Sales Journal Blog

According to a recent survey conducted by Robert Half International, bad managers get the blame for most defections at U.S. companies; even though senior executives profess that employee retention is their No. 1 concern.

When polled by Robert Half International, senior executives cited unhappiness with management as the primary reason for losing top performing employees. These same managers listed limited opportunities for advancement and lack of recognition as the next most important reasons for the defection of top performers.

Surprisingly, inadequate salary was cited by only 13 percent of the executives as a prime reason for the exit of execptional employees.

There are only so many superstars available to all departments of U.S. companies. In the selling organization, defection of sales superstars should be particularly worrisome for senior executives. Like all superstars, there aren’t enough top performing sales professionals to go around, and they are rarely looking to peform their magic under bad managers.

This reality makes it crucial that senior managers not allow bad managers to drive away top talent. The fact the senior managers are often the cause of top performer defections is a topic for another day.

Is anyone surprised to learn that the overall failure to communicate in many organizations today is having dire consequences for employee morale?

According to a recent Accountemps survey, failure to communicate openly and honestly with employees is leading to a breakdown in employee morale at a time of economic uncertainty and fear.

Of 150 senior executives polled nationwide, a third cited a lack of open, honest communication as having the most negative impact on employee morale. Failure to recognize employee achievements (19 percent) and micromanaging (17 percent) were other reasons.

Of the executives interviewed, 48 percent cited better communication as the best remedy for low morale, according to the survey. Recognition (19 percent) and monetary awards for performance (13 percent) were among the other antidotes for low morale in the workplace.

Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps, noted that “Regular communication with employees is always integral to an organization’s success, but it becomes especially critical during periods of uncertainty.”

Now, more than at any time during the last eighty years, steady employee morale is a key to survival for many companies, at least until the world’s governments figure out how to mitigate the damages caused by a fierce, dangerous economic tsunami.

Anyone know where the city Thimphu is located? If you answer that it’s the capital of the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, located in South Asia and surrounded by China and India, would you have guessed it recently hosted a worldwide summit of top economists, including Nobel Prize winners, who gathered there to study an economic policy called Gross National Happiness?

In a fascinating article by a foreign service news correspondent, we are told about Gross National Happiness, a serious economic policy that is based on Buddhist principles. This unique approach to economic development may well begin to pierce dark economic clouds with rays of hope.

The leaders in Bhutan consider human happiness a very important condition, and they have managed to convince more than a few traditional economists that human well-being and happiness should be a primary outcome of economic development.

The article’s author tells us that when considering economic growth, Bhutan policymakers “take into account respect for all living things, nature, community participation and the need for balance between work, sleep and reflection or meditation.”

The proponents of GNH recognize that on a planet of finite resources, the mindless pursuit of economic development is folly that will reap unimaginable misery on future generations. Albert Einstein declared sometime ago, “You cannot solve a problem at the same level of awareness that created it.” Echoing this sentiment, the head of the U.N. mission to Bhutan declared, “We can no longer approach the 21st century with the instruments of the 20th century.”

Most of us seem shy about using the word happiness when discussing economic activity; but why shouldn’t happiness be a corollary to economic growth? Must high productivity and economic expansion be synonymous with unhappiness or misery?

Bhutan’s 21st century way of doing business is gaining worldwide attention, and surprisingly it is gaining traction in places like Canada, Australia, the United States and France. If it’s true, as Bhutan’s Prime Minister declares, that “New thoughts and ideas emerge from chaos and devastation,” I can’t image a better time for a new awareness, new thoughts and creative ideas about leading the world economy back to prosperity.

I mention Bhutan and Gross National Happiness only to introduce a perspective that just might provide some hope in facing the rather unpleasant economic environment we’ve managed to create for ourselves. It would be nice if a return to productivity and prosperity was accompanied by some happiness.

Almost no one appears to be immune from the world-wide economic quagmire that threatens our prosperity for at least the next several years. Since it appears that we really are all in this together, it may be time to revisit the five rules I learned for playing Win-Win with customers.

Rule #1: You must promote open, honest communications.

Rule #2: Both parties must want to play Win-Win. Win-Win doesn’t mean you or your customer wins twice!

Rule #3: Your product or service must “fit” the customer’s wants, needs and ability to pay or perform.

Rule #4: As a sales professional, you are responsible for understanding WIIFM – the what’s-in-it-for-me for you and for your customer.

Rule #5: If it becomes obvious that a sale would harm one or both parties, you must be willing to walk away from the opportunity.

Explaining the rules of playing Win-Win to customers can be an effective tool for communicating your desire for mutual cooperation and qualifying your customer’s intentions. It also may help you and your customer survive, maybe even prosper, during these difficult economic times.

My friend Brad once gazed out at an audience that was seated to listen to a talk he was about to deliver. He noticed that half the chairs were empty. Discouraged at the large number of no-shows, Brad had difficulty starting his talk.

As Brad surveyed the audience, he realized that he could waste time and energy worrying about the folks who failed to show for the talk, or he could acknowledge the people in the audience with the best talk he could deliver.

I always remember Brad’s experience when I’m speaking to a group that is smaller than I expected, when an important influencer fails to show for a business meeting, or when folks opt out of our Sales Journal newlsetter mailing list. I do my best to remember that worrying about anything other than the audience at hand inhibits me from delivering the very best presentation , speech or article I can offer. It’s rewearding  to love the ones you’re with!

Steve Chriest

An old friend, Jim Hedemark, perhaps the best CEO I ever met, taught me about the guy. For Jim, the guy was a company’s primary customer. A master at strategic planning, Jim taught me that the strategic planning process didn’t start with a mission or a vision as is commonly practiced. Instead, it starts with an excruciating examination of the guy.

Before Jim began creating a vision for a company, and crafting its mission statement, he wanted to know everything about the guy – the demographics and the psychographics of the company’s primary customers. What is their average age? Are they primarily male or female? What income do they earn on average?

Just as important for Jim to know was the guy’s psychological makeup. What interests do they have? What do they value? What type of lifestyle do they wish to have? What would motivate him to do business with the company – now and tomorrow?

I’ve been convinced for some time now that every salesperson is responsible for crafting a strategic plan for his individual sales business. Whether it is a formal or an informal plan, it should always start with a thorough look at the guy.

Please feel free to offer any insights, observations or suggestions for a future article on the importance of analyzing the guy in the strategic planning process.

Steve Chriest

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