recruiting

Posted by Ken Dropiewski

The Right Sales Strategy Succeeds in the Right Situation

To put it bluntly, selling is about enabling and encouraging buyers to make the right decisions. The specific situation determines which strategy and tactics are more likely to succeed in getting that decision (or those decisions.) Successful sales professionals automatically know what to do and when to do it. There are two basic situations in which sales professionals operate – the short sales cycle and the long sales cycle. To put it another way, selling is about enabling and encouraging a fairly quick, one-off decision or a series of decisions as part of a more complex process. These two situations call for different approaches.

The Short Cycle, One-Off Decision Situation

This brings out the hunter strategy. It shows itself in different ways, and it shows itself by sales professionals focusing more on certain actions and attitudes than on others:

They use facts to establish themselves as experts in a particular situation. The sales process is more like advising, suggesting and mentoring to encourage a clear and immediate decision. Facts prove points and can help the buyer to see the sales professional as an expert on whom they can rely.
They use logic to prove a point, and facts to support that point.
The conversation, or the presentation, focuses on one problem and one solution, in order to encourage the buying decision, rather than them being part of a much wider “general improvement” or “progression” process.
The sales presentation is an event leading to a specific outcome – a successful close.

The Long Cycle Complex Decision Situation

Long sales cycle decisions are the kind of situations where the SPIN selling system was established. Huthwaite Research, now Huthwaite International, observed successful long cycle sales professionals, over a number of years, and realized they adopted a different strategy. This strategy relies more on sales professionals:

Researching more, checking they have the client’s situation clear, and have a firm grip on the facts and nuances.
Reading each situation to get on the same wavelength as the prospect, rather than encouraging the prospect to get on the sales pro’s wavelength.
Allowing the prospect to feel in control of the process, and to see the sales pro as a knowledgeable guide or coach, rather than as an expert director.
Asking more questions to ensure clarity and completeness.
Orienting sales presentation materials to suit the prospect’s problems, goals, intentions, and needs, to make it easier for the prospect to reach a conclusion and to make a buying decision that they decide fits their situation.
Using experience and intuition to stay on the prospect’s wavelength, and to keep the sales process on track.
Treating each decision as the next step in a comprehensive process.

The Take-Away

Both strategies have their place. Long-term business relationships begin with a single sale, and that sale can become the foundation of a long and wide-ranging relationship. Some situations are unique, and will not be repeated, so the short cycle strategy is all that is needed. Other situations are more like partnerships, so the long cycle strategy is the appropriate one.

Recruiting sales professionals implies recruiting ones who know how and when to use different strategies. Our strategy focuses on enabling our clients to recruit the right people for the structure in which they will perform. Please contact us to learn more about our expertise in Executive Search for Commercial Leadership positions in Medical Device and Biotechnology; including Marketing, Strategy, Sales Leadership, Training, Development, etc. We look forward to the opportunity to help you consistently improve your performance and your business!

Follow me on Twitter @PrimeCoreSearch.

Posted by Ken Dropiewski

What is Design Thinking and How to Integrate it from Day One to Promote Innovation?

Design thinking is the practice of placing the end-user, their problems, goals, and challenges at the center and designing a solution from the center outward. Over the past few years we have witnessed the idea of design thinking (DT) emerge from theory to the modern ethos of business innovation. But how can design thinking be used to improve corporate learning and leadership training and what are the benefits?

The Challenges of Corporate Learning

Most methods used for training are based on expected or desired patterns of thought and do little to address the trainee’s needs, their questions, and their unique obstacles to learning. The corporate model of training tends to utilize the “teach to the objective” approach. This reduces training to the laying out of linear chunks of information that while laced with periodic knowledge checks, depends on repetition with the “hope” that the trainee will just eventually “get it.”

Design Thinking Promotes Innovation

Is it better for your employees to know the “correct” answer or would you rather them come up with the “best” answer through ideation and brainstorming that while adherent to your corporate theme, are innovative? Whether you are developing an onboarding program or training future leaders, one of the most powerful benefits of using the design thinking processes is achieved through the empowerment of your employees to innovate. When you engage your team in design thinking, you are teaching them how to think not what to think.

