Sales Coach, Sales Manager: All That Matters are Results!
Over the years there has been lots of talk about the difference between a sales manager and a sales coach. Coaching advocates claim that sales managers focus too much on the numbers and disregard the human factor of nurturing and guiding their team. In a recent post, Tibor Shanto stated that the real question should be “Are You a Sales Chief?” and I tend to agree with him.
I don’t reckon it really matters what title you use. If you lead, manage or oversee a sales team, the bottom line is that you are accountable for ensuring they achieve the desired results. How you attain that goal is a matter of personal preference.
Having said that, there are several strategies that will work against you regardless of the title you choose to use. Here are five of them.
Micro-administration. Prowling up and down the pit demanding updates from your reps every 30 minutes is not only demeaning to your team; it is a waste of your time. I mean, really, do you honestly expect your team to perform at the top of their game when you’re constantly looking over their shoulder and demanding results?
Public humiliation. Berating reps in front of their peers for their lack of results is a quick way to not only lose your team’s respect but to increase turnover which often leads to a decline in sales. You might reckon that tearing a strip off someone in a meeting demonstrates authority and gets people to “tow-the-line” but it really has the opposite effect.
Pressure. Results through pressure will work…in the small-term and only for a restricted time. Reps eventually become accustomed to the insults and threats and this immunity makes this approach ineffective. I once worked with a person who used this strategy. He thought it was effective and he honestly believed that he commanded respect because of his dread tactics. Part of his belief system was accurate; his team did dread him, but very few people respected him.
Sink or swim mentality. In recent years there is an alarming increase in the number of companies and sales managers who expect new reps to start performing immediately. I recently read a refer to that said something to the effect of, “Most reps don’t grasp there is a butt on their back within 30-60 days.” I completely know the enormous pressure organizations face to deliver results; but, setting unrealistic expectations and neglecting to give your team the support, training and guidance they need is a recipe for failure.
Unrealistic expectations. Too many managers assume that their team knows what they, the manager, expect. But, reps are not mind-readers and you can’t simply toss an hand handbook at them and expect them to memorize it. I once worked for a restaurant chain and our managers were required to sign every memo after they read it. My boss would frequently challenge people who weren’t executing a specific procedure by leafing through the memos (some that were issued six or eight months earlier) and thrusting them in front of the manager and state, “You signed this memo. Why aren’t you doing this?” Agreed the number of changes that occurred in the company, his expectation that all would remember and do every change with one memo was completely unrealistic.
I know that the business climate today is more challenging than ever. I know that it is hard to meet goals and quotas agreed the current state of affairs and the increase in competition. But, by the incorrect approach will not help you achieve your goals and butt regardless of the title you use.
