The Sales Leadership Academy

In founding the Sales Leadership Academy, I wanted to bring a more relevant approach to sales leadership considering the times we are in - incorporating the four strategic pathways of systemizing sales leadership, commercializing self leadership, optimising strategy and contextualizing story. 

Apart from sales, marketing and delivery, other roles I am responsible for include, but are not limited to:

Designing and delivering transformational programs (Self-Led Programs, Cohort Group Mentoring, an Elite Mastermind and 1:1 coaching/mentoring) for B2B sales leaders seeking to scale influence, increase impact, and commercialize their expertise.

Developing proprietary IP, leadership frameworks, and programs that address real-world sales leadership challenges.

Coaching and mentoring emerging and established sales leaders to drive revenue, increase visibility, and lead with conviction.

Overseeing strategy, branding, and content for all Academy programs and keynotes.

Building thought leadership and community through speaking, content creation, and executive-level engagement.

Leading the design and evolution of flagship programs such as The Revenue and Role Clarity System™, The CoachSella Experience™, and The Sales Leader of Influence Signature Program

Chief Influence Officer

Sales Leaders Global LLC

Whether you need to inspire a large audience at a conference or energize your team for a critical initiative, I deliver keynotes that educate, inspire, and shift thinking toward impactful results. 

From 18-minute TED-style talks to one-hour power-packed sessions, my optional in-house or breakout workshops include (but are not limited to):

💥'Deliberate Accountability: Turning Plans Into Results' 
🔺 Focus: Teaching leaders to act with intention, hold themselves and others accountable, and execute strategies effectively.

💥'Deliberate Momentum: Deliberate Momentum: Building Resilience, Adaptability, and Antifragility'
🔺 Focus: Equipping leaders with the tools and mindset to thrive in uncertainty, adapt to change, and emerge stronger from challenges

Each workshop is aligned to the Deliberate Disruption Model and designed to resonate with association business owners and sales teams alike.

To check availability and explore my programs, visit www.BernadetteMcClelland.com

Sales KickOff and Keynote Speaker on Sales Leadership & the Power of Deliberate Disruption™

Harvard Business School

I have had the pleasure of being in the first cohort of HBS students who incorporated 'professional selling skills' into their MBA program and continue to work with them as the program begins to grow even more.

Sales Coach and Mentor

Breakthrough

In-prison volunteer opportunities include coaching our people at our milestone events and in-classroom coaching sessions to provide additional content and feedback across our 32 week program that includes soft skills and entrepreneurial mindset skills.  'The Challenge' consists of Kickoff, Mock Interviews, The Business Pitch, The Business Pitch Competition and Graduation.  We currently run our programming inside four facilities here in Colorado: La Vista Correctional Facility, Arkansas Valley Correctional Facility, Colorado State Penitentiary, and Centennial Correctional Facility.

Volunteer Mentor and Coach

University of Colorado Boulder - Leeds School of Business

Working with the Leeds School of Business (Colorado University) as a coach and mentor to Under Graduate Students on their path to professional sales is an honour and one I don't take lightly.

Sales Leaders Global LLC 

Sales Leaders Global LLC is a full-service sales training and leadership consultancy. We partner with businesses ($10M–$100M) to optimize pipelines, elevate sales performance, and enhance leadership capabilities. Our goal: streamline operations and drive measurable financial results.

Our services include consulting, coaching, training, and SKO speaking, all designed to deliver impactful outcomes.

To learn how we can add value to your organization, visit www.salesleadersglobal.com.

Anecdote International

I am an official Anecdote partner certified to deliver the Story Powered Selling (SPS) Program and have been fortunate to have helped roll this program out to hundreds of CTOs, Account Managers and Leaders within Nokia Global (APAC, LATAM, Europe, India and NAM)

Anecdote Partner

APACSMA – The E-University for Sales

Bringing selling and sales leadership skills to sales teams and leaders in the APJ region.

