B2B Sales Trends

Cyber Resilience isn't just an IT challenge anymore. It's changing how the best B2B sales teams sell. Companies are racing into AI, but Tim Pfaelzer believes many are overlooking the foundation that determines whether it succeeds.

Harry sits down with Tim Pfaelzer, SVP & GM EMEA at Veeam, to explore why successful companies don't simply adapt their products. They retrain their sales teams to speak the language of business risk, executive priorities, and business outcomes.

Along the way, Tim challenges one of the biggest assumptions surrounding AI and explains why "backup isn't the product. Trusted data is the outcome."

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

🔗 Download "Day Zero" and discover why buyers often choose their suppliers before the first sales meeting: https://globalperformancegroup.com/white-papers/day-zero-why-revenue-is-won-before-the-first-meeting/

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

You'll hear ideas that challenge conventional thinking, including:

- Why organizations often invest in AI before securing the data that powers it.

- Why feature based selling breaks down at board level.

- Why trusted data has become a board level priority instead of just an IT concern.

- Why curiosity, credibility, and courage separate average sellers from elite performers.

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Why yesterday's sales conversation stops working

01:35 From Data Protection to AI Readiness: Why Veeam had to evolve

03:20 AI has a trust problem, not an adoption problem

05:50 Why modern sellers must replace product pitches with business outcomes

09:40 How to earn credibility with CEOs, CIOs, and executive buyers

13:30 The three traits every elite B2B Sales leader needs today

About Tim Pfaelzer

Tim Pfaelzer is SVP & General Manager EMEA at Veeam, where he leads the company's strategy and go to market across the EMEA region. He helps enterprises strengthen Cyber Resilience, Data Protection, and AI Readiness, while driving business growth through innovation, strategic partnerships, and a strong focus on customer success.

Connect with Tim Pfaelzer on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tpfaelzer/

📣 If this conversation changed how you think about modern B2B Sales, share it with your team.

🎧 Prefer audio? Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or watch the full conversation here on YouTube.

👉 Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/at/podcast/b2b-sales-trends/id1540112247?l=en-GB

👉 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5dNb1tA2UfHOR8oGNc5Kbp?si=60f87af8feb74a25

🔗 Explore more: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

🔗 Download "Day Zero" and discover why buyers often choose their suppliers before the first sales meeting: https://globalperformancegroup.com/white-papers/day-zero-why-revenue-is-won-before-the-first-meeting/

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to be a guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and operators shaping modern go to market strategy.

Apply here:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/guest-submission/

Intelligence isn't about collecting more data. As Sanjib Sahoo argues, data runs the business. Intelligence grows the business. So why are so many organizations still relying on instinct?

Harry sits down with Sanjib Sahoo, President of Global Platform Group at Ingram Micro, whose perspective challenges some of the biggest assumptions in modern B2B Sales. Many organizations focus on building bigger pipelines, automating more processes, or gathering more data. Sanjib believes they're solving the wrong problem.

Why do the best sales teams become "order makers" instead of order takers? Why does reimagination create opportunity while automation alone creates fear? And why is curiosity becoming one of the most valuable competitive advantages in the age of AI?

Those answers might change the way you think about Sales Leadership, AI in Sales, and Revenue Growth.

You'll discover:

• Why a bigger pipeline can actually hurt revenue

• Why the future belongs to "order makers"

• How Customer Intelligence changes customer relationships

• Why curiosity may be your biggest competitive advantage in the age of AI

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Why Sales Intelligence matters more than a bigger pipeline

03:00 Stop relying on instinct and prioritize the right opportunities

08:10 How AI is changing customer relationships

11:45 Data runs the business. Intelligence grows the business.

19:40 Bringing B2C into B2B

29:00 The three Sales Mindset skills every elite seller needs

About Sanjib Sahoo

Sanjib Sahoo is President of Global Platform Group, Enterprise Strategy, Growth & Operating Results at Ingram Micro, where he leads the company's global platform business and the transformation of one of the world's largest technology distributors into an AI driven platform company through Xvantage™. Recognized globally for his work in platform strategy, AI, and enterprise transformation, he helps organizations turn technology into measurable business growth and operating performance.

