Whether you’re hosting it virtually or in person, your 2023 sales kickoff is just around the corner.
As you plan for next year’s event, we held a webinar with Pavilion to learn best practices and planning tips from three leaders in the space.
Meet our panelists from “How to get the most out of your 2023 Sales Kickoff” :
- Caroline Tarpey, QuotaPath, VP of Sales and Customer Success
- Dennis Dube, EverView, EVP of Revenue Operations
- Wade Callison, Skuid, VP of Sales and Sales Excellence Practice Lead
Below, we pulled what we found to be the most impactful learnings from the Nov. 30 conversation.
5. Every sales kickoff should address these 3 things
Dennis began the conversation by recognizing the importance of the time between Thanksgiving and New Year’s.
People use this downtime as an opportunity to reflect personally and as it pertains to their career, he said.
“Your SKO should reinvigorate people to get them re-committed and re-up for another year with your organization,” Dennis said.
This is why every sales kickoff must address:
- What’s important to the organization?
- How does the work of the employees connect to the org?
- Is there a plan?
“You’ve got to nail all three of these things or don’t do anything at all,” Dennis said. “In doing so, you’re creating alignment around the organization, how it impacts the individual, and letting them know there is a plan to drive that alignment.”
3. Gather rep feedback ahead of time to build out your agenda
Before planning the next sales kickoff, EverView’s team runs the Relative Productivity Matrix from SiriusDecisions to uncover a set of recommendations and initiatives for the new year.
Key findings from the survey then inform the SKO agenda.
“This allows us to hold ourselves accountable and our partnering organizations like Marketing and Product, and to help our people feel heard,” Dennis said. “We then line up the SKO agenda according to what’s important to them.”
2. Customers serve as your most motivational guest speakers
Yes, you can bring in Navy Seals and Olympians to create an unforgettable keynote, like Caroline and Wade have experienced.
But ultimately, all three agreed that customers and partners are your best speakers.
“Dennis’s company is a customer of ours, so Dennis actually spoke at our SKO last year,” Caroline said. “This enabled the team to connect on a deeper level with the impact their work has on customers.”
1. Have a plan in place to ensure the content of the sales kickoff lives on
“If your SKO becomes an event and nothing more, then we might as well not have it,” Dennis said. “It’s not a birthday party.”
To create muscle memory, Caroline, Wade, and Dennis agreed you have to engage and coach middle management to bring SKO ideas to daily practice.
Include videos, documentation, guided selling playbooks, and more to reinforce ideas throughout the year.
About QuotaPath
Why continue to stress over sales commissions when you can actually look forward to running payouts? QuotaPath automates the entire process including sales compensation plan design, commission tracking, and payouts. To learn more, book a time with the team today.
