Successful Sales Force

Management

AHTD
October 12, 2007
Paul Pease
What is successful sales force
management?

• Simple objectives
• Get engaged
• Reward Excellence
• Mutual Accountability
Simple Objective- SCAN Healthplan
• Create the elated customer:
– End state is NOT the order- it is to get a
referral.
– Referrals from elated customers shorten
the sales cycle.
– Elated customers build
background positive buzz.
 Engaged Manager
What it is: What it is not:
1. No ducking v-mail or 1. Hiding behind v-mail
email. or email.
2. One-on-ones most 2. Public hangings-
valuable to reinforce “The beatings will
right behaviors. continue until morale
3. Open forums with improves”
sales team. 3. Management-by-
4. Connecting the pulse directive.
of the field to the 4. “Make them come to
heart of the you”
organization.
 Reward Excellence
What it is: What it is not:
1. Stretch, but 1. No goals, or
reachable goals. unreachable goals.
2. Respected rewards. 2. Steak knives.
3. Competitive fun. 3. All work and no play.
4. The private impact is 4. The private impact
more positive than results in resumes
the public impact. being updated.
 Competitive Fun
90
80
70
60
50 Growth %
40 Product X
30 New Ops

20
10
0
A B C D
 Mutual Accountability
• Management and sales commit skin to
the growth game.
• No excuses, no apologies.
• Minimum performance standards and
clearly spelled out consequences for not
achieving those
standards.
• Sales is not for
everyone.
 Lead by
Example

If a successful
salesperson has
to deal with the
objections of
customers and
influence them to
buy, then what is
a successful
sales manager?
Successful Sales Managers
• Engage the sales force every day.
• Don’t hide, don’t duck.
• Get up after being flattened by
execs.
• Manage field complaints.
 Successful Sales Managers
• Manage company issues that kill sales
numbers.
• Can walk back through any door they
walk out of.
• Communicate and are team players.
• Are strategically three steps ahead of
their sales team.
 Four Successful Sales
Management Measures (6 Months)
1. Did each individual improve?
2. Did the group improve?
NOTE: Each individual improving does not
equate to the group improving. Group
performance dynamics are different than
individual performance dynamics.
3. Is each person connected to the mission?
4. Is the group connected to the rest of the
business?
For the sake of brevity….

We will only talk about individual

improvement in this program.
 Salespeople complain.

If salespeople aren’t complaining,

you’ve got a problem.
 Individual
Improvement
 Individual improvement
• Identify and reinforce desirable
behaviors first to get better long- term
results.
Then tactics.
• One-on-ones:
– Identifying and leveraging individual
strengths.
– Coaching ONE improvement area.
– Connecting local strategy to overall mission.
• Obtaining resources for local success.
 Right Sales
Behaviors
• Self discipline.
• Strategic thinking.
• Effective communicator.
• Business sense.
 Individual Improvement:
Managing Strategies for Different
Sales Performance Levels
• Survey results of over 200 sales
managers and executives.
• Survey is based on prioritizing what the
top, middle, and bottom performing
salespeople do.
• This will show you how to manage each
performing level more effectively.
Ranking Top, Middle, Bottom
Performers
• It is NOT by numbers.
• Behaviors.
• What do they prioritize as activities?

NOTE: If behavior reinforcement has not

been managed, middle performers may
appear to be on top by numbers.
 Defining the Top Performance
Level
• NOT necessarily top revenue producers.
Top revenue producers could be lucky or
in a target-rich environment.
• Top people are the ones that get more out
of a given situation than anyone else given
the same set of conditions.
Top Performers do NOT naturally
rise to the top.
• They may be thwarted by ineffective
management, systems, or strategy
(usually all of these).
• They may not have been recognized as
being top potential performers.
• They may have already left, are plotting
their way out, or never took the job to
begin with.
 Sales Activities to be Ranked
Sales call. Follow up proposal
Formal sales report. Dig up new lead.
Sales paperwork. Ask for help.
Plan. Marketing.
Expense report. Set up joint call.
Get an order. Get referral.
Take care of details. Qualify lead.
 Priority Ranking/ Sales Activities
Top Middle Bottom
1. Plan 1. Get order 1. Get order.
2. Get order. 2. Sales call 2. Ask help.
3. Sales call. 3. Proposal 3. Expenses
4. Joint call. After top 3 priorities with middle
and bottom performers, 4-6 were
5. Get referral. all over the map. HOWEVER, Plan
6. Marketing was NOT in the top 6.
13. Sales report 13. Marketing 13. Sales report
14. Expenses 14. Expenses. 14. Plan
Managing the Three Performance
Levels
• Top: planning is #1 priority
• Middle: only lacking strategic thinking and
activity. Use strategic activities to connect.
• Bottom: Need specifics.
Here is the problem with many training
programs: they assume that specifics are
what everyone needs, when in fact they
are only what is needed by the bottom
Each performance level interprets
each priority differently. “Get an
order” has a different meaning to
each level.

How do we manage each

performance level for success?
 Top Performers
• NEVER assume their large check is
sufficient acknowledgement they are doing
well.
• Connect them to a bigger picture-
– Sales/ rep council participation
– Business advice for your business.
– Best practices sharing and facilitation.
 Middle Performers
• They typically are task masters.
• To them, doing better is equated to doing
more.
• PROBLEM: They are paid for their time,
and there are only 24 hours in a day.
• SOLUTION: Manage them to be more
effective by acting strategically. “Act into
a new way of thinking” Larry Bossidy
 Middle Performers
• Managing them to act strategically:
– Use their activity-task oriented thinking.
– Tie activities to:
• Learning the difference between a
strategically good opportunity and triaging
out bad opportunities.
• Managing other experts in the sales
process- team selling.
 Bottom Performers
• Put on performance review:
– Time frame: 3- 6 months.
– Specific metrics, measures, milestones.
– Sales development related (leads, quotes)
– Feedback mechanism/ frequency.
• Objective is to manage the person to
succeed.
• Re-assign or remove.
Many people jump to the last slide
to get the “slackers” in gear.

If sales managers are not managing the

whole team, they are not engaged
strategically- they are putting out fires.
 Food for Thought: Where do you invest $?

Lead/Prospect

Qualify

Most Value per unit Pay Proposal

For Sales Function

Order
WIP
Ship/Invoice
A/R
Referral
 Summary:
Successful Sales Force Management
• Strategy is local, but connected to the big
picture.
• Take notes, take notes, take notes.
• Analyze the notes- look for patterns.
• Define what it means to be top, middle,
and bottom performing salespeople, but
distinguish this from the numbers.
Audience Inputs: Take-aways

Sage advice from a 33-year straight

commission salesman.