June 5, 2013

Liar! Liar! How To Spot When A Candidate (Or Employee) Is Lying

It’s no great shock to see statistics about the prevalence of lying on résumés – one recent survey pegged it at 66% and another survey’s findings put it at 78%! But what about lying in job interviews? Those numbers look to be even higher. A whopping 81% of participants in a study written up in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology lied during what they thought was a job interview. The average was 2 lies per 15 minutes of interviewing.

So what is everybody lying about and what can you do?

Spotting Lies On Résumés:

According to the AOL Jobs survey the most often items lied about on résumés are current salary (40%), followed by inaccurate or misleading job titles and descriptions (33%), altering employment dates (29%), falsifying references (27%), and listing fraudulent college degrees (21%).

You may not really care if someone is inflating a current salary if the person’s salary requirements fit within your range for the position. But with salespeople, this becomes more important and a bit trickier to figure out if someone is giving you an accurate number. Want to know for sure? Ask for a copy of the candidate’s previous year’s W-2.

Misleading job titles and description as well as altering employment dates, can be ferreted out by calling the candidate’s previous employers. Even if a company won’t answer specific questions, they will almost always verify dates of employment and titles. As for fake college degrees, any company that performs background checks (and there are dozens of online companies that offer these services starting at $15) can verify education. Maybe you are interviewing people for a job where you don’t care if someone has a college degree – but you might want to know if the person is lying about having one.

Falsifying references is probably the hardest of all of these to detect. Candidates who do this, are counting on managers not calling all (or any) of their references, and if so, not asking too many specific questions. If you are not calling a candidate’s previous employers AND references, you are taking a HUGE gamble. (Click here for how to do effective Reference Checking)

Spotting Lies In Interviews (And Other Situations):

Research shows that most of us are terrible at detecting whether or not someone is lying to us. We tend to take things people say at “face value” (you know, “innocent until proven guilty”). The book, Spy The Lie written by three former CIA officers, offers some terrific insight on how to detect if someone isn’t telling you the truth.

One key, the authors say, is really listening intently so that you can pick up on verbal clues. Just spotting one of these verbal clues may not indicate anything, but if you detect a pattern or several of these behaviors – well you may have a Liar, Liar, Pants On Fire! For example, not giving you a direct answer to a question may indicate that a person is trying to think up an answer and is stalling or trying to distract you by re-routing the focus of your question.

Liars may try to skirt the truth and provide too much information to create a “halo” effect in order to skew your perception of them. Over complimenting you or being overly polite (“You look lovely today Mrs. Cleaver”) can indicate the person is trying to ingratiate himself because the more you like someone the more likely you are to believe him.

There also is something that psychologists call “dressing up the lie” which is when someone starts talking about religion or God. The authors say examples of this are phrases such as “I swear to God” or “As God is my witness,” which could indicate the person is “dressing up the lie.”

If someone is lying you might detect it in how the person responds to you when denying something. If you ask, “Did you do X?” A straight forward “no” is usually the honest person’s answer. If the person responds with a non-answer such as “Why would you think that?” or “I didn’t do anything,” the authors say that this is often a way for the person to psychologically avoid admitting to himself he is lying.

In interview situations, I tell managers to avoid typical interview questions where a person can have a rehearsed answer. Ask behavioral interview questions that require specific examples of situations where the person demonstrated the skill or behavior in which you are interested. Good answers will be very specific, not generalizations. When you ask a question be wary of qualified answers such as “most of the time”, “I try”, “for the most part”.

What about non-verbal behaviors? The authors say there are nonverbal cues that can indicate someone is being less that truthful. When watching for these, only consider the cues relevant if they happen in direct response to a question.

For example, if in answering a question the person touches her face, licks his lips, or pulls on her ears, that can indicate the person isn’t being truthful. Lying can trigger a person’s natural flight or fight response which makes blood rush to these areas and make the person itch or have a sensation of being cold.