Connect with Sanjib Sahoo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sanjibsahoodigital/

📣 If this conversation changed how you think about modern B2B Sales, share it with your team.

🎧 Prefer audio? Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or watch the full conversation

here on YouTube.

👉 Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/at/podcast/b2b-sales-trends/id1540112247?l=en-GB

👉 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5dNb1tA2UfHOR8oGNc5Kbp?si=60f87af8feb74a25

🔗 Explore more: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to be a guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and operators shaping modern go-to-market strategy.

Apply here:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/guest-submission/

#B2BSales #SalesLeadership #SalesIntelligence

Value Selling is changing B2B Sales. Customers no longer buy the cheapest product. They buy partners who help them create long-term business value.

If customers still care about price, why are the best companies investing even more in trust, long-term partnerships, and customer outcomes? And why does Pramesh Maheshwari believe "strategy" is one of the most overused words in business?

In this episode of the B2B Sales Trends Podcast, Harry sits down with Pramesh Maheshwari, President of Lifecycle Solutions, Services and Cyber at Honeywell Process Solutions, to explore one of the biggest shifts in modern B2B Sales.

Together, they unpack why Value Selling, Consultative Selling, and becoming a true Trusted Advisor require far more than simply asking good questions.

Along the way, they challenge some of the biggest assumptions in modern B2B Sales:

• Why Total Cost of Ownership is no longer enough to win complex buying decisions.

• The surprising reason many Voice of Customer initiatives fail despite positive feedback.

• Why knowing your customer's customer may be just as important as knowing your own product.

• Why hearing customers isn't the same as understanding them.

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late":

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Why Value Selling replaced competing on price

02:20 From lowest cost to strategic partnerships in B2B Sales

08:13 Why Total Cost of Ownership changed buying decisions

12:37 The shift from Solution Selling to solving future customer problems

17:51 Why listening isn't enough in Consultative Selling

26:41 The three habits every Trusted Advisor needs

About Pramesh Maheshwari

Pramesh Maheshwari is President, Lifecycle Solutions, Services and Cyber at Honeywell Process Solutions. With more than three decades of global leadership experience in process automation, he helps organizations improve resilience and long term customer value while leading Honeywell's Lifecycle Solutions, Services and Cyber business.

Connect with Pramesh Maheshwari on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pramesh-maheshwari-36617a15/

📣 If this conversation challenged your thinking, share it with your team.

🎧 Prefer audio? Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or watch the full conversation here on YouTube.

Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/at/podcast/b2b-sales-trends/id1540112247?l=en-GB

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5dNb1tA2UfHOR8oGNc5Kbp?si=60f87af8feb74a25

🔗 Explore more: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to be a guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and operators shaping modern go-to-market strategy.

Apply here:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/guest-submission/

Customer Success shouldn't be selling. That's exactly why it drives more revenue growth. Scott Lerner believes the biggest opportunity in B2B sales isn't winning new customers. It's what happens after the deal is signed.

Most customer success teams are measured on expansion. Scott believes that's where many organizations start solving the wrong problem. The moment every conversation becomes commercial, you stop being a trusted advisor and start becoming just another vendor.

On the B2B Sales Trends Podcast, Harry sits down with Scott Lerner, Senior Vice President of Global Services at Akamai Technologies, to explore why the renewal starts the day the contract is signed, why many services organizations are trapped in what he calls "hour's jail," and why customer outcomes matter more than billable hours.

Scott challenges several assumptions many sales leaders still believe:

• The renewal starts the day the deal closes, not when the contract expires.

• Customer Success should uncover opportunities but avoid negotiating deals.

• Price is rarely the real reason customers leave.

• Today's buyers need better questions, not more product education.

• AI is making the traditional services model harder to defend than ever before.

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Customer Success begins after the sale

05:04 Why customer outcomes matter more than renewals

09:00 Growing accounts without losing trusted advisor status

11:57 Escaping "hour's jail" with Outcome Based Selling

16:22 Building Customer Centricity through curiosity and empathy

19:59 Better questions beat better pitches

Key ideas explored

• Why Customer Success has become one of the biggest drivers of Revenue Growth.

