Pipeline Upgrade®

Chief Operating Officer

PropUp Corporate

Marketing Director

NFON

Senior Software Engineer

Verivox GmbH

Verado

Chief Technology Officer

Langwiser

Founder

https://www.linkedin.com/redir/suspicious-page?url=tankards%2eru

I help financial leaders generate leads with AI on LinkedIn | LinkedIn Marketing Specialist

Growing an IT services business should not feel like guesswork. 

Most providers still rely on referrals or wait for inbound leads which leaves their pipeline empty and competitors ahead.

The truth is:
→ Buyers are already choosing providers before you reach them
→ Renewal cycles, migrations and security projects are happening without you in the room
→ Every missed lead is lost revenue your competitors collect

At Pipeline Upgrade, we replace uncertainty with a pay-on-results outbound growth system designed for IT firms:
✅ Verified, qualified leads and decision-maker meetings.
✅ Precision targeting around buying triggers such as contract renewals
✅ Predictable, scalable pipeline from 10 to 100 opportunities per month

Imagine starting each week with a calendar and CRM already filled with IT buyers ready to talk. 

That is what our clients experience: 
→ consistent growth
→ stronger authority
→ freedom from the referral trap

Ready to take control of your pipeline?

→ Click below 👇

Tim Sergeev

Most business owners build systems for perfect people.

But perfect people don't exist.

Here's the truth:

Your team has three types of people.

→ Task-driven who follow every step
→ People-driven who skip the checklist
→ Big-picture players who ignore details

And all of them need to follow the same process.

That's the real challenge in operations.

You're not building systems for robots.
You're building them for humans.

So instead of perfect documentation, I focus on this:

→ Build constraint into the system
→ Make the right path the easiest path
→ Design for the worst case

The person who ignores details?
↳ They still hit validation points.

The person who skips steps?
↳ The system catches them.

The person who follows everything?
↳ They move faster.

You don't hire people for your systems.
You hire them for the job.

The system just makes sure they all deliver it the same way.

So here's the question for you.

Are you building systems for perfect people or designing constraint that works for everyone?

---

Tim Sergeev
COO @ Pipeline Upgrade
I make business run smoothly

Predictable Pipeline for UK IT Providers | 2,500+ Meetings Delivered | £5M+ Client Revenue | Pay-Per-Result Model | COO @ Pipeline Upgrade

Most business owners confuse operations with delivery.

They think it's the same but it's not even close.

Operations is the railway. Delivery is the train.

Without tracks, the train goes nowhere.
Without delivery, the tracks are empty.

In operations you:
→ Define systems
→ Outline processes
→ Set sequences and validations

In delivery you:
→ Execute the work
→ Follow the systems
→ Produce the output

Operations ensures everyone works predictably.

With the right operations in place:
1️⃣ Teams know what to do
2️⃣ Output becomes predictable
3️⃣ Chaos disappears

Operations is invisible but essential. 
It’s the backbone of every scalable business.

So here's the question for you.

Do you have the right tracks laid or are you hoping the train will figure it out on its own?

---

Tim Sergeev
COO @ Pipeline Upgrade
I make business run smoothly

Most people think they have resilience.  

Until they actually need to use it.

Here is what usually happens:

→ 7 days with no results  
Motivation drops

→ 14 days with no visible progress  
Doubt kicks in

→ 30 days still at zero  
They quit completely

But nothing meaningful works on that timeline.

- Skills compound slowly  
- Pipelines warm up gradually  
- Systems need cycles to settle  
- Trust builds long before it pays off

The winners are not the most talented.  
They are the ones who survive the quiet stretch.

The stretch where:
1. Nothing moves  
2. No one notices  
3. You question yourself every single day

However if you can keep going when the scoreboard shows zero  
You will eventually pass everyone who stopped early.

Stick through the quiet part and everything changes.
Always remember: most never make it that far.

- Tim

P.S. Wishing you the resilience to achieve your goals.

