What would it mean for your business if your sellers stopped selling and started making an impact?

Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group and host of Think Big, Win Bigger, brings back serial entrepreneur and Horizons West co-founder John Giese for Part 2 of their two-part Ambition series. In Part 1, John and Dennis broke down how leaders see opportunity that others miss and why structure and accountability are what separate ambition from results. Part 2 goes deeper. John's conviction here is simple: winning never sleeps, most people are afraid to tap into the frequency, and intent—real intent—is what separates the sellers who leave opportunity on the table from the ones who change the size of their companies entirely.

About the Show

Resources:

"I was the typical sales guy. Yeah, I'll just go get it. I know everything. And I was successful, but I would have been deadly had I had this operational framework." - John Giese

What happens when an $8.5 million company decides to pursue a $900 million contract—and wins half of it in 24 months? That's where this conversation starts. John and Dennis break down why most companies operate off of hope instead of opportunity, why the companies John advises can't see what's possible in front of them, and how slowing down—really slowing down—is exactly what unlocks bigger outcomes. From guerrilla-warfare CEO instincts to the discipline of trusting the process, this is what ambition looks like when it has a plan behind it.

Think Big. Win Bigger is hosted by Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group, a strategic partner for companies seeking to optimize sales performance and achieve sustainable growth. With deep expertise in enterprise sales and fractional CRO leadership, Dennis specializes in addressing challenges at the point of friction—where inefficiencies, misalignment, or resistance occur within the sales process.

The podcast is built on Process-Driven Sales and the three pillars of Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. Each episode breaks down the systems and operating rhythms that drive predictable performance, giving leaders and sellers practical insights they can use immediately. This is for professionals who are ready to stop improvising, start operating with intention, and build repeatable success over time.

John Giese LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-giese/

Cove Group

When was the last time your sellers stepped back far enough to actually see the full potential of their territory — or have they been too busy fighting uphill toward a number to ever look?

Building directly on the ambition thinking framework from Episode 5, Dennis moves from mindset into mechanics — walking through the exact white space exercise he uses with clients, the simple spreadsheet structure behind it, and why "writing things down makes them real." He covers the 80/15/5 account prioritization rule, how to identify hidden revenue across buying centers, and how the law of large numbers creates confidence in your ROI story. He also connects white space directly to the "go high, wide, and deep" relationship strategy that drives executive engagement and positions sellers as strategic partners — not vendors.

Think Big. Win Bigger is hosted by Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group, a strategic partner for companies seeking to optimize sales performance and achieve sustainable growth. With deep expertise in enterprise sales and fractional CRO leadership, Dennis specializes in addressing challenges at the point of friction—where inefficiencies, misalignment, or resistance occur within the sales process.

The podcast is built on Process-Driven Sales and the three pillars of Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. Each episode breaks down the systems and operating rhythms that drive predictable performance, giving leaders and sellers practical insights they can use immediately. This is for professionals who are ready to stop improvising, start operating with intention, and build repeatable success over time.

Dennis Sorenson: LinkedInCove Group

Are you building a pipeline strong enough to survive when one or two deals go sideways — or are you one bad quarter away from desperation mode?

This episode covers the Roger Enrico principle — beware of the tyranny of making small changes to small things — and why sellers who play incrementally trap themselves in fragile pipelines and desperation mode. Dennis introduces his mountain metaphor for understanding total account potential, explains the difference between what's real and what's merely realistic, and walks through the critical discovery question: "What would have to be true?" He closes with a concrete time investment model — 80% of effort to your top accounts, 15% to the middle tier, 5% to the rest — and a clear challenge to every seller: divorce your ambition from your quota, and compete for what's real.

Think Big. Win Bigger is hosted by Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group, a strategic partner for companies seeking to optimize sales performance and achieve sustainable growth. With deep expertise in enterprise sales and fractional CRO leadership, Dennis specializes in addressing challenges at the point of friction—where inefficiencies, misalignment, or resistance occur within the sales process.

The podcast is built on Process-Driven Sales and the three pillars of Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. Each episode breaks down the systems and operating rhythms that drive predictable performance, giving leaders and sellers practical insights they can use immediately. This is for professionals who are ready to stop improvising, start operating with intention, and build repeatable success over time.

