Tim Riesterer - From Sales Enablement Origins to Orchestrating the Future of Revenue:
On Episode 7, host Erich Starrett hops in the OSC Studios time machine with Tim Riesterer - Chief Strategy Officer, Corporate Visions + Chief Visionary, Emblaze.
Tim shares his wealth of experience in sales enablement, spanning from the early days of automated RFPs and proposals to the evolution of the sales enablement function. He discusses the origins of sales enablement, its role in bridging marketing and sales, and its potential for strategic impact in the future. Tim also provides insights into the organizational hierarchy of enablement and its relationship to strategy, as well as the future of digital selling and the upcoming Digital Now Revenue Summit. Join us as we delve into the history, current landscape, and future possibilities of sales enablement with one of its foremost experts.
Tim and Erich talk all things sales enablement, the evolution of the industry, the future of Revenue Enablement, and even share a few sips ๐ฅof Tim's unique Enablement ๐พ Champage. Key takeaways:
> The Evolution of Sales Enablement: Tim shared his journey in the sales enablement space, from the early days of creating automated RFPs and proposals to the current landscape of integrated digital selling experiences. The industry has come a long way, and the future holds even greater strategic potential.
> Where Enabling Growth meets SCIENCE!: Tim discussed the concept of orchestrating science-backed "growth plays" as the future banner for enablement, emphasizing the importance of leveraging data, original research and strategic initiatives to drive sustainable impact and compelling customer experiences.
> Synergy of the CSO/CRO: Tim intentionally architected his role as Chief Strategy Officer for direct access to strategic levers across silos. This allows for adaptability across nearly everything - enablement, marketing, research, product development - from original research to front line sales execution.
> Book NOW! RSVP ASAP for the upcoming summit in Chicagoland from April 2nd to 4th! An opportunity to meet Tim and SO MANY other thought leaders face-to-face at the 2024 digitalnow Revenue Growth Summit in association with OrchestrateSales.com's ISEs3 podcast.
Hosted by Emblaze, powered by Corporate Visions, bringing together sales, marketing, and success leaders to address the challenges and opportunities of digital selling. The link below includes an embedded "OSCISE" code for specially discounted ISE Insider Nation access! https://salesenablement.captivate.fm/diginow24
Don't wait - hit PLAY! - to hear about all of the above
...and so SO much more.
Join in the journey with curiosity
alongside those courageously treading
the past, present, and future frontlines
of a growing function and global profession.
Please click ๐๐ป, subscribe ๐ฒ, listen ๐ง ...and ๐๏ธ join the conversation!
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Hello everyone and welcome to Inside Sales Enablement
2
:Season 3 Enablement History.
3
:Joining me today on the
Orchestrate Sales property, Mr.
4
:Tim Reisterer himself, the Chief
Strategy Officer of Corporate Visions.
5
:He's not only been there from the
beginning, he's been there before
6
:the beginning and has so many
different , things going on in the
7
:present has such a storied past and
Tim, I'm so excited about the future,
8
:especially with a couple of the recent
announcements, including the partnership
9
:with the revenue enablement society.
10
:=
Tim Riesterer: You know, when you, when you get invited to something
11
:like this, it does have that feeling.
12
:Of like when you get the lifetime
achievement award kind of means like your
13
:best work was behind you But thanks yeah
There's a lot of a lot of memories and
14
:a lot of history in enablement and and
tarted out in in december of:
15
:I was recruited out of a small
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where my
16
:home is, based marketing firm.
17
:We were doing B2B marketing.
18
:, and if you look back on it now, like 80
percent of what our agency did at the
19
:time, remember the timeframe, was we
built sales collateral for salespeople.
20
:And I think , the funny thing is
that, you know, the kind of stuff
21
:that ended up in the trunk of a
salesperson's car and never got used.
22
:So that was sales enablement.
23
:We basically created ballast for the car.
24
:and I was recruited by a
company called Ventaso.
