Brent Adamson — Co-Founder
Brent Adamson is a world-renowned researcher, author, presenter, trainer, and advisor to B2B commercial executives around the world. He is the Co-Founder of both A to B Insight, a B2B sales and marketing research, advisory, and training company, as well as Co-Founder of Qoos, providing B2B sellers micro-guidance and AI-guided coaching, seamlessly embedded within HubSpot CRM. Brent's next book, The Framemaking Sale, is available Sept. 9, 2025. Known as having the “biggest crystal ball in B2B sales,” Brent is the co-author of the best-selling, industry changing The Challenger Sale and The Challenger Customer. He is also a frequent contributor to well-known business publications, including the Harvard Business Review, featuring his recent articles, “Sensemaking for Sales” and “Traditional B2B Sales and Marketing Are Becoming Obsolete.” Across the last 19 years, Brent has been privileged to work with some of the greatest thought leaders in B2B and B2C sales and marketing, building and leading exclusive communities of highly progressive commercial executives. Known as a world-class facilitator and speaker, Brent has presented to tens of thousands of commercial leaders both in-person and virtually all over the world, ranging from executive leadership teams to large keynote audiences. Especially well known for his passion for “productive disruption,” Brent served as the “chief story teller” for CEB, now Gartner’s, sales, marketing, and customer service practices from 2003 to 2022. Across that time, Brent’s research has focused most closely on the critical, boundary-spanning intersection of selling and buying, seeking to understand the rapidly changing nature of effective commercial collaboration. Most recently, Brent and his colleagues at CEB, now Gartner, have introduced industry-leading concepts such as Buyer Enablement, Sense Making, and Customer Decision Confidence. A native of Omaha, Neb., Brent joined CEB, now Gartner, from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business where he received his MBA with distinction. Prior to that, he served on the faculty of Michigan State University as a Professor of German and Applied Linguistics. In addition to his MBA, Brent holds a B.A. with distinction in political science from the University of Michigan along with M.A.s in political science and German, and a Ph.D. in applied linguistics from the University of Texas. Brent resides in Leesburg, VA with his wife, two daughters, and rescue dog.
Stackforce AI infers this person is a B2B sales and marketing expert with a focus on research and advisory.
Location: Leesburg, Virginia, United States
Experience: 26 yrs 5 mos
Career Highlights
- Co-author of best-selling books in B2B sales.
- Expert in Buyer Enablement and Sense Making.
- World-class facilitator and speaker to global audiences.
Work Experience
A to B Insight
Co-Founder (2 yrs 2 mos)
Qoos
Co-Founder (2 yrs 2 mos)
Skinny Rhino Productions
Founder, Speaker, Advisor, & Researcher (1 yr)
Ecosystems
Global Head of Research, Advisory, and Communities (1 yr 6 mos)
Gartner
Distinguished Vice President (4 yrs 11 mos)
CEB
Principal Executive Advisor (2 yrs 1 mo)
Managing Director, Advisory Services (3 yrs 6 mos)
Senior Director, Advisory Services (5 yrs 8 mos)
Associate Director, Research (2 yrs 6 mos)
Michigan State University
Assistant Professor of German and Applied Linguistics (3 yrs 11 mos)
Education
MBA at University of Michigan - Stephen M. Ross School of Business
PhD at The University of Texas at Austin
MA at The University of Texas at Austin
MA at The University of Texas at Austin
BA at University of Michigan
at Omaha Central High School