• The hidden trade off between selling more and building trust.

• How post sales teams can uncover expansion opportunities without acting like salespeople.

• Why modern buyers expect better questions, not better presentations.

About Scott Lerner

Scott Lerner is Senior Vice President, Global Services at Akamai Technologies, where he leads a global organization of more than 2,300 people focused on delivering world-class customer outcomes and maximizing product adoption.

With more than 20 years at Akamai, he specializes in customer success, Professional Services, Service Delivery, and building high-performing teams through trust and customer-centric leadership.

Connect with Scott on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lerner-scott/

📣 If this conversation challenged your thinking, share it with your team.

🎥 Want the full video conversation? Watch it on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@b2bsalestrendspodcast

🔗 Explore more: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to be a guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and operators shaping modern go-to-market strategy.

Apply here:

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Consultative selling isn't about creating urgency. It's about helping buyers believe they'll succeed after making a change.

Most buyers already know they have a problem.

So why do so many deals still end with the status quo?

In this episode of the B2B Sales Trends Podcast, Harry sits down with Melissa McCabe, Chief Sales Officer at Euna Solutions, to explore why the best salespeople don't just solve business problems. They reduce the fear of making the wrong decision.

After nearly three decades in enterprise sales, consultative selling, and sales leadership, Melissa has reached a conclusion that challenges conventional wisdom. The best sellers don't push harder. They prepare better. They reduce uncertainty. And they become what she calls "brokers of resources" who help buyers make better decisions.

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Why consultative selling isn't about urgency

02:50 The real competitor is the status quo

06:20 The psychology behind buyer confidence

11:40 Why transparency builds trust before the sales process

19:10 What actually improves win rates

32:00 The three habits of top salespeople

This conversation explores why buyers can agree they have a problem and still refuse to act, why rushing a decision often lowers your chances of winning, and why the best salespeople think less like persuaders and more like brokers of expertise.

Melissa also explains why improving win rates starts long before a proposal is sent, why consistency is becoming a competitive advantage in enterprise sales, and why preparation still beats AI-generated perfection.

Whether you're focused on consultative selling, solution selling, the buyer journey, or building a more effective sales process, this episode offers a different way to think about modern B2B sales.

🎙️Listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, or watch the full conversation here on YouTube.

Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/at/podcast/b2b-sales-trends/id1540112247?l=en-GB

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5dNb1tA2UfHOR8oGNc5Kbp?si=60f87af8feb74a25

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late":

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

💡 Key Takeaways

- Why urgency isn't always what buyers need.

- The mindset that changes every sales conversation.

- How preparation shapes buyer confidence.

- Why some opportunities stall before the real sales process begins.

- What today's best sales teams do differently.

👤 About Guest

Melissa McCabe is the Chief Sales Officer at Euna Solutions, where she leads sales strategy for public sector customers across North America. With more than 25 years of experience across IBM, SaaS, and enterprise software, Melissa specializes in sales leadership, consultative selling, and building high-performing go-to-market teams.

Connect with Melissa McCabe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-mccabe-397a933

If this conversation challenged the way you think about modern selling, share it with someone on your team.

🎧 Listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, or subscribe on YouTube for weekly conversations with the world's leading B2B sales and go to market leaders.

🔗 Explore more at https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to be a guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and go to market operators shaping the future of modern selling.

If that's you, or someone you'd recommend, apply here:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/guest-submission/

Sales management often focuses on adding more process. Jesse Davis believes that's exactly what slows great sales teams down.

In this episode of the B2B Sales Trends Podcast, Harry sits down with Jesse Davis, Head of Sales at Dandy, to explore why the best sales organizations don't scale through more approvals, more CRM updates, or more playbooks. They scale by removing unnecessary variability, documenting what actually works, and building systems that make exceptional performance repeatable.

Jesse also explains why modern B2B sales requires a different approach to consultative selling and sales discovery. Buyers arrive informed, distracted, and skeptical. The sellers who stand out aren't the ones asking more questions. They're the ones who combine genuine curiosity with the ability to make complex ideas remarkably simple.

