Tag Archives: Objective

How Do You Correct Inappropriate Behavior of a Productive Employee? Four Points

Situation: A CEO has a key manager who frequently uses inappropriate language and demonstrates lack of care towards co-workers. This individual is smart, has great drive, and does the work formerly handled by two employees. How do you correct inappropriate behavior of a productive employee?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • Create a firm company policy on swearing and the use of inappropriate or abusive language.
    • Each time any individual swears or uses inappropriate language, they must put $1 into a pot. Anybody can call anyone else for swearing and the one who’s caught has to pay. The money in the pot goes to buy pizza on Fridays.
    • This is a creative and even entertaining solution and should resolve the problem in a short time.
  • Sit down with this individual and go over their positives and value. Besides these, emphasize which behaviors are unacceptable.
    • Explain the legal implications and consequences for the individual and company. Provide goals and set objectives.
  • Send this individual alone or with a team to a Pryor Customer Relationship seminar, for example the seminar “How to Communicate with Tact and Professionalism”.
    • Let the instructor know in advance that you want to be sure that certain behaviors are covered during the seminar.
    • This may provide the individual the incentive to behave like an owner of the business.
  • Make it clear who’s in charge, and at whose discretion the individual remains with the company.

[like]

How Do You Improve Morale and Performance in a Professional Services Company? Four Observations

Situation: The CEO of a professional service company says that his employees have been through a lot of stress over the last few years. He wants to improve company morale to boost performance and is interested in how others have done this. How do you improve morale and performance in a professional services company?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • Manage Morale and Employee Feedback – In times of economic change and adjustment, it is important to have a good handle on what employees are thinking about their jobs and the company as a whole. The use of anonymous surveys administered via computer or a neutral 3rd party generally yields more objective and honest feedback than 1-on-1s with the CEO. They offer employees an opportunity to anonymously share their concerns, and to offer constructive feedback on how to boost company performance.
  • NOW is the time to act – whether the economy is positioned for a rebound or another dip. Employees have dealt with a lot over the last few years and may be starting to look at opportunities outside the company. Therefore, it is important, right now, to put programs in place to:
    • Retain high performing employees, and
    • Communicate to employees what the company is doing to position itself for growth so that they see a bright future for both the company and themselves as employees within the company.
  • Professional services are people-to-people businesses. Focus on relationship building to increase market presence. Recognize and reward employees for their efforts to build new relationships with clients. Use these as examples to inspire other employees.
  • Many more women have entered and become an important component of the workforce. Conduct group meetings to compare the experiences of male and female sales people in relationship selling situations. These will differ between purchase decision makers in different markets and situations where one gender vs. the other predominates. Sharing experiences offers the potential to learn from and to support each other as well as to improve performance. Ask employees how these meetings should be conducted and whether they prefer same or mixed gender meetings.

[like]

How Do You Navigate Communication Style Differences? Four Points

Situation: A CEO seeks advice on how other CEOs work with employees who have significantly different styles of communication. He suspects that this is a source of conflict between employees and wants to reduce that conflict. How do you encourage employees to be more open and receptive to other employees? How do you navigate communication style differences?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • Conduct regular personnel reviews. In reviews work with the individual to develop personal growth plans in addition to professional development objectives.
    • It may be necessary to create enough stress in an interview situation to prompt the real personality to show.
    • Recognize that sometimes an employee who meets professional goals can still be a poor fit for the team. This can impact other, productive team members. Don’t be afraid to fire a bad hire.
  • How much can you expect to mold another person’s communication style?
    • There must be personal motivation to change – the impetus must come from within.
    • To prompt the conversation acknowledge that something isn’t working – or isn’t as effective as expected.
    • Communicate to the individual that the consequences of not changing are potentially worse than the effort to change.
  • Breed adaptive communication skills throughout the organization.
    • Use an assessment tool to start the conversation and align tasks.
    • In dealing with an individual who is confrontational, probe to determine what is motivating the individual’s question or position on an issue. Does the individual genuinely need additional information or are they using a wall of questions as a roadblock to moving on?
    • Work with the individual to organize their answers or input into a plan.
  • Communicate values and goals as they pertain to individual contribution and appreciate the impact of different departments’ actions on each other.
    • Be flexible – some people need more definition and reinforcement than others.
    • Understand that changes and transitions in the company’s focus can shift roles.
    • Review each individual’s role periodically to insure that it fits the company vision. This can increase the individual’s understanding of how they are contributing to moving the company forward.

