Have you ever struggled to prove the value of your sales enablement efforts to leadership? As budgets get tighter and scrutiny increases, it's becoming more important than ever to show how enablement drives real, measurable business impact.

I’m Ben Gibbons, and I'm the Director of Sales and Partner & Customer Performance at Databricks here in EMEA. I’ve had the privilege of working in sales enablement for several years now, and I’ve seen firsthand how crucial it is to tie our efforts directly to the business outcomes that matter most.

The purpose of today’s discussion is to explore how we can align sales enablement strategies with the value we deliver, leveraging the power of data and AI. Whether you're in a well-established sales enablement organization or just getting started, this article is for you.

We’ll explore how to measure success, scale strategies, and leverage the latest technologies to help your team not only meet but exceed business expectations.

Let’s dive in.

The role of data and AI in enablement

Let’s start by talking about the role data and AI play in modern sales enablement strategies. For the longest time, enablement was a bit of an art form. We relied on traditional methods, like surveys, CSAT scores, and even gut feelings, to assess how well we were supporting our sales teams. But now, with data and AI at our disposal, we can move beyond subjective measurement.

At Databricks, we’re leveraging data to get a much clearer picture of how our enablement efforts are impacting sales productivity. AI helps us analyze sales performance, pinpoint gaps in skills, and ultimately drive better outcomes. 

Whether it’s predicting which accounts are likely to convert or understanding how well sales reps are engaging with the content we provide, data gives us the ability to take action that is grounded in reality.

And let's not forget that AI is more than just a tool for automation. It’s also a tool for insight. For example, we use AI to track sales behavior across the entire customer journey, from the first touch to deal close. With AI-powered analytics, we get the data we need to coach reps effectively, identify opportunities for improvement, and, of course, prove the ROI of our enablement efforts.

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Aligning enablement strategies to business goals

So, how do we ensure that our enablement strategies align with the larger business objectives? It's crucial to understand that enablement doesn’t exist in a vacuum. We are not just training sales teams for the sake of it. Instead, we need to connect everything we do to tangible business outcomes.

At Databricks, we focus on aligning our enablement efforts with key GTM (go-to-market) priorities. Whether it’s boosting sales performance, enhancing customer engagement, or driving utilization of our platform, each initiative is designed with these objectives in mind. By doing this, we ensure that our sales teams have the skills, knowledge, and tools to meet these specific goals.

But alignment isn’t just about knowing the business goals; it’s about continuously monitoring them. We use data to track how well our sales teams are performing against these targets. Are we seeing increased customer engagement? Are our reps closing deals faster or more effectively? These are just a few of the key metrics we track to measure our impact on the business.

It’s also worth noting that as a consumption-driven business, we look at things a bit differently. Unlike traditional sales models, where reps are compensated based on closed deals, we also look at how customers are using our platform over time. 

This ensures that reps focus not just on closing deals, but on making sure our customers get value from the products they’ve purchased, which aligns with our overall business model.