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late":

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Why most sales management creates bureaucracy instead of performance

05:15 Building a sales machine that removes variability and scales consistently

07:10 Why consultative selling starts after the buyer has already done their research

12:00 The two traits every elite B2B sales professional shares

22:15 The overlooked sales hiring strategy that scales teams without lowering the bar

27:00 Jesse's framework for sales leadership and developing high impact managers

You'll learn:

• Why adding more process often creates worse selling instead of better execution

• How great sales discovery helps buyers think differently instead of answering scripted questions

• Why documenting your playbooks may be the biggest competitive advantage in modern SaaS sales

• The mindset shift that makes difficult commercial conversations feel natural instead of uncomfortable

💡 Key Takeaways

• Consistency doesn't come from adding approvals or CRM tasks. It comes from identifying what actually works and making it repeatable across the organization.

• Discovery breaks down when it becomes an interrogation. The best conversations evolve because curiosity drives better follow up questions, not better scripts.

• Documentation isn't administrative work. It's one of the highest leverage activities for scaling hiring, coaching, and execution across growing teams.

• Confidence in commercial conversations isn't a personality trait. It comes from genuinely believing your solution creates meaningful customer outcomes.

• The strongest sales leaders aren't specialists. They develop balanced capability across revenue generation, people development, and operational rigor instead of relying on one strength alone.

👤 About Guest

Jesse Davis is Head of Sales at Dandy, where he leads the company's rapidly scaling sales organization. With more than two decades of experience across startups, high growth SaaS companies, and public organizations, Jesse specializes in building repeatable sales systems, scaling hiring, and developing high performing sales leaders.

Connect with Jesse Davis on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesserdavis/

If this episode sparked new thinking, share it with your team.

🎧 Subscribe for weekly insights on modern selling, leadership, and performance.

🔗 Explore more at https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late":

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to Be a Guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and operators shaping modern go to market strategy.

If that's you, or someone you recommend, submit a short application here:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/guest-submission/

Cybersecurity sales has become harder because buyers trust products less and scrutinize every decision more. The sellers winning today aren't better presenters. They're better problem experts.

In this episode of the B2B Sales Trends Podcast, Harry sits down with Marty Overman, EVP Americas Sales at Darktrace, to explore how AI, buyer scrutiny, and enterprise buying behavior are reshaping modern B2B selling.

Marty explains why discovery has become the most valuable skill in enterprise sales, why buyers demand proof instead of promises, and why trust has become the biggest competitive advantage in cybersecurity sales.

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 The new reality of cybersecurity sales in the age of AI

03:02 Why enterprise buyers scrutinize every technology investment

06:40 Sales discovery has changed, buyers already know your product

11:13 Become a problem expert, not a product expert

24:56 AI in cybersecurity is changing buyer expectations

32:05 The three habits of elite enterprise sales professionals

You'll learn:

• Why today's buyers care more about workflow impact than product features

• How consultative selling helps customers justify complex buying decisions

• Why AI is making trust and human relationships even more important

• The three behaviors Marty sees in the highest performing enterprise sellers

💡 Key Takeaways

• The biggest shift in cybersecurity sales isn't AI. It's that buyers now expect sellers to understand their business before discussing the product.

• Discovery has become a competitive advantage. The seller who diagnoses the real problem creates value long before presenting a solution.

• Buyers aren't just evaluating software anymore. They're evaluating whether the seller can help them defend the purchase internally across finance, procurement, security, and executive stakeholders.

• AI has increased uncertainty rather than reducing it. That makes credibility, adaptability, and long term partnership more valuable than feature comparisons.

• The strongest enterprise sellers don't operate as lone wolves. They build confidence by bringing subject matter experts, partners, and broader teams into the buying process.

👤About Guest

Marty Overman is EVP of Americas Sales at Darktrace, where she leads enterprise revenue growth across the Americas. With more than 20 years in cybersecurity, she specializes in building high performing go to market teams, helping organizations navigate digital trust, AI adoption, and complex enterprise buying while turning commercial strategy into measurable customer outcomes.

