Strategic Elements of Sales Disciplines

 

DISCIPLINE: Leadership Development

 

Salespeople need motivated, consistent and competent leadership in order to grow and achieve high performance standards. A sales force generally reflects the standards of motivation and competency reflected in its leadership. Similarly, the success of the sales manager depends on the success of the people who work under him or her. Sales managers and leaders who believe in what they do instill in others a strong and almost contagious personal motivation. When leadership has conviction, the sales force is more likely to project that to the prospective customer and achieve success in generating sales.

 

 

DISCIPLINE: Sales Strategy

Many components can make or break a sales strategy. We employ a structured process to evaluate all the critical elements to determine the optimal sales strategy.

 

Kent Ross
President

We have now been engaged with OneAccord for almost a year. I wanted to take a quick minute to tell you what a positive experience it has been. I looked for almost a year for the right fit (consulting firm). I spoke with over 6 companies before settling on OneAccord. I must say that from the very beginning OneAccord did what they said they would do. I have been extremely impressed with the truth and compassion that was delivered during the assessment period by the team from OneAccord. It was not the “What” that needed to be done that concerned me, but the “How” that I was very concerned about. You were chosen to stay and help us, which you did with amazing diligence and sensitivity as these changes were life changing to the organization. The results were more than I had hoped for. They helped Mechatronics move to the next level with double digit growth and much happier employees with a future. Mechatronics has and will always be a good place to be, but now we are on the road to being great. You truly helped us to “Build it Strong, Build it deep and build it to last”

Gerry Gallagher
World Wide Vice President, Sales and Marketing GM Nameplate is a 50+ year-old family-owned company that has built an industry leading reputation with some of the largest and most admired companies today: Motorola, Dell, Nokia, Boeing, Rockwell, Baxter, Hewlett-Packard, & Stryker , to name a few. The company is comprised of a team of nearly 1,000 professionals across seven facilities in North America and Asia and has over $80 million in annual revenues. In recent years, market shifts due to globalization caused declines in domestic sales for many of our key customers, which then reflected in our own sales growth. Our sales force, at that time, was predominately manufacturer’s representatives focused on the electronics industry, supplemented by direct sales representatives who were focused on geographic territories. We engaged OneAccord to focus on where we should make changes to align our strategies with the shifts in the marketplace in order increase revenues. Several members of the OneAccord staff were involved where their experience complemented the respective phase of the project. Several initiatives were presented to help GM Nameplate grow profitable business domestically. OneAccord provided the various skills that were needed and consistency in our initiatives through the year-long engagement. Over the course of the engagement, some of the changes made in GM Nameplate were significant: o Initiated and executed annual territory goal setting process based on available market and product line o Shifted to industry versus geographic focus for sales coverage o Began tracking and supporting target opportunities throughout the entire organization o Implemented and refined 30-60-90 day forecasting process o Conducted sales skill and industry training for entire sales force o Developed job scoping and descriptions o Implemented performance metrics o Modified operational processes to support each of the categories of change Most consultancies do a great job of telling their clients what they want to hear, but don’t necessarily determine the changes the company really needs to move forward. That was not the case here. While OneAccord found that we did many things well, we were told the truth, sometimes painfully, about initiatives we had to implement to move towards alignment with our goals and objectives faster. Today, GM Nameplate has much stronger sales operations to support our goals and drive growth. We are confident we have the appropriate processes and accountability in place to execute effectively. We have had many positive results from our engagement with One Accord and are pleased to recommend their services to other companies interested in making changes and growing with the times.

Bill Menzel
CMO My thanks to you and OneAccord for your five months of work with the Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group. You successfully supported the new ownership during a critical transition period. More specifically, you contributed to our launching of: -- A new Smith & Wollensky Restaurant positioning and marketing calendar driven by an outstanding analysis of our first annual customer tracking study. -- Holiday programs that created double digit sales increases (and paid out) in the markets supported by targeted external media. -- A new localized marketing and media focus in support of individual steakhouses while working with eight General Managers to effect implementation. -- Marketing and business building programs for the full CY '08 including the Pourings & Pairings wine tastings and other dinner and lunch focused efforts. -- Radio and television tests as well as local print efforts. -- An advertising agency and Internet database company as well as a PR firm recommendation. I wish you much success in your future endeavors, and will be glad to provide references.

 

 

DISCIPLINE: Sales Process and Methodology

This major practice area is based on the development of a thorough understanding of the client’s sales strategy, sales objectives, sales cycle, organizational culture, product offering and customer base.

 

INSIGHT: Accelerated revenue growth and sales productivity are achieved through people. Individual assessment, coaching & development and the proper utilization of sales tools are the cornerstone to the OneAccord sales process and methodology practice area. The creation of a true “learning culture” across the sales channel is critical to a firm’s long term success. Effective organizations value the people closest to the customer, develop value based customer touch points, deliver superior customer acquisition programs and engender high levels of customer satisfaction.

