How to Measure Enablement Impact

Every enablement team has the same problem: - Reps say they want more training. - You give them a beautiful deck. - They ghost it like someone who matched with Keith on Tinder. These folks don't have a content problem as much as they have a consumption problem. Think of it thusly: if no one’s using the enablement you built, it might as well not exist. Here’s the really scary part: The average org spends $2,000 - $5,000 per rep per year on enablement tools, programs, and L&D support. But fewer than 40% (!!!) of reps consistently complete assigned content OR apply it in live deals. So what happens? - You build more content. - You launch new certifications. - You roll out another LMS. And your top reps ignore it all because they’re already performing, while your bottom reps binge it and still miss quota. 🕺 We partner with some of the best enablement leaders in the game here at Sales Assembly. Here’s how they measure what matters: 1. Time-to-application > Time-to-completion. Completion tells you who checked a box. Application tells you who changed behavior. Track: - Time from training to first recorded usage in a live deal. - % of reps applying new language in Gong clips. - Manager feedback within 2 weeks of rollout. If you can’t prove behavior shift, you didn’t ship enablement. You shipped content. 2. Manager reinforcement rate. Enablement that doesn’t get reinforced dies fast. Track: - % of managers who coach on new concepts within 2 weeks. - # of coaching conversations referencing new frameworks. - Alignment between manager deal inspection and enablement themes. If managers aren’t echoing it, reps won’t remember it. Simple as that. 3. Consumption by role, segment, and performance tier. Your top reps may skip live sessions. Fine. But are your mid-performers leaning in? Slice the data: - By tenure: Is ramp content actually shortening ramp time? - By segment: Are enterprise reps consuming the right frameworks? - By performance: Who’s overconsuming vs. underperforming? Enablement is an efficiency engine...IF you track who’s using the gas. 4. Business impact > Feedback scores. “Helpful” isn’t the goal. “Impactful” is. Track: - Pre/post win rates by topic. - Objection handling improvement over time. - Change in average deal velocity post-rollout. Enablement should move pipeline...not just hearts. 🥹 tl;dr = if you’re not measuring consumption, you’re not doing enablement. You’re just producing marketing collateral for your own team. The best programs aren’t bigger. They’re measured, inspected, and aligned to revenue behavior.

Enablement peeps: "Does it ever feel like you are doing a lot of things, but they aren't helping the business?" Love this question from Sally Ladrach. Here are my notes from the rest of her presentation [see more of her slides in the comments below.] The C-Suite doesn't care what people KNOW. They care what people DO. You can have competency frameworks that are: 🌐 company wide 👷♀️ based on role / team 🎚 based on level But if the competencies don't turn into sales rep BEHAVIORS, then they aren't worth a hill of beans. "An outcome is a change in human behavior that drives business results." - Joshua Seiden And it's not just us in sales. Software teams spend too much time on output (get this feature out) vs. outcomes (user value and stickiness). So what do you, as a sales enablement professional, do about this? Use data! Data allows Enablement to impact the four revenue levers: 🖐 Number of opportunities 🏆 Win rate 💰 Deal size ⏳️ Ave sales cycle How are you using data to measure sales rep behavior? Sally shared her quantitative and qualitative analysis. 1. Inventory your data What data do you have that can help us understand what types of behaviors are impacting the revenue levers? Look at: - content usage analytics - activities on reps' calendars - conversation intelligence from call recordings or field observation - CRM data (although don't put too much weight on this as the data is dependent on reps using the CRM) - which reps customize the pitch deck and many more... 2. Ask lots of questions about what works. Don't go too deep into data analysis until you interview a top rep. What are they doing to close more deals, bigger deals, close them faster, or get more opportunities started in the first place. Now you can go digging in the data to validate what they say. When you look at the four revenue lever metrics, you'll see why the top rep is the top rep. 3. Do a win/loss and rep analysis. (Sally has resources for these on her LinkedIn profile). One great idea here is to automatically send the sales rep the win questions when just before the close the deal in the CRM. The rep only gets paid once they have answers to the questions. --------- When you understand the data, then you can understand the impact of Enablement. You can also prioritize. When someone in the business says, "We need to do a training on X" you can come back with, "What business outcomes will a training on X impact?" -------- What are the most important behaviors for your reps tied to revenue levers? What did you analyze to know this? How do you prioritize those behaviors? And a lesson from Agile: What's the smallest thing you can do that will make a difference? #enablementstrategy #sellercompetencies #saleenablement #salestraining #closeddeals #revenue

Enablement is NOT Checklists Let’s be honest: Too many enablement teams get stuck checking boxes (training delivered, content uploaded, certifications completed). But enablement’s real value isn’t in check the box exercises. Rather, it’s accelerating your company’s North Star. If your org’s 2025 goal is to “increase enterprise deal size by 30%” or “reduce churn by 15%” enablement must be the engine that turns that vision into seller behaviors and customer outcomes. Here’s how: Step 1: Align to the North Star What’s the ONE business outcome your leadership cares about most right now? - Revenue expansion? - Market share in a new vertical? - Customer lifetime value? Enablement’s role: Translate that goal into specific seller competencies. Example: If the North Star is “50% revenue from cross-sell,” enablement must equip reps to: - Identify cross-sell triggers in discovery. - Overcome “buyer indecision” objections (think The JOLT Effect Matt Dixon Ted McKenna) - Co-build ROI cases with champions. Step 2: Define Enablement KPIs That MATTER Forget “hours of training delivered.” Tie enablement success to business KPIs your CRO & other leaders care about: - % of reps exceeding quota (enablement’s job: skill gaps closed). - Deal velocity in priority segments (enablement’s job: applying credible & actionable playbooks for stickiness). - Customer retention rate (enablement’s job: equipping CSMs to spot risk signals) Step 3: Correlate impact beyond “Butts in Seats” Enablement leaders often struggle to prove ROI. Shift the conversation with data that links learning to outcomes: - Pipeline Impact: How did negotiation training affect average deal size? - Behavior Change: How often are reps using the new discovery framework and where is it driving velocity? - Customer Outcomes: How did the onboarding adjustments reduce time-to-value? The Bottom Line: Enablement Is a Strategic Lever, Not a Cost Center When you anchor to the North Star, enablement becomes the bridge between leadership’s vision and frontline execution. Your Move: This week: Ask your CRO/CEO:  - If you could only track one metric, what would it be? Or, What’s the number that, if it trends wrong, will haunt your next earnings call? - Why it works: Links metrics to real-world consequences (investor pressure). This quarter: Build an enablement KPI dashboard that mirrors it. Partner with your Rev Ops or Business Ops team to help you! #oneteam #SalesEnablement #RevenueOperations #Leadership