Associate Sales Facilitator and Sales Coach

Robbins Research International

In March 2010, I was honored to join an elite team of just 16 high-performance coaches globally, serving as Tony Robbins’ Master Coach across 12 APAC countries. Working with business owners, entrepreneurs, and leaders, I delivered transformative coaching and achieved exceptional results.

Whilst I did not drink the cool-aid, one of my proudest moments was speaking at Tony Robbins' Unleash The Power Within, where I broke the company record for coaching sales from the stage  - a testament to my ability to connect with audiences and drive action.

“Bernadette McClelland—you’re a superstar! Best to you!”
— Tony Robbins, Peak Performance Expert

“Huge congratulations on an amazing breakout in Sydney! You converted a record number of clients into coaching. So proud of you!”
— Marc Von Musser, Director of Coaching, Tony Robbins Companies

"The Anthony Robbins Coaching Program is unlike any other in the world. Before our coaches are selected and intensely trained and certified in Anthony Robbins' technologies, they must already be certified coaches with a proven track record. Robbins Results coaching positions cannot be purchased. They are earned.

Every coach has not only achieved outstanding results in his or her own life, but has an unrivaled commitment to their profession with more than 250 hours of face-to-face and virtual training. There are fewer than 60 coaches worldwide who meet our high standards. This rigorous selection process is what makes our coaching program the best in the industry."

Asia Pacific's Master Coach for Anthony Robbins

Express Pet Supplies Wholesalers and Importers

As the founder and CEO of Express Pet Supplies and its subsidiary Woof Pets, I led an innovative importer, wholesaler, and retailer of pet supplies across Australia. Recognized for excellence, we won the 2005 Telstra Award for Best New Business and were Runner-Up for the 2006 Powercorp Award for Customer Service.

Our marketing efforts included producing a bi-weekly radio program that engaged the local community with guest appearances and sponsorships, helping us stand out against two major competitors. We actively supported local schools, hospitals, animal rescue centers, and children, earning a reputation as "Australia’s Friendliest Pet Supplies."

While the business achieved remarkable success, the lessons learned during this chapter—including resilience, adaptability, and community-driven leadership—have become integral to the work I do today.

CEO and Owner

Disruption and Business Growth for B2B Sales Environments | Bring More Depth, Disruption and Differentiation| Author| International & Influential High Content Female Speaker

Most sales leaders were top performers in their own right.
They knew how to win.
They knew how to drive business.

But leadership is a different game, today.

Managing numbers isn't enough.
Telling people what to do doesn’t create buy-in.
And just 'doing more' won’t move the needle in today’s messy, uncertain world.

What’s missing?
Conviction.
Influence.
And the ability to lead from the inside out - strategically!

That’s where I come in.

I help B2B sales leaders stop managing activity and start leading with clarity, confidence, and conviction- so they can build high-performing teams, scale their influence, and commercialize the expertise that sets them apart.

Through high-energy keynotes and hands-on leadership experiences, I help leaders shift how they think, feel, and behave, because if you don’t shift deliberately, something or someone else will do it to you or for you.

What I Help Sales Leaders Do:
✅ Step into strategic presence that commands respect and drives decisions
✅ Build systems instead of chaos - no more 'just' chasing KPIs that no longer matter
✅ Hold their team to account without micromanaging or letting the tail wag the dog
✅ Influence internal stakeholders to gain buy-in and be all-in.
✅ Own and monetize their expertise so as to move their career beyond the resume or recommendation

Because leadership today isn’t about more process or pressure. You need to own your personal power.

Results From the Field:
💥 $1.7M deal closed: Two questions from my group coaching changed everything
💥 70% increase in prospecting success: One mindset shift, one team, exponential results
💥 4x registrants for a live event: One CEO clarified his core values - and his lead generation followed
💥 30% lift in productivity: One sales manager stopped guessing and built his own leadership system

Who I Work With:
✔️ Sales leaders who want to move beyond the numbers and multiply their leadership impact
✔️ Entrepreneurial CEOs scaling their sales teams and commercial impact
✔️ Executive teams ready for transformation and not another motivational rah-rah session.