Design Thinking Stages

There are five basic steps to the design thinking process. Here is how you can apply these concepts to your corporate learning program to better train your employees, improve their onboarding experience, and increase the likelihood for innovation in your workforce.

Step 1: Empathy

During the empathy stage of DT, you want to really put yourself in the shoes of the person for whom you are designing.

Steps 2 and 3: Define and Ideate

Define the most common problems that your trainees will need to solve. In this stage, you will utilize your company’s greatest resource, the human ones! Brainstorm to generate new ideas, uncover hidden problems, collaborate and innovate the solutions.

Step 4: Develop and Prototype

In this step, you take the ideas and make them tangible. Putting the ideas into action may be the most significant challenge when it comes to applying the DT process to corporate learning. This will require you to consider the best learning modes for each individual trainee in every scenario. Since ensuring access to learning content is a major challenge today, you will want to consider these issues as you develop your learning product.

Step 5: Testing and Iteration

As we mentioned previously, there is no one-size-fits-all solution when you create a human-centric design. This means that you will probably need to try several learning modes, testing them each to find the best individual solution. The central idea, however, is to shift from an instructional model to one that is more experiential in nature.

Getting Your Team Onboard Faster

One significant benefit of using a design thinking approach to corporate learning is the ability you have to inform your trainees with the essential information they need to succeed at their jobs faster. We know from research that today around 90% of new employees decide whether to stay with a company within the first six months. Corporate learning needs to be impactful and relevant from day one.

How to Build Bench Strength Using Design Thinking

The essence of DT involves empathizing, listening to people and allowing them to identify the tough problems, new opportunities to explore, and create innovative solutions. Sounds a lot like leadership training, doesn’t it? Because design thinking combines systems analysis and outcomes-oriented problem-solving, it’s relevant to the development of business leaders.

Our strategy focuses on enabling our clients to recruit the right people for the structure in which they will perform. Please contact us to learn more about our expertise in Executive Search for Commercial Leadership positions in Medical Device and Biotechnology; including Marketing, Strategy, Sales Leadership, Training, Development, etc. We look forward to the opportunity to help you consistently improve your performance and your business!

Follow me on Twitter @PrimeCoreSearch.

Posted by Ken Dropiewski

5 Basic Steps to Effective Performance Evaluations

Performance evaluations are too often viewed as necessary evils as opposed to essential opportunities for growth. While many evaluations asses very little important information, and are rarely taken seriously, effective evaluations show weaknesses while creating the natural step toward improvement. So what is the key to evaluating employee performance in such a way that it successfully sparks advancement?

Develop Specialized Evaluations – Evaluations will never get beyond generic and shallow information if they use shallow and general questions and criteria. Take some time to determine the most important components of each position, and even tailor the evaluations to individual employees.
Evaluate Consistently – Whether these evaluations take place weekly or monthly, their effectiveness depends on consistency. Done sporadically, evaluations show unrealistic snapshots of what could be an unusually busy, stressful, or slow day. Consistent evaluation provides the necessary context to understand each individual evaluation.
Emphasize the Comparison – This context is important for both the one evaluating and the employees being evaluated. Understanding the context and the comparison with previous evaluations takes little time, but allows everyone involved to clearly see improvements and regression.
Provide Feedback – Simply handing the employee their evaluation and asking them to initial the indicated boxes does not constitute appropriate feedback. Feedback includes explaining exactly what they did right, exactly where they fell short, what is expected in the failed area, and practical steps to improve.
Provide Accountability – Instead of waiting until the next performance evaluation to check up on the employee, make accountability one of the steps toward improvement. Often a coworker or manager can see both weaknesses and advances more clearly than those attempting to improve, consistent feedback and support therefore provide the natural stepping stone toward growth.

There is no quick and easy way to perform effective performance evaluations. Maximizing their potential requires time and dedication, but the investment pays off in constantly improving employees leading to consistent company advancement. Ready to maximize your company’s potential?

Follow me on Twitter @PrimeCoreSearch.

