Revenue Enablement Society - Stories From The Trenches

Amanda Whiteside is a trailblazer for Enablement at Freshworks and has made significant strides in transforming the field while championing female empowerment.  She highlights the importance of building credibility for enablement to secure organizational support and stresses the need to align initiatives with business outcomes.  Amanda also recognizes the unique challenges of global enablement, emphasizing the importance of prioritization and tailoring content to different teams.  She believes leveraging technology and AI can significantly enhance the enablement process and underscores the critical role of collaboration between marketing and enablement.  For aspiring leaders, she advises focusing on understanding stakeholder pain points to drive success.

With over 15 years of experience driving transformative initiatives for Fortune 100 companies, Amanda is currently the Global Vice President of Revenue Enablement at Freshworks, the leading provider of Cloud-based Customer Engagement software. In this role, she leads high-impact teams to create customer-centric solutions that deliver measurable growth.

Be sure to subscribe and follow the Revenue Enablement Society on LinkedIn for exciting announcements about what's next for the podcast!

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How has the role of sales enablement transformed since its early days, and what does this mean for the future? Join me for my final episode of "Stories from the Trenches" as I sit down with Juliana Stancampiano, CEO of Oxygen and former board president of the Revenue Enablement Society (RES). 

We trace Sales/Revenue Enablement's transition from traditional sales training to the more holistic approach of modern sales enablement, emphasizing the diverse backgrounds of professionals in the field.  We dive into the critical role of organized processes, clear metrics, and continuous learning in driving sales performance and discuss the importance of educating senior executives about effective enablement and the impact of new technology on the field.  

Be sure to subscribe and follow the Revenue Enablement Society on LinkedIn for exciting announcements about what's next for the podcast!

As this is my final episode as producer and host, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to all my guests and listeners. Thank you all for being integral to this incredible journey with "Stories from the Trenches."

Juliana Stancampiano is an author, entrepreneur, and leader helping businesses prepare their people for what happens next. For more than 15 years, she has helped leaders translate their company’s strategy into tangible achievements for their people, creating experiences that help people succeed. As CEO of Oxygen, Juliana has developed a unique perspective around the enablement, skilling and ways of educating the workforce of today. Juliana also held the Board Presidency for the Sales Enablement Society from 2019-2022.

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Have you ever wondered why some sales teams consistently hit their targets while others struggle? Keenan, CEO of A Sales Growth Company and acclaimed author behind "Gap Selling," rejoins me on the podcast to unravel the secrets of enabling high-performing sales teams with his innovative S.P.E.E.D. model. 

Gain insights into creating enablement impact by prioritizing actual sales performance outcomes and aligning strategies with critical business metrics sales leadership uses. 

Learn about integrating the three layers of training, skill development, and forecasting into your enablement framework and how to embrace the shift from traditional enablement to a results-driven approach. With the S.P.E.E.D. model, enablement teams will empower sales teams to succeed by focusing on what truly matters—the tangible impact on business metrics and organizational growth. 

Keenan and I unpack:

• The details behind the S.P.E.E.D model and why it works
• The three layers of S.P.E.E.D. that align enablement to revenue success
•  The critical sales metrics all Enablement teams need to internalize
• How to assess the current state, identify gaps, and make improvements

Keenan is the CEO/president and chief antagonist of A Sales Growth Company. With over 20 years of sales experience, he has long influenced, learned from, and shaped the sales world. Keenan calls it as he sees it and lets nothing and no one go unnoticed. 

He is the celebrated author of Not Taught: What It Takes to be Successful in the 21st Century That Nobody’s Teaching You and Gap Selling: Getting the Customer to Yes: How Problem-Centric Selling Increases Sales by Changing Everything You Know About Relationships, Overcoming Objections, Closing and Price.

Gap Selling has been voted among the sales community as one of the best sales books ever.

Father of 3 amazing girls, PSIA Certified Level 2 ski instructor (see, more coaching), and avid Boston sports fan, Keenan keeps crazy busy when he’s not focused on A Sales Growth Company.

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None of us is as smart as all of us. Engaging with peer groups and industry networks can accelerate your career, enhance your skills, and provide invaluable professional development.

In this episode, we explore the transformative  power of communities and personal networks with Stephanie White, Sr. Director of Revenue Enablement at Medallia. Stephanie highlights the tangible benefits she's gained from participating in various revenue enablement communities, fostering a sense of belonging and camraderie. 

Whether you're looking to tackle complex challenges, stay ahead of industry trends, or simply connect with like minded professionals this episode is your roadmap to leveraging and growing your professional network.

Join us and hear how to unlock the potential of community-driven growth in your career!

Stephanie White is the Sr. Director, Revenue Enablement at Medallia. For Stephanie, Revenue Enablement is People Enablement, driving revenue and impact strategically to scale.  With 20 years of experience in Sales, Marketing, Enablement, Operations building and scaling teams of passionate people to drive revenue is at the core of her approach.

A people focused enabler by nature, Stephanie thrives on engaging, connecting and learning with others. 

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This episode features Tim Riesterer, Emblaze's Chief Research Officer, and Chris Kingman of the RES board, sharing their observations from the Emblaze conference earlier this month.

Tim and Chris delve into details about insights and practical strategies shared by speakers and panels on integrating enablement . They also discuss the undeniable impact of strategic enablement, when it aligns perfectly with company revenue objectives. 

