When I’m working with Sales and Account Managers I frequently hear the same questions and comments. The conversation usually gets around to the Account Manager saying:
“I wish I could grow my sales.”
“I wish I had more time to make sales calls.”
“I wish or need to make more money.”
Over time I have learned that we are either serious about our wishes or in most cases we are just making noise. We may wish for something but usually are not willing to do what’s needed to make the wish come to reality.
Do You Really?
When I hear an Account Manager say for example “I wish I had more time to make sales calls” I will often respond by asking “Do you really?” Then I listen for all the reasons they have for why they don’t have time to call on their customer. You know the reasons; I can’t get out of the office, I have too much paperwork (really meaning I don’t want to do the silly reports you ask me to do), I can’t get off the phone, etc…
Are You Committed?
The good thing about a wish is that it doesn’t require a commitment. You can wish all day long but without a commitment you don’t have to change anything. There is no personal sacrifice asked of a wish. But without the sacrifice you will probably see no change. Very few things come without a cost and moving a wish to a reality is certainly not free.
So when I hear an Account Manager make a wish and after listening to the reasons why, I will ask “Are you committed to make a change?” Again I listen to their response. There must be a commitment before we can proceed. If it is just noise both you and your Account Manager will just be wasting each other’s time.
Once the commitment is made to turn a wish into a reality we can get to work. We can then begin to discuss the sacrifices needed to be made. Using the example above “I wish I had more time to make sales calls” it may mean working more hours each day, blocking out time each day solely for making sales calls or eliminating non-productive time from your schedule. We can then set SMART goals to make sure we have a process in place and are taking the right steps needed to make the change.
Without asking the two essential questions “Do you really?” and “Are you committed?” most all wishes will remain just noise.
On a personal note, this process is how I began WEWA on the Net. I wished I could write a blog that might be of value to our Sales and Account Managers.
After a few months of reading blogs and wishing I could write one, I asked myself “Do you really?” The answer was “I really do.” Then the hard question was “Are you committed?” and my answer then and still is “Hell Yes!”
I find this is true about lots of things that folks want but can’t commit to make it happen. Almost all of my direct reports talk to me weekly and express their “wishes” to advance but only a select few are serious and willing to commit. Some people become so complacent in their day to day routine that the thought of deviating just a little bit makes them squeamish. Then there are the classic procrastinators that are full of would be great ideas but lack a level of self motivation or want to blame it on something else as you mentioned like having too much paperwork, too many phone calls, etc.
The older I get and the more I am exposed to the hiring, firing, and promotion of personnel the more I see the lack of work ethic and moral value in the current workforce. Since my position requires me to be involved in operations and sales I see how the two effect one another greatly. In the end we are all “salesman” to some degree, the account manager has to have the mindset, product knowledge, and skills to move the product up front but the operations guys have to sell the service on the back end. Problem is that most of the time the two end up working against one another and don’t even know it.
Great post again WEWA!
Looking forward to what’s to come!
Kris, I think the beauty of “Do you really?” helps to quickly determine their willingness to commit. I feel it is a great way to help you start moving your co-workers wishes to realities. It also lets them know that if they are willing to take their wishes seriously your are as well. If you practice just asking the two questions you will quickly learn who’s serious and who’s just making noise.
I see sales and operations at odds quite often. As managers, we know the importance of both and must constantly be reminding them both are important for your company’s success. I try to include operations in our sales meetings and insist that our Account Managers be involved in the operations meetings. This way they both have an opportunity to see the big picture.
Thanks for you comments and please continue reading my blog.
Wes