25
:And that may be a name that has or
has not come up but it was , the
26
:precursor to the current day
modern sales enablement platforms.
27
:We didn't call it that back then
because it was creating automated
28
:RFPs, automated proposals, automated.
29
:Email, letters , even some PowerPoint
decks and automated collateral pieces.
30
:It seemed brilliant and it demoed amazing.
31
:,
but how complicated it was to , implement.
32
:You had to create these little bite sized
chunks of content called data gems that
33
:once a salesperson put in some inputs, it
would dynamically assemble these things.
34
:like I said, it was the precursor of
today's sales enablement, but it was
35
:a little ahead of its time and it was
just a little too hard to administer.
36
:Most marketing people and others who saw
this were like, I did not go to school
37
:to create copy and content in a database.
38
:So we spent 50 million in venture
capital across four years,:
39
:And, we wanted to create a category.
40
:And I, I'm going to admit
right now, I blew it.
41
:I named our work customer message
management because it was C.
42
:R.
43
:M.
44
:Customer relationship management.
45
:That was all the rage, right?
46
:Salesforce was just taken off
and trouncing Siebel at the time.
47
:So I'm like, if we're gonna have a
category should be adjacent to C.
48
:R.
49
:M.
50
:How about C.
51
:M.
52
:M.
53
:Customer message management?
54
:Because that's what we're
really talking about here.
55
:We're talking about having a better
conversation, better presentations,
56
:a better customer message.
57
:And we put some time and effort
into that brand and, and that
58
:name and no one knows it.
59
:And so there you go, Erich, my beginnings
in sales enablement were inauspicious.
60
:and then four years later, we
were, we were code in a shoe box.
61
:At a law firm,
62
:it was, it was a ride, and you
have to have some of those in your
63
:career to, like, be part of the
story, somewhat of an epic failure,
64
:but yet an epic launch pad as well.
65
:Erich Starrett: Well, uh,
Craig Nelson ring a bell?,
66
:Tim Riesterer: You know, so
then the Isenteras and the
67
:Savos of the world appeared.
68
:Um, and I had moved on
into my own business.
69
:So I started I took the phrase C.
70
:M.
71
:M.
72
:And I started a company around it
because it was available because
73
:the company was out of business.
74
:And so I created a messaging consulting
practice where we went in and created
75
:what we call sales ready messaging
out of your traditional company and
76
:product centric messaging And that's
where I ran into craig at eisenterra
77
:and john aiello at savo Because they
had the technology now and i'm like,
78
:yeah, you guys now you here's the
torch you can do the tech part I'll
79
:do the services part and so I had some
really nice partnerships with those guys
80
:building the messaging and the content
assets that these tools would Serve up.
81
:That's when you really start to see the
phrase sales enablement start to come out.
82
:people would ask all the time What
what does sales enablement mean to you?
83
:And I said, well, It's the picture of
in one hand you're pulling marketing
84
:closer to sales The other hand you're
pulling sales closer to marketing and
85
:you stand in the middle trying to bridge
this gap with all responsibility all
86
:accountability and like zero budget
and authority That's sales enablement.
87
:What a great job.
88
:This is awesome.
89
:And, it needed to be done.
90
:It felt like you were doing God's good
work by trying to bring these groups
91
:together, span the gap, like reframe
marketing stuff to be useful for sales.
92
:And then they gave it a
name sales enablement.
93
:And then it became a
department sales enablement.
94
:Then it became a technology
sales enablement.
95
:But it really what it was
first was, Self defense.
96
:You know, like I got it.
97
:We're getting a bunch of crap that
we can't use and it goes in the
98
:trunks of salespeople's car, now
it just goes on their hard drive
99
:and it just becomes a disaster.
100
:So, , what became sales enablement.
101
:Was born out of self defense, just trying
to bring marketing and sales together.
102
:Erich Starrett: That is a new tagline.
103
:Each episode there's a new t shirt and
I think that's the one we're printing.
