5 Strategies to Manage Seller Bandwidth

5 Strategiesto manage seller bandwidthExecutive Insights fromThe Alexander Group’sSummit at the Chief Sales Executive ForumNovember, 2011Gary Tubridy, Senior Vice President, Alexander Group Atlanta | Chicago | San Francisco | Scottsdale | Stamford

Introduction In November of 2011, 14 sales leaders from a diverse group of companies…from IBM and Cisco in the tech sector, to FedEx in business services, to Abbot Labs in healthcare…gathered at Alexander Group’s summit at the 10th Annual Chief Sales Executive Forum to share insights and intelligence on the leading sales management issues of the day. One issue stood out for everyone at the table…. © 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 2

The Challenge: How do you keep sellers within their “bandwidth” in an age characterized by • Leaner support • Increasing complexity, and • Information overload ???????????© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 3

Sellers are on the receiving end of more directives, information and requests than any other employee. And therefore are driven to exceed the bandwidth of what they are good at (a skills issue) and what they can actually do (a time issue).© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 4

Why Care? How and where sellers spend their time matters to both the top and bottom line. • Overloaded sellers don’t focus • They spend less time with customers • They deliver less value Sellers can’t maintain a competitive advantage while sorting through mountains of emails and requests from people who are not on the line for producing results.© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 5

Executives at the November Summit agreed: To improve your sales forces’ ability to sell and deliver value; make it a priority to manage communications and expectations so sellers don’t exceed their “bandwidth”! See how! © 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 6

These 5 strategies will keep sellers productive by minimizing noise, enhancing focus and expanding capability. Enforce a strategic focus in all communications 1 with the sales organization Help sellers do their jobs better by extracting more 2 value from training Help sellers do their jobs better by getting more 3 from the first line sales manager Know when to provide specialist assistance…and 4 when not to Get more from specialists with standard processes 5 and centralized support© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 7

Enforce a strategic focus in all communications 1 with the sales organization The primary culprit is email – so filter outreach to sellers to make sure they get what they need to succeed…no more, no less. Techniques include: a. Send “hot items”, absolute “must sees” on two or three specific days each month. Make these days regular so reps know when to look closely. Consider limiting all other emails on these days. b. Make all communications “role specific”. Don’t blast everything to everyone. Send information according to what each position needs to know…not what other positions need to know. Make what each person gets much more relevant. c. Recognize that the challenges associated with delivering value vary depending upon seller experience and communicate according to need not title. Tenured sellers need more help internalizing new product technologies and why they matter. Less experienced reps need a boost building relationships with customer executives. d. Let sellers “opt in” to select communications based on what THEY are interested in. Put the onus on the senders prove that what they have to offer is worth reading. e. Create a sales organization “traffic cop” who has the authority to question and if necessary halt direct communications with sellers… until he or she is satisfied that it produces real value.© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 8

Help sellers do their jobs better by extracting more 2 value from training Training is necessary, but results can be underwhelming. The ratio of knowledge/skill gained vs. time/money spent is way too low. How to improve this ratio: a. Include a certification element. Enforce a downside for not passing, ranging from no raise to no job. It is important to limit the number of attempts to certify…do not allow unlimited tries. b. Get more value from distance or on-line learning. The common issue; there is only so much one can learn while at a computer terminal. Some rules of the road: “no more than 5 points in 5 minutes.” As well, “no more than 10 minutes on any given topic if you want to keep their attention.” And of course, “instant application with the manager…use what you have learned and get good coaching on how to improve their application of it.” c. Stand and deliver. When it comes to learning new tricks, whether related to products or executive calling, some of the best training is of the “stand and deliver” variety. Learn the facts on-line, put a presentation together then apply it. In one variation on this theme, an executive pointed out that “we got the best results when we had the seller deliver the pitch to someone they did not know…someone else’s manager. If you only got three chances to pass, I guarantee you will have their attention.”© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 9

