Sales Against the Odds

Derrick Smith, a Co-Founder of The FireFly Group, talks about his experience in finding companies ready to grow and building teams that support the mission to scale.  

Great salespeople do more than build relationships. They know how to challenge customers, uncover real needs, and turn conversations into action.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh sits down with Larry Freedman, Founder of Inspire Impact Consulting and a sales leader with more than 30 years of experience at AstraZeneca and Sanofi. Larry shares what separates strong sales leaders from average ones, including how to balance support with accountability and coach teams to sell more consultatively.

Larry explains why product knowledge, selling skills, and relationship building all matter, and why strong relationships alone are not enough. He breaks down how sellers get stuck in the "friend zone," why listening more leads to better customer conversations, and how asking the right questions can uncover needs and move opportunities forward.

From coaching sales leaders in the field to using AI for research and targeting, Larry shares practical ways to sharpen sales execution, challenge the status quo, and help customers take action.

Key takeaways:

• Why great sales leaders balance support with accountability
• Why challenging the status quo helps customers move toward action
• How consultative selling turns relationships into business opportunities

Building a strong network requires trust, generosity, and a commitment to helping others succeed.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh sits down with Kelly Crandall, Fractional Sales Leader of Sales Xceleration and a trusted advisor known for building powerful relationships throughout the Tampa business community. Kelly shares how she transformed from being internally focused in the corporate world to becoming a recognized connector, thought leader, and resource for business owners and professionals.

Kelly explains why the best networkers lead with servant leadership, how genuine curiosity and helping others create long term trust, and why referrals should be viewed as the result of strong relationships rather than the goal of every conversation. She shares practical strategies for making meaningful introductions, following through on commitments, leveraging LinkedIn to strengthen your personal brand, and using your expertise to create value in your network.

From building strategic peer groups and finding speaking opportunities to becoming the person others want to know and connect with, this conversation provides business leaders with a roadmap for expanding their influence, strengthening their reputation, and growing their network through generosity and trust.

Key takeaways:

• Why serving others first creates stronger networks and lasting trust
• How leaders can build their brand through follow-through and expertise
• Why referrals come from relationships, not transactional networking

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:42) Kelly's journey building her personal brand at Sales Xceleration

(02:41) What makes a great connector

(04:05) Turning genuine help into real referrals

(08:22) Building your brand through social media

(10:42) What makes a good peer group

(14:50) Growing your network through speaking engagements

(23:55) Becoming the "Kevin Bacon" of your network

Connect with the team:

Kelly Crandall on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellycrandall1/ 

Lee Brumbaugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-brumbaugh-7835512b/ 

Sales Xceleration on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sales-xceleration/ 

Explore Sales Xceleration: https://salesxceleration.com/  

When customers can compare you, they can replace you.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh sits down with Scott McKain, Founder and CEO of Distinction Institute, Hall of Fame speaker and author of Beyond Distinction, to discuss what it takes to become irreplaceable in an increasingly competitive, AI-driven marketplace. Scott shares how his family’s small-town grocery store taught him that competing on price is rarely the answer. Instead, lasting growth comes from creating meaningful customer relationships and delivering an experience competitors cannot easily replicate.

Scott and Lee explore where sales teams lose sight of the customer, why differentiation only matters when customers value it, and how leaders can turn customer experience from a promise into consistent execution. They also discuss AI’s role in sales and why technology can support the work, but relationships, judgment, and experience remain critical to building lasting customer loyalty.

