For decades, the annual Sales Kickoff (SKO) has served as the premier event for companies to bring their sales teams together to align around annual priorities and bond as a team. SKO agendas typically include the following elements:
- Sales strategy
- Key priorities
- New offerings
- Sales training
- Team building
- Networking opportunities
With the Covid-19 epidemic continuing into 2021, companies have to rethink how to achieve these same goals without an in-person event.
In many respects, rethinking the SKO makes a lot of sense. While the traditional in-person SKO set out to achieve the above-listed goals, the format posed four significant challenges:
- Information overload: Since the SKO was event-based (e.g., 2 or 3-day format), it typically was packed with sessions dominated by PowerPoint presentations. While the content was relevant, the ability to internalize and retain so much information in a condensed period is overwhelming.
- Lack of collaboration: A key component of learning is the ability to collaborate and share ideas. SKO events' condensed nature and the group sizes (often 50 or more in a meeting room) are not conducive to sharing ideas and best practices. This situation creates a significant challenge from a learning standpoint since "peer to peer" learning based on real-world experiences is powerful.
- Difficult to measure outcomes: Given the varied topics and brief nature of the typical SKO, it is difficult to measure what skills and knowledge participants took away from the sessions.
- No reinforcement: While the themes from the SKO were designed to carry forward throughout the year, very few SKOs included formal or informal reinforcement sessions. As a result, the virtual sales training experience did not capitalize on the most powerful aspects of learning; real-world application and adoption of the strategies and skills presented at the SKO.
In rethinking the SKO, we may not be able to recreate the in-person team building and networking opportunities. Still, we can develop an SKO strategy that allows for a better learning and development experience for the sales team.
Since the Covid-19 pandemic started, we have all had to transform how we engage with clients and each other. We have become increasingly tech-savvy and learned to sell virtually by leveraging meeting platforms and other technologies that allow us to engage and learn from each other. A technology that works particularly well for team learning and engagement are collaborative learning platforms that allow for spaced learning that incorporate micro-learning videos, live online sessions, peer to peer engagement, application exercises, and a leaderboard to track everyone's progress.
Leveraging this type of approach, companies can create a Virtual SKO that incorporates ongoing cohort sessions where participants can review and discuss concepts and share ideas based on real-world experiences. This approach also allows sales leaders to organize SKO topics with a cadence that addresses the four challenges noted above. Additionally, companies can track activities and award badges to improve completion rates and promote team collaboration.
As opposed to a 2 - 3day event, a Virtual SKO can take place over 3 – 4 weeks, with distinct tracks (i.e., strategy, new offerings, virtual selling…) and cohort groups of 25 – 50 participants. This approach is especially attractive for larger sales teams that operate across multiple time zones.
Keep in mind that creating a Virtual SKO is not all that complicated. It will likely take less time and energy to develop than an in-person event. So, don't let Covid-19 deter you from rethinking your SKO.
