Sales Leadership
Topline , Bottom Line , EBITDA , EPS - all fathered by the grind of feet on the street , pushing ideas , concepts and products through a maze of perceptions and constraints ; Sales tells it as it is - NO SECOND OPTION here . Where the numbers really matter sales comes to the front line , delivering results and raising expectations. An under rated skill which is a combination of aptitude , skill , experience and knowledge - sales is a great arena for winners . Sales scales the probability from a possible business opportunity to a confirmed revenue bringing with it impregnable returns of customer relationships , market presence and opportunities for viral growth.
Most heads of busines come from a great background of selling ideas internally , delivering exceptional growth projects externally and gaining an overall uplift of credibility vis a vis their counterparts and stakeholders. We look at a few qualities of sales masters.
Great sales performance comes from knowledge -a 360 Deg perspective of the operating arena. Product knowledge is only the start , sales winners specialise in industry knowledge and play with various scopes and out puts to create benchmark platforms where customers win and bring with them more loyalty and realisation . The business model of sales winners are very fluid , they evolve very close to customer worries and take shape of near perfect solutions which are not easily imitable by others ,giving organisations great competitive advantage. Sales looks at customer problems as an opportunity and competition performance as a challenge to emulate. These qualities stimulate organisations to build competence that holds it in good stead through turbulent businenss environments. Sales leaders ensure that their stake holders gain thorugh owning their balance sheets. Craftily put together plans ensure both internal and external stake holders save costs , reduce debt and constantly bring cash in their business cycles. The power of knowledge drives competitive advantage , concentrates core competence and builds financial leadership.
Sales operates at the fore front of the supply chain of worry . The sales master takes cognizance of the pain points and delivers home runs in solutioning economic options . The learnings from such constant solutioning drive organisational change , creating a customer focus and desire to align internal resources towards the end customers. Sales creates ownerships of customers , breaking perceptive barriers between organisations , marrying egos and providing points of convergence of ideas & emotions . In a a saturated world , where demand and supply have plateued with production efficiencies - smart sales is a key differentiator. Smart collaborations make the path of least resistance easily accessible rather than high pitched over worked bids to land orders . Sales creates a unifying environment where related stake holders occupy a common ground and join together to form a unique synergy . The physics of collaborations are generally skewed as business units have diverse entropies, sales provides a framework for diverse entropies to synergize and move forward. The supply chain of worry transforms to a neo plateu of creativity.
Great sales comes from accurate forecasting , be it on a monthly - quarterly on annual basis , a close delta between revenue promised and recognised is a deliverable of great sales. Forecasting involves understanding market dynamics and delving deep into customer plans to craft their future . By wedding organisational hope to customer aspirations , sales masters create a Win Win situation . The street smart sales engineer learns to dominate various phases of market development with
a) " Under Commit - Over Deliver" - - Under quote the market demand with a defined dipstick period to learn of product casualty and consumer feedback.
b) " Aggressive Liquidation " - - Special pricing and volume based discounts to ramp up delivery volumes in active theatres.
c ) " Transit Stocking " - - Creating buffer stock points close to the demand which are continuously rationalised wrt to market realities.
There is no real model available to get spot on forecasts , the sales leader improvises to ensure a smooth movement of product while balancing vectors of sales realisation , market share and consumer demand. The task is akin to a looped prediction algorithm that refines itself with each mistake. The closer the delta in difference between , forecast and delivery is a sure sign of the market readying an unexpected response to the control. To ensure confidence in the market promise - a sales leader banks on data and congition to build consensus and move forward with each business cycle.
The personality trait of a sales operator involves plenty of patience , a rigour of follow up and the discipline of being organised . Patience is paramount as a sales operator deals with diverse stake holder population and he needs to negotiate various demands to achieve a desired result . Patience builds close connect and enables smooth transactions. The rigour of follow up removes any chance of a reduction in the probabilities of achieving the desired result. The "Follow Up " routine ensures a restless entropy drives the organisation to crystalise promises and deliver results. Being organised reduces the response time to any cross fires. The listed traits enables a sales operator to unite and set up effective control and command paradigms in active theatres . The in command sales leaders effectively represents the customer in the management board room , giving accurate responses to management stimulus and making effective tactics to capture business opportunity. Committed volume results bring with it recognised brand equity for the sales leader . With more power , comes the responsibility to drive right change to ensure the perfect market results.
The above frame works of a sales leader are based on anthropology . As the world evolves towards an imaginative and diverse future , boundaries are shrinking , information and wealth is seeking to break free and become democratised. Business models will be fluid and sales leaders are very important to hold the ship steady as enterprises embrace turbulence. The best example of a strong sales leader is the personality who held court in the world leading mobile phone manufacturer . From driving product vision to visioning the product to the world - this personality was the gold standard in sales leadership . Described as a mature ,mellow intellectual - demanding in his output , clear in his vision and distinct in his approach , sales leadership can learn a lot from the design guru. Sport brings with it many distinct characters , the hero of the recent Cleveland Cavaliers NBA championship win is a great example to emulate . Committed , inspiring and determined --- sales leaders earn their spurs by being their truths , driving change from their status quos and winning . Great organisations are shaped by great sales leaders and great sales leaders are formed from great performances .
Keep Winning !!!