Lead to Inspire

Training and Enablement

One of the most important elements of any restructure is ensuring that every team member feels equipped, confident, and aligned — not just in knowledge, but in mindset. As part of the merger, I led the development and delivery of a structured training and enablement program designed to support both short-term onboarding and long-term success.

Before this initiative, each company had its own approach to training, with informal knowledge sharing, team-specific onboarding, and inconsistent documentation. There was no centralized curriculum, and in many cases, individuals lacked access to materials about the products or customers of the sister organization. This created inefficiencies, onboarding delays, and occasional missteps in customer interactions and the spread of misinformation.

To solve for this, I began by identifying the core knowledge and behavioral competencies required for success in the new organization. I broke the training program into four foundational modules:

1. Product & Services Training – Deep dives into each platform’s capabilities, value proposition, and use cases. Delivered through a mix of live sessions, recorded demos, and internal SME Q&As.
2. Customer Portfolio Familiarization – Structured sessions that walked through the book of business, highlighting shared accounts the two entities had, cross-sell potential, and strategic opportunities.
3. Unified Sales Methodology – A tailored approach that combined the best of both companies’ practices and introduced consistent messaging, qualification criteria, and pipeline stages.
4. Internal Tools & Processes – Training on CRM updates, opportunity tracking templates, and the newly established Quarterly Business Review process.

To track progress, I introduced a certification model where team members completed quizzes, participated in role plays, and submitted practice QBRs for peer and manager review. I introduced a two hour “working session” on Thursday afternoons where the team could bring anything they were working on or needed to complete to the team – and we would do it together. I saw the team share knowledge, help find resources, brainstorm new ideas and start organically training each other. This process wasn’t just about skills and knowledge — it was about building confidence and creating a shared standard of excellence amongst the new team.

The below are some of the deliverables creating in this phase.

This phase reaffirmed that knowledge transfer is just the beginning — true enablement is about empowering people to apply what they’ve learned with clarity and conviction. Early on, we assumed some cross-training could happen “organically” through collaboration, but I quickly realized that intentional structure was essential. People wanted defined expectations, curated materials, and dedicated time to absorb new content.

I also saw firsthand how training can be a powerful tool for culture-building. The sessions became more than just informational — they became moments where the newly merged team began speaking the same language, building relationships, and sharing customer success stories across legacy lines. Those moments created buy-in that no slide deck ever could.

Finally, I learned that good enablement programs are never “done.” They need to evolve with the business, be refreshed often, and be owned by the people who use them. As a result, I created an internal feedback loop and designated content owners to ensure the curriculum stays dynamic and relevant.