True Confessions of a Sales Leader

In this episode of "True Confessions of a Sales Leader," host Scott Olsen sits down with Lee Blakemore, CEO, and Justin Picciano, Vice President of Sales and Customer Success at IntroHive, a leading customer intelligence company. Lee and Justin share their wealth of experience and practical insights on navigating the complex world of B2B sales, from the importance of consistently hitting sales forecasts to the untapped potential of sales teams as "market scouts." The discussion also delves into the challenges of gaining access to decision-makers and the crucial role of building strong relationships while leveraging data and technology. Throughout the conversation, Lee and Justin offer valuable perspectives on effective collaboration, balancing data-driven insights with human intuition, and the key qualities that define successful sales leadership. This episode is a must-listen for any sales leader looking to unlock B2B sales success and drive organizational growth.

In this episode of "True Confessions of a Sales Leader," we sit down with Ryan George, the visionary founder and CEO of Simpleview, who shares his remarkable journey of building a company that has revolutionized the destination marketing industry. From navigating the challenges of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008-2009 financial crisis to adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic and the shift to remote work, Ryan's story is one of resilience, adaptability, and unwavering commitment to customer success. He shares invaluable insights on fostering a culture of adaptability, embracing a data mindset, and cultivating collaboration and balance within an organization. Whether you're a seasoned sales leader or an aspiring entrepreneur, this episode is packed with actionable wisdom and inspiration to help you navigate the ever-evolving business landscape and achieve long-term success. Don't miss this opportunity to learn from one of the most innovative and successful leaders in the industry!

In this episode of True Confessions of a Sales Leader, host Scott Olsen sits down with Tom O'Keefe, a seasoned executive who shares his captivating journey from sales leader to CEO. Tom emphasizes the importance of embracing curiosity and adaptability in achieving success and offers valuable insights on continuous learning, surrounding yourself with talented people, staying adaptive to technology, and finding the right fit as a leader. Listeners will gain inspiration and discover practical takeaways to apply to their own careers in sales and beyond.

This episode of "True Confessions of a Sales Leader" features Joe Belenardo, CRO of Anthology, sharing invaluable insights from his extensive career in sales leadership. Drawing from over three decades of experience, Joe delves into the principles of servant leadership, trust, empowerment, and the significance of personal growth for building high-performing teams. His journey from the early days at IBM to leading sales at Anthology highlights the importance of adaptability and building strong relationships within teams and with clients. Joe's real-world examples and strategies offer a roadmap for sales leaders looking to navigate the complexities of modern sales environments and drive their teams to success.

In this episode of “True Confessions of a Sales Leader,” we explore how to create a successful sales team and scale it to grow and perform within the company. We’re excited with this episode’s guest, Henry Schuck co-founder, CEO, and Chairman of the Board of ZoomInfo. Henry joins Scott Olsen, founder of the Olsen Group, and Gary Brashear, managing partner of the Olsen Group. If you don’t know the story behind ZoomInfo, it’s a great success story. Henry co-founded the company (formerly DiscoverOrg) in 2007 in his law school dorm and has been growing the successful company ever since. Last summer, ZoomInfo became a Nasdaq-listed company and is one of the dominant players in the sales enablement technology space.Listen in to find out how Henry got on the path to build his sales teams and how he continues to do so today. 

In our first episode of the new season, we tackle a growing problem not only facing sales organizations but entire companies—keeping your team intact.Our guest is Scott Campbell, Senior VP at Sales at Docker, who has been responsible for ramping up a new sales team in 2021. Scott joins (our own) Scott Olsen, founder of the Olsen Group, and Gary Brashear, managing partner of the Olsen Group. You’ve read the headlines about the mass exodus of employees or perhaps you’re struggling to keep or attract a talented sales team. Hired just over a year ago, Scott has been responsible for building a new sales team —90% of the team are new hires. So, how do you attract new talent like this? Listen in as we discuss what Scott has accomplished and how to implement your own changes to recruit sales rock stars. 

Welcome to our new segment, Sales Leader Q&A with Dr. Ruff. These are short segments with our sales coaching expert, Dr. Richard Ruff, where we provide quick and actionable tips that you can take and implement with your sales team right away.Our seventh segment focuses on how buyers are going through a period of change, and sales people need to adapt to this change. Now more then ever, circumstances are often out of a salesperson's control that cause a deal not to close. But sometimes having inaction during these times is the cause, and should be remedied by having a explicit conversation with the client on customer at the right time, before it's too late.

Welcome to our new segment, Sales Leader Q&A with Dr. Ruff. These are short segments with our sales coaching expert, Dr. Richard Ruff, where we provide quick and actionable tips that you can take and implement with your sales team right away.Our sixth segment focuses on the power of listening in the sales process. The best sales people talk less, and spend time trying to understand the customer's problems and issues first. It's important that sales people and the customer have the same vision of the problem before jumping in with any type of dialogue about a solution.

Welcome to our new segment, Sales Leader Q&A with Dr. Ruff. These are short segments with our sales coaching expert, Dr. Richard Ruff, where we provide quick and actionable tips that you can take and implement with your sales team right away.Our fifth segment focuses on what it means to sell "value". Selling isn't about pitching products, it's about you and the customer finding a shared vision for what the value of the product is for the customer. In this segment, Dr. Ruff discusses two ways that help you and your customer find this shared vision.

Welcome to our new segment, Sales Leader Q&A with Dr. Ruff. These are short segments with our sales coaching expert, Dr. Richard Ruff, where we provide quick and actionable tips that you can take and implement with your sales team right away.Our fourth segment focuses on why focusing on your salesperson's strengths are the perfect gateway to  coaching their deficiencies. By providing compliments and acknowledging the persons strengths, it makes critical remarks palatable, and more importantly increases the chances that the coaching direction is actually heard and implemented by your salespeople.