Books Referenced:

How Champions Think — Dr. Bob Rotella

Golf Is Not A Game of Perfect — Dr. Bob Rotella

Dennis Sorenson: LinkedIn

Cove Group

Elite athletes don't walk onto the field and improvise. Why are so many sellers doing exactly that every single day?

Dennis breaks down what genuine practice looks like for sellers: rehearsing the plan until it's second nature, building a sales story flexible enough to adapt to any persona, and attacking every weakness in a presentation before the customer gets the chance. He shifts to Play — knowing your next right shot, maintaining two-thirds focus on offense, and executing the OODA Loop (Observe, Orient, Decide, Act), a framework borrowed from the U.S. Air Force. The closing message is direct: trust the preparation, execute the plan, and compete with purpose. "From planning preparation and practice it becomes stronger it becomes more natural it becomes easier and it's more fun."

Think Big. Win Bigger is hosted by Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group, a strategic partner for companies seeking to optimize sales performance and achieve sustainable growth. With deep expertise in enterprise sales and fractional CRO leadership, Dennis specializes in addressing challenges at the point of friction—where inefficiencies, misalignment, or resistance occur within the sales process.

The podcast is built on Process-Driven Sales and the three pillars of Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. Each episode breaks down the systems and operating rhythms that drive predictable performance, giving leaders and sellers practical insights they can use immediately. This is for professionals who are ready to stop improvising, start operating with intention, and build repeatable success over time.

Dennis Sorenson: LinkedIn

Cove Group

If your sales team is only spending 30% of their time inside the sales process, what exactly are they doing with the other 70%?

Dennis Deal Sorenson is the CEO of Cove Group and the host of Think Big, Win Bigger — a podcast for leaders and sellers who know they're capable of more but are tired of improvising their way through growth. In Episode 3, Dennis dives into the first two pillars of a process-driven sales system: Plan and Prepare. His core conviction? The best sellers don't wing it. They build ambition, define total account potential, and anchor their strategy in a clear, disciplined plan — because winning starts long before you play the game.

Dennis breaks down how intentional preparation — research, messaging, and sales assets — creates confidence and control before you ever step onto the field. He reveals why so many teams are spending as little as 30% of their time inside the process, what it means to be "productively selfish" with your calendar, and why leaders themselves are often the first to abandon discipline when the pressure hits. If you want predictable, scalable sales results, this episode shows exactly where to start.

Think Big. Win Bigger is hosted by Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group, a strategic partner for companies seeking to optimize sales performance and achieve sustainable growth. With deep expertise in enterprise sales and fractional CRO leadership, Dennis specializes in addressing challenges at the point of friction—where inefficiencies, misalignment, or resistance occur within the sales process.

The podcast is built on Process-Driven Sales and the three pillars of Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. Each episode breaks down the systems and operating rhythms that drive predictable performance, giving leaders and sellers practical insights they can use immediately. This is for professionals who are ready to stop improvising, start operating with intention, and build repeatable success over time.

Dennis Sorenson: LinkedIn

Cove Group

What would happen if your sales organization became the competitor that keeps everyone else up at night?

Dennis Sorenson shares his sales journey from NCR and Teradata to founding Cove Group and building Horizons West. His philosophy was shaped by Mike Weinberg's books and NCR's rigorous sales school. What transformed his approach? Two game-changers: ambition and execution. Dennis learned that "whoever has the strongest process wins" and that "greatness isn't random greatness—that's something that's built through repeatable excellence." Today, through Horizons West, he helps sales teams escape the commodity trap.

This episode breaks down the pillars of process-driven sales: ambition, strategy, and execution. Dennis explores why strategic account plans end up collecting dust and how to build them for sellers, not just management reviews. He tackles the survival mode trap where teams compete only on price. What does it take to build a winning sales culture? Dennis reveals the importance of writing down your vision, establishing a growth mindset, and creating systems that are predictable, repeatable, and scalable. The four Ps—plan, prepare, practice, play—frame the path forward.

Think Big. Win Bigger is hosted by Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group, a strategic partner for companies seeking to optimize sales performance and achieve sustainable growth. With deep expertise in enterprise sales and fractional CRO leadership, Dennis specializes in addressing challenges at the point of friction—where inefficiencies, misalignment, or resistance occur within the sales process.