 

 

 

DISCIPLINE: Sales Execution Framework

Setting Sales objectives; plotting the course to exceed; tracking progress and making necessary course corrections. A Common Language is required to communicate and operate internally; it is critical to express clear and differentiated value propositions to prospective clients.

Sales Objectives will come in different forms, yet are necessary to align sales team performance with company goals. They also form an empirical basis for ongoing evaluation at an individual, territory, region or channel.

Setting a unique and measurable Strategy in place to achieve each objective is a necessary element of the goal process. The strategy forms the actual basis for tracking and measuring progress. Successful sales leaders know when to stick with a given strategy and when to make course corrections.

A formal Tracking Process will provide structure, set expectations and create the ongoing environment for accountability. It sets the tone for what gets measured, when reporting is required, and how accountability will be considered.

 

 

DISCIPLINE: Sales Compensation

A defined plan that outlines how a company motivates and rewards their sales professionals. A high performing plan rewards the behaviors of the sales force that ensure a company achieves it strategic goals and business objectives.

 

3 Keys to successful sales compensation plans include:

1. Clearly defining sales goals – ideal is challenging but realistic
2. Tracking and measuring performance with timeliness
3. Rewarding behavior with competitive and motivational incentives

 

 

DISCIPLINE: Sales Metrics and Profit & Loss

INSIGHT: Tracking sales by products, customers, territory, and salespeople produces very useful data, but that data alone may not be providing the insight you need to become a high performing and profitable sales organization. Effective sales measurement requires a holistic view from sales strategy to execution assurance:

 

Since this question is asked every year (or more) by a current or prospective OneAccord client, I thought others might benefit from it:

I admit that the answer -- “It depends” -- can be a bit frustrating until you think about the fact that Oracle has a different business (and therefore different requirements) than Starbucks . Analogies:

• The running shoes that support your body, running environment, climate, etc. may not be the best (or even healthy) for my body.

• The truck that works for one business may be far more (or less) than what another business needs.

It sticks out in my mind that, when I cofounded the local CRM Association chapter a few years back, there were 600 CRM solutions on the market!  Some that integrate with ERP/accounting/etc; others are standalone.  Some run and store data locally; others now are “all web” (Software as a Service).  Some work with channel partners; others just the direct sales force.  Some are better for professional services companies, others are better for manufacturing companies, others….  And on and on.

There are two classic problems in implementing CRM across a business [enterprise] and recognizing a return on the investment:

1. High failure rate in deployment, because of poor project mgmt. and eventual leadership/financial burnout.
2. Low buy-in/adoption by salespeople, who don’t enter data fully/consistently -- thus reporting is meaningless

IT folks tend to buy on “technology fit”, whereas the best system for the organization overall is usually found by assessing business requirements followed by IT requirements.  One of the best sayings I ever heard was: CRM is not a software package; it’s a business orientation.

I am always happy to chat with a business leader about this kind of question and intended company direction, without obligation -- just call me.  I know how helpful it can be to have a “real” conversation with a vendor who not only has experience with -- but is not a reseller of -- entry level systems such as ACT, Goldmine, and Outlook with 3^rd party extensions ranging through mid/high level systems such as Salesforce.com, Peoplesoft Vantive, SalesLogix, and MS-CRM.

Paul Travis, Principal 206-910-2222

PS. If this is not a priority at the executive level, here’s are two self-serve resources you can pass along to your IT guy/gal!  www.CRMguru.com and www.DestinationCRM.com .

 

 

DISCIPLINE: Sales Tools

Identifying and creating the tools that drive the sales process

 

INSIGHT: Sales tools are things that are used repetitively to simplify and more effectively communicate the features, advantages, benefits, and value proposition of a product or service.

 

 

DISCIPLINE: Performance Metrics

An integrated, balanced and consistent set of top Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) can provide an accurate view of sales performance.

 

 

DISCIPLINE: Sales Execution Framework

Setting Sales objectives; plotting the course to exceed; tracking progress and making necessary course corrections. A Common Language is required to communicate and operate internally; it is critical to express clear and differentiated value propositions to prospective clients.

Sales Objectives will come in different forms, yet are necessary to align sales team performance with company goals. They also form an empirical basis for ongoing evaluation at an individual, territory, region or channel.

Setting a unique and measurable Strategy in place to achieve each objective is a necessary element of the goal process. The strategy forms the actual basis for tracking and measuring progress. Successful sales leaders know when to stick with a given strategy and when to make course corrections.

A formal Tracking Process will provide structure, set expectations and create the ongoing environment for accountability. It sets the tone for what gets measured, when reporting is required, and how accountability will be considered.

 

Bottom