The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

In this episode, we’re talking about what really causes sales performance to decline and what leaders can do to help their reps bounce back with clarity and confidence. 

Stephanie Downs, SVP/Senior Consultant at The Center for Sales Strategy, joins Matt to help break it all down. She expands on key ideas from her article in the 2025 Talent Magazine, where she shares a framework for diagnosing underperformance and reigniting momentum through strength-based leadership. 

Stephanie delivers powerful takeaways, such as: 

• Why, too often, feedback from sales managers is too vague 
• How to distinguish between a skills gap and a motivation issue 
• And, finally, why you should focus on a rep’s strengths (even when results seem to be lagging)

In this episode, we’re exploring what smart sales leaders do before their top performers resign. 

And joining Matt is Beth Sunshine, SVP/Talent Services at The Center for Sales Strategy. 

Her contribution to the 2025 Talent Magazine highlights the importance of being ready long before turnover happens. And, here, she shares actionable ways to build that readiness into your talent strategy. 

Beth brings so much wisdom to the table, including: 

• Why it’s essential to protect the relationships with your people who leave, because “boomerang” employees are all too common 
• How, when it comes to referrals, vague requests get vague results  
• And, finally, why the only thing more expensive than making the wrong hire, is waiting too long to make the right one

In this episode, we’re diving into how identifying and leveraging innate talent (rather than just experience) can help leaders build stronger, higher-performing sales teams. 

And helping Matt unpack it all is Trey Morris, VP/Senior Consultant/Director of Training Innovation at The Center for Sales Strategy. Trey’s article in the 2025 Talent Magazine explores how smart hiring decisions can transform team performance, and, here, he brings those insights to life with practical strategies and real-world examples. 

Trey shares so many eye-opening tips, like: 

• Why hiring for raw potential often yields better results than hiring for polish or experience alone 
• How to spot innate talent during the interview process using tools like structured assessments 
• And, finally, why, every time you interact with anyone, you should ask yourself: “Is this someone that I could I add to my Talent Bank?” 

In this Quick Take episode, we’re exploring the undeniable power of sales coaching, the challenges of traditional approaches, and how AI-powered solutions are setting a new standard for skill development. 

On the other side of this brief episode, you’ll see how AI sales coaching truly can elevate the game of your sellers.

The Power of Consistent Sales Coaching

There are no two ways about it: sales coaching is helpful for driving performance in any sales team. Its benefits are well-documented, with consistent coaching leading to improvements in both individual and team productivity.

While training alone can boost sales production by 20-30%, integrating regular coaching and practice can amplify this impact fourfold, reaching an 80% improvement.

This transformative power is essential for sales leaders focused on not just meeting but exceeding revenue targets. By fostering an environment of continuous development, sales coaching enhances not only skills but also confidence and customer relationships, laying the foundation for sustained success.

In this episode, we’re discussing the benefits of having an AI Task Force at your company and how such a brain trust can be an invaluable resource to ensure that your organization stays ahead of the curve.

In this episode, we’re taking a look at how AI is supercharging CRMs and, specifically, exploring how HubSpot is transforming the way businesses manage customer relationships, sales processes, and marketing campaigns. 

Previously this season, we explored how AI is transforming the world of sales coaching. Today, in this episode, we’re diving a bit deeper into that topic by chatting with two incredible guests from the AI coaching platform, Yoodli. 

In this episode, we’re discussing how to ensure your sales teams are focused on the right sales activities to drive performance. 
 
And joining Matt Sunshine to help break it all down is Jeff Clewett, Director of Sales at Bonneville Denver, and Emily Estey, VP/Senior Consultant here at CSS. 
 
Both offer some amazing points to think about, like:  

• Why too many sales managers treat everything as an emergency when they need to be prioritizing and filtering the right information for their teams 

• How target drives can help put a spotlight on the activities that actually make you money 

• And, finally, if you’re coaching Michael Phelps, you’re not going to teach him to run. 

In this episode, we're exploring how a company successfully aligned its sales and marketing teams to maximize the efforts of its sellers. 

The great Andrew Sims, CRO at SentriLock, and Trey Morris, VP/Senior Consultant here at CSS, are joining Matt Sunshine in breaking down that journey.  
 
Both bring such great points to the table, like: 

• Why you don't have to make Mount Everest-sized changes in order to achieve sales and marketing alignment.

• How marketing should help prepare your sales team for battle.

• Why do all great companies have a singular mission from which all marketing, branding, and content can be drawn? 

In this Quick Take episode, we're exploring one of the most crucial aspects of success as a business: the ability to keep your sales pipeline full. 
 
By the end of this short episode, you'll have 10 effective tactics at your disposal to ensure that your sales pipeline is never empty.