Testimonials

Brian worked with our sales team and senior management for a period from 2014 to 2020. Brian helped us in many areas including training our sales and management personnel, helping with CRM integration, helping with succession planning, and increasing effective communication between the various departments. His assistance in these areas played a major role in an increase in sales and a more efficient operation among our management team.

My main goal in working with Brian was to train our sales team. Our team was very good technically but lacked knowledge in the finer points of customer relationship management, prospecting, and closing of sales. His unique approach emphasized customer service and problem-solving, rather than trying to sell the customer something that they don’t need. We quickly learned that there were other areas of training that Brian could help us with including management training and interdepartmental communications.

I had worked with a business consultant in the past. During that experience, it seemed that the person that we were working with was just regurgitating words that he got from us during the interview process. He made some recommendations, and there was no follow-up. Brian, on the other hand, not only gave us valuable recommendations but also gave us a plan to execute and a way to measure the results of this plan.

I was extremely happy with the recommendations and changes that Brian brought to our company. The time that he spent with us did so much to build our professionalism and take our sales team to a whole new level. I saw a huge difference in how we planned and executed the sales process and how the sales, engineering, and manufacturing parts of the business could be more effective.

President and Partner
April 26, 2022

Before Summit’s sales and management training, our company was very compartmentalized. Summit’s training series opened the eyes of staffing in all departments, making them aware of the challenges others are facing within the company. This created a new culture of empathy and wiliness to help each other among teams, it also encouraged improvement in teamwork. In return, this gave us improved sales, product quality, and productivity.

Before working with Summit, our sales team presented projects to the clients in a very professional but laid-back manner, this method of sales left it up to our customers to decide our fate. The style of sales also caused closing rates to be like an annual roller coaster ride, making it very difficult to manage production staffing needs and generate accurate sales projections. The Summit program gave our sales team the confidence and knowledge to lead the customer through the entire process, including, but not limited to asking for the business. We continue to use and review the Summit program process with our teams throughout each business year, and we include this training for any new sales or management individual. The confidence-building program allowed us to realize growth and consistent sales with major reductions in our past roller coaster adventures, it has also assisted with maintaining product quality, and personal productivity throughout the company.

President and CEO
April 24, 2022

From 2014 until 2020 our company contracted with Brian Nixon of Summit Learning Solutions for consultation and training. As the VP Sales Manager, I was initially skeptical and guarded as to why we had to bring in an outside sales expert. I perceived this as an insult to my abilities and the performance of our team.

Today I can honestly say that the association, teachings, and concepts Brian presented were the BEST thing to happen to our Company, myself, and our team.

Nothing was forced upon us and we were never told “You are doing it wrong and here is what you need to do”. Concepts were presented and those concepts were supported with material and real-life examples. We were free to implement what we wanted and modify what we felt needed modification.

Our sales process improved and the results showed. Metrics became extremely important as numbers don’t lie! Our sales team learned to ask the right questions at the right time. The team became more efficient and sales revenues increased.

After the professional agreement was finished with Summit Learning, whenever our Sales team was faced with a dilemma or puzzling question, the common refrain was “What would Brian say about this?”

Personally, Brian helped and challenged me to become a better manager and helped to reshape my thought process. Brian proved to be an excellent sounding board and mentor. Always listening and never judging. He took my input, processed it, and presented ideas with supporting evidence. The final decision and action that was taken were always up to me.

Partnering with Summit Learning Solutions was the best business decision made by our company during my tenure. If you have any hesitancy about partnering with Summit Learning Solutions, cast them aside and forge ahead knowing you are gaining a strategic partner who wants nothing more than for you to grow and succeed.

VP of Sales
April, 22, 2022

Up until 2010, we marketed and sold our ERP software to a large percentage of the municipalities in Michigan. Because Michigan municipal government tends to be very close knit, we were able to accomplish this without a professional sales force. In short, we grew organically.

However, when we decided to expand our ERP software to municipalities outside of the state of Michigan (to the central and eastern time zones), we knew we had to have a well-defined go to market strategy. But, we weren’t sure of the best way to go about it.

After a lengthy search of consultants, we hired Summit Learning Solutions.

They sourced and hired our first-ever sales team and created the sales and marketing plan to start the process. They designed our sales team’s compensation plans, trained them on appropriate sales methodology, and lead our overall strategy. Candidly, we thought they were way too optimistic in their sales projections. It turns out they undersold the possibilities. The program was very successful, very fast.

But, then we had several new problems.

• We had to quickly ramp up operationally to handle all of the new business. So, Summit Learning helped us quickly source new talent to help us grow.
• Then we had to figure out how to quickly train our new staff members. Summit Learning helped us build our new training plan.
• Then we had to figure out how to manage through all of our fast growth. Summit put together a number of soft skills training sessions to help us manage the interpersonal issues that popped up.
• The fast growth required us to quickly create several new leaders. Summit helped us here by creating and implementing an executive coaching plan that helped bring our talented young people up to speed.

When we started with Summit Learning Solutions we had 62 employees mostly serving the state of Michigan. Now, we have nearly 200 employees serving 17 states; and we’re still growing consistently. Moreover, when we started with Summit we sold about 3-5 Million a year in new business; now we sell 13 Million a year in new business.

I can say, without reservation, that our success and growth would not and could not have happened without the help of Summit Learning Solutions.

CEO and Partner

We experienced significant changes after working with Summit Learning Solutions. The structured approach to developing proper selling habits was just what our sales force of 10 needed. It totally turned around salespeople who had lost the discipline required in today’s competitive selling environment.

The training was all customized to our market and built alongside our sales team, increasing adoption rate and accountability. While the training was very helpful, what I found even more beneficial were the sales tools that accompanied the training. Training is only worthwhile if execution is accomplished. The tools Brian built with our team provided us the ability to use the training in our everyday prospect meetings.

The sales rep profiling and coaching based on that profiling was eye-opening for all of us. Behaviors that we historically couldn’t understand made perfect sense once we understood how our reps were driven.

The work done on getting our sales team to finally use, and benefit from, the CRM system really paid off. Once they understood that it was a tool for “them” and not management oversight they became invested in it. Then Brian helped us customize it to our sales process and market. After that, we didn’t have to “fight” with our reps to use this valuable tool.
Probably one of the biggest benefits we received from working with Brian was the business plan and individual sales plan development he helped us with. We immediately pivoted from a reactive team to a more proactive team, getting involved in the sales and decision-making process much earlier than we had been doing over the years.

Owner