Black Sales Journal

I was gifted by having a good sales manager in my career, and I considered myself a solid responsive sales manager when it was my turn.  Remember, you will not know every reason why your sales manager does something, but you will be intuitive as to whether your manager is working in your interest.  Read this and give it some thought.

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Your sales manager can be your biggest asset.  They can have a profound effect on your income, your job title, and your longevity in your position.  If they are a successful manager, they do many activities that help you find success, yet by text book definition, the role of management is to plan, organize, lead, and control (POLC).

That description is certainly not a listing of activities that they do as much as the categories that the tasks would be assigned to.  The management role can be the most positive thing about a sales job, or it could be one of the most negative.  The person in the role will make all of the difference.

The unit sales manager or field sales manager will find and hire talent, provide important training, and will manage the ‘troops’ in the effort to make quotas.  No one is more important in the role of a new sales professional.  Additionally, if this person is good at the job, no one is more instrumental in the role of a successful sales professional, even if it’s because he removes obstacles, and stays out of the way.

I am going to share three key points that one of my former managers taught me in the course of his management of my early sales career.  I am not saying that I agreed with all of these points when I worked for him, yet it was amazing in how clear the logic was once I got into sales management.

Do the Most Important Things First!

When I was a young sales professional, I had a manager (I will call him Jim) who always had stellar sales results.  He constantly challenged the sales professionals and could mix in this motivation with some rather ‘pointy’ jabs about your performance.

He was in sales management for well over 30 years, and he knew the turf.  He was hopelessly impatient and let you know it at every turn.  His knowledge of the sales process well exceeded his product knowledge, yet believe me, he was extremely effective.

We would have meetings about our sales funnel prospects that would rival scenes from some of the greatest sales movies (such as Glengarry Glen Ross, 1992, David Mamet) and there was no doubt as to who was in charge.  The process was fluid and the expectation was simple…sell, sell, and sell.

Here are three primary points that he paid attention to:

1. Pay attention to the most important factors and work them!

He knew that a couple of the items that were most important were prospecting and quoting, and you could not find a rock to hide under that could shield you if you did not do these activities.  It was clear evidence that if you were doing the ‘grunt’ work, that you could have some success even if other facets were weak.

Jim would shield you from upper management, to a degree, if you were doing the most important things and making money for you and him.  The practice was successful as his units had the highest sales numbers, and he provided the highest amount of challenge, sarcasm, and support.  Eventually you would have to do some things that he did not think were important either, yet the real testament to his flexibility was that he knew when it was important to ‘show’ well.

2. Pay attention to your most productive sales professionals, and get the most out of them while you groom the next star for your unit.

Jim qualified for all of the sales trips because he know this important fact that.  His power and influence came from having the unit be on top.  I cannot say that I always agreed with the approach, yet it worked for him.  He knew that he had some ‘horses’ that he could ride in the present, and he would need more firepower in the future, and that was a constant vigil.  In the beginning, I was obviously opposed because when I was one of those ‘newbies’ who needed help as I found my time pre-empted by some of the veteran sales professionals.

I learned that the unit had to survive, and be on top, and that was to all of our benefit.  Having a conversation about it would not have helped, as no one wants to hear that someone else was more important.  In the end I eventually got my time, and made the most of it.

3. ‘Smell the Breath’ of the Customer!

Be on as many calls as you can reasonably do, so that you can bring the message from the customer back to the organization.  Jim knew that if he stayed at the office that he would never have a complete feel for why sales efforts fail.  He decided that attention would be given to those who took him out to present quotations, or even to develop key prospects.

He knew that he could better explain our weaknesses in program and pricing to upper management if he heard it from the buyer without filter.  Additionally, relationships were out there to make, and being in front of the buyer allowed this to happen.

The best sales manager leads in this way, and controls in this way.  Leading sales professionals from the office does not work.  You have got to go out and ‘smell the breath of the customer’, and Jim did not take that lightly.

Relationships happen for good reason when there is a ‘connection’, and Jim was able to make connections that I was not able to make.

The Wrap-up

So when you ask that inevitable set of questions:

Why the heck is she always on me about prospects?  I feel as if I have a babysitter!

Or

What do I have to do to get some attention here?  This is ridiculous.  He spends way too much time with those two guys.

Or

What is going on with this pressure to go out on calls with me, does he not trust me?  I can’t believe that he wants to go with me…again!

You may have the answers above.

Your comments are always welcome.

It is a great job, and someone has got to do it!  Sales management is one of the best and most important jobs in any organization.  How do you land this important position?  What tools is your employer looking for?  What do you have to do to stand out?

This job, which is the logical ‘next step’ is sought after by those that realize that there is more to a career than money, although the job pays well.  This job is an important ‘gateway’ to the management ranks in your organization.  Knowing the customer as well as you do gives a leg up to sales managers when other jobs open up in an organization if they perform well.