You'll hear their insights on:

• The digital transformation in Sales
• Enablement driven by intiative
• The role of AI in sales coaching
• The critical role of customer feedback
• The evolution of sales discovery

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My guest  Sibusiso Msomi is a sales enablement pioneer in South Africa and in this episode we explore his career evolution and what he learned when making the strategic shift sales training to sales enablement:

• How shifting from sales training to sales enablement to provide more comprehensive solutions that integrate training, tools, and processes, enhancing overall sales effectiveness and what that looks like.
• How engagement with clients has evolved from focusing solely on skills to aligning sales strategies with broader business outcomes.
• Results,  positive outcomes and improved sales metrics since moving into sales enablement.
• The introduction, reception and evolution of sales enablement in Africa.

This episode provides valuable insights into the strategic implementation of sales enablement and its growing impact on global and African markets.

Sibusiso Msomi is a dynamic and visionary entrepreneur deeply entrenched in the field of sales and business development, recognized particularly for his contributions to the sales enablement sector. 

As the founder of the Sales Enablement Company, he has markedly contributed to the
enhancement of sales practices in numerous organizations, ranging from fledgling startups to established, publicly-traded companies. 

 Sibusiso’s approach  involves a holistic review of the client's sales processes, including training methodologies, content management, and technology adoption in order to tailor a comprehensive sales enablement strategy.

Sibusiso is also the chapter leader of the Revenue Enablement Society in Africa. 

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In this episode, Alex Berry, co-founder of 42AI an AI-powered company that revolutionizes customer insight discovery, joins me in discussing the transformation of go-to-market strategies. We discuss why Sales Development Reps (SDRs) must break out from the current hyper-specialization to succeed in the competitive sales environment.

Alex shares his insights on how diverse backgrounds can help SDRs connect with customers on a personal level. He maps out a path to gaining a wider business acumen lens, which is critical to sales success. This episode provides ideas  for enabling and developing the essential traits that can set SDRs apart from the rest.

Alexander Berry is the cofounder & COO of 42ai, the AI Analyst for Revenue Operations and the teams they serve. Alex founded 42ai last year with Hugh Hopkins, with the aim of reducing the significant burden on teams like Revenue Operations by using AI to perform a growing number of analytical tasks on their behalf. 

He has worked in Saas & Paas businesses for more than a decade, running sales, partnerships, enablement and operations teams in EMEA and the Americas.

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How do you balance the potential of AI to impact revenue generation, sort through the hype and be strategic in your deployment of AI? Join me as I sit down with Dayna Williams, and we peel back the layers of AI's role in the future of sales and delve into the intricate dance between leveraging cutting-edge tools and staying true to the timeless principles of sound business practices. 

We tackle the challenges faced by sales teams and explore how they can navigate the pressures of consistent performance while adopting a disciplined approach to innovation. 

Dayna shares her seasoned perspective on avoiding the pitfalls of jumping onto the latest tech trends without a game plan.

Some of the actionable insights she shares in this episode:

• What's missing from the hype and the headlines?
• Elements of a readiness plan or blueprint
• Where and how to begin

Dayna Williams is the author of "The Diligence Fix" which explores what happens when we strive for revenue growth. Her ideas come from advising sales leaders in the areas of internal communication, integrated training, change methodology and making customer feedback actionable. Dayna is also an experienced content and conference producer who lives in the Philadelphia area with her husband and five rescue dogs.

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Get ready to accelerate your revenue enablement success with insights from Forrester VP and Principal Analyst, Peter Ostrow. 

Recently Peter joined me to unpack the potential of AI to transform Revenue Enablement efficiencies and results. If your Sales Enablement budget is like most the team is understaffed and underfunded while juggling competing priorities.

Listen now to hear how you can use AI tools you already own to maximize their impact on every facet of your enablement programs, from RFP analysis to tailoring pitch-perfect emails.

Peter Ostrow is currently VP, Principal Analyst at Forrester B2B Sales. Peter capitalizes on 20+ years of revenue growth leadership in sales enablement, sales talent management, and operational expertise. Prior to joining SiriusDecisions and Forrester, Peter was a VP/Research Group Director for the Aberdeen Group, where he founded and was Principal Analyst for the Sales Effectiveness Practice, as well as overseeing research in marketing, customer success, field service and human capital management disciplines.  Prior to his analyst work, he was a long-time B2B sales rep, manager, and enabler.Since 2020, Peter has served on the board of directors of the Sales Enablement Society, the largest and only nonprofit organization dedicated to the sales enablement profession.

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In this episode with I discuss the critical partnership between Rev Ops and Rev Enablement with Sandy Robinson,  SVP of Revenue Operations and Enablement at Patra Corporation. Sandy shares her experiences and ways to unlock  the synergies between these two teams regardless of where they report. Some of the topics we covered:

• How Rev Ops and Enablement ideally partner
• Successful change management
• Systems selection and deployment
• Metrics and reporting

Sandy brings over 20 years of experience in sales, leadership, training, enablement, and revenue operations to the industry. She has a proven track record of driving revenue growth and optimizing operations through data-driven insights and innovative solutions. She has led sales teams to exceed targets, developed go-to-market strategies, and implemented scalable processes to drive growth. 

Sandy's mission is to enable teams through intense focus on the complete customer buying journey related to systems, tools, training, and processes. Sandy enjoys mentoring younger women, helping them to navigate their careers, and setting an example for other women in her field.

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