When you need a virtual pep talk, an incisive breakdown of current trends in sales enablement, or an inspiring anecdote from an industry leader, look no further than LinkedIn. However, we’ll also be the first to admit that LinkedIn can be a flaming hotbed of dubious thought leaders, green-hued subject experts, and self-crowned influencers.
It’s easy to waste your time navigating a constant stream of promotional posts, surveys, and memes that fill your feed faster than your morning coffee refill. But, don’t you worry, we’re here to help. We've scoured the trenches and shortlisted 15 sales enablement influencers who are more than worthy of your attention on LinkedIn, and beyond.
1. Aaron Evans
Co-Founder & Head of Training and Enablement, Flow State
Talks about #sales, #salestips, #salescoaching, #salestraining, and #salesenablement
Aaron was named one of the Top 20 Global Sales Enablement Influencers in 2020. And here he is, making our list in 2022. Aaron is the co-founder of Flow State, a B2B sales performance consulting firm to make selling effortless, enjoyable, and energizing.
His LinkedIn feed reflects his love for sales and the zeal to help others. You can find him writing about the history of sales methodologies, discussing the difference between fixed and growth mindsets, and sharing snippets from his popular podcast, Selling with Flow. There’s a lot you can learn from Aaron.
Flex-worthy Fact: Aaron is a qualified coach and practitioner of Neuro-linguistic Programming (NLP) and Neuro-Semantics.
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“It is important to note that nothing of any real value was ever achieved without pressure. Organisations have a responsibility to manage the pressure on their employees BUT not remove it all together! Imagine an exam without any time limit? What would happen?” Aaron Evans |
Follow Aaron Evans on LinkedIn
2. Ben Cotton
Global Enablement Lead, Google Cloud
Talks about #salesenablement, #revenueenablement, #inboundmarketing, and #salesmarketingalignment
Ben Cotton brings deep knowledge of the sales and marketing strategies of global technology firms such as Google, HubSpot, and Automation Anywhere. And, he shares his wisdom generously, whether as a speaker at different events, through his excellent book (The Sales Enablement Handbook), or via posts on his website.
Follow Ben on LinkedIn for practical and insightful content – such as this post where he shines a light on the key components of a sales enablement strategy, or the one where he outlines his ten golden rules of running a SaaS company.
Flex-worthy Fact: Social Web Thing is an award-winning blog that Ben started in 2009 and ran for six years. The blog won the European Award at the EUPRERA Spring Symposium.
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“Winning teams recognise the importance of consistently high performance - and that you’re only as good as your last match, deal, or quarter, and that you must show up, time and time again.” Ben Cotton |
3. Felix Krueger
Founder & CEO, FFWD
Talks about #buyerexperience, #salesenablement, #revenueenablement, #revenueoperations, and #thestateofsalesenablement
Tips and tricks to optimize the sales funnel, hiring practices for enablers, or ways to vet out your enablement strategy – Felix has covered all this through a combination of posts, podcasts, and live streams. His posts include gems such as comparing a good learning experience to a good steak or chuckle-worthy memes that depict the harm random acts of sales enablement cause in a world where strategic enablement is the need of the hour.
Flex-worthy Fact: Felix hosts The State Of Sales Enablement Podcast which features some of the biggest names in the enablement community.
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“How do we help buyers make better decisions faster?" If your Sales Enablement strategy doesn't answer this question, chances are you're wasting valuable resources.” Felix Krueger |
Follow Felix Krueger on LinkedIn
4. Hang Black
VP of Global Revenue Enablement & Sales Tech Evangelist, ZoomInfo
Talks about #womenintech, #diversity, #womeninsales, #leadership, and #salesenablement
Driven by ‘insatiable curiosity and an appetite for impact’, Hang Black has carved her own space in the sales enablement leaderboard. She talks of scaling proven sales enablement frameworks built around the pillars of relevant content, consistent processes, and effective technology. Her book, Embrace Your Edge is a guide for underrepresented groups to pave their own paths to success.
Flex-worthy Fact: When she started her own company, Hang was nicknamed “Black Ops” for her cutting-edge solutions in sales enablement, field marketing, and revenue operations.
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“How Hard Could it Be? Frankly, very hard. Do it anyway. Because it could also be FUN! When professionals fret about imposter syndrome, I always encourage them to give that inner child a hug. Because that imposter is bold, curious, and courageous.” Hang Black |
5. Hannah Ajikawo
Practice Lead, GTM Strategy, EMEA, Skaled Consulting
Talks about #sales, #seriesa, #womeninsales, #salesenablement, and #emotionalintelligence
With a proven ability to motivate sales people, and help them overcome their limitations, Hannah is a master at optimizing a rep's journey so that the business wins big. Her posts speak volumes about her progressive candor – be it discussing leaders' responsibilities towards employees during performance improvement plans, avoiding short-sighted layoffs, or engaging decision-makers with empathy.
Flex-worthy Fact: Hannah was voted LinkedIn Top Voice in Sales in 2021.
