Sales Technologies

Last week, I heard from a super impressive customer who has cracked the code on how to give salespeople something they’ve always wanted: more selling time. Here’s how he transformed their process. This customer runs the full B2B sales motion at an awesome printing business based in the U.S. For years, his team divided their time across six key areas: 1. Task prioritization 2. Meeting prep 3. Customer responses 4. Prospecting 5. Closing deals 6. Sales strategy Like every sales leader I know, he wants his team to spend most of their time on #5 and #6 — closing deals and sales strategy. But together, those only made up about 30% of their week. (Hearing this gave me flashbacks to my time in sales…and all that admin tasks 😱) Now, his team uses AI across the sales process to compress the amount of time spent on #1-4: 1. Task prioritization → AI scores leads and organizes daily tasks 2. Meeting prep → AI surfaces insights from calls and contact records before meetings 3. Customer responses → Breeze Customer Agent instantly answers customer questions 4. Prospecting → Breeze Prospecting Agent automatically researches accounts and books meetings The result? Higher quantity of AI-powered work: More prospecting. More pipeline.  Higher quality of human-led work: More thoughtful conversations. Sharper strategy. This COO's story made my week. It's a reminder of just how big a shift we're going through – and why it’s such an exciting time to be in go-to-market right now.

AI is transforming productivity across industries but sales is still a frontier waiting to be unlocked. Bain & Company’s research shows that while generative and agentic AI are already freeing up hours of work in marketing and operations, adoption in sales is lagging behind. That’s surprising, because sales is one of the most time-intensive, high-impact functions and even small conversion gains can deliver outsized business results. For CMOs, CROs, and GTM leaders, the opportunity is clear: use AI to give sellers back time, improve decision-making, and boost win rates. And here’s what often gets overlooked: buyer-group expansion and engagement are two of the most powerful drivers of those win rates. The more effectively teams can identify, engage, and influence the full buying committee- the CIO, the CFO, the head of engineering, security, procurement- the greater the likelihood of advancing and winning deals. AI can now do this at a scale and speed that simply wasn’t possible before. AI in sales isn’t about replacing people, it’s about equipping them with better tools. The organisations that act early will be the ones to capture the biggest gains. At Thoughtworks, we’ve been actively working toward this vision. Our award-winning PerformanceAI agent removes the need for sales and marketing teams to click through endless dashboards and instead delivers insights in plain English, on demand. Less time on analysis and more time on insight and action. We’re also reducing manual work through automation, from data entry to intelligence orchestration. We’ve invested in tooling that mines sellers’ conversations across voice, email, and calendar to extract key signals, map the buying group, and match insights to the right accounts and opportunities. And in the AI era, adoption in sales has become much simpler. The technology runs quietly in the background rather than becoming another system sellers need to feed. When human input is needed, we’re moving toward a voice-first experience so no navigating complex CRM interfaces, and sellers can make updates on the go right after a client meeting. How is your team approaching AI in sales today? Let me know in the comments.

The Sales Revolution is Here (And It's Not What You Think) Most sales teams are stuck in 2020, treating AI like a fancy autocomplete. The reality? We're moving from copilot to autopilot. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗺: → AI agents that prospect 24/7 → Personalized outreach at scale → Automated meeting scheduling → Lead qualification while you focus on closing I've been watching this shift accelerate. The companies embracing agentic AI aren't just gaining efficiency, they're fundamentally changing how sales operate. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜'𝗺 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴: • 300% increase in qualified leads • 85% reduction in manual prospecting time   • Pipeline velocity that compounds daily • Sales reps focusing on relationship-building, not data entry The uncomfortable truth: If your sales process still requires manual lead research and one-by-one email drafting, you're already behind. By 2026, agentic sales systems won't be competitive, they'll be table stakes. The question isn't whether AI will transform sales. It's whether you'll lead the transformation or get left behind explaining declining numbers to stakeholders. What's your take? Are you seeing this shift in your industry? How are you preparing your sales team for the agentic future? 𝗣.𝗦. - The most successful sales leaders I know aren't afraid of AI replacing them. They're afraid of competitors who embrace it first.

