Tomorrow’s Enablement for Today’s Leaders with Irina Soriano and Meganne Brezina

Description

In this week’s episode of The Enablement Edge, hosts Amber Mellano and Steve Watt talk with enablement experts Irina Soriano and Meganne Brezina.  

The conversation revolves around their must-read book, “Tomorrow’s Enablement for Today’s Leaders,” which introduces the transformative Enablement Value Chain (EVC) framework. The EVC approach underscores the criticality of integrating analytics, fostering cross-functional collaboration, and distinguishing between field enablement and field activation to drive tangible business outcomes.  

Irina and Meganne share valuable insights about field activation and its role in bolstering traditional enablement efforts. They share practical advice for leaders on measuring and demonstrating the impact of enablement programs in driving engagement, behavior change, and business outcomes. This methodical approach ensures enablement professionals can tangibly link their initiatives to organizational success, securing much-needed buy-in from leadership for continual investment in enablement activities. 

A recurring theme is the importance of adaptability and continuous learning in the rapidly evolving world of enablement. Irina and Meganne stress the need for a methodological yet flexible strategy that can scale as the organization grows, encouraging practitioners to push for innovation while exercising patience for outcomes. By sharing their experiences and actionable insights, the duo aims to equip fellow enablers with the knowledge and tools needed to advance their careers and significantly impact their organizations. 

Show Notes

Jump into the conversation:  

00:00 Episode Start 

04:38 Meganne and Irina’s key to enablement 

05:39 Tomorrow’s Enablement for Today’s Leaders 

09:58 What is different in the Enablement Value Chain (EVC) 

13:40 Identifying the analytics that really matter 

21:02 Field Enablement vs. Field Activation 

25:10 What are field councils? 

29:00 The state of enablement in 2024 

32:20 On the Edge 

About Irina:

Irina is Seismic’s VP of Strategic Enablement Consulting and has over a decade of global enablement leadership experience. She joined Seismic in 2019, taking on the challenge of establishing the company’s enablement department from the ground up. With diverse experience across Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the US, Irina possesses a deep understanding of varied markets and a successful track record in building enablement teams.  

Beyond her role, she’s an active contributor to industry organizations, leading the New York Women in Sales Enablement (WiSE) chapter and she has been recognized as a Top 20 Enablement Influencer. Irina is committed to gender equality, published her first book, “Generation Brand,” in 2021, and empowers individuals through TEDx talks and mentoring.  

She also founded SISTERLY with her sister Jo to create a community for women to liberate limiting beliefs and grow into their full potential in business. Irina resides in NYC with her husband, Chris, and is a stepmother to twins. 

About Meganne:

Meganne is an active participant in the enablement community and has been a practitioner for over ten years. She was named a 2023 Enablement Legend Award winner by the Enablement Squad for her frequent contributions.  

She is a member of the Revenue Enablement Society and its Indianapolis chapter, and she founded and currently leads the Indianapolis chapter of Women in Sales Enablement. For WiSE, she also serves on their global board of directors as a global lead. Recently, she was invited to be an Enablement Advisor for RISE, a new organization conducting research and providing strategic insights to advance the profession of enablement. 

She earned her Certified Change Management Practitioner designation last year from ACMP and published a book with Irina Soriano called “Tomorrow’s Enablement for Today’s Leaders,” which articulates an innovative approach to strategic enablement with the Enablement Value Chain. 

Episode highlight:

“There’s a handful of us that have been doing this kind of thing for a long time, but there’s still always the need for innovation. And it’s very hard to sometimes get that information. We were just reaching a point where folks are like, ‘What else is there? I’ve done all of it. Where’s the next best thing that I can implement in my practice?’ So we knew there was a need, but it was even much bigger than we originally anticipated.” – Irina Soriano 

“Due to the high velocity that many organizations are experiencing, this theory of change management is becoming more and more important. It’s important in the way that we’re communicating with the field. It’s important in the way that we’re managing our own enablement initiatives and how we’re really rolling them out. ‘How are we doing this in an effective way that truly drives the behavior changes?’ And I think that all starts in the way that we manage that strategy up front.” – Meganne Brezina