[like]

Customer Service and Customer Satisfaction: What’s the Difference? Two Points

Situation: A CEO and his team have been having a debate about the difference between customer service and customer satisfaction. How do others work with their teams to improve both customer service and customer satisfaction? Is there a difference between the two and, if so, what is it?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • Customer service has to be clearly defined.
    • The objective of customer service is for the customer to have a positive experience.
    • Customer service is addressing the needs and concerns of your customers in a timely fashion to create a competitive advantage and higher perceived value for a company’s products or services.
    • Customer service is a process that can be taught and trained.
  • Customer satisfaction has to be measurable.
    • Customer satisfaction is listening to what the customer has to say, addressing their issues, and providing a resolution that meets their needs and expectations.
    • It is a measure of comfort, confidence and trust.
    • There is a difference between being proactive and being reactive – work with each to assure that the customer is pleased with their experience, product and/or service.
    • To test this, record and analyze responses to the question “How did we serve you?”

[like]

How Do You Interview for New Hires and Promotions? Part 1, Three Points

Situation: A CEO seeks advice on interviewing both for new hires and promotions. What advice and guidelines do others suggest to improve interviews? How do you interview for new hires and promotions?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • Preparation before hiring or promotion is critical.
    • Preparation means having a road map – for what will be accomplished in the new position and for how the company selects and hires or awards promotions.
    • Discipline: have the patience to do it well.
    • Be aware of and watch for possible legal issues. This has become increasingly important under DEI.
  • Raise the bar. Each new addition or promotion should enhance the company’s capabilities instead of just filling a slot.
    • Hire individuals with skills that complement areas of your own or the organization’s weaknesses.
    • Be creative in developing sources or new hires.
  • Ask open-ended questions and follow-up with additional open-ended questions to clarify areas that the response opens.
    • Focus interview questions and processes to identify demonstrated values and habits.
    • Insert pregnant pauses into the interview. How does the interviewee respond?
    • Listen for what is NOT said as much as what is said.

[like]

How Do You Increase Lead Generation and Motivate Sales Development? Seven Points

Situation: A company needs to generate more leads and increase new business closure rates to make plan. Their customers are primarily tech companies and they use advertising, trade shows and customer lists to develop leads. What advice do others have to help the company meet their objectives? How do you increase lead generation and motivate sales development?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • Look closely at the definition of your market. Refine the definition of the market in light of new technology developments and opportunities. If necessary, rewrite the value proposition and the characterization of the company’s typical customer.
  • Hire a Marketing Director to take charge of this effort.
  • For each of key customer or key customer category, develop the important features and benefits that will appeal to that customer or group. Think, through their eyes, “what’s in it for me?”
  • Focus on one or two areas where the company adds the best value. Don’t attempt to be all things to all people.
  • Define the behaviors that will generate sales and inquiries. Assure that these are up to date with the market. Train or retrain your salespeople as necessary and manage those behaviors.
  • Select and manage a sales process. If necessary seek outside help to develop this. Options include; Sales Solutions, Miller Heiman, and similar sales training companies.
  • Use a wide array of resources to develop potential customer lists and to identify the needs of each of those customers:
    • Business partners
    • LinkedIn.com
    • Google Ads
    • Salesforce.com or Jigsaw
    • Webinars and Social Media

[like]

How Do You Design an Effective Sales Compensation Plan? Three Steps

Situation: A young company is redeveloping its sales department and wants to develop an effective sales compensation plan. What advice do members have for the company on effective sales comp packages? How do you design an effective sales compensation plan?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • The first step is to develop broad outlines to the plan:
    • What salary range is the company contemplating? What can the company afford?
    • What skills beyond the ability to sell will be required? For example, will the sales person require technical skills in addition to sales skills? Or will the sales person need engineering design assistance both in making the sale and in providing service post-sale?
    • Who will be the ongoing contact for the customer once the sale is made? Will this be the salesperson, or will ongoing customer contact will be managed by engineering?
    • The higher the skill level and both sales and post-sale responsibilities, the higher the potential salary.
  • Once the broad outline is decided, set parameters and objectives for the position. The compensation plan should reflect and be consistent with these.
  • Third, establish the behaviors that sales people are expected to exhibit. Any compensation plan should reinforce the behaviors desired by the company.
    • If salespeople are expected to bring in high margin business, focus and scale compensation based on the margin generated by the sale.
    • If an objective is to avoid customers who are bad credit risks, then pay sales people on collected funds rather than on invoiced business.

