Times have truly changed. For the first time in history, some sales managers find themselves managing members of three or four generations in the workplace. These diverse workers bring differing approaches to their work, their learning, and the ways in which they respond to managers and hierarchy. While many older workers prefer to work independently, younger workers place value on collaboration and enjoy working in teams. While older workers respect tenure and experience, younger workers expect a flatter organization and a say in their work and how they approach it.
There are many sales competency challenges faced by sales managers and sales trainers. Balancing short-term results with long-term impact is never easy. While many people understand the logic of supply and demand, or return on investment, the sales profession hasn't come to grips with another universal business truth -- balancing risk and rewards.
It would seem (to many) that the short term reward and often immediate gratification,of bringing in new clients has offset the risks of thinking strategically. Many would argue that landing deals, closing accounts, and bringing in new revenue are the only benchmarks worth measuring. The question is: "Are there other important aspects of selling that sales managers and trainers should consider at all?" What are the key questions one must answer as they attempt to engineer world-class sales performance?
To put it bluntly, the short term focus on the revenue "reward" has failed to overcome several risks to sales team competency and performance.
One of the risks to sales competency is the changing demographic of sales teams.
Changing demographics are having a notable effect on sales organizations across a variety of industries and geographies. In a 2006 IBM and ASTD study on the impact of changing workforce demographics on the learning function, 239 learning executives were asked to identify their primary concerns regarding this generational shift.
They are:
Important issue, little action: Most companies are ill-prepared to adapt to the changing workforce.
Passing the torch of experience: Transferring knowledge between generations is becoming a critical capability for today's organization.
Beyond "one size fits all": Learning executives believe there are clear differences in the learning preferences of workers from different generations.
Avoiding roadblocks to learning: Older workers may find more barriers to participating in learning activities.
Bypassing the learning curve: Getting new employees rapidly up to speed is taking on a new priority.
The United States and many other industrialized nations are also facing the imminent retirement of hundreds of thousands of skilled, knowledgeable workers. Despite the fact that technology has rendered many jobs obsolete, the need for skilled salespeople is and remains great: In its 2007 Talent Shortage Survey, Manpower Inc. discovered-for the second year in a row-that business-to-business sales positions are the hardest to fill in the United States and several other countries. A 2007 survey by CSO Insights, a sales research firm, revealed that nearly 15 percent of responding organizations planned to increase the size of their sales teams by 21 percent or more.
While most other professions can rely on a steady supply of potential employees from high school, college, or workforce-development programs, the sales profession lacks a comparable system to generate new talent. Over the past five years, colleges and universities have begun to offer courses in professional selling, but not nearly enough to meet the need.
"Sales managers must balance the tension of building a culture of teamwork with the need for increased levels of praise and feedback for individual achievement. Compounding the difficulty of these changes is the desire of younger employees who are seeking, and even demanding, to relate to their leaders as peers."
-Tim Ohai, President, Growth and Associates
To stay on top of the emerging trend, the following three recommendations are offered:
-- RECOMMENDATION #1: Understand that turnover in the sales organization is a bad thing. While this may seem simple, many organizations operate under the false assumption that there is an abundant supply of sales talent---it's simply not true. Therefore, organizations that invest in their sales people and help them learn faster than the competition are a critical asset to your organization. Keys to stopping the sales turnover problem can be found in a) setting clear expectations about roles, b) helping sales managers truly coach others and c):
-- RECOMMENDATION #2: Understand that sales team performance requires a system's approach. Many leaders believe that motivating the sales team with more money will solve all turnover problems. However, with multiple generations on the company's front line, organizations that build a system of support can help the sales team attain immediate results. Each age group can learn differently, approach a situation differently, and understand different customer needs. A system's approach is required to align sales enablement, sales development, and sales management to the company's business objectives.
-- RECOMMENDATION #3: Realize that there is strength in generational diversity. Organizations that tap the wisdom of their longest tenured sales team members by providing opportunities for mentoring will have a leg up especially when it comes to transferring critical knowledge. Likewise, organizations that help their sales teams provide feedback and collaboration with peers are better able to retain their entry-level sales team members.
Dr. Brian Lambert is a senior analyst for Forrester Research serving Technology Sales Enablement Professionals. He covers the strategy, processes, and execution associated with helping sales team members achieve their desired business outcomes through more effective collaboration and behavior change. Brian researches key challenges associated with sales enablement, including helping sales team member's effectively model customer needs and map solution capabilities to those needs within each sales conversation. He also researches the impact of today's complex and changing business environment on portfolio, marketing, and sales team members as they design; implement; and reinforce training, talent management, leadership development, performance, and adoption strategies needed to improve the skill, expertise, and results of team members.
Brian is a highly sought after world-wide speaker, author, and trainer on sales competency, sales performance, sales process, sales professionalism, sales ethics, and sales process.
Find out about Brian at http://www.forrester.com/rb/analyst/brian_lambert
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