Sales & Marketing Management - May/June 2008 - (Page 16)

cover story leadership position,” he says. “That’s because our customers rely on us for mission-critical business functions, so the deals we make are very complex. The selling cycle is also pretty long—often 12 months or more—and requires input from many departments, both at EDS and the customer’s organization.” Grisham should know. The sales cycle might be long, but he’s seen a lot of them during his 30 years at EDS. More than that, he hasn’t been a mere witness to the evolution of the sales function at the company; he has been one of its primary architects. “When I joined the company in 1978, Ross Perot told me that EDS is the hardest sell there is, because it’s an intangible service that has no color or flavor, shape or size,” Grisham says. “On top of that, we don’t ask our sales teams just to sell—we ask them to become trusted business advisors to their clients. If they don’t understand the client’s industry, they can’t sell solutions. If they aren’t selling solutions, then they must be selling commodity mips, gigs and seats—and we just don’t do that. “For example, Continental and American Airlines entrust their reservation systems to EDS, and if the system goes down, they don’t fly. Businesses don’t make those kinds of critical purchasing decisions because the person is a good salesman; they need to trust that person and the company, and have confidence they can deliver a unique, high-value business solution.” With so much at stake in each and every potential sale, Grisham says it’s sometimes difficult to not jump in on a deal and do it himself. “It’s a tough transition from being a hands-on salesperson to being a sales leader, and there are days when it’s hard for me to not dive into a deal. I truly miss doing it, but that isn’t my job any more. Now I have to channel that same energy and passion into enabling my salespeople to get the wins.” The highest highs and lowest lows When Grisham—who has a degree in accounting and an MBA in finance and marketing—joined EDS, the company had just introduced its Marketing Development program, which trained people to talk to clients and prospects about the value of its IT services in a business context rather than a technical one. By training, education and experience, EDS had always been a very military- and technical-oriented organization, but in the late 1970s the company realized that photo by Annika Khalsa

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Sales & Marketing Management - May/June 2008

Sales & Marketing Management - May/June 2008 Contents Editor's Letter Brian Tracy University Smart Sales Sales Strategy Smart Marketing Marketing Strategy Smart Management Management Strategy The Minister of Culture Become a Value Merchant Incentives/Motivation Streamlining Business Travel Book Excerpt The Way I See It

Sales & Marketing Management - May/June 2008

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