Help sellers do their jobs better by getting more 3 from the first line sales manager If you want reps to change their habits or improve their skills, everything hinges on execution. This is where the first line sales manager (FLSM) role if crucial. To maximize this advantage: a. Train the FLSMs to know what is expected of them. Coaches need training too. Make sure that your FLSMs become skilled at giving feedback and boosting skill sets of those that report to them. b. Give them the time needed to spend with sellers, offload less important tasks if necessary. Cautioned one executive; “We have undervalued the FLSM. We loaded them up with admin and increased their spans to the point where their role in coaching is almost nil. Not good.” Respect the importance of the FLSM role. c. Trust the FLSMs judgment on how to impact the behavior of a seller. Summit executives stated that “you have got to believe that their instincts in this are better than the average HQ staffer.” Give them authority to act.© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 10

Know when to provide specialist assistance…and 4 when not to Teaming specialists and generalists is a good way to expand the bandwidth of the seller. Too many specialists hurt profits. Too few hurts revenue. Find the right mix: a. Fear of spending too much is the chief reason cited for not using specialists. Only budget for as many specialists as the expected sales uplift will pay for. Take a close look at the actual ROI and recalibrate accordingly. b. Experiment to find the right ratio of specialists to generalists. When deploying specialists to support a new product launch, start with your best estimate of how many are needed. Six or twelve months after launch select a geography and start cutting back on specialists. See what happens. Do sales go down? Bulk back up. Do sales remain the same? Take some more out. “Always be testing to find the right balance.” c. Use the knowledge you learn in testing to inform future decisions. Use your experience gained from experiments to make data driven decisions on optimal specialist /generalist ratios and when to back down specialist headcount after a new product launch.© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 11

Get more from specialists with standard processes 5 and centralized support To get the most out of available specialists, consider rules on when and how to engage specialists. a. Imbed the specialist role in a standardized sales process. Clearly define parameters around specialist engagement steps, timing and overall potential. b. Install rigorous qualification procedures to weed out the poor leads that are a waste of specialist time. Dialing in the specialist only when the opportunity is worth it can help you cut back considerably on the resources you need. c. Consolidate specialists into regional or national facilities. Both pre-sale specialists and post-sales service specialists can be accessed on-line or via tele-presence technology. Centralization of your specialist resources can double their level of efficiency.© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 12

Summary: The role of the seller is changing as expectations for delivering greater value through the sales process build. Sales leaders need to adapt to and leverage these changes. Many leaders allow sellers to be buried in a blizzard of communications and programs, or hire extravagant numbers of specialists to shift the burden of selling off the generalist’s shoulders. The executives that contributed their opinions at the Fall 2011 Summit look at bandwidth issues differently. Maximizing value through sales process depends on helping sellers understand what is expected – and then helping them act on that understanding with available time and resources. This simple sounding philosophy is only possible if the sales leader actively manages seller bandwidth. Throwing more information and more resources at the sales process is not the answer.© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® What to do?  13

How sales leaders can apply these strategies: 1. Manage access to sellers more stringently. Treat their time as a very valuable commodity, just like gold. 2. Manage sales process tighter. Always look for ways to simplify things in a complicated world. 3. Never settle. Always be challenging, always be testing, always be willing to change to a new and better way of operating. Want to add value through the sales organization? It’s up to you! Manage your sellers bandwidth, so they can focus on adding value to their customers.© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 14

Join us at The Breakers October 24-26th for the 2012 Chief Sales Executive Forum Keep the Conversation Going Join the Chief Sales Executive LinkedIn Group to discuss challenges facing sales leaders. Learn More About AGI Visit our website to find out why clients enjoy working with us.© 2012 The Alexander Group, Inc. ® 15

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5 Strategies to Manage Seller Bandwidth

by The Alexander Group on Jan 18, 2012

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5 Strategies to Manage Seller Bandwidth — Presentation Transcript