Mandate practices to get results. Then make sure that we’re following through on those things, whether it be managers managing these salespeople or weekly status meetings talking about what’s going on, how programs are going — as long as they know that the intent is not to single out and punish but to get them to a better place. So I think a lot of it has to do with how it’s positioned, and it’s got to start at the top.
If you’ve got some butthead running the organization who focuses more on mistakes and doesn’t applaud successes, then that’s going to be a tough thing to effectively move forward to an organization. So if you recognize you’re the butthead, maybe you have other people kind of manage that through the process and follow through on it, people that are a little bit more forgiving.
You have to be able to show results, certainly. Like in our case, [employees] clearly see the success that this person has achieved as a result of the work that they’re doing. Some of it has to be forced upon [others] in order for them to see results. So there are certain things you just have to mandate and make sure that they’re following through on.
Every quarter, we set specific objectives for the team as a whole. It’s just going back and reviewing those objectives, making sure that what we’re doing is helping us achieve them, having open dialogue about the things that they’re doing, the tools that they’re using.
It’s communicating that there’s some basic requirements that have to be set up upfront, that, ‘These things have to be done this way in order for this organization to move ahead. We have data points that suggest if it’s followed through on the way we’re suggesting you follow through on it, here’s what it can do for you. You can sell more. You can get more commission. You can have happier clients.’
How to reach: RSW/US, (513) 559-3101 or www.rswus.com