🚨 Calling all software engineers

The way people find information is changing.

Less search
More AI
And the gap is widening every month.

That's why I'm excited about what my friend Domien Van Dammei s building.

His project Visiblie just secured seed funding and they are looking for a Product Engineer to join the team.

If you want to enter the fast-growing AI market and help shape the future of it, send him a DM.

Or tag someone who should see this.

More info is in the first link in the comments 👇

Most sales teams fail long before the outreach even starts.

Not because they're bad but because their targets are impossible.

A lot of business owners set KPIs that look ambitious on paper but feel hopeless in real life.

Here is what actually happens:

→ SDR sees an unreachable number
→ Stress goes up
→ Motivation drops 
→ Output collapses
→ Pipeline dies

Targets are not motivational if they feel like fiction.

They need to sit in the sweet spot hard enough to stretch the person but close enough to feel achievable.

↗ Too high and the team gives up.
↘ Too low and they never grow.

In our business we avoid this problem by using data, not wishes.

We look at:  
→ Historical conversion rates
→ Average reply numbers
→ Meeting ratios across industries
→ Volume benchmarks from previous SDRs

When we set a KPI we know it has been achieved by others so the new SDR sees it as a challenge, not a punishment.

That small shift changes everything.

1️⃣ Realistic targets build confidence.
2️⃣ Confidence creates consistency.
3️⃣ Consistency produces results.

Now tell me this: are your KPIs helping your team win or making them fail before they start?

---

Pipeline Upgrade
Predictable pipeline for UK IT providers with zero upfront risk.

I hate inbounds.

Even though I run an outbound growth agency ))

Not because people come to me 
but because most of them come the wrong way.

Cold.  
Generic.  
Copy pasted.  
Zero thought.

And every time I see one of those messages, I feel the same thing  
this person has no idea who I am, what I do or what problem they're trying to solve.

That's why pitching doesn't work anymore.  
❌ People are tired.  
❌ They're overwhelmed.  
❌ They're drowning in noise.

Nobody gets a cold email today and thinks  
"Finally, this is the service I've been waiting for"  
It just doesn't happen.

If you want conversations that actually lead somewhere, you need to go deeper.

Understand their world  
→ their pressure  
→ their blockers  
→ their desired future  
→ and the gap between the two.

Only then you can honestly ask  
↳ can I help this person move from where they are to where they want to be?

If the answer is yes, you have a real opportunity.  
If the answer is no, there is no point forcing it.

This is what works today  
1. real curiosity  
2. real empathy  
3. real conversations.

Nothing in between works nowadays!

Anyway, enough about me, let's talk about you.

How do you separate real interest from people who are just kicking tyres?

---

I build pipelines for UK IT providers with zero upfront risk.

This quote hit me hard.

Because I've seen both sides.

---

I've seen systems with 30+ tools.

I've seen systems with 5.

The 5-tool system always wins.

---

Here's what actually happens with complex infrastructure:

Most people think:
→ More tools = more capability
→ More integrations = better automation
→ More complexity = more professional

Reality:
→ More tools = more data loss
→ More integrations = more failure points
→ More complexity = more overhead

---

I spent 10+ years as a software engineer.

I've seen codebases where 90% could be deleted and the app would work better.

The same principle applies to business systems.

The math is simple:

30 tools = 30 places data gets lost, mutated, or corrupted
↳ No single source of truth
↳ Constant firefighting
↳ 50% overhead minimum

5 tools = Clear data flow
↳ One source of truth
↳ Predictable outcomes
↳ Actual scalability

---

Every connection is a point of failure.

Every integration needs maintenance.

Every tool costs money and attention.

Most businesses are paying thousands per month for complexity they don't need.

---

Here's what I tell people:

Your goal isn't the most sophisticated setup.

Your goal is the minimum viable infrastructure that actually works.

Ask yourself:
→ Which tools are redundant?
→ Where is data getting lost right now?
→ What could be consolidated?