Your sales tech stack is the lungs of your business. The right tools keep your team alive and thriving. Here’s the essential stack every sales org should consider: Deal Intelligence Substrata /  Gong / Chorus - help you understand your deals by recording, transcribing, and analyzing conversations so you never miss a detail. B2B Database ZoomInfo / Cognism / Clay fuel your pipeline with fresh, accurate leads so your team avoids wasting time on bad data. Outreach Salesloft / LinkedIn Sales Navigator / Outreach - keep outbound organized, timely, and targeted so reps never miss a follow up. Sales Coaching Substrata / Mindtickle / SecondNature - turn feedback into action and practice into results, helping reps improve with every call. CRM HubSpot / Salesforce / PipeDrive -  act as your command center, tracking every deal, contact, and touchpoint so you always know where things stand. eSignature PandaDoc / DocuSign / GetAccept - make closing seamless with fast, secure signing. SalesRoom trumpet 🎺 /  DealHub / Seismic - bring deal information into one place, creating a streamlined buyer experience. Sales Compensation Everstage /  CaptivateIQ - automate commissions and keep payouts clear so reps always know what they have earned. The best sales orgs do not just stack tools.  They build complete closing systems. The right tech stack is the difference between missing quota and smashing it. Invest wisely. Ideas?

The "Scaling People to Scale Growth" model has officially hit its ceiling. For years, CX leaders have been trapped in a zero-sum game: do you choose lower costs or better service? Faster resolution or deeper personalization? Today’s announcement from Microsoft signals a fundamental shift in the industry. We are moving beyond "AI-assisted work" to Agentic CX—where AI doesn’t just suggest the next step; it executes it across the entire customer lifecycle. Here is my analysis of the three pillars transforming Dynamics 365 and Copilot Studio into a unified growth engine: 1. The Death of the "Robotic" IVR 🎙️ Voice remains the "high-stakes" channel (used in 82% of interactions). The general availability of real-time voice agents in Copilot Studio helps organizations make the most of what was once a dark channel. -The Shift: Moving from rigid, "press 1 for sales" menus to natural, generative AI conversations that handle interruptions and context switching. -The Impact: By carrying context from self-service to human agents, Microsoft is solving the #1 customer frustration: repetition. 2. The Connected "Agentic" Contact Center 🔄 Fragmented AI (disconnected bots for chat, separate tools for QA) is the silent killer of CX. Microsoft’s new specialized agents bridge these gaps: -Customer Assist Agent: Manages high-volume, multi-channel requests proactively. -Quality Assurance Agent: This is the "supervisor's superpower," evaluating 100% of interactions in real-time for compliance and sentiment—not just a random sample. -Service Operations Agent: Democratizes optimization by allowing leaders to configure the contact center via conversation rather than code. 3. Turning Sales Signals into Momentum 📈 -Sales teams don't suffer from a lack of data; they suffer from "data fatigue." New agentic features in Dynamics 365 Sales (like the Sales Opportunity Agent) act as a "deal brain." -Automation of Mundane Tasks: Features like Voice to CRM and Data Enrichment remove the administrative burden that keeps sellers away from customers. -Proactive Velocity: Instead of looking at a dashboard, sellers are now prompted with "Recommended Actions" that keep deal momentum from stalling. 💡 The Bottom Line for Organizations The transition to Agentic CX isn't just about efficiency; it’s about reallocating human capital. When AI handles the routine and predictable, your teams are finally free to focus on what humans do best: judgment, empathy, and creativity. Those who treat CX as a cost to be managed will be outpaced by those who treat it as a growth engine to be powered by agents. See the Microsoft release in the link below: https://lnkd.in/gmZcr7dJ #Microsoft #GenerativeAI #CustomerExperience #Dynamics365 #Copilot #DigitalTransformation #AgenticAI #MicrosoftPartner #AgenticCX Heidi Elmore Microsoft Dynamics 365