104
:So when did you first hear the
words sales enablement and what
105
:did and what do they mean to you?
106
:We got into that a little bit.
107
:Tim Riesterer: Okay, so I don't know
who said the words first, but,, all I
108
:know is the technology companies had
the most money to say those words.
109
:So whoever said 'em, the ones
who popularized 'em where
110
:the tech companies for sure.
111
:And, the same reason in my 1st
incarnation in a tech company that failed,
112
:we were trying to create a category.
113
:This, generation of tech.
114
:came up with a better phrase or at
least popularized a better phrase
115
:that has now stuck for, 20 plus years.
116
:,
and so yes, what it used to mean to me was the alignment of marketing
117
:and sales in service to how you
appear in front of the customer.
118
:I used to joke how you appear in front
of the customer with your lips moving.
119
:I always tell this story
to begin all my keynotes.
120
:And anybody can write this down if you
haven't heard me tell this story, write
121
:down three numbers, 103, 12, and 88.
122
:103 is 103 million hands of online
poker that they've studied, and
123
:determined that only 12 percent
of the time the best hand wins.
124
:88 percent of the time
the best player wins.
125
:And I look at that as like the
spirit of sales enablement.
126
:You're trying to equip and
build the best players.
127
:The best players can win regardless
of the hand they're dealt.
128
:And by hand I mean your
products and your services.
129
:The reality is They all look the
same, sound the same, smell the same,
130
:taste the same to a customer anyways.
131
:So the real distinction, the last bastion
of differentiation, is a salesperson.
132
:The best player.
133
:The one who tells the best
story with the best skill.
134
:And, and so that's enablement.
135
:Your job is to pull your company
out of the commodity trap by
136
:creating a differentiated buying
experience through your sellers.
137
:And that when all things are
considered equal, you win.
138
:So your job is to make these best players.
139
:Your job is to help make
that 88%,, regardless, of
140
:the hand that you're dealt.
141
:Buying is, is a journey of
many conversations.
142
:Multiple decisions, right?
143
:Questions that must be answered.
144
:Why should I change?
145
:Why should I do it now?
146
:Why should I choose you?
147
:Right?
148
:We know those questions and
facilitating those answers.
149
:Is now the commercial team's job, and
it's the enablement team's job to equip,
150
:your commercial teams to help answer
and facilitate those questions because
151
:your job is to facilitate a decision
152
:.
And so, the best player wins, enablement creates the best players.
153
:That's my second t shirt.
154
:Erich Starrett: I was going to say
there's at least another one in there.
155
:I, jotted down helping 88 win
regardless of the hand, they're dealt
156
:Tim Riesterer: I mean, that's just it.
157
:When I go and do that at a sales
kickoff and I say, That 88 percent
158
:of the time the best player wins.
159
:I look at out in the room
and I'm like, that's you.
160
:That's literally you.
161
:What you want to do.
162
:And I I'm I'm I'm polite about
this is as a salesperson.
163
:You want to complain that your
product's not good enough.
164
:Your price isn't right.
165
:And you blame all the other things that
are outside your control when the reality
166
:is most of the win is within your control.
167
:So now what are you going to do about it?
168
:How are you going to own that?
169
:And the way that it happens is Through
what enablement brings to them.
170
:So it's a huge job.
171
:It's, has so much strategic potential, and
I still think like there's now going to be
172
:a third epoch of sales enablement, right?
173
:It's, not just the bringing
marketing and sales together and
174
:doing it out of self defense.
175
:And it's not just a glorified training
and collateralization and alike.
176
:It's, a new epoch coming that is
going to take the strategic altitude
177
:of sales enablement to another height.
178
:And the opportunity to demonstrate
impact far beyond what we've
179
:been able to show so far.
180
:Erich Starrett: I love that, Tim.
181
:And this is a great segue into first.
182
:The sales enablement society clearly
you were there before it and we're
183
:helping you generating the platforms
that we're driving the conversation
184
:that we're getting people to think the
way you're even speaking right now.
