We are amidst a very exciting time where work life and work culture paradigms are undergoing a phenomenal shift. For some, these changes are challenging; for others, they are not limited to just being challenging but educational as well. The latter segment of people are the ones that can be categorised as the resilient folks.
However, with a wavering economy, growing pressure and many other reasons, it is very easy for any team's resilience to erode. Resilience encourages confidence; confidence gives way to success; and success builds confidence. This interloop can be imparted to a sales workforce — the backbone of any organisation.
Unfortunately, salespeople are some of the most dejected professionals in the talent force due to high pressure and the need to create profits. Around 73% of professionals consider sales as one of the most stressful jobs. The stress brings a crack even in the most talented of salespersons.
The dejection is mainly due to the lack of an organised work methodology that often leads to miscommunication and opaque processes. It is important to clear the clutter for the sales professionals so that they can boost their performance.
How do we achieve this organised transparency? Informed Decisions.
Data-driven decisions are the best strategies for the sales team as they help:
- Assess and analyse sales strategies
- Nitpick recurrent mistakes and eliminate them
- Be more process-oriented instead of going by the book
Set Individual and Group Goals
The first step to a confident team is to ensure each individual member is confident about their abilities. Chart out a clear goal for your employee and help him achieve it, with personal as well as professional development plans. Furthermore, empower him with up-to-date training programs and tools.
Individual professional goals can be defined by Key Performance Indicators and used for assessment and evaluation as part of a closed feedback loop.
Build Positive Work Culture
A confident and resilient team has the 'can-do' attitude which penetrates into the work atmosphere and creates a positive culture. Resilience leads to optimism, and optimism gives way to a better attitude.
Build a Process For Decision Making
By building a process which is reinforced by data, decision-making will guide and inspire sales professionals to execute their tasks effectively.
A Well Defined Process + Transparency = Work Nirvana
Step 1: Identification of the Root Cause
In order to achieve targets and convert leads, sales professionals often overlook the nagging problem hindering the entire process. The solution lies in creating a transparent platform that keeps tabs on all activities within the sales process and figures out knots that might be disrupting the workflow.
Step 2: Corrective Actions
Once we have zeroed in on the root cause, the next step is to deploy corrective actions to resolve it. Sales professionals need to track their activities right from the initial stages and implement corrective measures to counter the root problem.
Step 3: Evaluation — Positive and Negative Instances
Evaluate the corrective actions and check whether they were the right path for problem-solving. With scope to rectify their mistakes, team members can now grow into better professionals.
Step 4: Identification of Early Symptoms
By placing automated alerts, the system can pinpoint the tell-tale signs leading to a negative conclusion and set triggers to enable preventive actions. An intuitive system can assess the data entered and tally it against the given information.
Step 5: Preventive Measures
A smart team is a prepared team. Now that intuitive systems are able to predict the right and wrong processes, the sales team will be armed with pre-planned preventive measures which will save time and improve productivity.
Step 6: Keep Track
Excellence is a continuous process. Keeping track builds in responsibility and accountability within team members who can now assess their actions and enhance the good parts while working on shortcomings.
Inspiration and Success Stories
While a defined process is important for building a talented and resilient team, it is equally important to take note of success stories and encourage them. With data in available automated systems, it is easy to assess the performance of each sales professional and celebrate a job well done.
Conclusion
Today's corporate world is no less than a battleground and requires warrior-like resilience to approach the situation head-on. Sales technology is a great enabler of streamlining processes and bringing all stakeholders together. From managers to on-field sales professionals, building team resilience is a collective process which has the scope for continuous improvement and growth.