Key takeaways:

• Why meaningful customer relationships help businesses compete beyond price
• How aligning your promise and performance creates repeat and referral business
• Why AI should support sales relationships, not replace human judgment and connection

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:23) A small town lesson in standing out

(04:39) Building connections beyond the transaction

(05:19) Why sellers overlook the customer experience

(08:24) Breaking free from a sea of sameness

(10:21) What sellers can learn from the Savannah Bananas

(13:10) Asking questions customers actually care about

(16:08) Closing the gap between promise and performance

(17:49) Where AI ends and human wisdom begins

(21:01) When cold outreach works against you

(25:16) Turning company values into everyday behavior

(30:09) Winning with high tech and high touch

Connect with the team:

Scott McKain on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottmckain/ 

Explore Scott’s Website: https://scottmckain.com/
Explore The Distinction Group with Scott Mckain: https://thedistinctiongroup.com/ 

Explore Beyond Distinction: https://a.co/d/06Gz7wqd 

Lee Brumbaugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-brumbaugh-7835512b/ 

Sales Xceleration on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sales-xceleration/ 

Explore Sales Xceleration: https://salesxceleration.com/  

Too many business leaders rush to throw shiny new technology or AI at their operational problems, only to accelerate the friction and confusion already plaguing their organization.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh sits down with Jason Green, a 

Certified EOS Implementer in the UK for EOS Worldwide. After realizing his own ego and micro-management were strangling his company’s growth, Jason turned to EOS to scale, build intrinsic value, and successfully exit his business. Today, with over 400 full-day EOS sessions under his belt, he helps SMB leaders align their teams and break through stubborn growth ceilings.

Jason shares why founders must stop being "chief meddling officers" and step out of daily department meetings, how to build individual accountability into sales scorecards that drive healthy team competition, and the critical role of a strong Integrator in curing phantom accountability charts.

From fostering vulnerability-based trust to dig past surface symptoms and find root-cause issues, to recognizing why aligning human energy must always precede adding AI multipliers, this conversation provides small-to-midsize business leaders with a tactical blueprint for scaling without the chaos.

Key takeaways:

• Why technology and AI can’t fix broken operations and will only multiply chaos if human energy isn't aligned first
• How founders can transition from "chief meddling officers" to true leaders by trusting scorecards over attending every meeting
• How individual sales scorecards replace team-wide smoke screens and build healthy, performance-driven competition

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:24) Jason's journey from struggling founder to EOS implementer

(02:49) Helping visionaries realize when they are holding the business back

(04:19) How vulnerability and open communication unlock root-cause issue solving

(08:35) Moving from team scorecards to individual sales accountability

(13:31) Transitioning from "chief meddling officer" to a true leader

(16:40) Solving ambiguity with the accountability chart

(20:34) Why aligning human energy must happen before adding AI multipliers

Connect with the team:

Jason Green on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-green-eos/ 

Explore EOS Worldwide: https://www.eosworldwide.com/ 

Lee Brumbaugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-brumbaugh-7835512b/ 

Sales Xceleration on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sales-xceleration/ 

Explore Sales Xceleration: https://salesxceleration.com/  

The biggest breakthroughs in sales rarely come from one game-changing idea. They come from consistently applying proven principles.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh looks back at the first 20 guests who have shared their expertise on building stronger sales organizations. Lee highlights the most impactful lesson from each conversation, covering everything from leadership and culture to AI, pricing, operations, execution, and business growth.

Drawing from founders, CEOs, investors, operators, and sales experts, this episode delivers 20 practical insights that every business owner and sales leader can apply to build a more predictable, scalable business. Whether you’re refining your sales process, leading a growing team, or preparing your company for its next stage of growth, these lessons offer real-world guidance you can put into practice immediately.

Key takeaways:

• Why clarity, focus, and execution consistently outperform complexity
• How great leaders build accountability through coaching, culture, and transparency
• The common traits shared by businesses that create sustainable, predictable growth

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:34) Clarity wins in sales messaging

(02:26) Culture as a competitive advantage

(03:11) Focus on the right customers

(03:51) Coach more, manage less

(05:19) Establish value before discussing price

(05:53) Predictable growth builds enterprise value

(06:50) AI should support human judgment

(12:09) Solve root causes, not symptoms

(14:19) Adapt faster to stay competitive

Connect with the team:

Lee Brumbaugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-brumbaugh-7835512b/ 

Sales Xceleration on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sales-xceleration/ 

Explore Sales Xceleration: https://salesxceleration.com/

Most entrepreneurs treat their leadership team as an afterthought, focusing all their energy on sales and product instead of the people who actually drive sustainable growth.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh sits down with Mark O'Donnell, Visionary CEO of EOS Worldwide, a self-made entrepreneur who started 23 companies, implemented EOS through more than 500 full-day sessions with over 100 clients, and has grown EOS Worldwide roughly 500% since stepping into the CEO role in 2020.