Connect with Marty Overman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martyoverman/

If this episode sparked new thinking, share it with your team.

🎧 Subscribe for weekly insights on modern selling, leadership, and performance.

🔗 Explore more at https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to Be a Guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and operators shaping modern go to market strategy.

If that's you, or someone you recommend, submit a short application here:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/guest-submission/

B2B Sales Training isn't broken because sellers lack knowledge. It's broken because today's buyers demand a completely different way of selling.

In this episode of the B2B Sales Trends Podcast, Harry sits down with Michael Aronowitz, SVP of Revenue Growth at VXI Global Solutions, to discuss why modern sales organizations need to rethink hiring, coaching, leadership, and seller development.

Michael explains why buyers research sellers before replying, why preparation beats activity, and why coaching, not PowerPoint, creates high performing sales teams.

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late":

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

⏱️ Timestamps:

00:00 Why modern B2B Sales Training isn't keeping up with today's buyers

02:20 Sales Prospecting is harder than ever. Why getting the first meeting changed

03:29 Personal Branding and Social Selling now influence every first impression

06:29 The biggest Sales Hiring mistakes hurting sales performance

11:28 Why Sales Enablement must move beyond PowerPoint training

23:51 The preparation habits and Sales Coaching mindset that separate top performers

You'll learn:

• Why buyers often research sellers before replying to outreach

• The hiring mistake many sales organizations keep repeating

• Why coaching, rehearsal, and preparation outperform traditional sales training

• How strong sales cultures consistently develop better sellers than individual talent alone

💡 Key Takeaways

• The biggest weakness in B2B Sales Training isn't the content. It's expecting classroom learning to survive real customer conversations.

• Buyers increasingly evaluate the seller before evaluating the solution. Your reputation, network, and personal brand now influence whether conversations happen at all.

• Organizations often blame pipeline, pricing, or market conditions when the real issue started with hiring the wrong profile for today's sales environment.

• High performing sales teams don't rely on natural talent. They build systems of coaching, practice, feedback, and continuous improvement that prepare sellers before important customer conversations.

• The strongest sales cultures don't measure activity for its own sake. They constantly evaluate what actually produces better outcomes and adjust hiring, leadership, and enablement accordingly.

👤 About Guest

Michael Aronowitz is SVP of Revenue Growth at VXI Global Solutions. With more than 25 years of experience leading global sales and marketing organizations, he specializes in revenue growth, sales leadership, and building high performing teams through modern hiring, coaching, and sales enablement.

Connect with Michael Aronowitz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-aronowitz/

If this episode challenged the way you think about B2B Sales Training, share it with your team.

🎧 Subscribe for weekly insights on modern selling, leadership, and performance.

🔗 Explore more at https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late":

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to Be a Guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and operators shaping modern go to market strategy.

If that's you, or someone you recommend, submit a short application here:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/guest-submission/

Sales enablement often fails because companies ask sales teams to sell software using a system designed for hardware.

In this episode of the B2B Sales Trends Podcast, Harry sits down with Juha Mirsch, Global Sales Enablement Lead for ABB's Digital Portfolio, to explore why digital transformation stalls, why software sales require a different approach to customer conversations, and how leaders can redesign sales enablement without building a separate sales force.

Juha explains why this isn't a motivation problem but a design problem. He shares the frameworks ABB uses to build seller confidence, coach real opportunities instead of delivering one off training, and create lasting behaviour change that leads to stronger customer relationships and recurring revenue.

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Why sales enablement fails when sellers stay wired for hardware

03:30 Software sales starts with new stakeholders, not new products

08:30 The "personal trainer" approach to sales enablement strategy

14:00 Why confidence matters more than product knowledge in consultative selling

20:15 Building recurring revenue through customer success and enterprise sales

26:05 The leadership mindset required for digital transformation at ABB

In this episode you'll learn:

- Why software sales should complement, not compete with, hardware sales.

- The four step framework Juha uses to build confidence and lasting behaviour change.

- Why training alone rarely changes B2B selling behaviours.

- How customer success creates recurring revenue long after the initial sale.

