If you need sales skills and methods to grow your business then you must join Fast Track Sales Clubs. The unique blended learning provides immediate access to innovative and time tested techniques from Top Sales Expert and Business Growth Specialist, Drew Stevens.
No business grows without acquiring new customers. In fact, nothing happens to your business without a sale. Utilities do not function, employees do not get paid and you do not receive compensation without a sale!
To grow business, acquire and retain clients and gain financial prosperity requires a single focus and most important accountability. Coaches assist elite individuals uncover underutilized strengths and hide weaknesses. Coaching helps provide a single focus and work towards the tip of the arrow rather than just the target.
In addition, in a time pressured world and multi generational environment modalities of learning change. Professionals desire assistance wherever, however and whenever they need it. Using the power of technology coaching is available throughout the day!
Finally, Athletes practice, attorneys practice, students practice and musicians practice. Business professionals must practice! . Too many individuals attempt things once and quit. Whether a diet, gym membership or other life altering experience, individuals try one time and leave without moving forward. The key to self-mastery is continuing. You must practice everyday. Just like you body is an investment, so is your mind!
Join our Fast Track Selling Club and watch your business dramatically accelerate!
One of the most provocative topics in present business is leadership. Managing, motivating and directing organizations is challenging, however, guiding personnel is more challenging. Recent research abounds on helping leaders motivate and improve morale, and most solutions fail.
While the available research is useful, it encapsulates issues denoting immediate change. The primary challenges are that in order to change results, beliefs must change, and further change can result from an event such as training or a workshop. Organizations, employees, and notably behavior will not change with one program. Changing beliefs requires a process. This helps stimulate attitudes and beliefs. When organizations develop a process methodology, silos decrease, productivity increases, and morale improves.
During our 15 years of research with hundreds of small and multinational organizations and business leaders, we find a lack of process. We believe that business functions similar to athletics; they both require commitment, energy, and practice. Leaders must take new processes, allocate accountability and time, and apply process principles. We developed PRACTICE to assist leadership deployment.
P – Personnel Comes First
The vital asset of any organization is an employee. Internal stakeholders are the nucleus of organizational function and production. Loyal core provides results and profits. Leaders must acquire, develop, and communicate to the core. Organizational culture exemplifies employee assets. Personnel retention and morale are higher when culture focuses on employees. Loyal employees like loyal clients assist in profitability.
R – Relationships with key Stakeholders
A study by the Corporate Leadership Council reveals the tremendous impact managers have on an employee’s level of commitment. It is imperative to note that individuals do not leave companies - they leave poor managers. Failure to build inter-office and departmental relationships contributes to negative morale. Research shows that taking time to build relationships with employees through personal interaction is a key step for high morale. Employees need to feel trust and respect.
A - Attentiveness to Strategy
Many leaders pay many large consulting firms, exorbitant fees for strategy. The only problem, the research remains in an office bin or shelf. The problem with strategy is two-fold, 1) executives that do not understand or believe it and 2) a failure to communicate the strategy to all organizational stakeholders. Strategy cannot sit on a shelf. Similar to blood through veins, strategy must produce within all functional levels. Failure to communicate speed, direction, and fuel consumption eventually leads to a tragic crash or a lost vehicle.
C – Communication Essentials
Research into leadership illustrates an interesting correlation with famous and egregious leaders. Ironically, both groups exemplify superfluous oratory. Leaders understand the need to communicate. Announcements good or bad provide feedback required by employees to understand purpose and direction. A failure to communicate is a failure to lead.
T – Talent Acquisition
1. Start with the right people. No firm we work with ever hires on a proactive basis. Most firms conduct employment searches reactively. Seek employees that fit with the organizational culture and with the obligatory skills. Never wait!
2. Hire for skill – Talent is innate. Organizations hire for personality and behavior first and skill second. Skill is not interchangeable, behavior is. A great hire might have a wonderful temperament and lack the skill to plug a socket into an outlet. I recall a five star hotel that hired another level of housekeeping to repair floors. Hire the right people for the right job and lower costs.