Strip it down to what matters.

---

I know it's tempting to share your 30-tool stack.

But it takes more courage to say "we run everything on 5 tools and it works."

Simplicity is hard.

Complexity is easy.

---

How many tools are you currently using to run your business?

PS. Curious to hear if anyone else has simplified their stack and seen the difference.

Most business owners confuse documentation with operations.

They write SOPs.
Store them in folders.
Tell the team to follow them.

And wonder why everything still breaks.

Here's the truth:

SOPs tell people what to do.
But they don't stop people doing it wrong.

People want shortcuts.
People get tired.
People assume.

Not because they're bad but because they're human.

So instead of writing more procedures and adding quality control layers, I focus on this:

→ Build systems that reject wrong inputs
→ Add validation before the next step can start
→ Make the correct path the only path

Not through rules but through structure.

Operations isn't about writing procedures.

It's about building railways, not roadmaps.

The railway doesn't ask the train to stay on track.
It makes staying on track the only option.

That's how we approach every system we build.

So here's the question for you.

Do you rely on documentation or do you build constraint into your systems?

---

Tim Sergeev
COO @ Pipeline Upgrade
I make business run smoothly

Most people think operations is just automations.

- Move data from A to B.
- Trigger a workflow.
- Send a notification.

But real operations sit on three layers.
And if even one of them is weak, the whole system collapses.

Here is how it actually works.

→ Layer 1: Data
This is the foundation.
Data must be consistent, structured and clean.
If the data model is messy, everything becomes unstable.

→ Layer 2: Process
This is where most people stop.
Automations, workflows, logic, rules.
But this layer only works if the data layer is solid.
Otherwise you simply automate chaos faster.

→ Layer 3: Display
This is what the team sees.
Dashboards, tables, views, permissions, insights.
If the first two layers are wrong, this one becomes noise instead of clarity.

Think of it like this:
1️⃣ Data at the centre.
2️⃣ Process wrapped around it.
3️⃣ Display wrapped around everything.

Get all three right and the business runs like an engine.
Get one wrong and the entire thing shakes.

Do you agree with this?

---

Tim Sergeev
COO Pipeline Upgrade
I make business run smoothly

AI Insiders

Providing custom AI & Automation solutions to established teams. 
Our agency specializes in: low-code workflow automation, content creation automation (video, images, text), marketing & ops AI agents.

Our tech stack: n8n, Make.com, OpenAI APIs +

We deliver tailored solutions that drive efficiency and growth for our clients.

Self Employed

• Consulting with businesses on AI automation strategy, feasibility, and implementation. 
• Delivering personalized education, workshops, and co-building sessions to help teams learn gen AI and automation

AI Consultant

New Digital Intelligence

Helped NDI develop and implement AI voice solutions

Generative AI Engineer

Launched and managed a print-on-demand e-commerce store on Etsy and Shopify. Handled design, advertising, content creation, customer communication, and growth strategies.  Learned what it takes to run and grow an online business.

Ecommerce Business Owner

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

Contractor for International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) internal projects. Developed and supported web applications. Contributed to a data analysis project.

Software Developer

DataArt

Projects for US and UK service-based clients in hospitality and travel sectors. Developed web applications, planned databases, designed technical architectures. Integrated payment gateways, built APIs, and implemented virtual communication solutions.

Senior .NET Developer

Want to equip yourself or your team with the one skill that's reshaping content, marketing, and operations? 

I'm talking about AI automation. 

I'm deeply passionate about this tech, and my mission is to help you not just adopt it, but to 
- build it
- learn it 
- own it 
turning it into your team's superpower.

My approach is to make automation accessible and manageable for you. 

Here’s how we can work together:
- Learn the Ropes: Check out my free YouTube tutorials for practical guides on automation.
- Build With Your Team (Workshops): In focused, hands-on sessions, you learn by doing, with expert support.
- Strategic Automation Partnerships: For businesses needing ongoing support, I offer consulting and co-creation on content automation or marketing ops projects (these engagements start at $5,000/month).

