Let's Talk Enablement. Software Enablement with Brian Hartley.

Can you tell us a bit about your background? Where do you work? What’s your role? And how long have you been in the Industry?

I am the Senior Director, Customer Success at RFPIO.  I lead a team of 30 CSMs, covering three different segments.  I was part of an acquisition last year and between both companies I have been here for 3.5 years.  I have been in the industry for 15 years.  

Let’s dive in, tell us how you go about driving engagement in your software?

It starts during our onboarding process.  Our dedicated onboarding consultants are very good at establishing training and engagement milestones with each persona who will be using the tool. During the high-touch onboarding process, we are also educating the customers on all of the self-serve options we have available.  We recognize everyone has different learning styles and we want to ensure everyone is aware of the different channels to learn about the software.

How do you think an organization can encourage a knowledge sharing culture?

I think it can come in many different shapes and forms.  At RFPIO we use Slack to help share knowledge across the teams, with different channels set up to entertain different questions.  We also take advantage of lunch and learns, office hours, "brown" bag sessions, etc. any type of small group setting where a SME is sharing knowledge and the audience can interact.

What are the top 3 things that you would like to see being impacted by a software enablement methodology/platform?

1. Enablement can come in many different forms.  A methodology that educates users up front on the different ways to learn

2. More focus on change management.  Oftentimes users are switching tools and may need additional hand holding to understand why the change is occurring and how the new tool or process is going to achieve the goal.

3. Analytics to track how and where users consume information.  Typically there are a lot of disparate tools used to enable users each with their own data set.

What measurements and KPIs do you use today to define your Software Engagement goals?

Today we look at product access and depth.  We like to go beyond simple log-ins to see what features and modules customers are using as well as what are the least popular.  This will help inform our software engagement methodology moving forward.  

Personal Question to close the talk. Since we know sharing the Know-how is a team effort and we are big sports fans. What is your most memorable team sports moment?

I live in the United States and American Football is really popular.  My team, the Kansas City Chiefs, won the Super Bowl after a 50 year drought in 2020.  I couldn't believe it and am still in shock today!

If someone wants to connect with you, what’s the best way to do it? Social/Email etc?

Here is my LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-hartley-93090728/

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