2010 is a year for Sales Execution

It's time to stop being defensive and go on the offense again. That means Sales Force Execution.

You have to get the right sales people saying the right things to the right customers.

Sounds simple. Difficult to do.

I recommend subscribing to Dave Kurlan's blog "Understanding the Sales Force"

Dave nails it in each and every post, about what works in getting your sales force to execute effectively. He destroys myths about sales, and provides good hard data on what works, what needs to be in place and how to do it.

Keep your eyes peeled for more information on this. I'm going to be offering Sales Force Effectiveness huddles/workshops/coaching in this New Year. Not sales training, but sales leadership and execution.

Go Back to Past Greatness to Improve Your Future

After hearing all the discussions at this morning's Inner Circle meeting, the major thought I want to convey today relates to going back to what you done well in the past, to improve for the future.

The temptation to radically change things when things aren’t going well is hard to resist. It's natural to feel this way. But usually that instinct is wrong and you need to resist that urge.

Research from Jim Collins studies of great organizations going bad (his book How the Mighty Fall) indicates that those that fall stray too far from what made them great. They innovate too much, or take to radical of action to fix everything when everything isn’t broken.

Usually something needs to be fixed but not everything. The change needed might only be renewing your focus on what made you great in the first place. I said it in the meeting, the best corporate turnaround artists, the ones who really turn a company around, are those that go back to what was done good in the past, get the companies to start doing it again, and then tweak it.

No matter what’s going on in your company, you did something good in the past. Get back to it.

What's up. Head's up. Where am I stuck?

After a recent personal coaching session with a client, I had a breakthrough idea. He was talking about the difficulty of team work within his company, mostly executives had a hard time communicating with each other, a common problem in lots of organization. However, this client, unlike most of my clients, isn't the leader of the organization.

Usually I'm working with the owner or CEO. And the solution to this situation for them often involves establishing a disciplined meeting rhythm, including daily ten minute stand-up huddles, where everyone reports "What's up! Head's Up! and Where am I stuck?" (Translation: This is what I'll be working on primarily today, this is what you need to know about what I learned since yesterday, and this is what is slow going for me today.)

It clears the air, allows for intervention, and generally encourages creativity and collaboration. It speeds things up and helps with accountability.

I asked my coaching client, who couldn't call or establish a meeting rhythm in his company, what was likely to happen if he left a voice mail for his superior and teammates each day, providing them with his "What's up! Head's up! This is what I'm stuck on!"

"They would know what I'm producing and what I need help with. And they would probably start sharing the same information with me in return."

"Furthermore, I would be able to hold myself more accountable."

Sounds like a plan. I fully expect communications to open up. And performance to improve. Might even see some face to face daily huddles established in the future.