I love working on projects that automate:
- Content creation and management from start to finish.
- Key marketing tasks to improve efficiency.
- Data gathering and analysis for better insights.
- The behind-the-scenes work of personal brands and YouTube channels.

How to get started (choose what works best for you):
- Explore my tutorials on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCRKoQ6K4-bgTB_XArcl2Dg
- Send me a message to discuss a workshop or project,
- Book a free 30-min Intro Call to get to know each other and discuss your idea

Nadia Privalikhina

I'm rebuilding my business Operating System for 2026, and I have a feeling I'm missing a piece of the puzzle.

I’m spending the last 2 weeks of the year doing an internal sprint.
No client work. Just building better systems for my Education & Consulting business.

I’m looking for the tools and techniques that move the needle, not the ones that just look cool on demos.

My current stack:
- n8n for workflows
- ChatGPT Projects for context
- Perplexity for deep research
- Gemini 3 for brainstorming

What I'm optimizing: 
Content creation, research, presentations, video production.

What I'm looking for: 
Not only individual tools, but also systems and approaches:
- How do you keep context across projects?
- What's your setup for managing knowledge and research?
- What is overlooked for consulting/education businesses?

I keep hearing about Claude Code + Claude Skills for workflows, and NotebookLM for research. 
Curious if and how you use these, what else is out there, and what are the resources to learn from?

Drop your recommendations below. 
Tools, workflows, resources, frameworks, people to follow.

Bonus points if your recommendation is boring, unsexy, and actually helps to do the work.

AI Automation Architect | n8n Educator | AI Insiders (YouTube) | I teach the missing 50% of automation: Stability & Architecture

I read this advice and my stomach dropped.

A respected voice in the AI automation space wrote:
"Sell the automation first. Learn the tech in 30 minutes after"

I get the intent. Many technical people obsess about building and never make a sale. They suffer from analysis paralysis. Some encouragement helps.

But telling non-technical entrepreneurs chasing the AI gold rush to "learn the tech in 30 minutes"?

That's not encouragement. That’s a recipe for disaster.

Disaster for the entrepreneur AND for the client they serve.

Here’s what actually happens when you sell a solution you don't know how to build:

1/ You bleed money.

Without experience, you cannot scope accurately. You quote 1 week. It takes 6. Your effective hourly rate drops to pennies. You aren't building a business; you're paying to work. 

On top of that, the client gets annoyed and loses trust.

2/ You hit technical walls.

You can fake confidence on a sales call, but you can't fake an API integration with messy business data.

Technical feasibility is no joke. If you promise something impossible, you end up with wasted effort, awkward apologies, and inevitable refunds. A negative ROI for both sides.

3/ You destroy client businesses.

This is the scary one. Working with live data is high-stakes.

A POST request instead of a GET request in a CRM API? Congratulations, you just wiped the client's database.


Sounds extreme?

Last year, I partnered with a young entrepreneur who followed this exact "guru advice". I was handling the tech side, they handled the rest.

How did it go?
↳ After getting system access and taking a deposit, they accidentally converted a client’s live production account into a test account with one click, ignoring a warning they didn't understand.

The result?
↳ A full refund was issued. My work went uncompensated. Their reputation was damaged. The client’s trust in automation was shattered.

My unpopular opinion: Clients are not guinea pigs.

Would you sit in the chair of a hairdresser who spent 30 minutes before your appointment watching a YouTube video on how to cut hair?

I would be terrified.

Why treat the automation field any differently?

Hair grows back.
Reputation doesn’t.

If you take money for a job, you need some level of mastery and understanding. Definitely not 30 minutes or 30 days as some influencers claim.

It’s better to under-promise and overdeliver than to overpromise and destroy your name.

Agree or disagree? 
Does "sales first, skills later" ever work in tech fields?