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The role of sales manager was one of the most rewarding positions I ever worked.  To be able to bring fresh new sales talent into an organization was always exciting.  To make the moves to mold an existing sales unit into a conglomeration of individuals who reached and exceed sales goals with regularity was exciting as well.

The patience and determination that job required was amazing, while at the same time, it required one to quickly see thought the mud while pressing for accountability from sales the professionals.

It is a fact that sales managers, if they are solid in all aspects of management, make good managers in total.  They understand the customer better that others as well as the process of business development.

Even more important is the reality that the Black sales professional, even when moderately successful in sales, should consider a pitch for that important sales management job.  We will touch on that in this post.

Being prepared, and having the tools is important.  Let’s discuss some of the ways that you can be prepared for the opportunity.

The Most Important Tools for Sales Management

There are requisite skills for every job out there, and that is true for the job of sales manager as well.  Most sales managers are given a first assignment in a field unit, then increasing responsibility as District Sales Managers, Regional Sales Managers, and Vice Presidents of Sales.

Someone with responsibility for an operation, such as a General Manager, will want in their employ someone who does not resort to excuses or finger pointing at other units.  They need someone who understands the sales process.  I listed some of the skills and attributes that individuals responsible for operations look for when they seek a leader for a sales unit:

• Leadership
• Coach and Trainer
• Visionary
• Team Builder
• Motivator

Now, couple these with the fact that you also want these attributes in the leader of your sales unit:

• Intelligence
• Responsibility and Integrity
• Mental Toughness
• Accountability

If you can get these items, in various amounts, even with need for improvement, you can be an effective manager.

Do you have these skills?  If you have them, have you been able to demonstrate them? These are important questions as this is where you can make a difference.

Let’s Take A Closer Look

Leadership - This most important attribute can be demonstrated by your accepting responsibility in meetings, projects, breakout groups, and other assignments.  Don’t be in the “everyone else took a step back” situation.  Step to the front and claim the role as a leader.

Coach and Trainer – This is an important role for a sales manager, so to the degree that you can demonstrate it, you will show initiative and skill.  Best suggestion; mentor other sales professionals in your organization.  Nothing works better than another professional saying that you helped with his or her career.  You also learn in the process.

Visionary – This is an attribute more than a skill, yet totally necessary in the sales management realm.  I speak of it in Black Sales Journal, March 7, 2010, Be The Consummate Professional. It is what happens when you know what you are doing well as a professional, and knowing your organization, and are able to determine ways processes or products can be done better.  It is foreseeing the change before it is necessary.

Team Builder – This one you can do, and are probably doing already.  Now, remember why it is important … Sales professionals are used to being mavericks.  They are used to a “zero sum” game, “I win, or you win, we both don’t win.”  The ranks of sales is not stocked with team builders, you can stand out from those that are faking it.

Motivator – It might be hard to prove your level of skill on this one.  You can show energy, enthusiasm, as well as drive in interacting with your manager and others.  They must see you as being able to provide an atmosphere of motivation that will benefit others.

Intelligence – This one is one that cannot be faked.  You need to have the basic intelligence to run the business of distributing the company’s product.  They will not give you an aptitude test, yet they will look at everything you have done lately, and how you handled it.  Do you understand business functions, and can you think “on the fly?”

Responsibility and Integrity – I put these two together for a reason. These, as is intelligence, are reasons that professionals don’t get into sales management.  If you are whiney, and complaining, even when you are correct, you will not get there.  If you “fudge” on expense reports, and the only reason that actions are not taken are that they cannot prove you did, you will not get there.  Show responsibility and always exude integrity, and you will be looked on favorably.

Mental Toughness and Balance – You cannot be a sales manager if you don’t exude mental toughness.  You cannot be down one day and up the next.  It does not work that way when you are responsible for others.  Know that the “sun will come up tomorrow” in everything you do.  Know the law of large numbers and be able to teach it to others.

Accountability – Be accountable, and be able to expect it from others.  Avoid excuses, and always know your role, your goals, and everyone else’s.  Accountability is the rule in management, and even more in sales management.

How You Can Get Prepared?

If you are Black, you recognize that Blacks are underrepresented in sales.   It suffices to say that they are well underrepresented in sales management.  We, frankly have woeful numbers in the sales management ranks.

The way to have more Black sales managers is to perform well and formulate and implement strategies that make you successful.  Black Sales Journal can help you in that regard.   Perform well as sales professional, and strategize as to the best time to make the move to management.  The positions come up when managers retire, get promotions, or are terminated.

That means you need to draw up ‘your own’ succession plan for your organization.  How long does your managers, or his or her peers have to work before promotion, retirement, or termination?  Who is your competition, and what do they have as their attributes as compared you?  Show your motivation, always increase your knowledge, and above all, do everything you do with integrity.

You will get your chance to show your  preparation and you qualifications.  Don’t waste it.  Always be prepared!

We welcome your comments.  Write me at Michael.Parker@BlackSalesJournal.com.