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“Don’t lose sight of reality just because you're in the sales trenches - you're still just trying to figure out how you can help someone.” Hannah Ajikawo |
Follow Hannah Ajikawo on LinkedIn
6. John Moore
Founder, Trust Enablement
Talks about #sales, #enablement, #salesenablement, #thecollaborator, and #revenueenablement
‘When in doubt, ask John.’ John Moore is the Founder of Trust Enablement, a guide to the strategies and tactics used by leading go-to-market teams. John started his career as a software tester but made it to the CTO’s chair not once but multiple times. His vast experience informs his unique perspective on work and life, a snapshot of which can be found on his LinkedIn page.
Flex-worthy Fact: John built two successful websites – one focused on human rights and another on opening up governments to be more transparent and collaborative. At their peak, each of them crossed 100,000 views per month!
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“It is critical for your go-to-market teams to be more human-centric. And that's why your #salesenablement team needs to pay attention to both the business AND human outcomes and impacts that result from achieving those outcomes.” John Moore |
7. Mike Kunkle
VP of Sales Effectiveness Services, SPARXiQ
Talks about #sales, #salestraining, #salesenablement, #salesperformance, and #saleseffectiveness
Next on the list is the legendary Mike Kunkle. Decades of sales experience - check. Multifold revenue growth record through sales training and enablement - check. A definitive book on sales enablement to his name - check. Webinars, seminars, and podcasts - check, check, and check.
Mike has done it all and then some. Check out his observations and insights on sales enablement, sales training, and more. Also, Mike and Felix Krueger recently collaborated to build an online course based on Mike's book 'The Building Blocks of Sales Enablement.'
Flex-worthy Fact: In one company, as a result of six projects, Mike and his team delivered an accretive $398 million in revenue, year-over-year.
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“Real experts will shoot straight. They’ll tell you things you don’t want to hear and they’ll tell you when what you want to do won’t likely work and why!” Mike Kunkle |
Follow Mike Kunkle on LinkedIn
8. Nick Lawrence
Curriculum Design Manager, Snowflake
Talks about #onboarding, #salestraining, #salesenablement, and #revenueenablement
In his own words, Nick Lawrence is ‘elevating sales enablement one post at a time.’ One look at his LinkedIn feed, and you know he’s doing a pretty good job of it.
At Snowflake, Nick designs highly relevant sales programs with training, support, and accountability measures to accelerate and maintain sales productivity. Young and bursting with energy, you’ll find him posting sales training tips, his unique take on random acts of enablement, and ways to increase the effectiveness of sales enablement programs.
Flex-worthy Fact: Nick spent five years on the Purdue wrestling team, where he received All Big Ten honors. He also qualified for the NCAA tournament and won the 2015 Most Dedicated Wrestler award at Purdue University.
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“The 90-9-1 rule of #SalesEnablement: 90% of enablement pros can tell you what information or knowledge they provide reps. 9% can tell you what behaviors they help reps perform. 1% can tell you what outcomes they helped reps achieve.” Nick Lawrence |
Follow Nick Lawrence on LinkedIn
9. Petek Hawkins
VP of Revenue Enablement, Pax8
Talks about #enablement, #leadership, #productivity, #salesenablement, and #revenueenablement
Petek Hawkins has a simple mantra for success in sales enablement – simplify, standardize and scale. Apart from being a growth driver for several multi-million dollar SaaS companies, Petek has also contributed to the enablement community as a speaker for the Sales Enablement Society and a Chapter Lead for Women in Sales Enablement (WISE). Her LinkedIn page advocates for making enablement an integral part of a company’s business strategy, showcasing new job opportunities, and sharing useful insights for sales teams to level up their game.
Flex-worthy Fact: Petek can tell you why sales enablement matters in four languages – English, German, Spanish and Turkish.
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“Revenue enablement is a complex function that truly takes a certain type of person who can appreciate the art and back it up with science to tell a meaningful story.” Petek Hawkins |
Follow Petek Hawkins on LinkedIn
10. Peter Ostrow
VP, Research Director, Sales Enablement Strategies, Forrester
Talks about #salesenablement, #Forrester, #B2B, and #sales
Peter Ostrow has been at the forefront of helping revenue teams for more than a decade now. He was voted Baseline’s 50 Sales Pros to follow on Twitter way back in 2014. Since that time, Peter has built a formidable base of followers on LinkedIn too. You’ll find him launching surveys for sales enablement leaders, delivering keynote sessions at different summits, sharing useful insights from Forrester, and championing the cause of the Sales Enablement Society.
Flex-worthy Fact: Since 2020, Peter has served on the board of directors of the Sales Enablement Society, the largest non-profit organization dedicated to the sales enablement profession.
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“Just as I learned in #B2B #sales, sometimes it's more impactful to use all of those eyes and ears I was given, more often than the single mouth.” Peter Ostrow |
Follow Peter Ostrow on LinkedIn
11. Sheevaun Thatcher, CPC
VP Global Sales & Success Enablement, Slack
Talks about #salesenablement, #salesexcellence, #coaching, and #salesbestpractices
Sheevaun Thatcher is a sales enablement veteran. As one of the very first practitioners of sales enablement, her impact on the field cannot be overstated. She was a founding member of the Sales Enablement Society, a volunteer organization dedicated to holistically elevating the sales enablement function. Her LinkedIn feed is peppered with snapshots of her work life and nuggets of knowledge on sales enablement.