Another interesting non-verbal that the authors point out is something called “moving anchor points.” Anchor points are what keep a person in a particular spot. If someone is standing then the feet are his anchor point. If someone is sitting in a chair then the buttocks are the anchor point. If a person begins shifting his or her anchor points while answering a question, that can be a sign of the person lying. Also, watch for signs of grooming. This could be adjusting an article of clothing, smoothing their hair or even straightening out the area right around the person.

Someone being deceitful might cover his mouth or eyes or even close her eyes while answering your question. This can mean that on a subconscious level the person doesn’t want to see your reaction to the lie. If the person nods “yes” while saying “no” or shakes his head side to side while saying “yes” that’s called a disconnect, and can be an indication of deception.

I’m going to let Mark Twain have the last words about this topic as he summed it up brilliantly when he said, “If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.”

May 21, 2013

Want To Be An Effective Leader? “13″ May Be Your Lucky Number

Often, companies I work with will ask me to define what traits are needed to be an effective leader in their company. What makes someone a great leader in an organization can be highly subjective of course. Some traits that can help a person to be an effective leader in one company might not work in another company. However, there is research that has been done that identifies particular traits that successful leaders possess, regardless of the type of business in which they work.

One Leadership study looked at a particular type of leader, the “Effective, Developmental Leader”. This was defined as successful leaders who focus on the growth and development of the company they work for as well as the people that they lead. These are people who focus on those that they manage because they believe people are the “main engine” that drives the company’s growth and performance.

What the research found was Effective Developmental Leaders had 13 attributes in common; 6 traits (characteristics) and 7 behaviors (actions). As you read through the list, think about your own talents and behaviors and how they match up to these, as well as people you are responsible for coaching and developing:

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1. Dedicated – hard working, productive, focused, efficient, and disciplined.
2. Practical – not a micro-manager, perceptive, pragmatic, tactful.
3. Cooperative – loyal, fair, patient demeanor, contemporary thinking.
4. Assertive – powerful, strong, competitive, authoritative, outspoken, in control.
5. Personable – engaging personality, passionate, sociable, energetic.
6. Analytical – complex-thinker, broad cognitive skills.
7. Focused – strives for success, sees opportunities, sets clear goals, shares vision and knowledge.
8. Supportive – approachable, always willing to help others, asks for feedback, cares about other’s welfare.
9. Developer – develops others, empowers others, positions individuals for success, builds leaders.
10. Delegator – determines needs, directs, decisive, delegates authorities.
11. Advisor – gathers all information, removes barriers, evaluates talent, solves problems, facilitates.
12. Competitive – risk taker, keeps a competitive edge, involved, speaks out, innovative.
13. Charismatic – convincing, assumes responsibility, role model, challenges others.

Keep in mind that the names they gave the attributes are somewhat arbitrary. It’s the definition of the attribute that matters. Some of these traits and behaviors would be relatively easy to spot in someone you work with every day (i.e. Dedicated or Personable). But others are more difficult to determine by observation alone. For example, you might not know if someone has the Developer talent if the person is in a position where he or she doesn’t have any direct reports.

And what about candidates for a leadership position that you haven’t worked with previously? Three of the best ways to determine what traits (those that are innate as well as those that have been learned) a person brings to the table, are behavioral interviews, predictive assessments, and 360 surveys. If you’re not sure what leadership attributes you have and your company doesn’t use assessments, you can create your own informal 360 survey. You can use any number of free online survey companies and with the list above, create the questions. Ask co-workers, direct reports, bosses, and family members to take it. Who knows, you might find that “13” is indeed your lucky leadership number.

Click here for the infographic “5 Ways To Be An Exceptional Leader”

May 15, 2013

10 Tips For Managing Millennial Salespeople

Are you confused/frustrated/perplexed on how best to manage your Millennial (Gen Y) salespeople? There is a lot of information in the media lately about this generation, but recent research shows it doesn’t always apply when it comes to Millennial salespeople. I’ve put together a list of 10 “best practices” for sales managers on my guest blog post at Profiles International. Please check it out!