🔴 𝗬𝗘𝗦 🔴 𝗔𝗜 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗝𝗼𝗯—𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗜𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗗𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀 AI is here, and not going anywhere. 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗯, 𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲? The truth is, AI is already transforming sales and leadership, and it’s about time we embrace it. It’s not about replacing humans; it’s about using AI to 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿, and drive measurable growth. Let’s talk about how you can use AI strategically to enhance your sales strategy and boost team performance: 𝟭. 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 Forget the guesswork. With AI, you can forecast sales with precision, not based on assumptions but on real-time data from your pipeline, market trends, and current customer behavior. Tools like 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗘𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗶𝗻 and 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶 analyze everything, giving you a clear picture of where your business is headed and where to focus efforts. 𝟮. 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀 Stop wasting time chasing leads that aren’t ready to convert. AI-powered lead scoring, like what you get with 𝗛𝘂𝗯𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁 𝗔𝗜, will help you automatically rank leads based on their likelihood to close. Focus your team’s efforts on leads with the highest potential, and let AI handle the rest. 𝟯. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮-𝗗𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗘𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘀 AI can’t replace great coaching, but it can supercharge it. Platforms like 𝗚𝗼𝗻𝗴.𝗶𝗼 and 𝗖𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘂𝘀.𝗮𝗶 analyze your reps’ calls and interactions, providing real-time insights into what’s working and what isn’t. Now, coaching becomes more targeted and data-driven, helping you optimize performance across your team. 𝟰. 𝗗𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 Sales playbooks shouldn’t be static. AI ensures they’re always relevant. By analyzing customer behavior and market conditions, tools like 𝗫𝗔𝗡𝗧.𝗮𝗶 can automatically suggest adjustments to your sales strategies, ensuring your team always has the best play to run. 𝟱. 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝗢𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 AI doesn’t just help you optimize what you have, it can also help you spot untapped revenue. By analyzing vast amounts of data, AI tools can reveal new market segments, pricing strategies, or even product opportunities that you might be missing. AI is an opportunity. The companies that succeed in the future won’t be the ones that fear AI, but those that integrate it into their strategy to drive growth, efficiency, and better decision-making. 🔴 Is Your Sales Team Ready for the AI Revolution? #AI #Sales #Leadership #SalesStrategy #AIinSales #RevenueGrowth #SalesLeadership #DigitalTransformation #SalesTech #Innovation Repost ♻️   ➕ Follow Zeni Siu, PhD(c), MBA, for actionable strategies and business content.   © 2026 Zeni Siu. All rights reserved.

The 2025 Gartner Sales Excellence Report just dropped. And it's about to change your revenue game completely. I spent the weekend analyzing it, and found 4 data-backed innovations that top-performing orgs are crushing right now: 1. Salesforce: Skill Development = Business Outcomes 41% of sellers resist changing how they work. Salesforce's solution? They embedded skills directly into workflows, tied proficiency to compensation, and used "nudges" to reinforce habits. The result was shocking. Their sellers finally aligned on both HOW and WHAT they sell. 2. Cisco: AI is Your New SDR Did you know sellers waste 30% of their week just self-sourcing? Cisco built a "tech teammate" using predictive AI and GenAI for lead scoring and message generation. The numbers don't lie: • 120% YoY revenue growth • 47% increase in pipeline value For those who actually adopted it. 3. SixthSpark: Keep the Seller in Digital Commerce 70% of B2B buyers prefer self-service. But here's what most miss: They still want access to subject matter experts. SixthSpark completely redefined their buyer journey with seller-assist roles and smart routing logic. Now their digital channel drives 12% of total transactions—a 200% YoY increase. 4. BroadSilver: Territory Turnover Insurance This one hit hard. 74% of B2B sellers are job-seeking (active or passive). Those coverage gaps? They're revenue bombs waiting to explode. BroadSilver's solution was brilliant: They launched a specialized "open territory team" that retained $20M in revenue from a $6M investment. If you lead sales, enablement, or GTM strategy—this report deserves your full attention. Which of these 4 innovations would transform your org? Or better yet—what's one bold move you've already made that's changed your sales motion? P.S. I'm collecting these strategies for a deeper dive next week. Would love your insights!

