This Month In Sales Enablement is your monthly wrap-up of the fast-evolving Sales Enablement space and its global community.

Your hosts Felix Krueger and Devon McDermott will dial in LIVE from Sydney and Los Angeles to share with you analysis and opinion.

InsightsSKO Season

• Alignment is one of the biggest opportunities that come with sales kick-offs (SKOs)
• Don't forget to share information prior to the event to make sure attendees are engaged and get the most out of the experience
• Reinforcement after the event is crucial to ensure value isn't lost (just like in the context of training!)
• Prioritize content quality over content quantity
• Great speakers are the most cost-effective way to ensure an engaging SKO with little or no budget (leverage internal rock stars, your network, and the networks of senior leaders to source speakers)
• Consider asking attendees to record videos prior to the event or workshop content live during the event to add a new engagement dimension

What are your tips for creating engaging SKO experiences on a budget? Let us know in the comments below!

Enablement "Gurus"

• The loudest voice with the most likes and comments isn't always the one with the most expertise
• Use curated content formats (e.g. podcasts, books, keynotes) as an "expertise filter" to determine who to follow
• Look for data-backed insights to ensure advice isn't just based on opinion
• Experience and track records are two of the key expertise indicators to consider when evaluating advice

Jobs

Are you looking for an Enablement job? Check out the the latest Sales Enablement job board (brought to you by Steffaney Zohrabyan) or add yourself to the Enablement Squad Talent Directory.

Are you a hiring manager looking for great talent? Message Steffaney Zohrabyan to add your job to her job board or check the Enablement Squad Talent Directory.

Articles

• False Traits of Leadership Potential (Fast Company)
• Should You Fire a Bad Hire? (HBR Ascend on Instagram)

BooksThe First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter by Michael Watkins

"Whether you’re starting a new job, being promoted from within, embarking on an overseas assignment, or being tapped as CEO, how you manage your transition will determine whether you succeed or fail. Use this book as your trusted guide." - Amazon

Devon's rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Effortless Experience: Conquering the New Battleground for Customer Loyalty by Matthew Dixon, Nick Toman, and Rick DeLisi

"The Effortless Experience takes readers on a fascinating journey deep inside the customer experience to reveal what really makes customers loyal—and disloyal. The authors lay out the four key pillars of a low-effort customer experience, along the way delivering robust data, shocking insights and profiles of companies that are already using the principles revealed by CEB’s research, with great results. And they include many tools and templates you can start applying right away to improve service, reduce costs, decrease customer churn, and ultimately generate the elusive loyalty that the “dazzle factor” fails to deliver." - Amazon

Felix's rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

What is the best book related to Enablement you can recommend? Please share it with the other Enablers reading this newsletter in the comments below!

ReportsSE Pro: Sales Enablement Maturity Report 2022Sales Enablement Pro & WiSE Report

Key Insights:

• Practitioners are 31% more engaged in their roles when they feel that they are compensated fairly for their work.
• 18% of women surveyed are confident in negotiating salaries, compared to 54% of the men
• Organizations are 25% more likely to have high rep engagement if they focus on DE&I as an ongoing priority

Top 5 State of Sales Enablement Podcast Episodes 2022

1. Sales Methodologies with Aaron Evans
2. Effective Stakeholder Management with Devon McDermott
3. Why New Hires Cry, Fixing Sales Development, Books Worth Reading, And More (TMISE | May)
4. Strategic Talent Development with Roderick Jefferson
5. Sales Development Excellence with Mark McInnes

We are looking for podcast guests to join The State of Sales Enablement Podcast in 2023! If you are interested in sharing your expertise with the broader Sales Enablement community, please message Felix Krueger and share the following information:

• The Enablement topic you're passionate about
• What makes you an expert in this topic
• What makes your take on this topic different
• Any links to previous public appearances

The Sales Enablement Christmas Poem

written by AI language processing model ChatGPT

'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

The sales team was nestled, all snug in their beds,

While visions of quotas danced in their heads.

But up in the office, a team was at work,

Enabling the sales force with tools and with perks.

They set up the CRM, and tested the demo,

And practiced their pitches, all in a row.

The sales enablement manager sat at her desk,

Reviewing the data and taking a rest.

She knew that come morning, the team would be ready,

To close deals and hit targets, all steady and steady.

So here's to the sales enablement crew,

Who work hard all year to help the sales team renew.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night,

From the sales enablement team, all dressed in white.

Fast forward your journey to Sales Enablement mastery with The Building Blocks of Sales Enablement Learning Experience

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Steve Shorey is the global sales enablement leader at Thales, a publicly listed +€16b ($17B USD) cyber security business, and was one of the first to join The Building Blocks of Sales Enablement Learning Experience and its associated coaching sessions. 

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If you want to make 2023 your most successful enablement year yet and take advantage of the 15% discount, join The Building Blocks of Sales Enablement Learning Experience today!