May 10, 2013

12 Lessons From Mom That Apply To Hiring & Managing Employees

We may hate to admit it some times, but Mom was right about most things. And, many of the lessons she taught us also apply to hiring and managing our employees. Please read my guest post about the “12 Lessons From Mom That Apply To Hiring & Managing Employees” by clicking on Recruiter.com.

May 4, 2013

When You Look Up Positivity In The Dictionary There Should Be A Picture Of Her…

A few days ago I had to fly to Atlanta on business. My flight had a layover in Charlotte for a couple of hours. I got off the plane feeling more than a little sorry for myself. I had been on a packed flight in a middle seat and I was flying with 2 ruptured discs in my neck. So all in all, I was one miserable traveler. I walked into the ladies restroom in Charlotte’s Terminal B next to Gate 4. I heard her before I saw her. As I rounded the corner into the restroom she said, “Welcome, welcome, welcome! Welcome to Charlotte!” I looked up and saw her wide smile and bright eyes. She looked genuinely happy to see me. She was the restroom attendant. “How are you today? Are you doing ok?” I smiled and said hello and quickly headed for my stall. I listened though as the attendant continued to greet every single person who came in, complimented some, asked questions of others, and wished people safe travels as they left.

As I sat there in the restroom listening, I was struck by how much energy and enthusiasm she had for every single person who was in there, and how sincere she sounded. As I washed my hands at the sink, I took quick glances at her down the long aisle way of the restrooms. I could see how people were responding to her. Sure there were a few who just nodded and even a couple who barely acknowledged her. But most of the people were instantly transformed as if they had just met up with a long lost friend. They quickly chatted with her and thanked her before exiting with a big smile on their faces.

This woman was remarkable and I knew I had to find out more about her. I approached her and asked her if she had a break coming up any time soon. She said she didn’t but asked me how she could help me and if there was something I needed. I told her that I was a talent analyst and explained the work that I did and told her that she was the perfect example of someone with the trait of Positivity. I asked her if I could interview her and ask a few questions while she worked. Luckily for me, she agreed. As she answered my questions she didn’t miss a beat, still engaging each person who entered or left. She helped Mom’s with stroller and Grandma’s with walkers. She found something personal to say to every single person she encountered.

For years I have stressed to managers the importance of hiring salespeople with the innate strength/behavior called Positivity. The Gallup Organization defines Positivity as someone who is generous with praise, quick to smile, the type of person others want to be around. People who have this trait have contagious enthusiasm and find a way to lift the spirits of others. They celebrate every achievement and make things more vital and exciting. They believe that work can be fun and no matter what the set backs you have to keep your sense of humor.

The first thing I asked the restroom attendant was what her name was, and she said, “Mary Love.” Can you believe it? What a perfect name for her. I asked her how long she had been working here and she said two years and that she loves her job. “I love making people smile, there’s not enough of that in the world. I welcome people and bless them and pamper them by keeping my restroom clean so that I make a difference.”

I asked her if people were ever nasty to her or unappreciative when she talked to them. She said that rarely happened and even when it did it didn’t bother her because, “Those people are a blessing too, so I don’t let that bother me.” I asked her if when she went through her training for this position if she was instructed to greet people. She said, “No, I just started doing it…I say what comes out of my heart. I feel like this is my purpose in life, to make a difference in people’s day.”

Wow. “I feel like this is my purpose in life, to make a difference in people’s day.” Those words from her are so powerful and such a great example of the power of positivity in your work. Well, Ms. Mary Love you certainly did that for me. After I finished talking with you, got a hug from you, and a quick picture, I walked to my next gate with a very different attitude and outlook from the one I had when I walked into that restroom.