AI agents are coming to sales whether you're ready or not. The difference between those who thrive and those who struggle? It's not the technology—it's the preparation. I've been deploying AI agents with sales teams, and here's what separates the winners from the chaos: 𝗔𝗜 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘃𝘀. 𝗔𝗜 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀: 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 Your ChatGPT helps write emails faster. That's a tool. An AI agent qualifies 500 prospects while you sleep. That's transformation. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟱 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗙𝗶𝘅 𝗡𝗢𝗪: 𝟭. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗖𝗥𝗠 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗠𝗲𝘀𝘀 AI agents can't navigate your "Stage 3 (maybe 4?)" deals and duplicate accounts. Quick fix: • Audit your pipeline stages this week • Standardize opportunity data fields • Clean up duplicate accounts • Make "required fields" actually required 𝟮. 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘄 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝘀 𝗔𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗛𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 Your reps are using random AI tools. You just don't know it. Quick fix: • Survey what AI your team uses TODAY • Create approved AI tool list • Set clear usage guidelines • Build secure AI workspaces 𝟯. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗜𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗔𝗜-𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 AI agents need clear workflows. Your "it depends" process won't cut it. Map these workflows NOW: • Lead qualification criteria • Deal stage exit criteria • Handoff processes between SDR/AE • Follow-up sequences and timing 𝟰. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗱 𝗧𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗧𝗮𝗽𝗲 That manual export from Tool A to import into Tool B? AI agents can't do that. Audit your integration gaps: • CRM ↔ Sales engagement platform • Meeting scheduler ↔ Calendar • Email ↔ Activity tracking • Data enrichment ↔ Lead routing 𝟱. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 • Stalled deals? Deploy a Deal Intelligence Agent • Poor lead quality? Build a Qualification Agent • Slow follow-up? Create a Response Agent 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻: 1. Clean up your CRM data (start with stages and required fields) 2. Survey your team: "What AI tools did you use this week?" 3. Document your actual sales process (not the ideal one) 4. List your broken integrations 5. Choose ONE AI agent use case to pilot The companies succeeding with AI agents aren't the ones with the biggest budgets. They're the ones who prepared their foundation first. Your competition is already building their AI sales army. What's your first move?

Manufacturing sales is getting hacked 🔓 and you might be the last to know Ever feel like your RFQs vanish into a black hole? Or that your sales cycle moves slower than a fax machine stuck in 1998?🐢📠 Meanwhile, your competitors are out there closing deals before you even get past “Just following up…”. How? Because manufacturing sales isn’t just evolving—it’s getting a full-blown tech makeover⚙️💡. Here’s how tech is rewriting the sales playbook (and why your competitors are secretly laughing at you): 1️⃣ Dynamic Pricing is Killing ‘Let Me Get Back to You’ Quotes Remember when pricing was simple? Yeah, neither do I. AI-driven dynamic pricing now adjusts in real-time based on demand, material costs, and competitor moves. Buyers get instant, data-backed quotes. Reps stop fumbling with spreadsheets. More closed deals, less “waiting on approvals. 2️⃣ Industrial Marketplaces Are Making Cold Outreach Obsolete Buyers are shopping for machines like they shop for sneakers—scrolling through industrial marketplaces like Xometry and Alibaba. If your company isn’t optimized for digital discovery, you’re losing deals before your sales team even gets a chance. 3️⃣ Augmented Reality (AR) is Replacing Factory Visits Why spend thousands flying a prospect in when AR can drop them inside your factory from their laptop? Customers can see real-time simulations of your machines in their workspace, eliminating objections and speeding up the sales cycle. No more ‘Let me think about it’—they’ve already seen it in action. 4️⃣ Digital Twins Are Doing the Selling for You No more “Trust me, it’ll work.” Instead, sales teams are using digital twins—real-time, 3D replicas of a customer’s factory—showing exactly how your product fits in. Prospects see the ROI before they buy, and your sales team skips weeks of back-and-forth. 5️⃣ No More ‘Who Do I Call?’—AI Agents Are Fixing Salesforce Chaos Managing hundreds of leads, RFQs, and follow-ups? AI-powered sales agents prioritize the hottest deals, automate outreach, and remind reps exactly who to call, when, and what to say. (Because let's be honest—Excel isn’t cutting it anymore.) 6️⃣ Your Website is Now Your Best Salesperson Old-school manufacturers treat their websites like a business card. Modern manufacturers treat it like a 24/7 sales rep. High-performing B2B sites now offer instant quotes, interactive product demos, and automated lead qualification—because buyers don’t want to wait for a rep to respond. The Bottom Line? Manufacturing sales is no longer about who has the best cold call game. It’s about who sells smarter, faster, and with less friction ⚡ Our AI agents are helping manufacturers stay ahead, but we know every team tackles this challenge differently. How do you keep your salesforce sharp and responsive? Drop your thoughts in the comments—I’d love to hear what’s working for you!💬👇 #ManufacturingSales #B2BSales #IndustrialTech #BusinessGrowth #TechInManufacturing #Sales #Salesforce #Clientell