3. Look at best practices from best people – Management focuses on “fixing those that cannot” rather than “improving those that can”. Icons of performance exist in your organization. Discover what they do right and encourage others to emulate it.
4. Passion – In the 1980’s Sylvester Stallone appeared again as Rocky this time with a theme, “Eye of the Tiger”. What a great metaphor for valuable talent. Seek to acquire talent that truly loves work.
I – Investments in Assets
Investment in the number one asset- people is vital. Never terminate training when results lower, rather increase them. The time for improvement is when things need improvement not when they are working well.
C – Cultural Strategies
Leaders develop the culture and those that do, have skin in the game. Apple UPS, Southwest, and many others illustrate an uncompromising need to serve clients and treat employees well. Develop cultures that strive for greatness not adversity.
E – Evolving with the Enigma
Organizations are enigmas just when you gain a resolution they change. Organizations must be open to and flexible with change. However, doing so requires critical, consistent, and collaborative analysis. Obtain a team that provides honest feedback, timeliness, and insight.
Similar to the athlete striving for perfection, leaders too must practice to alleviate imperfections. The best leaders constantly evaluate, seek success, and adopt new methods of improvement.
I advocate training but not for training sake. As many readers know my emphasis is two fold, those that treat training as an event. Individuals cannot change behavior in a six-hour training session. Like biting fingernails or twirling hair, training requires habit changes. Training must be a process that requires several sessions, perhaps years rather than a one-time kudos.
Nothing is more irksome then hearing the CEO or HR professional from a multi-billion dollar organization state there is no money in the training budget. Human Capital is assets not liabilities. The current trend traced to economics is rote with excuses of cutbacks. Typically, training budgets are the first line item.
My doctoral work and a recent article written by Jorina Fontelera indicate the need to train employees. Training when conducted consistently, helps with both worker productivity and morale.
A recent IBM Global Human Capital Study mentions that 40 percent of organizations believe that a lack of leadership capability is one of the primary workforce related issues. As companies and employees grow and mature one of the ailments of many organizations is developing the needed bench strength for the future.
As researchers in this area we notice several factors that contribute to these issues:
1. Succession Planning – Both an aging workforce and ineffective succession planning continually impact leadership development. A recent Wall Street Journal article “Hiring a CEO from the Outside is More Expensive” depicts the issues organizations face due to ineffective succession planning. Executive pay tracker Equilar found that firms typically pay 65% more to hire outside CEO’s. With burdensome profits and a failing economy organizations need to save costs wherever possible.
2. Knowledge Management – We live in a knowledge economy and as oftentimes written when individuals leave organizations, they take with them knowledge. Content is king and much as heirs and heiresses pass down fortunes, knowledge must be treated similarly. Leaders must allow employees to cross pollinate and learn each area of the business. In the not too distant past many CEO’s began in the mailroom.
3. Talent Acquisition – The best method for succession planning begins with hiring the right people. Not enough firms spend time here. According to a 2007 study of 37,000 employees (Manpower), 41 percent of companies worldwide are having trouble finding suitable talent. Make this a priority. Look inside and outside the organization for those individuals that can impact the organization.
4. Skill Acquisition – Productivity begins with understanding the job function, the industry and the competition. Not enough time is spent on training and development. Too many firms use elearning and software to augment human interaction and investment. However, firms are not seeing sufficient returns. For production to rise, more commitment must be spent on training and development. Further most organizations believe that a one time training event will boost productivity. This is untrue. Training is an inducement to change behavior, such augmentation taking months to rehabilitate. Training is an investment, a process that must be taken seriously.
5. Dichotomy – The success of FedEx, Disney, Southwest and many other top-flight organizations is the spirit and passion binding the culture. Individuals love leaders that communicate, respond to queries and allow all to share a common voice. Participative management is a leadership trait envied by many.
Leadership today requires a different business strategy. While many have coined phrases such as Sale, Web and Business 2.0, there is also a need for Leadership 2.0. With so much change and turbulence there is a need for a nimble, faster and yet pragmatic leader. The need for knowledgeable quick leaders is more prevalent then ever before. Organizations must work smarter not harder to remain competitive and the successful leader is pinnacle to its success.
