| name | icp-team-leads |
| description | Find and connect with team leads/VPs running observability/ELK stacks at ICP companies. Use when: (1) Researching decision-makers at a company that passed ICP company research, (2) Finding VP/Director/Team Lead contacts (VP Platform, Director SRE, Infrastructure Lead), (3) Verifying someone's role includes observability/platform, (4) Connecting with buyers who have budget authority, (5) Discovering new ICP companies through team lead profiles. Workflow: Company from CRM → DuckDuckGo → PinchTab → LinkedIn MCP (verify + connect) → Add to team_leads CRM. Flipped discovery: If team lead runs platform/observability but company isn't in CRM → add company as 'Discovered'. This skill DOES connect on LinkedIn. |
ICP Team Leads Skill
Find and connect with team leads/VPs who run observability/ELK stacks at ICP companies. These are your buyers—they have budget authority and feel the pain directly.
Who You're Looking For
Target Titles:
- VP of Platform / VP of Infrastructure
- Director of SRE / Director of Platform / Director of Infrastructure
- Platform Team Lead / Observability Team Lead
- Engineering Manager (Platform/Observability)
- Head of Infrastructure
Key Signals (Look for ANY ofThese):
Primary (Decision-Maker Signals):
- Title indicates platform/infrastructure/SRE leadership
- Manages team responsible for observability
- Budget authority (hiring, toolingdecisions)
Bonus (Stronger Match):
- Experience mentions: ELK, Elasticsearch, observability platform
- Skills: Elasticsearch, monitoring, logging, observability
- Bio: Platform infrastructure, uptime, reliability
Why These People:
- They have budget authority (headcount budget, not tooling budget)
- They feel the pain directly (team can't deliver fast enough)
- They're understaffed but can't hire quickly
- ELK/observability is mission-critical to their success
Note: Team leads may not have "ELK" explicitly in their profile—they manage the team, not necessarily hands-on with the stack. Look for: observability, platform, infrastructure, SRE, reliability, uptime.
Prerequisites
Before using this skill:
- Company must pass ICP company research (use
icp-company-research skill first)
- Company should be in the
companies CRM with Status = "Target" or "Hot"
- Have company name ready for research
Flipped Discovery: Finding Companies Through People
While researching people, you may discover potential ICP companies.
When analyzing a team lead's profile, if their role/company suggests an ICP fit:
ICP Company Signals from Team Leads:
- Title: VP Platform/Infrastructure at a small-medium company (50-500 employees)
- Experience: "Platform team manages ELK/observability", "On-prem infrastructure"
- Company type: MSSP, SOC-as-a-service, SIEM provider, security monitoring
- Business model: Observability/monitoring IS their product (like OmniSock SOC)
- Team context: Small team, understaffed, critical infrastructure
- Bio: Mentions uptime, reliability, on-call, incident response
Action: Add the company to CRM withStatus = "Discovered" for later investigation:
- Company Name
- Source: "Team lead discovery - [person's LinkedIn]"
- Why discovered: What signals made them interesting
- Next step: Run
icp-company-research skill to validate
This flips the discovery flow:
- Normal: Company → Research company → Research people
- Flipped: Research people → Discover company → Research company
Both are valid paths to finding ICP companies.
Research Workflow
Step 1: Get Company from CRM
Query the companies CRM to find the company you're researching:
SELECT * FROM v_companies WHERE Status IN ('Target', 'Hot')
Note the company name and any LinkedIn URL.
Step 2: DuckDuckGo Search
Find potential team leads at the company:
Search queries:
"[Company Name]" "VP Platform" LinkedIn
"[Company Name]" "Director SRE" LinkedIn
"[Company Name]" "Platform Team Lead" LinkedIn
"[Company Name]" "observability" "engineering manager" LinkedIn
"[Company Name]" "infrastructure" "director" LinkedIn
Extract from results:
- Person name
- Title
- LinkedIn profile URL
- Company name
Step 3: PinchTab (If Needed)
Use PinchTab when:
- DuckDuckGo results are thin
- Need to browse company team/leadership page
- Need to find LinkedIn profiles from company website
PinchTab workflow:
1. pinchtab_navigate({ url: "company-website.com/team" })
2. pinchtab_wait_for_load({ load: "networkidle" })
3. pinchtab_get_text() - Look for leadership/team page
4. Find names and titles of platform/infrastructure leaders
Step 4: LinkedIn MCP (Primary Research)
This is the main tool for team lead research.