Flex-worthy Fact: Sheevaun was named 2022 Enablement Mentor of the Year by Sales Enablement PRO. She also received a Lifetime Achievement for Sales Enablement in 2019.
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“We cannot wait for our #SalesEnablement programs to be perfect. We would not get anything done. Instead, let’s aim for a great program and iterate with our stakeholders to get there.” Sheevaun Thatcher |
Follow Sheevaun Thatcher on LinkedIn
12. Steffaney Zohrabyan
Sales Enablement Innovation & Insights Leader, Cisco
Talks about #justintime, #digitaladoption, #salesenablement, #strategyexecution, and #digitaltransformation
Steffaney is an industry leader in Digital Adoption and Sales Enablement, and a true difference-maker for her community of peers. She’s as passionate about sales enablement as she is about empowering individuals.
You’ll find her helping the community in these recessionary times, with weekly posts on open positions in sales enablement – complete with tags to the hiring managers. It came as no surprise when Steffaney was shortlisted for SEC’s 2022 ‘Biggest Contribution to Sales Enablement Community’ Award.
Flex-worthy Fact: Steffaney is the co-founder of Heroes Who Code, a non-profit that facilitates opportunities for wounded Armenian soldiers. The organization partners with the Armenian Code Academy and supports vets in their journey to up-skill and become incredible developers.
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“Buyer enablement and giving the buyers what they need, speaking to their pain points and answering their questions even before getting to a first call, needs to happen. I think that the companies that are already doing that are the ones that are closing much more deals and getting that much more market share.” Steffaney Zohrabyan |
Follow Steffaney Zohrabyan on LinkedIn
13. Stephanie Middaugh
Director of Enablement, WorkRamp
Talks about #enablement, #salesenablement, #revenueenablement, and #traininganddevelopment
Sales enablement has a fearless champion on LinkedIn: Stephanie Middaugh. Just read her post critiquing the lay-offs of sales enablement teams in the current economy. From discussing ‘spooky’ enablement stories with her industry peers to using Harry Potter to illustrate the gap between theoretical knowledge and real-world application, she truly has a unique voice. And her knack for picking just the right memes make her posts all the more enjoyable to read.
Flex-worthy Fact: Stephanie co-founded The Enablement Squad with Matt Schalsey in 2019, and today, it is a thriving community with 1600+ enablers.
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“One of the biggest learnings in my professional life has been this: You have to toot your own horn. You can't, and shouldn't, expect other people to tout your accomplishments or the impact you've had in your role or throughout your career. (And I can't stress this enough for those of us in Enablement!)” Stephanie Middaugh |
Follow Stephanie Middaugh on LinkedIn
14. Stephanie White
Director, Revenue Enablement, Loopio
Talks about #rfps, #sales, #growthmindset, #salesenablement, and #personaldeveloment
Just how many sales enablement superstars are named Stephanie? The third namesake on our list is Stephanie White, a revenue enablement leader with over 15 years of experience. Stephanie believes in connecting people to products, services to businesses, and building better solutions for us all.
Amidst posts of her favorite motivational quotes and event updates, you’ll find her inspiring ‘Spotlight on Enablement’ posts – a platform to help job seekers to network and find their next role in sales enablement. Talk about giving back to the community!
Flex-worthy Fact: Stephanie won SEC’s ”Biggest Contribution to Sales Enablement Community’’ award this year.
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“You don’t need to come from sales to be successful in sales enablement. In fact, some of the best practitioners weren’t. You do need to be someone who loves providing support, is genuinely curious and can shift perspectives to empathize.” Stephanie White |
Follow Stephanie White on LinkedIn
15. Whitney Sieck, CPTD®
Founder and Principal Consultant, Enablement Enthusiast LLC
Talks about #outreach, #enablement, #salesenablement, #revenueenablement, and #enablemententhusiast
Collaborator, trainer, strategist, mentor and a lifelong lover of learning is how Whitney Sieck likes to describe herself. This would explain why after two years with Outreach as VP of Revenue Enablement, she decided to start her own business.
Whitney chose to do what she enjoyed most about her job – conducting sales and customer service training that have real-world business impact. In her LinkedIn feed, you can find her gifting away her time as a way of giving back, giving shout-outs to her peers in the enablement community, sharing updates about her speaking engagements, and more.
Flex-worthy Fact: Whitney was featured in SEC’s Top 20 Sales Enablement Influencers of 2020. Apart from English and Spanish, Whitney also has elementary proficiency in Arabic.
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“In Enablement, there's an expectation of being an expert in the field and yet there is not yet standardization to fully develop that expertise.” Whitney Sieck |
Follow Whitney Sieck on LinkedIn
With every third person on LinkedIn claiming to be an influencer, you need to know who's actually worth listening to. Our list features some of the best folks working in enablement today. Follow them for information, insights, and inspiration you need to succeed in your enablement career.
