How CROs Use Sales Enablement as a Lever for Repeatable Wins
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Why Enablement is a CRO-level growth lever
CROs face a new kind of pressure: deliver more growth, with fewer resources, in a tougher market.
You're likely managing leaner teams, juggling a bloated tech stack, and facing unpredictable buying behavior.
And you're not alone. According to Deloitte Digital, 72% of B2B CROs are prioritizing investments in learning and enablement this fiscal year — yet most admit their programs are still too rigid, too removed from the business, too generic, or too difficult to scale.
This shift is part of a broader pattern. At OSConf 2023, RevOps and sales leaders shared a unifying message: enablement is no longer a background function. It’s a strategic lever for growth. But for it to drive impact, it must be adaptive, data-driven, and operationally embedded.
The organizations getting this right aren’t running more training. They’re building systems that translate enablement into execution, and make repeatable growth possible. The best examples translate learning into behavioral action, and they deliver initiatives in days, not weeks or quarters.
Today’s sellers aren’t set up to execute — yet
Salesloft’s 2025 Skill Gaps Survey surfaced a familiar, yet urgent, contradiction.
Sellers think they’re performing well. Managers aren’t so sure.
- 85% of reps rated themselves strong in prospecting.
- 83% said they excel in executive engagement.
- But only 48% of managers trust reps to run deals independently.
- And 56% say reps routinely miss risks that stall deals.
There’s also a widening gap between process and execution:
- 40% of sellers frequently deviate from the defined sales process.
- Only 20% of managers believe deals follow a repeatable framework.
Add in AI confusion and tool sprawl, and the cracks deepen:
- Just 6% of sellers use AI to prioritize tasks.
- Most still rely on gut feel, not buying signals.
This misalignment echoes what Salesloft outlines as one of the top barriers to repeatable revenue: reps unsure of what to focus on, managers unable to coach at scale, and teams struggling to operationalize best practices.
From training tracker to performance engine
Too many enablement programs measure activity: course completions, certifications, quiz scores. But CROs don’t care about participation. They care about progress.
What behavioral changes can be validated after the training?
Are reps applying the new behavior?
What leading and lagging indicators must be monitored to show impact?
Will an FLM describe the enablement function as an extension of themselves?
Those are the questions that matter.
Completion and certification scores don’t go on the QBR slide. What matters is adoption and behavior. Are reps doing what we trained them to do? And is it moving deals forward?
Here’s how we think about enablement at Salesloft:
- We think of the enablement team like a pit crew. We’re on the track with the team, tuning the machine in real time to help them win. No spectators.
- Sellers need support now — not a month from now or a quarter from now. Great enablement is relevant and practical.
- Every initiative is scoped directly with senior leadership and framed by behavioral outcomes, not just knowledge transfer.
- We focus on a small number of high-impact initiatives, delivered with deep support and teamwork.
- Enablement acts as a catalyst for change, pacing delivery to avoid overwhelming teams.
- We function as an extension of the front-line manager — making things happen.
Three moves CROs are making to scale what works
1. Measure what matters: Behavior, not participation
You can’t improve what you can’t measure. Many enablement teams still rely on proxy metrics like attendance or quiz scores. But those don’t speak to business outcomes.
Our team focuses on how enablement drives real-world execution. After launching a new narrative or onboarding track, they track adoption in conversations, shifts in pipeline velocity, and rep confidence.
We also incorporate product readiness into measurement. For instance, after rolling out a new roadmap, reps practice delivering the deck, which AI then evaluates against predefined criteria.
Watch the Sales Leaders: Find the Patterns to Success webinar to learn more about how leaders move beyond activity metrics.
Salesloft's enablement metrics framework:
- Ramp attainment: Reps land their first deal in 90 days — or what we call the "4-minute mile."
- Confidence scores (rep + manager): "Don't tell me what you're going to do, show me."
- Behavioral adoption (via Salesloft Conversations): used to celebrate both greatness and learning moments.
- Funnel conversion improvements: Focused on proactive deal management that guides the buyer forward. No reactive or short-sighted plans.
- Feedback loops and qualitative adoption signals: Think of it as the "radio between the race car driver and the pit crew."
2. Build global consistency with local flexibility
Rigid, top-down programs don’t scale. But neither does a free-for-all.
Salesloft’s Cadence Centers of Excellence create a middle ground:
- Define global cadences, messaging, and structure.
- Empower regional teams to localize for buyer maturity, language, and competitive landscape
This “think global, act local” model drives faster onboarding, consistent performance benchmarks, and regional autonomy — all critical for multiregional sales orgs.
We also reinforce this model through enablement roadshows. Our team regularly travels to Salesloft hubs to run in-person sessions focused on real pipeline activity. These aren’t passive training days—they’re action days. Reps work side by side to apply what they’ve learned, generate new opportunities, and move deals forward in real time.
3. Put enablement where the work happens
Enablement doesn’t live in an LMS. It lives in day-to-day revenue activities.
That’s why Salesloft’s enablement programs:
- Embed qualification frameworks into opportunity management
- Use AI agents to help with prioritization, productivity, and personalization
- Use AI to surface risk signals from live calls and funnel data
- Partner with frontline sales and RevOps to adjust in real time
This tight integration reflects the modern revenue tech stack approach: embedding enablement, AI, analytics, and an orchestration layer into a unified platform. This eliminates the distance between training and execution.
Importantly, enablement works with the Growth Trifecta: the CRO, CFO, and RevOps team. Together, they ensure enablement efforts align with forecast accuracy, pipeline health, and overall revenue strategy.
Overcoming resistance without losing selling time
Manager resistance is practical and part of the process. When pipeline targets loom, pulling reps out of the field feels risky.
To counter this, enablement must:
- Minimize classroom time. Most “teaching” happens asynchronously. Live sessions are reserved for practice, activation, and peer collaboration.
- Break content into digestible, scoped chunks. Large initiatives are delivered in phases to reduce lift and improve retention.
- Ruthlessly prioritize. If an initiative isn’t directly tied to revenue goals or critical performance gaps, we won’t pursue it.
Salesloft’s enablement team closes the loop through:
- A consistent review of business metrics to ensure the team understands how their work impacts the organization. Purpose and mission matter.
- A thoughtful mix of digital and in-person enablement — designed to balance learning with real-world application, while staying aligned to active revenue priorities.
- Dedicated presence in business unit segment meetings and forecast calls.
- Quarterly reviews tied to business metrics.
- Post-rollout field feedback surveys.
This reflects the flywheel effect in action: the more reps adopt, the faster you refine, the greater the ROI.
Final thought: Enablement is a performance lever
High-performing CROs don’t view enablement as a support function. They view it as infrastructure.
It’s how you:
- Shorten ramp time
- Improve forecast accuracy
- Scale winning behaviors
- Create consistent revenue performance across regions and segments
If you’re investing in enablement, don’t stop at tools or content. Build:
- Flexible, role-based programs
- Embedded workflows with real-time coaching
- Measurement systems that track behavior and business outcomes
This is how you put your wins on repeat.