185
:Tim Riesterer: You know, I
was like, Oh, look at that.
186
:They did a thing.
187
:And, it was interesting because
, you know, full transparency.
188
:The world's so authentic now, in the early
days, I was, I'm just viewed as a vendor.
189
:And there was like almost a rule
that, vendors were verboten.
190
:We were forbidden, because all we would
do is commercialize and advertise.
191
:And now that's not I always
prided myself on the work we did.
192
:We did original research.
193
:It was thoughtful.
194
:It was rigorous.
195
:It was a legitimate sort
of cause and effect thing.
196
:And we could share that with the market.
197
:I don't care if you use my company or not.
198
:We just had some really good thought
leadership, but it just came under
199
:the banner of being a vendor.
200
:And so, the early days are
our company Corporate Visions.
201
:We had our own sort of industry customer
summit because we have on average, um, 250
202
:to 300 active customers in any given year.
203
:And we would share all that content there.
204
:The thing I will tell you is over
the years of running our own customer
205
:summit, the titles that showed up let's
say:
206
:showed up were not sales enablement,.
207
:2012 to just before COVID.
208
:And I feel like they were the same exact
people like I recognize them, but they now
209
:had a new title called sales enablement.
210
:So what I will say is I felt like I
was running in a parallel path with
211
:the sales enablement society with
our Corporate Visions Client Summit,
212
:which was geared to sales enablement
people, they happen to be our
213
:customer base but I saw that sort of
groundswell of, title change, going on.
214
:And so I'm excited that I'm going
to be more active and engaged with the
215
:sales slash revenue enablement society.
216
:Excited again about the future
on so many levels, including the
217
:partnership with the society.
218
:Erich Starrett: Tim, I'm curious, what's
your relationship with the founding
219
:positions of the sales enablement society?
220
:Tim Riesterer: I think the the founding
positions in many ways were prescient
221
:in terms of the opportunity that
would be available to somebody who
222
:wanted to solve this set of problems
now, whether or not we as let's just
223
:say sales enablement folks have been
able to grasp hold of all those.
224
:I think is the bigger question.
225
:I think that's the
challenge with enablement.
226
:You could put a lot of
things under that banner.
227
:And I think companies
struggle with that every day.
228
:First, does enablement roll up to
sales or does it roll up to marketing?
229
:is it the last mile of marketing into
sales or is it the first mile of,
230
:stuff from sales into the field.
231
:And, that's, I think like
a 50, 50 split right now.
232
:So the idea of having an endpoint
number two is like cross functional.
233
:I don't know.
234
:I think you, you have to function cross
functionally, but it's really hard to
235
:define that in an organization and people
have a hard time resourcing that they
236
:have a hard time budgeting for that.
237
:I think these founding principles
are, , we're hoping that maybe corporate
238
:inertia would surrender to this vision.
239
:And I haven't seen that yet.
240
:In fact, sometimes my worry is that,.
241
:As the commercial engine has expanded
from including marketing and all forms
242
:of selling and even customer success, and
they're being like a single through line
243
:that a customer should experience, right?
244
:My experience as a buyer should
with your marketing team, your
245
:selling team and your CS team should
feel like a seamless experience.
246
:I think that's why the move from sales
enablement to revenue enablement.
247
:Totally makes sense on paper because
that has to be an integrated effort.
248
:My question is , when are
organizations going to be able
249
:to actually make that happen?
250
:Because you have a head of CS,
you have a CRO, you have a CMO.
251
:my concern is that trying to bridge all
those gaps, like that, then , the risk
252
:is that you are going to end up roadkill.
253
:What I'm hoping to see, and I
I'm starting to see, but I'm
254
:wondering where this lands.
255
:Is that going to be a senior sales
enablement leader that figures that out?
256
:Or is that going to be some
sort of revenue ops leader where
257
:sales enablement is a component?