Mark shares how an untraditional path, from homeschooling himself calculus to building a pharma business without a college degree, shaped his relentless self-reliance, why the strength of the leadership team is the single biggest predictor of a company's success, and how founders who let go of sales and marketing to focus on talent development consistently outperform their peers.

From building a scorecard that ties every number to real accountability to spotting the moment a sales leader stops owning the results, this conversation reveals how SMB leaders can build world-class teams, solve issues fast and permanently, and break through the revenue ceilings that keep so many companies stuck.

Key takeaways:

• How EOS's leadership team scorecard drives accountability, clarity, and real business results company-wide
• Why an untraditional path built the self-reliance that made Mark unstoppable, no matter the obstacle
• Why a disengaged sales leader is creating more excuses than results in your revenue meetings

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(00:54) Mark's journey from entrepreneur to EOS implementer

(03:48) How Traction and the Rockefeller Habits changed everything

(04:52) Why "doctor, heal thyself" changed his perspective

(06:06) Deciding to exit the day to day and sell his businesses

(09:19) What core focus, purpose, and movement really mean

(13:11) Why EOS is free to implement and spreads by word of mouth

(14:24) The purpose behind solving issues fast and permanently

(18:36) The elephant in the room when a leader stops owning results

(27:46) Why leadership team quality separates top performers by a country mile

Connect with the team:

Mark O’Donnell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markaodonnell/ 

Explore EOS Worldwide: https://www.eosworldwide.com/ 

Lee Brumbaugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-brumbaugh-7835512b/ 

Sales Xceleration on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sales-xceleration/ 

Explore Sales Xceleration: https://salesxceleration.com/  

The global workforce is shifting, and the smartest business leaders are finding new ways to scale their teams, cut costs, and stay ahead of AI without sacrificing culture or quality.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh sits down with David Nilssen, CEO of Doxa Talent and co-founder of Guidant Financial, a leader who has built a 1,000-person global workforce across the Philippines, Kenya, Colombia, and Vietnam while helping over 35,000 entrepreneurs secure more than $8 billion to start or buy a business.

David shares why most companies get outsourcing completely wrong, how Doxa's conscious outsourcing model drives retention and real business results, and why starting with just one overseas hire is one of the most common and costly mistakes small business owners make.

From leveraging LinkedIn with a human-in-the-loop AI strategy to building remote teams that outperform their in-office counterparts, this conversation reveals how SMB leaders can think more strategically about global talent, AI adoption, and the leadership gaps that keep companies stuck at the same revenue ceiling year after year.

Key takeaways:

• Why starting with just one outsourced hire is a costly mistake and what the data says you should do instead
• How Doxa's conscious outsourcing model drives retention, culture, and real business results across global teams
• Why AI without human judgment is creating more noise than pipeline in your LinkedIn and sales outreach

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:18) David's story behind founding Doxa Talent

(03:45) What makes Doxa's conscious outsourcing model different

(06:07) How Doxa trains clients to manage remote global teams

(07:32) Managing client relationships and ensuring team performance

(08:07) How overseas talent can directly impact your sales organization

(16:44) Why LinkedIn outreach fails and how to fix it with a human-in-the-loop AI strategy

(19:49) How AI is transforming Doxa's recruiting, marketing, and operations

(21:27) Why SMBs are getting busier with AI tools but not more strategic

(25:33) How Guidant Financial helps entrepreneurs fund their startups

Connect with the team:

