Why Sales Leaders Must Implement a Holistic Approach to Technology with Dan Cilley
In this episode, Jeff speaks with Dan Cilley, the CEO of Vendor Neutral, which is a company that helps organizations with sales technology identification, selection, integration, onboarding, and adoption. Dan believes that too many internal teams are busy talking but not communicating with each other, which produces silos within those organizations, leading to poor communication and ultimately failed digital transformation initiatives. He shares his recommendation to ensure that all software platforms are integrated and aligned with one another.
They also discuss how many sales leaders think about new technology in terms of workflow, but often fail to integrate it into a larger system. They agree that tech acquisitions are often done in silos, which can lead to the technology becoming shelfware and they argue that a more holistic approach is needed, one that takes into account the entire company ecosystem and how different technologies can work together.
Listen to the discussion on digital selling and how it connects with the modern buyer, the importance of having a sales playbook that is aligned with technology in order to be successful, and the importance of educating channel partners so they can sell successfully. Find out why sales and marketing teams need to work together closely with transparency and communication to be successful and learn why senior leadership is typically the champion or catalyst for change within an organization when it comes to digital transformation. Discover why it is important to define the sales process first and then think about what technology will actually help move the needle forward at each stage of the process. Technology should be integrated into a single strategy, rather than having multiple isolated technologies that do not communicate with each other.
Episode Highlights
10:43 – If you really want to truly transform your business through technology, you need to align to process, process, process. I have an equation we use and I share this sometimes in social media and a lot with our clients: New tech plus old process equals expensive old process. You have to really think ahead and think about what technology is actually going to move that needle.
22:31 – Often your team has office access to a knowledge base, a lot of content, a lot of resources, and the channel has a unique capability and a unique level of access sometimes. So, we have to make sure that they are equal, and that the channel and your internal team have the same resources, have the same capability at the end of the day.
31:55 – I think sales technology organizations realize they never wanted to want a tech stack of that size. So there you see a lot more consolidation in the sales tech market. And I think you’ve seen that, especially over the last few years, when it comes to sales enablement, technology, sales engagement, or prospect engagement technologies, you know, they’re now integrated into single platforms, you’re even seeing data integrated into those platforms as well.
Episode Takeaways:
- Top reasons digital transformation projects fail for the salesforce: https://vendorneutral.com/3-red-flags-for-failing-sales-saas-ecosystems/
- How should leadership be addressing the necessary culture change it takes for sellers to effectively adopt new technology and/or a digital-first sales approach
- How and why an organization should conduct a tech stack audit in order to have an optimize revenue tech stack. Walk us through the process: https://vendorneutral.com/3-stage-sales-saas-procurement-readiness-test/
- What are the most common problems when it comes to aligning the sales and marketing organization from a technology standpoint: https://vendorneutral.com/triage-sales-tech-stress-and-eliminate-it/
- How should sales leaders be thinking about adding new sales tech that will actually enable sellers not add more complexity to their workflow: https://resources.vendorneutral.com/sales-technology-buyers-roadmap
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Dan Cilley