[like]

What is the Role and Value of an M&A Consultant? Four Points

Situation: The owners wish to sell a company. One option is an M&A consultant to assist with the sale. The CEO wants to know about others’ experience. What is the role and value of an M&A consultant?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • The first step is to assess the strengths and weaknesses of a consultant to determine their value.
    • The cost of an M&A consultant is inexpensive relative to the value of the business.
    • Accounting rules and M&A practices of public companies do not always apply to private companies. Valuation is affected by variations in profits year-by-year, so consultants typically use 3 to 5 year historical results for comparison against industry standards.
    • Technology companies may have a different value than service-oriented businesses, particularly if significant IP is involved. Look at the creativity of potential consultants’ solutions.
  • Consultant alternatives:
    • Business brokers, accountants, and valuation specialists can all offer valuations.
    • Investment Bankers who charge an upfront fee may be more strategically oriented. Typically, the more strategic the valuation exercise, the more dollars involved.
  • Be cautious in choosing a consultant.
    • Many business owners spend a lot of time and money with accountants and lawyers when they could save by working with a business broker paid on a commission basis.
    • Business brokers are skilled at getting business sold – however the deal is not necessarily in the best interest of the owner. Brokers are paid by commission and so may not have the best interests of the owner at heart.
  • What should you look for in a consultant?
    • Maximization of sale value with a minimal tax exposure.
    • A consultant who will help the owner figure out what they want from their business and exit – who will help to establish owners’ exit objective, a key to a successful exit.
    • A consultant who will help choose the right team of advisors.

[like]

How Do You Generate Buy-in as You Change the Business Model? Six Points

Situation: A company is changing its business model from fee for service, driven by individual contributors, to a contracted project model with teams delivering service. The driver for the new model is to deliver full solutions to meet client needs. The CEO is struggling to obtain buy-in to the new model from all stakeholders – employees, managers and shareholders. How do you generate buy-in as you change the business model?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • The objective is to obtain agreement on vision and direction as the company adapts over a 3-5 year horizon.
    • Benefits include: product vs. service sales, a growing annuity revenue base, increased stability for the company and improved career paths for all members of the team.
    • Risks include: massive change, fear accompanying any change, too rapid growth, and the changes to company culture that will accompany this
  • Acknowledge and celebrate what the company and team have done well and the success that this has generated. In addition, share the lessons learned from experience to date, as well as the new opportunities that these lessons have created and the reasons to change to take advantage of these opportunities.
  • Create an exciting vision that expresses the new opportunities. Consider an off-site “WOW” event to announce your vision.
    • Focus on what’s in it for them as stakeholders. Address how they can participate in the change.
    • Where are the opportunities? Do they include investment and ownership?
    • Focus on the next major steps and the doable objectives associated with each step.
  • The new direction will require a different type of manager – with skills and experience managing teams. This is a growth opportunity for all involved. Provide training to assist the transition.
  • Employee and manager skill sets (including the CEO’s) will need to adapt – identify what skills will be needed and how they can be found or developed.
  • The past culture has been highly entrepreneurial with little middle management. The new model may be different from the current model, but it can still be entrepreneurial in a different way.

[like]

Should You Combine Sales and Marketing? Five Points

Situation: A company is considering combining its marketing and sales teams. The company’s overall objective is to expand their marketing presence and to bring on new customers. Some team members believe that these two functions are distinct, while others believe that they should work in tandem or even be combined. What do others think about these options? Should you combine sales and marketing?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • The skill sets required to create and operate an effective marketing effort are different from those required to create and operate an effective sales organization.
  • Sales and Marketing are two different sides of the same coin – they complement each other but are distinct.
  • Direction begins with the CEO; however it is imperative to make certain that everyone in the organization buys into both this direction and the organization to achieve it.
  • Some feel that it is not a good idea to have one person covering the role of Sales and Marketing. Sales is tactical while Marketing is strategic. It is Sales’ job to implement the Marketing Strategy and report back what is working and what is not. Marketing’s job is to take the feedback from Sales into account and revise the strategy accordingly.
  • Challenges which can create a constant battle between marketing and sales are due to:
    • Lack of common direction, and
    • Poor or inconsistent communication between Sales and customer on one side and Sales and Marketing on the other.
    • These challenges need to be resolved to have an effective Sales + Marketing organization.

[like]