💡 Key Takeaways

- The biggest barrier to selling digital solutions isn't product knowledge. It's a sales system that was designed for a different buying journey.

- If sales enablement ends when training finishes, sellers will almost always fall back to familiar behaviours. What happens after training matters more.

- Software sales become easier when sellers stop chasing products and start expanding customer relationships across new stakeholders.

- Confidence isn't built through more content. It's built through coaching, reinforcement, and small wins that compound over time.

- Organizations that treat software as a relationship strategy rather than another product create stronger customer success and recurring revenue.

👤 About the Guest

Juha Mirsch is Global Sales Enablement Lead for ABB's Digital Portfolio. He leads the global sales enablement function that helps sales teams successfully sell ABB's digital solutions, equipping them with the tools, coaching, and frameworks needed to build customer relationships, navigate new buying dynamics, and drive long term recurring revenue.

Connect with Juha Mirsch on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juhamirsch/

If this episode sparked new thinking, share it with your team.

🎧 Subscribe for weekly insights on modern selling, leadership, and performance.

🔗 Explore more at www.globalperformancegroup.com

📘 Download the whitepaper "You're Entering the Deal Too Late"

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

🎙️ Want to Be a Guest on B2B Sales Trends?

We feature senior B2B sales leaders, commercial executives, and operators shaping modern go to market strategy.

If that's you, or someone you recommend, submit a short application here:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/guest-submission/

Most client briefs describe symptoms, not the real problem. In this episode, Emma Beckmann explains why Consultative Selling starts by challenging assumptions, uncovering hidden business challenges, and reframing the conversation before proposing a solution.

Harry sits down with Emma Beckmann, Group Chief Growth Officer at Landor, to explore why many B2B sales teams, agencies, and consultants accidentally commoditize themselves by responding to briefs at face value.

From sales discovery and value based selling to proposal strategy, growth strategy, and trusted advisor relationships, Emma shares a practical framework for uncovering what clients actually need rather than simply delivering what they ask for.

🔗 Explore more insights: https://globalperformancegroup.com/

📘 Download the whitepaper “You’re Entering the Deal Too Late”:

👉 https://globalperformancegroup.com/resources/#papers

📈 Try the Revenue Accelerator:

👉 https://revenueaccelerator.globalperformancegroup.com

⏱️ Timestamps:

00:00 – Why most client briefs describe symptoms, not root causes

03:21 – The RFP warning sign: when you're only a benchmarking exercise

05:11 – Sales Discovery: uncovering the business challenge behind the request

09:22 – How Trusted Advisors challenge assumptions without damaging relationships

14:29 – Proposal Strategy: why great responses start with the client's problem

26:08 – Sales Leadership Coaching: rewarding strategic thinking over busy work

This episode is for B2B sales leaders, business development professionals, consultants, agency leaders, and go to market teams looking to improve sales

discovery, consultative selling, client relationships, and strategic selling.

You'll learn:

• Why responding perfectly to a brief can still lead to poor business outcomes

• How to identify when an RFP is a genuine opportunity versus a benchmarking exercise

• The proposal mistake that quietly pushes providers toward commoditization

• How leaders can build cultures that prioritize strategic impact instead of activity

💡 Key Takeaways

• The fastest path to commoditization is responding exactly to what the client asks for without understanding why they asked for it.

• Clients often define the solution before fully understanding the problem. The opportunity lies in helping them uncover what sits underneath the request.

• Some RFPs are not buying processes at all. They are comparison exercises. The ability to recognize the difference can save enormous time and resources.

• Strong proposals do not begin with credentials, capabilities, or expertise. They begin with a clear articulation of the client's business challenge.

• Organizations that reward visible activity over strategic thinking may unintentionally discourage the very behaviors that create differentiation and long term growth.

👤 About Guest

Emma Beckmann is the Group Chief Growth Officer at Landor, where she leads complex growth and branding programs across EMEA and global markets. With nearly 30 years at Landor, she has helped build one of the industry's most integrated regional networks and has led transformative branding initiatives for organizations including BASF, the World Economic Forum, and PIF.

Connect with Emma Beckmann on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmabeckmann/

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