258
:Because they said these are
your pieces sales enablement.
259
:and I think that all depends
on who's in the seat.
260
:Like, what's their origin story?
261
:I'd be a messenger.
262
:Trainer developer, um, let's go find some
places where there's constraints in the
263
:pipe and go after that with initiatives.
264
:But I wouldn't do this.
265
:I wouldn't do that.
266
:You just can't say we
want to be this right.
267
:We also now got to figure out again How
to do it across those three disciplines
268
:marketing sales cs how to do it within
the confines of an incredibly more
269
:dense tech stack than we had when those
principles were being developed I don't
270
:think we saw the tech stack like it is
today coming and we didn't see AI coming.
271
:And so I do feel like something that
looks more like revenue ops is going
272
:to potentially be the banner here.
273
:, enablement folks, like, we're
going to have a huge role in this.
274
:and that data is going
to be super important.
275
:The business outcomes we're going to go
after should inform everything we do.
276
:But my view of the future is we are
going to be running growth plays.
277
:And our job is to take here's the
business outcome that's been identified.
278
:What needs to happen in terms of
the process, the leadership, the
279
:message, the skills, and how does
that get packaged into, an all
280
:encompassing play that you can deploy.
281
:Into the right field team or
teams that need to make it happen.
282
:Our job is exceedingly important, but
the dashboard and the data is going
283
:to dictate or identify the initiatives.
284
:And we're going to need to
bring those initiatives to life.
285
:And so we're going to bridge.
286
:Here's the data, the business initiative.
287
:Now, how do we get our field to do it?
288
:Because none of it happens until the
field does something and that's us.
289
:And so Chief Productivity Officer, I
don't know, maybe Chief Sales Execution.
290
:Officer, because I always say there's
a big gap between the data and the
291
:idea and a salesperson's lips moving
and somebody has to bridge that gap.
292
:And and the thing is that there's
a huge gap between the plan and the
293
:data and the customer saying yes.
294
:And that's where a salesperson shows up.
295
:So our ability to help drive sustainable
change, and programming, I call them
296
:growth plays, with all the pieces, that's
gonna be, I think, where it all hits.
297
:So we have to be fanatical about helping
execute the direction that the data
298
:points to, and , getting it to done.
299
:Erich Starrett: So Tim, one of the
things that I'm so curious about with
300
:you and applaud that is unique that the
listening audience might not realize
301
:is that you are the chief strategy
officer of a premier global enablement
302
:company and enablement reports to you.
303
:So through that lens,
share a little bit about.
304
:Why enablement reports to strategy
and be what that might look like.
305
:And we'll start to sneak towards
the future in a future state.
306
:What would that ideal hierarchy be
if you were to help a client, to
307
:build from the ground up Greenfield.
308
:Tim Riesterer: Yeah, I'm fortunate
, the best part of my title, just
309
:chief strategy officer is I
can put my hands on everything.
310
:And that what's under my remit can
shift based on need, selectively sales
311
:enablement and marketing roll up to me
312
:in, in our.
313
:strategy description.
314
:It's really our go to market.
315
:And so I run our research arm,
I run our product development
316
:arm, and then our marketing arm,
and our sales enablement arm.
317
:So from the original research all
the way to loading up the salespeople
318
:feels like the strategy of the company.
319
:The strategy has a through line from
original research to sales execution.
320
:And, owning the product team.
321
:As well as the marketing team means
you can align those things so that when
322
:something comes out on the sales end You
haven't had the product team doing an end
323
:run and talking to sales and doing their
thing the marketing team doing an end run
324
:And going to sales with their thing In in
effect, I get to control it You know what?
325
:and that's why I like Orchestrate
Sales But the reality is I I get to
326
:control it And it should be controlled.
327
:Like, I mean, like what makes it to the
field, how it makes it to the field, how
328
:it's prioritized, in what form factor it
goes, and in what cadence it comes out.
