Sales & Marketing Management - November/December 2008 - (Page 26) book excerpt EXCERPT FROM SALES BLAZERS } S Spark a Performance Pursuit BRIDGING THE DIVIDE BETWEEN COMPANY AND SALES REP EXCERPTED FROM: Sales Blazers 8 Goal-Shattering Strategies from the World’s Top Sales Leaders By Mark Cook ome people in sales focus completely on quotas, closes and commissions—for them, that’s all there is. Trying to be “all business,” they may lose touch with how people are influenced by larger personal and economic drivers. They haven’t awakened to the facts that 1.) companies are increasingly less loyal over the long term; 2.) today’s performers are less loyal; and 3.) great leaders bridge this divide in innovative ways. To spark a performance pursuit does not require that you add even more hours to your already overloaded schedule. Instead, it replaces trivial conversations en route, at lunch or during one-on-one meetings with meaningful, enlightening inquiries into the other person’s ambitions. Tim, one of my sales mentors, advised, “Trust is key as you try to motivate, in the sense that whoever you are trying to motivate must trust that you are really worthy of trust— trustworthy—because you have their best interest at heart.” Tim pointed out that sincere interest in those you lead promotes loyalty between you and them as you champion their personal success. If you don’t know what moves those you are trying to lead, you won’t be able to motivate improved performance. “But if you don’t commit to earn trust, the whole thing will backfire on you,” Tim cautioned. Companies are less loyal In sales, it is not just about having a nice place to work; it’s also about long-term prosperity and developing unique capabilities. For example, salespeople experience an obvious, though often denied, decrease in corporate loyalty every day. They see friends’ frozen pensions, tentative career paths, reduced benefits, reorganizations and more. Some companies have “right-sized” and pressured their people beyond healthy limits. This has created a virtual workforce of “free agents,” left to endure a risky future alone. Ironically, some executives push a company vision and career path they know half the rank-and-file won’t be around to follow. At any given moment, 54% of today’s workers have five or fewer years left at their company, and the positions that salespeople vacate are the most difficult of them all to replace. Employees are less loyal It’s not just companies that are behaving in disloyal ways; salespeople have become more fickle, too. With the wealth of new opportunities available, workers are becoming more mobile, and workforces are shifting. 50% of employees spend part of their day actively looking for new work. Even companies that had low turnover previously are susceptible. The result? Instead of selling, salespeople spend time mapping personal detours they find necessary for future career, personal and financial success. The next paycheck isn’t the only motive people have anymore; future pay and career progress are key. www.salesandmarketingmanagement.com Mark Cook is director of marketing and professional services for O.C. Tanner, a Salt Lake City-based employee performance company (www.octanner.com). This excerpt is reprinted from Sales Blazers: 8 Goal-Shattering Strategies from the World’s Top Sales Leaders (McGraw-Hill, 2008). 26 SALES&MARKETING MANAGEMENT NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2008 http://www.octanner.com http://www.salesandmarketingmanagement.com
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