Account Executives Lab

Course synopsis

Strong opportunities are built week by week — in the questions you ask, the evidence you gather and the next step you secure. AE Online Lab Part 1 equips account executives with the skills, confidence and commercial discipline to create stronger opportunities, improve deal qualification and win more business. Across five live online sessions, AEs take control of their sales week, move discovery beyond the surface, apply MEDDPICC with confidence, explore objections without becoming defensive and drive clear next steps. Each session is a small-group working lab with breakouts, role-play and personal coaching. Between sessions, AEs apply an agreed action and bring their experience back to the group.

5 live sessions · 2.5 hours each

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Late-stage selling is where value is tested — in the proposal, the negotiation and the moment a customer decides. AE Online Lab Part 2 strengthens the commercial skills account executives need to present compelling solutions, negotiate effectively and secure customer commitment. Across three live online sessions, AEs structure customer-focused proposals, plan negotiations around trade-offs rather than discounts, and build closing strategies aligned with how the customer actually decides. Practice uses real-world deal scenarios, role-play and personal coaching, so every participant leaves with a plan for a live opportunity.

3 live sessions · 2.5 hours each

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Owning the deal means connecting every conversation to the buyer's reason to decide. A practical two-day lab for account executives who own the new-business sale. Day one connects the complete journey: research the right accounts, prospect with purpose, write relevant outreach, lead discovery, demonstrate value and build a proposal that reflects the buyer’s priorities. Practise handling concerns, negotiating within clear boundaries and agreeing a credible close. Day two deepens discovery and demo practice, stakeholder mapping, qualification, business-case development and competitive positioning, ending with a coached opportunity clinic. Bring an anonymised opportunity and leave with a researched account approach, conversation structure and buyer-aligned next actions.

Key focus areas

• Account research, ideal customer fit and prospect prioritisation
• Prospecting, personalised outreach and first conversations
• Discovery: priorities, impact, qualification and decision steps
• Relevant demos and value-led proposals
• Objection handling, negotiation and closing
• Day 2: deeper discovery and tailored demo practice
• Day 2: stakeholder mapping, business cases and competitive positioning
• Day 2: mutual action plans, deal risks and opportunity clinics

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

A demo should help the people in the room decide, not simply show them what the product can do. A great demo helps a new-business buyer decide whether the solution addresses a priority worth acting on. This half-day workshop helps account executives turn discovery into an audience-specific demo that connects capabilities to business outcomes rather than touring features. Map the roles, priorities and decision criteria of the people attending, agree what they need to see and invite questions throughout. Where a solution consultant joins you, plan a shared narrative and clear responsibilities so the commercial and technical conversations support each other. Where you lead alone, use the same preparation and structure to create a confident two-way exchange.

Key focus areas

• Discovery-led demo objectives and decision criteria
• Audience mapping: sponsors, users, technical and commercial stakeholders
• Connecting capabilities to relevant business outcomes
• Working with solution consultants: briefing, roles and handovers
• Leading effectively without a solution consultant
• Interactive two-way demos: questions, checkpoints and participation
• Handling technical questions and avoiding feature detours
• Buyer feedback, decision gaps and mutual next steps

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Your calendar and your forecast should reflect the same commercial priorities. Account executives balance prospecting, discovery, proposals, follow-up and internal meetings while keeping opportunities moving. This single half-day session combines sales-specific time management with a practical forecasting rhythm. Delegates prioritise opportunities by value, evidence and next action, protect time for pipeline creation and buyer commitments, and make space for CRM updates and forecast preparation. Unlike the separate Deal Control course, the focus is how to organise the working week and prepare a clear, evidence-based forecast within it.

Key focus areas

• Prioritising pipeline creation and deal progression
• Time-blocking prospecting, meetings and follow-up
• Managing interruptions and internal commitments
• Keeping CRM evidence and next steps current
• Preparing forecast categories using agreed team definitions
• A weekly review of buyer commitments, risks and dates

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Confidence in a deal includes the ability to explore a buyer's concern without losing your commercial judgement. Account executives encounter objections about budget, timing, competitors, implementation and the decision to change. This half-day workshop develops a calm, consultative approach to understanding the concern before responding. Delegates practise listening, clarifying, responding and confirming, distinguish a genuine constraint from an unresolved question, and connect their response to the buyer's priorities and evidence. The focus is maintaining trust and deal momentum while recognising when further qualification is needed or an opportunity is not ready to progress.