Happy to share...
The Sales Leadership Academy is LIVE and built for leaders ready to scale their influence, multiply their impact, and commercialize their wisdom. (Not just their resumes.)

If you’re ready to lead with conviction, and develop a team who does the same, then let’s talk.

Because disruption is inevitable however, your response to it is optional.

And choosing to lead is always deliberate.

📞 +1 720 346 075
🌐 www.BernadetteMcClelland.com and 🌐 www.SalesLeadershipAcademy.com

THANKSGIVING FORMALITIES MAY BE OVER …

but gratitude never is.

Four years ago this week, Tim McClelland and I genuinely thought our chapter in the USA was closed.

We’d been approved for our Green Card months earlier - an email I read sitting in Atlanta, about to walk on stage at #Outbound (yes… it made the slide deck 😅).

Then COVID hit.
Immigration moved back 10 years.
Our son got married.
Our daughter had our first grandchild.

So close...yet so far.

And… we made peace with that.

Until an email landed from the US Embassy.

“Your interview in Sydney is cancelled. Your appointment in two weeks is now in Melbourne.”

Down the road from where we lived.

Three months later…
Everything sold.
Enough points for a one-way ticket.... to...
Denver!

No slow boat to China - just a hard pivot and a deep breath.

And these women (and their very patient husbands) have been by our side the whole way.

Grateful for the dinners, the truth-telling, the mentorship, the mini-masterminds, the tough love, the tears, the laughter - and the kind of support you don’t forget in business or life.

Colleen Stanley, CEO, Julie Hansen, Kendra Lee. … and of course Jim, Beau and Bill.

We’re here because of community.
We stay here because of people like this. 🧡

Connect with these women if you haven't as they bring tremendous value to the world of sales leadership, as well!

Bernadette McClelland

NICE TO MEET YOU
I'm Bernadette McClelland.

My belief is sales professionals and sales leaders must go to market as 'thought leaders' in the true sense,  not just thought repeaters. Whilst our strategies must include story, our stories must include strategy.  Because our buyers want that!  

With a background in Corporate Australia, a keen understanding of human behaviour, and a natural storytelling style, my approach delivers powerful strategies that help businesses connect and convert economic opportunities like never before.

I'm super proud of the fact that I coach Harvard MBA students on their sales enablement curriculum, was asked to be the Master Asia Pacific coach for Anthony Robbins across twelve countries, and even presented and tested my IP for my latest book, 'SHIFT and DISRUPT: Stop Selling Widgets. Start Selling Wisdom' with the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Centre. Oh, and I nearly forgot to add that two of my six books have been endorsed by the legendary Brian Tracy himself.

But one of my proudest accomplishment and biggest deals I have ever got... was self petitioning a proposal outlining my economic value to the USCIS (US Federal Govt) and being granted a Green Card as an 'Alien of Exceptional Ability in the field of Sales Leadership'  (recognizing me in the top 1% globally!) enabling full residency in the USA and bringing my expertise to an even wider audience. 

Named in the Top 50 Speakers globally by Top Sales World, I've been so fortunate to take my messages of mindset, mental models and more meaning in our sales conversations to stages all over the world, from the UK to the USA, from New Delhi to New York City, and even Bangkok to Brisbane.

My articles have been featured in prestigious publications such as The Age, BRW, India Economic Times, Jeweller Magazine, and Australian Financial Review with my latest coup being a cover girl for the Top Sales Magazine. 

So , buckle up and get ready for a thrilling ride filled with game-changing strategies, powerful insights, and a few laughs - because my goal is to make revenue growth fun and easy!

