Let’s Talk about Sales Management!

First of all, if you are a Sales Manager reading this, my hat is off to you! You have one of the most difficult positions in any company. You are responsible for:

• Growing the sales staff skills.
• Hitting the expected numbers.
• Dealing with way too many political and personal problems.
• Being the Excuse Stopper.
• Holding everyone Accountable to the quota.
• Listening to leadership and their often business plan du-jour.
• Meeting upon meetings upon meetings
• Dealing with the Sales prevention department – other leaders who protect their turf and interrupt sales process and opportunity
• Working with your sales staff selling stuff that’s not even invented yet.
• You are always between a rock and a hard place.

If you are not is Sales Management re-read the above list and add to it in the comments below.

Let’s look at Sales Management from a responsibility perspective. There are 5 Fundamental Sales Manager functions. And if a Sales Manager will focus on these in the order listed they can save 5 hours a week being proactive and less reactive.

1. Sales Coaching – Coaching is number 1 because it has the most impact. Each week a Sales Manager should have at least one formal coaching session with each team member. Remember, it’s not real coaching unless there is a lesson and an action plan. There must be a sales system to coach to, and there must be weekly improvement.
2. Accountability – Minimum daily activities that drive the desired outcomes must be identified and measured daily.
3. Motivation – Continuous action must be taken to ensure the peaks are higher and the valleys are lower. The Sales Manager must know what and how each person is motivated. Intrinsic, Extrinsic, Problem Solving, and Goal Oriented are the major categories.
4. Talent Management – Monthly reviews should be executed with identification of skills, strengths, weaknesses and challenges with specific action plans to build the strengths and abolish the weaknesses. 
5. Recruiting A players – The Sales Manager must always be looking to add stronger talent. A players won’t put up with B players and B players don’t want to work with A players. Adding A players raises the level of the entire team.

Focusing on the 5 Sales Manager functions above will streamline the Sales Manager’s work, cut down on re-active time wasters and grow the sales beyond expectations.  If you want to measure your Sales Manager Core Competencies with a complimentary Sales Manager specific Insights Report just click here and let us know.