Posted by Ken Dropiewski

The #1 Under-Rated Sales Strategy

You know how it goes: you walk into a store and before you have time to breathe the sales attendant is telling you about every sale in the store. Or maybe you got as far as saying you were looking for a gift for your partner, and the attendant went off on a 5-minute explanation of this season’s fashion wear. The attendant in both cases made one significant mistake.

When it comes to sales training, they all tell you to point out or create a need and then show how your product can fix it. This strategy comes closer, but still incorporates you making the same mistake as the sales attendant.

Talking

When you should be listening.

Making an effective sale means ensuring that the customer walks away with exactly what they want or need. And in order to fill that order, it is imperative that you thoroughly understand it.

Sometimes the customer knows what they need, but more often than not, they are unaware of their options, or unsure of which best fits their needs. In order to satisfy this undefined desire, therefore, your role is first to help them define it, and second to fulfill it. Asking appropriate questions is the key to taking the first step.

When/where/how/why will you be using [insert desired product]?
Can you tell me more about [insert person for whom the customer is shopping]?
What made you realize you needed [insert desired product]?

The applicable questions are endless, but the must helpful include a few important elements.

They are open-ended, leading the customer to divulge new information.
They are creative, designed to draw out pertinent information that the customer had not previously considered, or did not know was relevant.
They are solution-oriented, they allow you to see what need the customer has, whether they have recognized it or not.

When it comes to making a sale — whether you are selling belts or x-ray machines — the first step is listening. Listening allows you to ensure that the customer gets exactly what they came for, which in turn creates satisfied and repeat customers.

Follow me on Twitter @PrimeCoreSearch.

Posted by Ken Dropiewski

Thought Leader’s Tips for Hiring Top Talent

Hiring top talent requires an investment of time and energy, but finding the perfect candidate can make all the difference between stagnation and advancement. Thought leader Lou Adler, CEO of The Adler Group, a sourcing and recruitment company, shares some insight into finding top talent.

Looking in All the Wrong Places

The first step in recruiting top talent is looking in the right places. In general, prospective employees fall into one of four groups.

The Known: people you know personally. If the job is similar, interviewing accuracy is high and the process is quick. The result, however, is often less than positive as these people often get the job for the wrong reasons and are therefore not the best candidates for the position.
The Semi-Known: people well-known by the people you know. By taking recommendations from people you know well you are likely to find top talent and trustworthy employees. This sweet spot comes with a drawback, however, as you will likely need to recruit these people from their current jobs.
The Less Well-Known: people who are well-know by someone who you could get to know. These connections, while somewhat weak, open a huge hiring pool. Hiring from this group requires carefully collecting referrals and then recruiting.
The Unknown: people who are not connected to you in any way. Those in this group present many unknowns. Hiring from this group requires thorough interviewing in order to convert an unknown quantity into a known.

Converting the Unknown into the Known

Regardless of which of those categories a candidate falls into, conducting a performance-based interview that digs into a prospective employee’s past shows important characteristics that indicate whether they will successfully fill the demands of the position.

Step One: Create a performance-based job description that includes the performance objectives that the job demands.
Step Two: Define the process necessary to reach these objectives.
Step Three: Ask candidates to describe their past accomplishments and their own process of success.

The interview must therefore prompt the prospective employee to describe accomplishments comparable to the job objects outlined in Step One. In order for the interviewer to understand exactly what the candidate has and can accomplish.

Adler gives the following advice: “ask the candidate to be specific giving dates, measurable details and the actual results achieved. Then start at the beginning of the project and find out the candidate’s actual role, the planning process used and how the plan was kept on track.” He also suggests including questions that “describe the environment…the hiring manager’s style…the pace…and how well the candidate adapted to these circumstances.”

Conclusion

Acquiring top talent stems from looking in the right places and converting unknown quantities into known. Investing in this process leads to new advances for your company as talented and experienced employees reach for new growth.

Follow me on Twitter @PrimeCoreSearch.

The Right Sales Strategy Succeeds in the Right Situation

5 Basic Steps to Effective Performance Evaluations

The #1 Under-Rated Sales Strategy

Company Profile

Recent Posts

Company Profile

Recent Posts

Tags