David Nilssen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidnilssen/ 

Explore Doxa Talent: https://doxatalent.com/ 

Explore Guidant Financial: https://www.guidantfinancial.com/ 

Lee Brumbaugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-brumbaugh-7835512b/ 

Sales Xceleration on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sales-xceleration/ 

Explore Sales Xceleration: https://salesxceleration.com/ 

Non-profit leadership is transforming, and forward-thinking executives are finding new ways to grow impact, attract resources, and run their organizations like businesses.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh sits down with Karen Mozenter, CEO of Jewish Family Services in Columbus, Ohio, and a leader who has spent nearly a decade scaling a human services agency through entrepreneurial thinking, strategic relationship-building, and community-driven innovation.

Karen shares why nonprofits are far more business-savvy than people realize, how her organization leverages board members and relationship mapping to open doors with companies and donors, and why every staff member, from the receptionist to the senior leadership team, plays a critical role in telling the organization's story.

From navigating a rapidly changing funding landscape to building a fee-for-service workforce development model that competes with the private sector, this conversation reveals how mission-driven leaders can think like salespeople, create real economic impact, and grow sustainably, even when the rules keep changing.

Key takeaways:

• Why nonprofits must think and operate like businesses to survive in today's funding environment
• How relationship mapping with board members and staff unlocks doors to companies, donors, and community leaders
• Why every person in your organization is part of your sales and growth strategy

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:38) Karen’s unconventional career path to nonprofit leadership

(02:26) What Jewish Family Services does and who they serve

(04:02) What people get wrong about the nonprofit world

(05:04) Why everything a nonprofit does is sales

(06:21) How board members become champions and open doors

(10:13) Empowering every staff member to be part of the mission

(14:07) Building a value proposition that competes with the private sector

(15:03) Pivoting to a fee-for-service model as grants dry up

(20:46) Using storytelling and community education to build brand awareness

Connect with the team:

Karen Mozenter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenmozenter/ 

Explore Jewish Family Services: https://jfscolumbus.org/ 

Lee Brumbaugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-brumbaugh-7835512b/ 

Sales Xceleration on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sales-xceleration/ 

Explore Sales Xceleration: https://salesxceleration.com/

B2B networking is evolving rapidly, and top professionals are discovering new ways to connect and grow.

In this episode of Sales Against the Odds, host Lee Brumbaugh sits down with Donnie Boivin, CEO and Founder of Success Champion Networking (SCN), and expert in building high-impact B2B referral networks. They explore how business owners and fractional executives can leverage strategic relationships, trust-building, and intentional networking to accelerate growth without relying on transactional approaches.

Donnie shares why connecting through the right referral partners creates sustainable opportunities, how a structured “virtual coffee” process drives meaningful engagement, and how going deep in relationships builds long-term trust that fuels business development.

From mapping networks to executing events that generate real connections, this conversation shows how professionals can expand influence, create value for others, and grow their business while maintaining focus on what matters most.

Key takeaways:

• Why connecting through the right partners and focusing on trust drives sustainable results
• How B2B professionals can build strategic referral networks to accelerate growth
• How structured approaches like virtual coffees create repeatable opportunities and long-term relationships

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(02:11) Transition from transactional to B2B networking

(03:50) Launch and growth of Success Champion Networking

(06:13) Building early traction through referral partners

(08:40) The givers gain philosophy vs mutual respect approach

(12:24) Virtual coffee process for meaningful networking

(16:03) Networking experiment: building from zero in Houston

(19:31) Long-term relationship building for business owners

(21:27) Overview of the Badass Business Summit and value for attendees

Connect with the team:

Donnie Boivin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donnieboivin/ 

Explore Success Champion Networking (SCN): https://successchampionnetworking.com/ 

Lee Brumbaugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-brumbaugh-7835512b/ 

Sales Xceleration on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sales-xceleration/ 

Explore Sales Xceleration: https://salesxceleration.com/