BrightData + Gemini 3 + n8n = YouTube analysis that actually scales

This year I've built plenty of YouTube scraping solutions. Even taught others how to do it.

But there's one problem that happens behind the scenes:

They work great for demos or personal projects.
But try to scale them in production? 
That's where the headaches begin:

→  Scraping with yt-dlp gets your IP blocked. Proxies become essential.
→ n8n community nodes for YouTube? Often deprecated for the same reason.
→ YouTube's official API? Daily limits are strict and hard to bypass.

So you're stuck stitching together parts that work and constantly afraid that something will break.

But here's the solution I’ve discovered:
Bright Data. 

I Initially found it for another project, and now it’s my go-to for scaling YouTube scraping too:
400 videos scraped in under 10 minutes. No rate limits. No IP blocks. Fully compliant.

It pulls all data in one request:
✓ Video titles and stats
✓ Perfectly formatted transcripts
✓ All the metadata you need

And with Gemini 3, you can analyze the video content itself.

Ideal for:
- Competitor research at scale
- Building knowledge bases for AI agents from transcripts
- Market analysis across hundreds of YouTube channels

Want the complete n8n template with proper BrightData and Gemini setup?
1. Comment "Template" below
2. Connect with me (so I can DM you)
Note: Available only for the next 48 hours.

I recently jumped into running a cohort-based course.
Halfway through, here are my top 8 lessons:

Quick backstory:

I met my co-host Serop just 4 months ago. Neither of us had run cohort courses before. We were deep in delivering n8n solutions for clients and realized we had hands-on knowledge to share. So, we structured the cohort like this:

• 6 projects in 6 weeks
• ~5 hours of live sessions per week
• Plus homework (build an n8n workflow)
• Priced ~$500
• Positioned as an intermediate track for building production-ready systems

We filled 17 spots in just 3 weeks and started on Nov 3rd.

Here's what surprised me and what I've learned so far:

1. "Intermediate" is subjective. We attracted both near-beginners and experienced builders. We had to adjust our teaching and pace. Lesson: Next time, we'll separate beginner and intermediate tracks. Everyone should win when the pace suits them.

2. 6 projects in 6 weeks is… ambitious. Our participants are working adults without enough time to build a new automation each week. Homework completion has dropped by 50% from week 1 to 3. We're rethinking the scope so people can actually finish.

3. More live ≠ more value. On paper, 5 live hours sounds supportive. In reality, for busy people, one hectic week feels like, “I lost the whole program.” We're testing fewer live calls + stronger async support.

4. There is no “one right way” to build in n8n. Week 1 task: “Add 5 steps to this workflow.” 10 submissions, 10 different workflows. All valid. All creative. I'm learning from our students, too.

5. People who pay respect your time (in a surprising way). We offered 1:1 help. Almost nobody used it. They were grateful but wanted to figure things out themselves. Compared to my inbox full of “can you quickly help me with X for free?”, this felt… different.

6. Recording quality is trickier than expected. We tried Fathom - poor quality. Google Meet is better but still not perfect. Recordings are part of our product, and we're still figuring out the right setup.

7. Running a cohort takes more time than I expected. Live sessions, preparing materials and recordings, reviewing homework, giving 1:1 feedback. It's a lot. There's a reason cohort programs cost $1000+.

8. The best part: building with students, not for them. The numbers so far:
• Only 1 refund (personal reason)
• Most rate us 5/5, others 4/5

We're literally building the course while teaching it. If I tried to pre-record everything upfront, I'd probably still be in “planning” mode. And honestly, I couldn't have done this without Serop. Finding someone who fully commits and shows up every week is rare, and I'm grateful we're teaching it together.

If you've run a cohort (or taken one that stuck with you) and have tips for improvement, please share. I'd love to learn from successful examples.

taplio

The Battle

Tim Sergeev

Nadia Privalikhina

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taplio

The Battle

Tim Sergeev

Nadia Privalikhina

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Tim Sergeev's LinkedIn Performance

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