How KnowBe4 stopped losing deals to "timing" & "budget"

The challenge

Vague outcomes that mask a root cause! 

The team were engaging with prospects who had surface-level pain but weren't being challenged to dig deeper. As a result, pipeline felt stronger than it was, and the forecasts being reported to the C-Suite & the Board couldn't be trusted.

The challenge was compounded by a company merger. Two sales teams with different methodologies, different habits, and different languages for talking about deals had been brought together under one roof. 

"We kept seeing a lot of deals go to Closed Lost with reasons like 'timing' or 'no budget' which meant we weren't qualifying properly. We've had deals that we were sure were going to come in completely crumble."

Clare  ·  Sales Director, KnowBe4

"Deals were slipping too often. As VP of the Region I need to forecast accurately to C-Suite and the board. Bringing together two companies meant there were drastically different approaches to selling across the new team."

Nathan  ·  VP Sales, Know Before

The Solution

The sessions created a structured space for the team to pause, step back from the pace of day-to-day selling, and honestly examine their own pipeline habits. Even with tenured reps who'd heard it before, this reflection surfaces blind spots.

The focus: more honest discovery, identifying red flags early, and a common language for pipeline management that both halves of the merged team could use. Rather than a lecture, the sessions were built around conversation. Reps opened up about their real deals, habits, and where things were actually going wrong.

"It was extremely valuable to support the team to stop, think and evaluate our approach to pipeline management and discovery. Your session helped to provide a structure and a safe place for team members to open up about their existing pipeline creation to close plans."

Clare  ·  Sales Director, Know Before

"It's my job to find a consistent language for everyone to speak — and Scott really helped with this. The ideas were communicated clearly and the sessions encouraged conversation where the contextualised learnings really came into play."

Nathan  ·  VP Sales, Know Before

The Impact

The team left with a clearer approach to discovery. They now go beyond surface pain and get to what's really driving the decision. Reps became more decisive about disqualifying early, saving time across the team and dramatically reducing the number of late-stage surprises. Forecast accuracy improved because the pipeline became more honest.

Crucially, the merged team now had a shared framework! A consistent way of thinking and talking about deals that didn't exist before.

"Scott's sessions were sharp, professional, informative and engaging for the team. I was really impressed. I'd highly recommend this for other Sales Leaders looking for a fresh pair of eyes on a problem area and a well-run approach to making a noticeable difference."

Nathan  ·  VP Sales, Know Before