P.S. If you want to visit my YT Channel just key in @TheStorySeller
P.P.S. If you want to have a conversation around strategy and revenue generation through StorySelling in your sales organisation please call me direct on +1 720 346 0757

Revenue Leadership for CEOs & Sales Leaders | Psychology, Decision Strategy & Commercial Influence | $250K–$15M+ Proven Client Results | Creator of The Sales Leader of Influence Method™

SOME WEEKS ARE BETTER THAN OTHERS

And last week was one of them.

Not only did I finally make it to Steamboat Springs - a stunning spot that’s only three hours away yet somehow took me three years to tick off (no snow… but still gorgeous!)…

I also delivered a milestone Vistage Worldwide, Inc. presentation in gorgeous Fort Collins - and if you know Vistage, you know what milestone that might mean.

A huge thank you to Nancy Girres and Marc Wallace for trusting my work enough to trust me with their CEO and Key Executive Groups. 

It means a lot.

My signature session I deliver for Vistage is a component of my 'Mastering Revenue & Role Clarity™' program - Level 3 - Pipeline - [Mentor] of The Sales Leader of Influence Method™ - and I’m genuinely thrilled with my cumulative scores so far:

Quality of Content: 4.9/5
Quality of Delivery: 4.7/5
Applicability: 4.9/5
Recommended by Members: 100%

For me, they're not just numbers ...

2026 is shaping up beautifully, and I’m looking forward to partnering with more Vistage groups who want performance uplift, and revenue leadership alignment. 

If your group is ready to think differently about driving growth through revenue and role clarity, please message me.

I’d welcome a conversation.

It’s one of three areas I focus on that I absolutely love - and it’s proven to generate millions of dollars in impact for my clients over the journey.

Achieving that in a win/win way is what matters at the end of the day.

Sales Leadership Coach & Mentor | CEOs & Sales Leaders | Practical Influence Skills to Lead Teams, Decisions & Outcomes | Proven to Unlock $250K–$15M+ in Stalled Revenue | Creator of The Sales Leader of Influence Method™

LET'S TALK PIZZA, HARVARD, AND COLD CALLING!

I'm incredibly fortunate to coach and mentor future entrepreneurs, thought leaders, and business owners as part of Harvard Business School's MBA program.

One of the most challenging (and for us mentors - fun!) sessions is Week 5, which focuses on prospecting.

While case studies form a large part of the program, this week is all about role play within a case study.

In addition to students cold calling me as their potential client for an appointment...

in a separate exercise, they cold call actual businesses while IN CLASS to sell pizza.

Think chiropractors, barber shops, and the like....

It's as tough as it sounds. 

Only 5-6 out of roughly 90 students successfully sell a pizza.

This week, I'm thrilled to share that Casey Jooyeon Hong, one of my clients, SOLD A PIZZA! 🍕

Her winning strategy?

A loose script (think bullet points, not rigid talking tracks), the agility to roll with the punches, and most importantly - trusting herself.

Casey is phenomenal, as are my other incredible clients: John Mahoney, Grace Hu and Liz Hood.

With one more class to go, watching their growth has been remarkable.

But Casey? She SOLD A PIZZA! 🍕

The lesson: Preparation meets disruption.

The best cold callers don't recite scripts - they listen, they pivot, and most importantly, they trust their instincts.

We could learn a lot from our future leaders!

Thanks Lou Shipley, Mark Roberge, and Sam Nelson for the Agoge Pizza Challenge and to the rest of my colleagues doing what I'm doing.

In my own training program, I have used these same principles (minus the 🍕)  to help clients achieve a 70% success rate for cold calling and appointment setting while in class...

Now for a glass of grape to accompany MY piece of pizza ...

ONCE UPON A TIME..

The perfectionist in me would have panicked, judged myself... and god only knows what else...

But today...

After I went 'solo' on my podcast 'The Sales Leader of Influence SHOW' and my husband came home with messages from a couple of people asking where I was ...

I was merrily talking into the ether on 'How Real Leaders Lead When Their Back Is Against The Wall'

... not having realised I did not press 'Go LIVE'!

So I chose to shrug my shoulders, delete the 'pending podcast', 

only to realise another error in my day....