Key focus areas

• Listening, clarifying, responding and confirming
• Price, budget and value concerns
• Timing, implementation and internal approval objections
• Competitors, status quo and no decision
• Testing concerns with buyer evidence
• Agreeing next steps and recognising qualification gaps

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Value becomes persuasive when the buyer recognises it in their own business. A strong value conversation helps the buyer see why change matters to their business, not simply what a product can do. This one-day workshop helps account executives and sellers explore customer priorities, connect a challenge to its operational or commercial impact and build a value case grounded in evidence. Delegates practise consultative questioning, distinguish a stated requirement from an underlying need and develop messages suited to different stakeholders. They explore how to discuss the cost of doing nothing without exaggerating it, test assumptions with the buyer and respond thoughtfully when price becomes the focus. The aim is a clearer, more credible conversation about outcomes and trade-offs, with value propositions your team can apply to relevant opportunities.

Key focus areas

• Consultative selling principles
• Understanding customer priorities
• Quantifying the value of change
• Building value propositions
• Defending value, not discounting
• Positioning as a trusted adviser

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

The quality of your discovery shapes the quality of every decision that follows. When discovery stays at the surface, sellers risk pursuing opportunities without understanding the business problem, its consequences or how a buying decision will be made. This one-day course helps account executives, account managers and sellers navigating long or complex sales cycles run structured discovery meetings that uncover pain, quantify impact and establish urgency. Delegates explore qualification frameworks such as MEDDIC, map decision-makers and influencers, and strengthen their active listening and summarising skills. For teams seeking to improve low win rates, the focus is on clearer qualification, better-informed opportunity decisions and the confidence to walk away when a deal does not merit further investment.

Key focus areas

• Structured discovery questioning
• Uncovering pain, impact and urgency
• Qualification frameworks (e.g. MEDDIC)
• Mapping decision-makers and influencers
• Active listening and summarising
• Knowing when to walk away

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Complex deals move through a buying group, not a single friendly contact. Complex B2B deals involve stakeholders with different priorities, and relying on one contact can leave opportunities exposed to unseen objections or shifting influence. This half-day course helps account executives, key account managers and sellers moving into larger deals map the buying group, distinguish decision-makers, influencers and blockers, and tailor value to each person’s priorities. Delegates explore how to build and coach internal champions, engage senior executives and develop relationships across the account rather than relying on a single thread. The focus is a more deliberate approach to stakeholder engagement, helping sellers strengthen internal support and reduce single-threaded deal risk.

Key focus areas

• Mapping the buying group
• Decision-makers, influencers and blockers
• Tailoring value to each stakeholder
• Building and coaching champions
• Multi-threading deals
• Engaging senior executives

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

A proposal should make the buyer's decision easier to understand and justify. Too many proposals read like product brochures, leaving customers to work out the value and sellers wondering why the conversation has gone quiet. This half-day course helps account executives, bid writers, consultants and professional services teams turn discovery into a proposal built around customer goals and outcomes. Delegates learn to structure a compelling proposal, build a simple business case, show a clear return on investment and present their recommendations with confidence rather than simply pressing send. The focus is on making the buying decision clearer: connecting value to customer priorities, following up with purpose and agreeing next steps at the proposal stage.

Key focus areas

• Linking value to the customer's goals
• Structuring a winning proposal
• Building a simple business case and ROI
• Presenting your proposal live
• Following up with purpose

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

A strong negotiation starts before the conversation turns to price. Negotiation puts margin, value and commercial relationships under pressure, particularly when price objections and tough procurement tactics dominate the conversation. This one-day course helps account executives, key account managers, sales leaders approving discounts and anyone negotiating commercial agreements prepare a clear position, establish their walk-away point and understand the other side’s priorities. Through interactive practice, delegates learn to trade rather than concede, respond confidently to price pressure and work towards agreements that serve their commercial objectives. The focus is on disciplined preparation and practical negotiation skills that help sellers protect value without losing sight of the agreement they need to reach.