4A: Search for People at Company
mcp action=call server=linkedin-mcp tool=search_people params={
keywords: "VP Platform Director SRE Team Lead infrastructure observability",
company: "[Company Name]"
}
Filter for:
- Titles matching target list (VP, Director, Lead, Manager)
- Current role (not past employees)
- Location (optional)
4B: Get Person Profile
For each candidate, get full profile:
mcp action=call server=linkedin-mcp tool=get_person_profile params={
public_identifier: "[LinkedIn ID or URL]"
}
Analyze for relevance:
- Title: VP/Director/Lead/Manager of Platform/SRE/Infrastructure ✅
- Experience: Platform, observability, infrastructure, reliability ✅ (ELK = bonus)
- Skills: Monitoring, observability, reliability ✅ (ELK = bonus)
- Bio: Platform infrastructure, uptime, reliability ✅
4C: Verify Right Person
Strong Match (Connect Immediately):
- Title: VP of Platform, Director of SRE, Platform Team Lead
- Experience: Platform, observability, infrastructure (ELK mentioned = bonus)
- Skills: Monitoring, observability, reliability (ELK = bonus)
- Company: Verified ICP
Good Match (Add and Connect):
- Title matches target list
- Experience mentions platform/infrastructure
- Company is ICP
Research Needed (Add for Follow-up):
- Title indicates leadership but unclear scope
- Need to verify they manage observability/team
Not a Match (Skip):
- Title doesn't indicate platform/infrastructure leadership
- No relevant experience
- Left company or role changed
Step 5: Check for Company Discovery
While researching a team lead, check if their COMPANY might be ICP-worthy.
If the person has leadership role in platform/observability but the company isn't in the CRM yet:
Add to companies CRM if:
- Person is VP/Director/Lead of Platform/SRE/Infrastructure AND
- Company appears to be small-medium (50-500 employees) AND
- Company type suggests observability is mission-critical (MSSP, SOC, SIEM, observability platform)
Company Discovery Signals:
- Platform/observability team mentioned → core infrastructure
- Company in security/monitoring space → observability IS the product
- Small team context in bio → understaffed, needs leverage
- Uptime/reliability focus → critical infrastructure
Add discovered company to CRM:
INSERT INTO companies (Name, Status, Source, Notes)
VALUES ('[Company Name]', 'Discovered', 'Team lead: [Person LinkedIn]', '[Why they look like ICP]')
Then run icp-company-research skill to validate.
Step 6: Connect on LinkedIn
Connect with Strong and Good Matches.
mcp action=call server=linkedin-mcp tool=send_invitation params={
profile_id: "[LinkedIn ID]",
message: "" // Blank connection request (no message)
}
Connection Rules:
- Send blank connection requests (no note)
- Connect with Strong and Good Matches
- If connection fails or uncertain, add to CRM with Status = "Not Connected"
Step 7: Add Team Lead to CRM
Add to team_leads object with all research:
Required Fields:
- Name
- Title
- Company
- LinkedIn URL
- Status: Connected / Pending / Not Connected
- Match Quality: Strong / Good / Weak
- Platform Relevance: Yes / No / Maybe
- Notes: What makes them a good fit
Example entry:
Name: Thomas Mark
Title: Director Platform Engineering
Company: Foresite Cybersecurity
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/thomasemark
Status: Connected
Match Quality: StrongPlatform Relevance: Yes - Runs platform team for MSSP
Notes: Perfect ICP. Director of platform at MSSP, observability is core business.
Match Scoring
Strong Match (Connect Immediately)
Action: Connect on LinkedIn + Add to CRM (Status: Connected)
Good Match (Connect)
Action: Connect on LinkedIn + Add to CRM (Status: Connected)
Weak Match (Add for Tracking)
Action: Add to CRM (Status: Not Connected, Match Quality: Weak)
Follow-up: Research deeper or look for better contact.
