSpot became the single source of truth across scouting, sales, and marketing globally.

The impact and results

The results were immediate and enterprise-wide:

Unified CRM Ecosystem: Scouting and marketing teams now operate from a single source of truth.
Faster Campaigns: Nurture campaigns that once took weeks now launch in days, using reusable templates.
Smarter Founder Targeting: Lead scoring and segmentation help identify top-tier founders faster.
Improved Conversion Velocity: Automated workflows reduced friction in lead handovers and follow-ups.
Regional Autonomy: Local teams now operate independently within a global framework.
Consistent Founder Journeys: Founders experience personalised, high-touch interactions regardless of location.

Perhaps the biggest win? Confidence. Teams now have visibility, autonomy, and a CRM that mirrors the way they actually work—laying the foundation for long-term global CRM maturity.