329
:I love having all that, strategy
responsibility because you feel like
330
:you aren't like just giving the strategy
and then crossing your fingers that
331
:it becomes a reality because that's
the gap right between strategy and
332
:effectiveness is like it hits reality.
333
:You can take it right down., to the
enablement level, the execution level.
334
:So, I'm not saying everybody's
going to be able to do that.
335
:Um, but it's a mindset at least,
336
:Erich Starrett: Well, and I've seen
a trend, sales enablement And sales
337
:and marketing reporting to the CRO.
338
:Um, is that a
339
:Tim Riesterer: and maybe even success.
340
:Um,
341
:Erich Starrett: there you go.
342
:Success as well.
343
:Tim Riesterer: yeah, I think chief revenue
officer as a title has a lot of promise.
344
:, but it, it becomes like a promotional
thing for the chief sales officer.
345
:And it still looks like
a C, chief sales officer.
346
:and they haven't moved the CMO or the
chief customer officer in that direction.
347
:And, then sometimes companies
want to have those career paths.
348
:They want to have opportunities
for people to take those positions.
349
:And if you don't have the right
person leading as a CRO, Everything's
350
:going to bend, to , the origin
story of the person in that chair.
351
:But that's the promise
of chief revenue officer.
352
:That they should see
this thing end to end.
353
:From all the work to create the demand
and have the client buying journey
354
:from the marketing the buyer led journey
where they're doing their own work
355
:Be under the revenue officer because
again that that singular thread that
356
:customer through line the experience
being organized and integrated It'd be
357
:great if the CRO owned that end to end.
358
:And I think it's on the table because
we're starting to see the title.
359
:And I think companies are just going to
have to figure out how to legitimize that,
360
:, with the rest of their org structure.
361
:But there's promise there.
362
:Erich Starrett: So, Tim, let's
go boldly into the future.
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:1 of the things that I'm very
excited about is an upcoming,
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:, summit happening in Chicago land.
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:, and I'd love to hear your take
our listening audience and thank
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:you again for the alliance with.
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:Orchestrate sales inside
sales enablement podcast.
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:We're going to have a code for everybody
in the speaker's notes thank you, Tim.
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:Very much.
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:Uh, anything that you would like
to share about the future, that
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:summit , and parting shot.
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:Tim Riesterer: Yeah.
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:So it's called the digital now
revenue summit in recognition that
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:all selling is digital selling.
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:, our data shows that.
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:All selling, including traditional
field selling up to 70 percent
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:of your customer contacts and
experiences are virtual digital.
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:And that just changes
the game for everybody.
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:, C.
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:S.
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:has a track sales enablement has a track.
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:There's a lot of sales
leadership tracks at this thing.
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:It's sponsored by Emblaze.
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:A selling community made up
of sales leaders that Corporate
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:Visions, has acquired , and now
presents an industry conference.
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:It is not a Corporate Visions
commercial or conference.
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:It's literally its own community.
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:And the research is there.
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:, the cross functional
participation is there.
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:Sales enablement and success
and a marketing with their
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:own breakout track as well.
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:So we're trying to create the wide net.
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:For leaders, revenue leaders in
all those areas of responsibility
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:to come to the same room.
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:And work on these problems together.
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:Last year we had 700 some people.
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:We're hoping for a thousand
this year and we'd love to have
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:all the listeners be there.
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:Erich Starrett: Well,
thanks Tim insider nation.
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:Don't miss the opportunity to see
this magi of enablement in person in
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:Chicago, April 2nd to 4th, we'll get
you the code in the speaker's notes.
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:Tim, can't wait to see you
face to face there along with,
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:I'm sure up to a thousand.
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:We'll try not to break the
place, of our listeners.
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:Thank you for all that you have
done are doing presently and
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:continue to do for the profession
and function of enablement, sir.
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:Tim Riesterer: Yeah, it's been an honor.
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:Thanks, Erich.
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:Appreciate it.
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:Take care, everyone.