The podcast is built on Process-Driven Sales and the three pillars of Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. Each episode breaks down the systems and operating rhythms that drive predictable performance, giving leaders and sellers practical insights they can use immediately. This is for professionals who are ready to stop improvising, start operating with intention, and build repeatable success over time.

Dennis Sorenson: LinkedInCove Group

Why are your best salespeople only competing for 10% of the available market—and what would change if they went after all of it?

Dennis Sorenson launches Think Big, Win Bigger with longtime mentor and sales thought leader Mike Weinberg, bestselling author of "Sales Management. Simplified." and "New Sales. Simplified." Weinberg brings decades of frontline selling and sales management expertise to this raw conversation about building real businesses before building brands. The two dissect Dennis's unconventional path—from enterprise sales leader to building Cove Group without a website or marketing presence—and why that sequence matters. Mike's core belief? Sales is noble when your motivation is pure, and you're fighting for client outcomes, not commissions.

This episode unpacks the frameworks that separate average performers from dominant players: the 4 Ps of execution, GOST planning discipline, and what it really means to be process-driven. Why do most salespeople chase quota instead of total market potential? How do you build sales muscle that scales across continents? The conversation moves from philosophical—sales as a noble profession—to tactical, covering everything from micromanagement myths to why your top producers should be demanding time with you. Dennis and Mike dig into what's working in 2025 and the hard strategic calls leaders need to make now.

Share with a sales leader or seller who's ready to build something that lasts. Subscribe to hear all future episodes!

Think Big. Win Bigger is hosted by Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group, a strategic partner for companies seeking to optimize sales performance and achieve sustainable growth. With deep expertise in enterprise sales and fractional CRO leadership, Dennis specializes in addressing challenges at the point of friction—where inefficiencies, misalignment, or resistance occur within the sales process.

The podcast is built on Process-Driven Sales and the three pillars of Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. Each episode breaks down the systems and operating rhythms that drive predictable performance, giving leaders and sellers practical insights they can use immediately. This is for professionals who are ready to stop improvising, start operating with intention, and build repeatable success over time.

Mike Weinberg:

Dennis Sorenson: LinkedIn

Cove Group

Why do some sales teams consistently outperform while others struggle despite having talented people who work hard? The answer isn't luck—it's the operating system.

Welcome to the Think Big. Win Bigger podcast with host Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group. This isn't another sales podcast full of motivational speeches and theoretical frameworks. This is about the practical, repeatable systems that separate consistently high-performing sales teams from everyone else.

Most sales teams lose because they're reacting—operating deal to deal, quarter to quarter, without a reliable system. They're improvising their way through growth. The difference comes down to three core pillars: Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. When these elements work together within a process-driven framework, they transform how teams identify opportunities, compete for strategic deals, and deliver predictable results.

Dennis brings years of enterprise sales leadership and his work as a Fractional CRO to this podcast, sharing real lessons from the field. Each episode will break down how real performance is built—covering sales leadership, operating rhythms, value pricing, strategic account planning, and what it takes to perform when the pressure's on. You'll hear what works, what breaks, and how strong teams build repeatable success over time. No fluff, no shortcuts—just practical insights you can apply immediately.

If you're a sales leader or seller who knows you're capable of more but tired of inconsistent results and unclear direction, this podcast is for you. It's time to stop reacting and start operating with intention.

Think Big. Win Bigger is hosted by Dennis Sorenson, CEO of Cove Group, a strategic partner for companies seeking to optimize sales performance and achieve sustainable growth. With deep expertise in enterprise sales and fractional CRO leadership, Dennis specializes in addressing challenges at the point of friction—where inefficiencies, misalignment, or resistance occur within the sales process.

The podcast is built on Process-Driven Sales and the three pillars of Ambition, Strategy, and Execution. Each episode breaks down the systems and operating rhythms that drive predictable performance, giving leaders and sellers practical insights they can use immediately. This is for professionals who are ready to stop improvising, start operating with intention, and build repeatable success over time.

Dennis Sorenson: LinkedIn

Cove Group

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