It was approximately 54 years ago, but Peter Drucker was correct about the past, the present and most certainly the future. In his award winning book “The Practice of Management” Mr. Drucker wrote, “The only valid definition of business purpose: to create a customer. …It is the customer who determines what a business is”. Unfortunately for many businesses, their focus is not on the customer but on greed- how foolish.
All businesses make money, yet those that are customer focused are more profitable. Untrue you say, seek avatars such as Harley- Davidson and Southwest Airlines. The extreme loyalty factor from both firms enables them to remain profitable even in these poor economic times. In fact, both refer to customers more as family rather than clients.
There are several reasons why many firms seemingly do not follow the exemplars, these include:
1. Misalignment of the organization – We find that organizations today lack strategic focus. Organizations must research their motives and align them with their client needs. The client determines value and vision and management must not even guess the answer, the customer should systematically provide the response.
2. Lack of focus – Organizations typically loss focus on where they are and where they need to be. Diversification is for hedge funds; product and service companies should follow the shortest path to customer needs and profitability.
3. Greed – A famous line from the 1984 blockbuster movie Wall Street, “Greed is good”, was a mantra during crazed economic prowess. When organizations get greedy they lose focus with stakeholders with employees and more importantly clients. It is better to provide minimum service to clients rather than great service only to lower it during poor earnings.
• Culture – The benefit of loyalty to any organization is gaining the “buy in” from the top officers. Harley Davidson’s CEO uses the importance of the Value Proposition to rationally and irrationally build client loyalty. At Southwest, Barrett exemplifies 23 years of service experience. The leader must be the exemplar for all to follow. During Herb Kelleher’s tenure he placed bags in storage.
• Rump Rule – Call it what you will but the best example of customer service is simply walking around and speaking with clients. Apple, Enterprise, and a host of others remain not only profitable but maintain an enthusiastic customer base because they meet with clients and understand the issues. Stop administering and get off your backside.
• Passion – This begins with the hiring process. Talent is innate. Refrain from hiring anyone to fill a seat, employ those that are passionate about service, support and development for the client. All at FedEx and Disney are passionate about delivering to the client.
• Proactive Problem Solving – Give employees the power to make decisions. For one it provides better productivity and morale and it streamlines customer support. Allow staff to work hard and make something optimistic of each situation is, make the client feel good. A cognitive dissonance occurs with most service issues, yet it is instantly avoidable.
Return in a few days, when I will post additional tools to aid your customer service issues that allow for a better experience and a loyal fan base.
f you think “I just don’t have time to get organized,” then you NEED to attend this session!
If you’re like most professionals, there are well over 100 different issues on your plate for the day, and nothing is organized.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
1:00 pm ET/12:00 pm CT
11:00 am MT/10:00 am PT
Length: 60 minutes
With a little help, you can learn to juggle a variety of projects, deadlines and duties easier and with less stress. Learn the secrets to getting — and staying — organized!
Join internationally acclaimed speaker, consultant, motivator and trainer Drew Stevens, Ph.D. as he teaches you to remedy your priority woes.
In this informational 60-minute session, you’ll:
Come to understand where disorder stems from and how to overcome it.
Learn to develop methods that keep you more organized, without time or effort.
Discover 3 ways to organize your workspace so your surroundings reflect your efforts.
Find out how to develop prioritization and categorize each day’s work — determine what’s urgent, what can wait, and what you can let go.
And more!
You’ll discover the techniques you need to clean up your workspace and prioritize your projects so you’re more efficient and effective. This brief 60-minute session will save you hours in the long run!
PLUS: Ask “Dr. Organization” questions about how to organize your work situation during our live, interactive Q&A session. It’s like having a personal coach at your disposal!
Split Second Selling, the Book by Drew Stevens, Ph.D.
Achieving winning results in the sales game!
Download a FREE Chapter or download a FREE Audio sample. Visit the Selling Skills Resource Page.Only $28.95.
FREE Teleseminar!!
Thriving in a Volatile Economy
Thursday, December 18, 2008
12:30 pm ET/11:30 am CT
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