Episode description

Douglas Cole is an Enterprise Sales Leader at LinkedIn, an advisor with start-up accelerators in Canada and the U.S., and a part-time university lecturer at The Rotman School of Management and The Schulich Executive Education Centre in Toronto. If that isn’t enough, he has also authored The Sales MBA: How to Influence Corporate Buyers.

Doug joined the LinkedIn team because he believes in their vision and values, and he’s committed to refining his craft as a leader. Doug’s team helps B2B sales organisations thrive in our digital era.

He is actively involved with internal education: as a faculty member of LinkedIn's Data-Driven University (DDU), creating professional development programs with institutional partners, and standing up a Mini-MBA for the global sales team. He’s also on the leadership team that sets direction for LinkedIn Canada.

“My career spans consulting, education, and sales. Three interests are at the heart of this journey. I like big picture thinking and analysis. That’s the consultant in me. I like distilling first principles to help others improve. That’s the educator in me. I like driving growth and rallying around a common purpose. That’s the sales leader in me. In essence, I enjoy teasing out hidden sources of meaning in our personal and professional lives.” - Douglas Cole

Key Points of our Discussion

Douglas’s new book The Sales MBA: How to Influence Corporate Buyers

• The general lack of Business Acumen in Salespeople
• The saturated knowledge economy
• Understanding the external dynamics
• Getting to know the organisational dynamics
• Nailing the interpersonal dynamics
• Becoming a strategist for the industry
• Becoming a change agent for the company
• Becoming a decision architect for the customer
• Choosing language and messaging carefully
• Behavioural economics in sales

To connect with Chris, you can find him here on LinkedIn
Find More on his book: The Sales MBA here