Deleting over 20 'attendees' names I could no longer message back and apologise to...

Here's to mistakes, human-ness and giving ourselves grace when our back really IS against the wall...  

However... it was a damn good episode... even if I do say so myself! 😍 

Happy Thanksgiving!! I appreciate those who support me here on LinkedIn 🙏

I’M STUCK BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE…

And I don’t tend to use LinkedIn as my personal complaint department, but here we are.

I’ve hit a point where I truly am caught between a rock and a hard place - and I know I’m not the only one feeling it.

It’s to do with AI.

Not AI itself - I use it. I love it. 

No, it’s the way people are using it.

I’m talking about people I know - colleagues, peers, connections - popping up in my comments..or like today, in my DMs... with messages that are clearly not from them.

Perfect grammar.
Perfect tone.
But no context 
And absolutely no human behind it.

And here’s where I get stuck:
👉 Do I respond because I respect the person?
👉 Or do I not respond because the message isn’t actually from them?

Because for me, responding is personal.
It’s relational.
It’s a handshake - not a bot handshake.
Not some digital filler pretending to be meaningful engagement.

CASE IN POINT ( just one example from an hour ago)

HER: “Bernadette, I saw your post and it made me smile—[EmDash]realized we’re connected but haven’t talked in a bit. Sent over a little endorsement. I see you and I appreciate how you show up. 💜 Felt like a beautiful moment to re-open the door.” [hmmm...]

 ME: “Which post was it? I’m curious.”

 HER: “Your idea about ‘playing not to lose’ really hit. You’ve got a bold voice!” [hmmm - to be honest, sounds like AI channeling my mum, but I digress...]

 ME: “Thanks. Do you use AI for your messages?”

 HER: “My team and I are in my DMs; we train our AI with our voice so it replies for us.”

At that point… the whole thing just went to ...you know what....
The intention...?
My guess is as good as yours.

So whether it's sending someone a DM or responding to a post, if a message didn’t come from you, don’t pretend it did just for the sake of efficiency or because you have a new tool. 

I’m not anti-AI.
I’m pro-real.

And I’m very pro-humans showing up as themselves - quirks, typos, awkward phrasing and all.

So now I’m curious…

Where’s the line for you?
What’s 'helpful AI,' and what’s 'hiding behind AI'?

Because if relationships matter (and they REALLY do),
then surely the way we show up for each other matters, too.

Or are we all just a canvas of white space now for someone’s white noise?

(Pic: Petroglyph Trail, Mesa Verde)
Where actual humans carved messages for each other into rock ... long before we started letting machines speak for us.

Sales Leadership Coach & Mentor | For CEOs & Sales Leaders | To Master Influence, Role Clarity, Coaching The Human + Coaching The Deal, Increasing Revenue $250K–$15M+/Yr | Creator of The Sales Leader of Influence Method™

IS THIS OVERLOOKED TOPIC QUIETLY KILLING YOUR PIPELINE?

Leadership misalignment - because it’s costing companies an absolute fortune.

But it's not always the leaders fault though... some don't care - sure!

But some do care - a lot.

So much so that they work so hard, by default, causing them both to fall into the same bucket.

Here’s what I believe the commercial truth is... and what causes people to ark up!

READ MORE...>>>>>>

HOW REAL LEADERS LEAD WHEN THEIR BACK IS AGAINST THE WALL

First question... Which wall are you leaning against?

Second question... Is there, in fact, a wall?

And of course we know it is a metaphor for feeling you have no options, you're stuck, life sucks... whatever meaning you want to put on it. 

However, spoiler alert - we ALWAYS have a choice!!

When you feel your back is against the wall two patterns tend to show up....

👉  Which pattern shows up for you and why?

READ| WATCH OR LISTEN >>>>>>

THE ONE LIE SALES LEADERS CAN’T AFFORD TO TELL - LITERALLY!  with Bernadette McClelland

I’m calling out a behaviour too many leaders overlook and I believe quietly undermines more results than market conditions ever will.

