Overview

The Emblaze Leadership Summit has earned a reputation as the “Inside Sales” leadership conference of the year, and is known for delivering high-quality content filled with valuable, relevant information. The 2016 Leadership Summit showcased many exceptional speakers, breakout sessions, and a glimpse into the latest tools and technologies.

Pre-Event Workshops and Activities

A recurring addition to Leadership Summits are optional Pre-Event Workshops held prior to kickoff of the conference. 2016 Pre-Event Workshops focused on Professional Development for Women, Fundamentals of Growing or Starting a Sales Team, and Ways to Leverage Your Leadership Potential.

Back by popular demand, the first workshop, “Leveraging Your Leadership Potential”, was hosted by award winning author and speaker, John Baker. John presented his highly acclaimed Asking Formula program which teaches us how to be more effective when asking “we want”, a skill which leads to stronger sales results, more confident and effective communications, as well as a heightened professional image.

The second workshop, “Professional Motivation Strategies for Women”, was a two-part session which started with an interactive discussion between attendees. Led by Emblaze, CEO, Larry Reeves, the discussion covered topics including career advancement, compensation, respect, negotiation skills, and more. Following a break, workshop presenter and Founder of The Keynote Effect, Diane Ciotta took attendees through a session which encouraged women to use their natural attributes to realize personal growth and attain professional achievement.

The third and final workshop brought together attendees with a common goal. “Starting or Growing an Inside Sales Team”, hosted by Dionne Mischler, Founder of Inside Sales by Design, was a hands-on workshop that focused on five key areas including, aligning sales-team structure to corporate goals, job descriptions, the positive impact of onboarding and sales, developing a coaching cadence, and the benefits of reporting.

Attendees from all three workshops left the sessions with a wealth of knowledge and ready to begin their full Leadership Summit experience.

In addition to the workshops, Emblaze Regional Chapter Leaders came together for the Annual Chapter Leader Meeting. This provided the opportunity to brainstorm as a large group on ways to improve the following year as well as recognize and celebrate past achievements. Several corporations who use the Summit as an opportunity to bring their teams together to learn also held team planning meetings throughout the facility.

Summit Day 1 – Morning

As is the Summit tradition, 2016 opened with an inspiring video on “The Perfect Storm – Inside Sales” which gave a spotlight on how far the profession has come, highlighted our Inside Sales community, the current movement, and what that means to all of us. This was followed by insightful opening remarks from Emblaze Founder and Chairman, Bob Perkins, as he shared his vision for uniting our community at a greater level and shared appreciation for the leaders, reps, and supporting professionals.

Following Bob was Keynote presenter, Duane Cummings. An award-winning Author and Coach, Duane shared with LS2016 attendees the message of "Making of a Sensational Leader”, and offered tips on key habits, traits, and characteristics of being a leader in the workplace and in your personal life.

Following Duane, Dave Elkington, Founder & CEO of InsideSales.com, shared research on “Why Sales Leaders Remain Bullish Despite Market Turbulence”. Using the Business Growth Index research, Dave shared how companies can find a path to profitable sales in any economy.

The morning continued with an eye-opening presentation from Outreach VP of Sales, Mark Kosoglow titled “Sales is Impossible”. Mark shared from his own sales experience the pressure facing our sales teams while giving us ways to empower them to get past these challenges. Following Mark, attendees took a break to explore the Technology Expo where 42 of today’s leading providers showcased their services for the LS2016 audience.

Wrapping up the morning general sessions were presentations focusing on “Crushing The Competition” by increasing sales productivity led by Dustin Grosse, CEO of Clearslide, an explanation of “The Who, What, When, and Why of Sales” given by Velocify CEO, Nick Hedges, and an interactive presentation from Founder & President of Factor 8 Training, Lauren Bailey which provided “Quick Fixes for Frontline Failures”.

Summit Day 1 – Afternoon

Following a buffet lunch in the Technology Expo, attendees headed downstairs for the first breakout sessions of the 2016 Summit. 35 breakout sessions were conducted during the course of the Summit which provided attendees a wide selection of topics and allowed them to select presentations that matched their individualized learning needs and interests. Topics included: Recruiting and Hiring, Managing the Complexity of Inside Sales, Account-Based Sales Development, Guided Selling, LDR/SDR Development, interactive panels, and much more.

The afternoon continued with attendees gathering back in general session to hear Jim Eberlin, Founder & CEO at TopOPPS, share “Best practices to Optimize One-on-One Meetings”, and Co-Founder & CRO at Consensus, Matt Behrend discuss “How Buying-Group Disagreement Kills Your Close Rate, and Five Steps to Fix It”.