Key focus areas

• Preparing your position and walk-away
• Understanding the other side's priorities
• Trading, not conceding
• Handling price objections
• Dealing with procurement tactics
• Negotiation practice in breakout groups

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

A credible close is a shared commitment, not a date the seller hopes will happen. Closing should feel like a natural next step, yet uncertainty about buyer readiness and last-minute objections can leave promising deals stalled at the finish line. This half-day course helps sellers at every level, from new starters building confidence to experienced teams managing late-stage opportunities, approach the close with greater clarity. Delegates learn to recognise buying signals, use trial and final closes, handle remaining concerns calmly and create urgency honestly, without resorting to high-pressure tactics. Through peer-to-peer practice, they build the confidence to ask for the business naturally and develop practical approaches to reducing avoidable delays at the final stage.

Key focus areas

• Recognising buying signals
• Trial and final closes
• Handling last-minute objections
• Creating urgency honestly
• Peer-to-peer closing practice

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Deal control means understanding the commitments behind a decision, not trying to control the customer. Strong deal control means understanding how the buyer moves towards a decision and helping the right people stay aligned. This half-day workshop helps account executives build relationships across the buying group, engage executive sponsors and agree a clear path to progress. Delegates map influence, priorities and gaps, strengthen Champions and connect the proposed solution to the outcomes senior stakeholders care about. Mutual action plans bring decision steps, owners and dependencies together so next actions are grounded in the buyer's process. The emphasis is collaborative deal progression, not pressure: making risks visible, resolving misalignment and maintaining momentum through meaningful commitments.

Key focus areas

• Multi-threading across the buying group
• Stakeholder engagement and influence mapping
• Executive alignment around business outcomes
• Developing Champions and securing senior access
• Buyer-aligned mutual action plans and decision milestones
• Identifying deal risks, dependencies and stalled commitments

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

The right story makes customer value easier to understand and remember. When sales conversations lead with features and data alone, buyers can struggle to see why a proposition matters to their business. This half-day course helps account executives use storytelling to make value tangible, applying a simple structure: situation, tension, resolution and result. Delegates build a library of customer success stories for discovery, demos and proposals, exploring why stories persuade and how to adapt them for different stakeholders without losing the substance. Through peer practice and feedback, sellers develop a more purposeful way to communicate customer outcomes, whether strengthening an established sales approach or introducing a new product or proposition.

Key focus areas

• Why stories persuade more than data alone
• A simple sales storytelling structure
• Building customer success stories
• Using stories in discovery, demos and proposals
• Telling stories to different stakeholders
• Peer practice and feedback

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Trust grows when buyers feel understood, not managed through a technique. For account executives, first meetings with new buyers and senior stakeholders demand more than a friendly opening: they require genuine trust, particularly as conversations move online and deals become more complex. This half-day course explores what rapport means in B2B sales and how to establish it without relying on rehearsed small talk. Delegates learn to read buyer styles, adapt their own approach, listen actively and ask questions that demonstrate real curiosity, whether on video or in person. Through focused practice and feedback, they develop the confidence to make buyers feel heard and create a stronger foundation for productive sales conversations.

Key focus areas

• What rapport really is in B2B sales
• Reading buyer styles and adapting yours
• Active listening and curiosity
• Building rapport on video calls
• Rapport with senior stakeholders
• Practice in breakouts with feedback

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials

Course synopsis

Insight creates value when it helps a buyer reconsider something important about their business. When rapport alone cannot move a deal forward, sellers need to challenge buyers’ thinking and give them a compelling reason to act. This course introduces the Challenger profile and explores how teaching, tailoring and taking control can help account executives and senior sellers move beyond relationship-led conversations. Delegates learn to build commercial insight, shape a persuasive teaching pitch and adapt their message to different stakeholders, while handling money and next steps constructively. Designed for teams moving towards insight-led selling or losing deals to no decision, it develops practical skills to lead more purposeful buyer conversations and maintain momentum through the sale.

Key focus areas

• The Challenger profile and why it wins
• Building commercial insight
• The teaching pitch
• Tailoring to each stakeholder
• Taking control of money and next steps
• Peer-to-peer practice on your deals

Included in every course

• Interactive, facilitator-led learning
• Group discussions
• Breakout exercises
• Take-away materials