These are very valuable recommendations you have provided here. Having previously been an AE and in various roles in consulting for Synopsys some years back, I know first hand what you are talking about. I’ll comment on a few:

#1. There is nothing worse that you can do than to keep the customer in the dark. I’ve seen too often where AEs or consultants are doing all the right things but the customer has no idea and is left to wonder.

#6. This one can be tricky. I agree that AEs have greater credibility than sales and can often provide valuable influence. However, I have also seen where AEs start to become jr. salespeople and start selling to the customer without involving the sales team. There needs to be clear boundaries.

#10. This also gets quite tricky. Certainly, we’d all agree, and especially for a small EDA starup, that there is no time to be wasted on unqualified customers or tire-kickers. However, very few customers will provide a firm commitment to buy, so there is still much judgment involved. I’ve been involved in “war boards” that make these types of decisions and they work quite well as they bring together all the stakeholders (sales, R&D, CAE).

harry