Special Guest

The 2016 Leadership Summit Special Guest was Bill Rancic, Entrepreneur, Author, and winner of the first season of NBC’s breakthrough program The Apprentice. During his talk on “Advancing Your Career as a Sales Leader”, Bill gave the audience a glimpse into lessons he has learned throughout his many business experiences including, how to break away from the pack, ways to make each day count, how to separate your expectations from your shortcomings, and how leaders must stay aware of the change of currents in their workplace.

Halfway Mark

The Emblaze Happy Hour in the Expo buzzed with conversation and provided a wrap-up to a full day of learning, sharing, and networking. Attendees visited with their peers, technology providers, authors, and took advantage of photo opportunities with Keynote Duane Cummings, and Special Guest, Bill Rancic.

Day 2 - Morning

A Summit favorite, the Birds-of-a-Feather Roundtable discussions took place during breakfast. Hosted by subject-matter experts, these topic-focused discussions offer a unique opportunity to meet for small, intimate conversations with fellow Inside Sales leaders on some very specific topics, including sales playbooks, scaling globally, sales acceleration, and much more. 

The second-day morning general sessions opened with a presentation by Tom Snyder, Founder of Funnel Clarity (formerly known as VorsightBP). Tom discussed "The Lost Art of the Sales Conversation" and key symptoms that indicate to a sales team that its technology-to-skill ratio is out of balance. Next was Matt Loop, Head of Enterprise Sales for LinkedIn Sales Solutions, where he shared ways to “Unlock a Competitive Advantage with Social Selling”. Concluding the final morning general session was a presentation focused on "Coaching Hacks to Build a High Velocity Sales Team". Presented by LiveHive CEO, Suresh Balasubramanian, this session provided ways to increase visibility into prospect interactions, rep activities, and more.

The rest of the morning was spent in the final breakout sessions of LS2016. Again, attendees had seven choices per session slot to personalize their learning path.

Annual Awards

After enjoying the final breakout sessions, attendees gathered for a popular highlight of the Summit - the Annual Emblaze Awards Banquet. This is a once-a-year celebration where Inside Sales Professionals, Organizations, and Service Providers are honored for their accomplishments, contributions, and dedication to our profession. 

The Awards Banquet moved quickly as more than 40 Inside Sales awards were presented, including the Lifetime Achievement Award to Judy Buchholz, Emblaze Spirt Award to Michelle Fidler, Emblaze Innovator to Jennifer Nietz, and Executive of the Year to Jorge Diaz. 

In addition, the Emblaze Top 25 Most Influential list was announced and the Emblaze Chapter Awards were presented. In 2016, winning Emblaze Chapters included: International Chapter of the Year - Singapore, and Chapter of the Year – Silicon Valley. 

The Emblaze went on to recognize the vast group of volunteer sales leaders who serve as Chapter Presidents, Officers, and/or Advisory Board Members. Finally, a special recognition was given to Lori Richardson for being a true champion in helping women advance in the sales profession.

Also announced during the Annual Awards ceremony was the winner of the Showcase Your Team competition. Emblaze member companies were invited to submit videos showcasing their sales teams, workplaces, and culture. A team from Staples Business Advantage took home the prize, including passes to the first annual Emblaze UNITE conference held in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Emblaze Award program is based on input from our member community.

Day 2 - Afternoon

After a short break, attendees gathered for the final general sessions starting with a panel led by Lori Richardson, President of Women Sales Pros. This panel discussed the ROI of advancing women in sales positions into leadership.

Next up, Kyle Porter, CEO & Founder of SalesLoft shared with LS2016 attendees “The Scientific Truth to Sales Development Touchpoints”. ConnectAndSell CEO, Chris Beall followed giving a presentation on “How to Coach by the Numbers” and use call outcomes to drive efficient and effective improvement of sales teams.

The 2016 Leadership Summit wrapped up with an executive discussion on the lessons learned throughout the conference. Bob was joined by a group of seasoned Inside Sales veterans selected from among attendees as they discussed the key takeaways while asking for input from the audience.

In Closing

The 2016 Leadership Summit brought together sales leaders from around the globe for what attendees called an experience unlike any other. Attendees were challenged not only to improve their leadership skills, but to bring back the latest tips and best practices to their sales teams. The networking, sharing, and sense of community found at the annual Leadership Summit is something that brings attendees and technology providers back each year. With this, the Emblaze community is strong and ever growing.

We hope you take advantage of the resources available to you with your Emblaze membership, and invest time throughout the year to continue to improve your own performance as a sales leader.

We're looking forward to seeing you in Chicago in 2017!