Tips for Effective Sales Leadership
Sales organizations have access to a defined set of resources. They can draw from the same pool of salespeople in their niche or geographic area, and they can all learn the same sales or management tools and techniques.
By on Mar 19, 2010Sales organizations have access to a defined set of resources. They can draw from the same pool of salespeople in their niche or geographic area, and they can all learn the same sales or management tools and techniques.
Yet some organizations perform at a high level and others stay at the bottom of the heap. What accounts for these gaps? We believe two words answer the question: effective leadership.
Too many sales managers are bosses, technicians, subject matter experts and in some cases, bullies. As opposed to inspiring their teams, they kill team spirit, arouse mediocrity and suck the energy out of those they are supposed to be leading. The results are poor morale, loss of talented people and inconsistent or low performance.
Effective leaders, by contrast, define themselves as coaches and teachers. Rather than constantly dealing with problems and telling people what to do, strong leaders empower and enable others to solve problems on their own, take risks, make decisions, tackle new challenges, and learn from their experiences. They don't just see their salespeople as who they are today, but who they could be in the future.
Here are the best practices of sales managers who lead through coaching and teaching:
Goal Clarity
Research shows that only about 20% of managers write down their goals. If you don't have any written goals, how do you know if you have accomplished what you set out to do? Telling team members, 'Okay everyone, go make the numbers' doesn't provide clear expectations or the kind of support that leads to sustained performance.
A more effective goal for the sales manager/coach would be along the lines of: "By the end of March, I will have completed a developmental plan for each salesperson in our division. It will focus on how to help each salesperson meet their sales targets and increase their leadership skills. Each person will have three reasonable goals, and one stretch goal. We will set these goals together and agree. After setting these goals, I'll ask each of you to complete a plan outlining how to reach these goals. I'll follow up with each of you by having a monthly one-hour coaching conversation to help overcome any problems and track your progress. I will not cancel these coaching conversations; they are business meetings."
Strong leaders invest in coaching for themselves so that they stay on track and explore what else is possible.
Match individual with collective goals
Effective managers ensure that the plan each individual draws up aligns with the needs of the organization, customers, and sales team with their own desires. They work with each salesperson to clarify their goals, asking questions such as:
- How do your performance goals reflect the organization or team mission?
- What stretch goal would foster your personal performance and development?
- What is important about that to you?
- What would be a meaningful role for you in the future? How would you need to develop to reach it?
- What's missing that would make a difference to you?
Strong sales coaches give people a chance to develop from their places of strength.
Confront poor performance
Given the rapid pace typical in today's organizations, sales managers can get so bogged down with their own work that they miss the opportunity to correct a performance problem before it is too late.
It's also tempting for sales managers to ignore "borderline" cases, hoping they will quit or move to another department. However, procrastination rarely helps. Team members need to know what managers expect of them. They can't read minds.
Confronting performance problems is generally more humane than letting the individual and their co-workers suffer. An underperforming team member is often unhappy and likely mismatched to the job.
Many problems can be headed off through regularly scheduled coaching conversations. Adopting this strategy will encourage team members to bring up problems early, when they are easier to resolve.
Stand back and see clearly
Sales managers whose identity and income is too tightly wrapped up in the successes and struggles of their team may not be able to disassociate themselves enough to clearly see what each member needs to thrive. Those who act as coaches and teachers start by building agreement with their team members on roles and goals, then guide them to reach their full potential. Conversely, strong sales managers acknowledge when they are cannot detach themselves enough from a sales persons' performance, and help that salesperson find a more appropriate coach.
This process of serving the well-being of team members is called "stewardship". Leaders who use a stewardship approach regard their teams as separate from themselves and their identity. The opposite method of staying involved in every detail of your team's functioning might be termed "smothering." Managers who smother make it difficult for people to get their work done.
Ask and listen
Many managers feel that the members of their team have misguided views, and they need to straighten out their thinking. This strong need to be right can sabotage any attempt at meaningful conversations.
There is an 180 degree difference between coercing people to accept your ideas, and collaboratively talking through issues to come up with the best solution. A strong leader deeply believes that other people are naturally creative, resourceful and wise, and their job is to help uncover the answers, not dictate them.
Cheerlead
It has been said that there are only two types of people who thrive on being recognized for their achievements: men and women. We have all experienced the incredible energy of getting recognition or appreciation from people whose opinions we respect.
A common complaint of people in many organizations is that they don't get recognition and appreciation from their boss. They feel like a piece of furniture. Lack of recognition is a huge contributor to declining levels of morale and self-motivation.
Strong sales coaches understand the power of sincere recognition, genuine appreciation and celebration. These are what provide the atmosphere of encouragement that develops confidence and builds on the strengths that already exist.
Take note of the six things you can start doing today that will impact your ability to be a great coach-like leader for your people,
Nicki Weiss and Joanne McLean are founders of PharmaMatters, a leadership and team coaching organization.