Not a Match (Skip)
Action: Skip, don't add to CRM.
CRM Object: team_leads
Fields:
| Field | Type | Description |
|---|
| Name | Short Text | Person's full name |
| Title | Short Text | Current job title |
| Company | Link | Link to companies object |
| LinkedIn URL | URL | LinkedIn profile |
| Status | Select | Not Connected / Pending / Connected / Rejected |
| Match Quality | Select | Strong / Good / Weak |
| Platform Relevance | Select | Yes / No / Maybe |
| Experience Notes | Long Text | Relevant experience excerpt |
| Skills | Multi-Select | Platform, observability, infrastructure, etc. |
| Notes | Long Text | Research notes, why they're a fit |
LinkedIn MCP Tools Reference
| Tool | Purpose | When to Use |
|---|
search_people | Find people by keywords/company | Initial search for candidates |
get_person_profile | Full profile details | Verify role, experience |
send_invitation | Connect on LinkedIn | Strong/Good matches, blank message |
get_company_profile | Company details | Verify company size/industry |
Common Scenarios
Found Multiple Team Leads
Query company → 3 potential contacts:
1. VP Platform (Strong Match - platform experience) → Connect
2. Director SRE (Good Match - SRE leadership) → Connect
3. Engineering Manager (Weak Match - unclear scope) → Add, don't connect
Can't Connect (LinkedIn Limit)
1. Add to CRM with Status: Not Connected
2. Notes: "Connection limit reached, retry later"
3. Prioritize Strong matches for retry
Person Left Company
1. Check if new company is ICP → potentially recycle
2. If not ICP → skip
3. Don't add wrong company to CRM
Unclear if Right Person
1. Add to CRM with Match Quality: Weak
2. Notes: "Need to verify if they manage observability/team"
3. Look for better contact or research deeper
Output Format
For each team lead researched:
## [Name]
**Title:** [Current title]
**Company:** [Company name]
**LinkedIn:** [Profile URL]
### Match Assessment
| Criteria | Status | Evidence |
|----------|--------|----------|
| Title Match | ✅/⚠️/❌ | [Title] |
| Platform Relevance | ✅/⚠️/❌ | [Platform/observability mention] |
| Company ICP | ✅/⚠️/❌ | [ICP status] |
| ELK Mention | +/— | [If mentioned, where] |
### Experience Highlights
- [Relevant experience excerpt]
- [Key skills mentioned]
### Action
- **Status:** Connected / Pending / Not Connected
- **Match Quality:** Strong / Good / Weak
- **CRM:** Added / Skipped
### Notes
[Any additional context]
Remember
- Company First: Only research team leads at companies that passed ICP company research
- ELK is Bonus: Team leads may not have ELK explicitly—look for platform/observability/infrastructure
- Title Matters: VP/Director/Lead/Manager of Platform/SRE = buying power
- Connect with Strong + Good Matches: Blank connection requests
- Add Everyone to CRM: Even weak matches for future tracking
- Status Tracking: Track connection status for follow-up
- Flipped Discovery: If person leads platform/observability but company isn't in CRM → add company as "Discovered" for later validation
Quick Reference
DuckDuckGo Search Terms
"[Company]" "VP Platform" LinkedIn
"[Company]" "Director SRE" LinkedIn
"[Company]" "Platform Team Lead" LinkedIn
"[Company]" "infrastructure" "director" LinkedIn
"[Company]" "observability" "engineering manager" LinkedIn
LinkedIn MCP Tools
search_people → Find candidates by title/company
get_person_profile → Verify platform/observability in experience
send_invitation → Connect (Strong/Good matches, blank message)
Title Keywords
VP Platform, VP Infrastructure, Director SRE, Director Platform,
Platform Team Lead, Observability Lead, Engineering Manager Platform,
Head of Infrastructure, SRE Lead, Infrastructure Manager
Experience Keywords (Any of These)
platform, observability, infrastructure, reliability, SRE,
uptime, monitoring, logging, availability, distributed systems
(ELK/Elasticsearch are bonus signals, not required)