In leadership, it could be a lie, it could also be a sign.

Whatever you call it,  people retreat because of it and revenue is impacted … teams hold back information, individuals resist being honest, and people will protect themselves instead of the business.

Why This Matters Right Now

Today’s revenue challenges aren’t just market-driven.

They’re leadership-driven.

When your actions and your words don’t match, your team stops doing a number of things... escalating risks, owning timelines, and trusting you, their leader.

And this silence comes with a commercial price tag – stalled deals, hidden problems, and revenue that looks predictable until it suddenly isn’t.

Three Takeaways from this episode of The Sales Leader of Influence SHOW

1️⃣ The financial impact of misalignment at the top
How one leader’s inconsistency can create downstream delays, missed opportunities, and a pipeline that ‘looks fine’ right up until the last week of the quarter.

2️⃣ The leadership standard that changes performance immediately
A clear, uncompromising expectation that sharpens execution, lifts truth-telling, and resets how your team communicates under pressure.

3️⃣ How to recover credibility when trust is disappearing
Direct, practical steps to restore confidence and turn your follow-through into a competitive advantage.

Join Us...

And if you want even more alignment between expectations and execution, head to SalesLeaderOfInfluence.com.

Explore the Revenue & Role Clarity System and download the Sales Leadership Paradigm Report to see what’s really driving (or draining) performance in today’s environment.

Sales Leader of Influence SHOW
WHEN: Wednesday, 19th November - 5:00 PM ET
WHERE: Streaming on LinkedIn Live • YouTube • Podcast Platforms

When life gets hectic, leaders don’t just feel the pressure - they often show it.
Not publicly. Not in the boardroom.
But internally, in the identity they lead from.

In this week’s episode of The Sales Leader of Influence SHOW, I’m unpacking what leadership looks like when you feel like your back is against the wall… and you are still expected to make clear decisions, keep people aligned, and stay steady.

We’ll dive into:

* How pressure exposes the old version of you that you’ve potentially outgrown
* How to leverage 'The Gap' before reacting
* Why uncertainty isn’t destabilising - it’s often the arena for your next level
* What your team actually needs from you in this season

This is NOT a conversation about burnout or struggle.
It’s a grounded look at the moments no one sees - and how to navigate them with strength, presence, and influence.

If you’re in a season where you’re juggling decisions, carrying expectations, and holding the line… I'm sure this episode will land.

Join me LIVE.
Wednesday 2nd December, 5PM ET
LinkedInLIVE, YouTube and Podcast Platforms

2025 wasn’t a pivot year for me - it was an iteration and identity year (and for others)

A year of stepping back, listening deeper, and upgrading the version of me that leads my business and my work with CEOs and Sales Leaders.

In this last episode of 'The Sales Leader of Influence SHOW' for 2025, I’m sharing the 5 lessons that began to change everything for me - personally, commercially, and creatively.

Real lessons. Human lessons. Leadership lessons we don’t always say out loud.

Here’s what I’m diving into:

🔥 Step Back to Level Up
Why space - not strategy - gave me the clarity I’d been missing.

🔥 Metrics and Money Doesn't Fix Conditioning
The shift from 'numbers' and 'targets' to identity, congruence, and alignment.

🔥 Listen To Your 'Yeah - Nah.'
What happened when I ignored my gut… and what happened when I finally honoured it.

🔥 New Identity, New Market
How my internal shift led me into CEO and VP-level rooms (and validated my own IP, Frameworks and Thought Leadership).

🔥 Upgrade You → Upgrade Everything
The OS-level identity work that is changing the entire trajectory of my business and outcomes.

If you’re a CEO, VP, or Sales Leader navigating your own next level - this conversation will hit home and is a baseline for growth.

Join me live - and bring the version of you who’s ready for 2026.

WHEN: 5PM ET
WHERE: LinkedIn, YouTube, Podcast Platforms

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