Establish Sales Team Expectations
Clearly understood expectations set the foundation for accountability
The foundation of an accountable environment is clear expectations. If what to do, how to do it, when it should be done and the level of results produced are not defined and agreed upon accountability is elusive or inconsistent. When we are hired as the sales manager our aim in the first couple of months is to begin understanding and then defining clear expectations.
What You’ll Get
If you want everyone on the team rowing in the same direction with the same effort we focus on the following areas to clarify that. Company, team, and individual expectations are defined, documented and communicated so they are understood by all.
- Company goals, vision, and strategies
- Department goals
- Job Descriptions
- Sales Process
- Individual sales plans and expected results
- Team culture and attitude
- Inter-department support
The Sales Process and Individual Sales Plan are monitored most frequently. In addition, what is expected to be entered into the CRM to provide proper reporting is covered as well. The Getting In Step phase of a client engagement helps us get in tune with the current level of expectations and in the Tunning Up phase we update, tighten up and share with the team to gain agreement and establish an accountable environment.
More time to build my business
We contracted with Sales Manager Now to help our sales revenue and team grow; which it has over the past three years. What we didn’t expect was how their leadership contribution has brought more professionalism, a greater sense of trust and a stronger team vibe at our company. Knowing that the sales team is taken care of under Rene’s leadership has allowed me to spend more time focused on developing new products and acquisitions to build the company. It’s all working.
Structure, stability and compassion
We were Sales Manager Now’s first client. We hired Rene in 2006 as support and training for myself and our sales department. Over the course of a few years, Rene brought stability, began procedures, training processes, and an outsiders opinion to our inner workings; but Rene also became a mentor and friend of mine. Even after our contract finished and our sales team was set to sail, Rene’s genuine care for our team continued as he chimed in periodically to offer advice and motivation to our team.
Long-term value
I very much enjoyed the healthy interaction and vitality from my sales team during our meeting today. That type of energy level has developed consistently over our period of time (years) working with you (Sales Manager Now). As we continue to build our group of sales professionals with new talent and as we develop our succession plan for the years ahead, this type of sharing culture will be vital to our long-term growth and profitability.
Effective sales management
Ten years ago we had dysfunctional Sales Management. Rene was instrumental in helping us develop effective Sales Management personnel and educating senior management on how to be harmonious with our sales team. Today our Sales process is very effective with all departments working together. Rene continues to consult with our Sales Manager on an ongoing basis to assist in his professional growth. Rene is a valued asset to our team.
30% Sales Growth
Inflow hired Sales Manager Now to assist in the creation and management of a sales and marketing team. They worked with us to establish our long and short-term goals, build a plan, and execute on measurable goals and objectives. This work resulted in 30% sales growth. Furthermore, Sales Manager Now was instrumental in helping us select, design, and implement our new Salesforce CRM system. They sought to truly understand our business, align the technology with our business needs, and document all of our sales processes. I highly recommend Sales Manager Now for your organization.
Great fit and lasting change
Noel – It’s been an absolute honor and pleasure working with you over these past few months. You are truly a professional in every sense of the word. You really helped us create greater alignment with the Planner team and our overall firm objectives, and were a key catalyst for some significant changes in the way we train, lead, and develop our sales team moving forward. The team embraced you with ease, and your ability to connect with everyone personally and professionally was refreshing. You were definitely a cultural fit from day 1!
Our Philosophy
Setting goals and sharing expectations has always been part of how I operate but I had always taken it for granted until one of my managers answers a question of mine. Let me share a real-life example of why it’s important to communicate with your employees about your goals and expectations.
In 1999 I was working in the cellular phone industry and took over an underperforming market with the charge of getting it on track. We did a lot of things in the first six months. We improved coverage, set new service standards, had employee meetings, addressed pricing, and kept score on the most important business objectives. We had a daily report, weekly report, and monthly meeting to review our results. After seven months we started hitting our sales objectives. We hit them eleven out of the next twelve months. Previous to that time, the team had hit their goals only once out of twelve months. I pulled my sales manager, Bill, aside after our string of successes and asked him what he believed was the most important thing we did to help us become consistent in reaching our goals. His answer floored me. “Well Rene, we now know what the goals are. We know what’s expected of us.”
It seems so simple and it is to a degree. It’s simple to think or verbalize expectations and it’s another thing to make sure they are clear and understood by all so they can then work to achieve them.