BusinessWeek.com’s How to Keep Your Team Talking is a bit of a how-to guide on running a brainstorming meeting. That, to me, is not as intriguing as looking at the management implications of properly handling Gen Y workers. The younger generations crave involvement in their work roles. They crave a purpose, a meaning, a mission more so than any generation before them. This mission goes beyond monetary rewards. They long to make a difference in the world through their work. This distinction is important because it points to the fact that they long to be engaged (to borrow a buzzword from the article). The idea behind engagement-mania is that when… Read More
Continue ReadingSelling Credibility
Marketingprofs.com offers up an insightful article from Jeff Thull that deals with one of the most important aspects of selling – credibility. Here is the setup (emphasis mine): Now the sobering question, “How different are your two best competitors’ credibility stories from your own company’s credibility story?” Unfortunately, other than a few minor elements, they are likely to sound quite similar. Therefore, telling the credibility story suggests that you and your competitors are more equal than you are different. This type of credibility is what we refer to as “expected credibility.” In other words, people expect you wouldn’t be in business if you couldn’t provide the above credibility story. They… Read More
Continue ReadingSuper Quote
I just read a great quote from Peter King’s article on the SI.com website. This quote is from Peyton Manning’s press conference earlier in the week: “Chuck Noll said, ‘Pressure is something you feel only when you don’t know what you are doing.” If you are feeling pressure to hire a strong salesperson, we can help.
Continue ReadingBosses Gone Wild
Super Bowl week leads to this article from CareerJournal.com. I am a big Tony Dungy fan and the article provides an interesting look at his managing/coaching style (an excellent style in my opinion). The excerpt that I enjoyed: The vice president of marketing at a Silicon Valley company attributes rapid turnover at many West Coast technology companies to what he calls “screaming-bully bosses.” One such boss, a body builder who liked to show off his strength to managers by doing 25 pushups at the start of meetings, called him at all hours to scream about things that had gone wrong. A second bully boss, the CEO of a semiconductor-network start-up,… Read More
Continue ReadingHow Interviewers Affect Candidate Decisions
Yesterday I attended a Webinar from Monster and DDI titled, “Thanks, But No Thanks: Keeping Top Prospects From Turning Down Your Offer” that not only echoed many of the points from this Selling Power article, but had the data to support it. There were numerous points that I wanted to share with you so I’ll post on them in bite-size pieces over the next few days. In our previous post, point #4 talks about trust. A candidate forms their opinion about trust in 3 areas with the interviewer being the first mentioned. I’m sure some of you thought that may have been a bit far-fetched but take a look at… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Etiquette Of Retention
Does ‘Thank You’ Help Keep Associates? from CareerJournal.com takes a look at turnover/retention issues at a major law firm. Scary, I know. However, there is a good lesson in here in regards to retaining top employees. First the setup from the article: Faced with a surge in turnover of its associates, the prestigious law firm Sullivan & Cromwell LLP has been putting on a charm offensive to hold onto junior lawyers. The presentation showed that the New York firm, now with about 625 lawyers, lost 31% of its associates in 2004 and 30% in 2005. The average associate attrition rate for law firms of about that size or bigger for… Read More
Continue ReadingManaging Gen Y Workers
Manage Smarter offers Understanding the 20-Something Workforce. I have to confess, in our business we do not have frequent interaction with 20 some year olds. Here are excerpts of the author’s suggestions: 1. Make their first day unforgettable. Twenty-somethings thrive on instant gratification. “They’re used to taking a lot of data in at one time and making a choice,” Dorsey says. While this is a great asset in business, it unfortunately means a company has little time to make an positive impression. 2. Don’t rely on a competitive salary to keep talent. “It’s a big realization, but money does not always build loyalty,” Dorsey says. Twenty-somethings’ parents, often Baby Boomers… Read More
Continue ReadingYou Can Ask Me Anything – Just Email Me.
I am currently sourcing candidates for a customer with these requirements: technically savvy, results oriented, efficient sales skills with good phone & writing skills. My interaction with this candidate started via email, which is great because I could get an idea of his written communication skills. His first emails were to find out a little more about the company and a lot about the position responsibilities. We emailed back and forth several times in which he asked some great questions. After I had answered his questions, he sent an email stating that he was interested in the position and would like to take it to the next step. I emailed… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Top 5 + 1 Reasons Why Candidates Say “No”
I found this article in a recent Selling Power Newsletter that piqued my interest. After reading it, I found that the author touches on some very good points to remember when making an offer to a candidate. It is a very short read and well worth the time. The author, Craig Silverman gives these 5 reasons you will get a no: Need – If your message isn’t compelling enough, they won’t feel the need to make a change. Motivation – You have to understand what motivates the candidate before you offer the position. Once you find out, build it into your offer. Compensation – Most salespeople don’t want to make… Read More
Continue Reading6 Body Language Clues
Managesmarter.com offers this article – Express Yourself – to provide salespeople with 6 easy reads of their prospect. Nose or face scratch implies dislike. Head tilted to the side implies interest. Eye rub implies deceit. Hand or finger blocking the mouth implies lying. Thumb tucked under the chin with index finger pointing up on the cheek implies a critical attitude. Chin stroke implies making a decision. All of them are good reads for observing prospects’ subconscious take on the discussion. However, how do you affect a change in the discussion? One tool we provide salespeople is our Selling Style sheet which provides salespeople with a quick, 1 page reference sheet… Read More
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