In fact, her Positivity was still on my mind when my connecting flight landed in Atlanta, and the usual thing happened. The seat belt light goes off, folks begin gathering their belongings, and there are always those people who rush up from the rows behind you rather than waiting to exit when it is their row’s turn. Now what always goes through my mind at this point is my fantasy where I stand up and yell, “Hey – get back to your row! You are not THAT important, wait your turn like the rest of us!!!” and with eyes cast down they skulk back to their seats. Yah right. But this time as I started to feel the slow boil begin, it was quickly cooled by hearing Mary’s words echo in my brain, “Those people are blessings too.” If you know me even a little, you know how NOT like me it is to have that thought.

Mary told me that my interviewing her was a wonderful birthday gift. But I knew the real gift was the one she gave to me and hundreds of other people every day. Her birthday is May 9^th and I would love the readers of this article help make her birthday special. Please leave her a Happy Birthday wish in the comment box below. She asked me to send her the link to this post because she was eager to read it, so I know she will see your comments.

Thank you Ms. Mary Love of Charlotte, North Carolina and Happy Birthday.

April 25, 2013

Are You A Well-Rounded Leader? Oh…That’s Too Bad

Successful business leaders are not “well-rounded.” They are not good at a lot of things. Instead, they are great at a few things. They don’t possess strengths in every area of their work; they concentrate on a few of their most prominent strengths. In fact, being well-rounded actually can prevent you from being exceptional.

People who are well-rounded can make good employees, but they rarely make for great leaders. As Seth Godin says, “Well-rounded and popular people rarely change the world. The one voted most likely to succeed probably won’t.”

Not convinced?

In research done for the book Strengths Based Leadership, by Tom Rath and Barry Conchie, Gallup, Inc. researchers found that of the more than 20,000 leaders they studied, not one possessed strengths in all of the leadership competencies they measured. They found that those who strive to be competent in all areas become the least effective leaders overall.

The research clearly showed that, “Those who tried to be good at everything tend to be masters of none, and the most successful organizations are not led by average leaders. The most effective leaders are those who are aware of their strengths and who have fully optimized them.”

Need more convincing?

A remarkable study by Jack Zenger and Joseph Folkman, reported in the Harvard Business Review, analyzed 360-degree evaluations of 30,000 managers by 300,000 of their colleagues. They identified 16 leadership competencies (i.e., strengths) that correlate strongly with positive business outcomes such as increased profitability, employee engagement, revenue, and customer satisfaction.

What they found is that the most successful leaders were “not good at many things but were uniquely outstanding at a few things.” So of these 16 competencies, it wasn’t that the top performers were strong in all or even most of the areas. The top performers were strong in a few of these competencies – possessing between 2-5 of them.

The graphic below illustrates the 16 competencies that they found differentiated average leaders from great leaders. As you read the list, note the ones you consider to be your strength areas.

The tricky part is figuring out if what you think are your strengths, really are. Most of us are far better at identifying our weaknesses. So how do you determine which of these 16 competencies really are strength areas for you? And, of the ones you consider to be your strengths, which ones do you concentrate on developing for maximum effectiveness?

Step 1: Identify your strength areas.

One way to identify true strengths is to do a 360-degree survey with your co-workers, employees, bosses, and clients. The authors suggest even creating your own informal 360 survey will work. You can also take a behavioral assessment to identify strength areas. Doing either of these is a great way to see if you have any misconceptions or bias about your strengths. But there are also some questions you can ask yourself to help determine your strengths. As you look at the leadership competencies you feel are your strengths, ask yourself the following questions:

When I utilize this behavior or skill does it feel natural and come easily?
Am I energized when I can exhibit this behavior or skill, not exhausted, when I use it?
Do you find yourself seeking out projects where you can demonstrate this strength?
Do you feel passionate about it?
Is it something where you enjoy improving and getting better at?

If the answers are “yes” that is usually a good indication that something really is a strength.

Step 2: Decide on which of your strengths you should focus your attention.

The authors of the study also looked at how these leadership strengths worked together and identified what were the most powerful pairings of these strengths that led to leadership excellence. So, it makes sense to focus your concentration on the strengths that complement one another. (See graphic at the end of this article for the 16 leadership competencies and their companion competencies.)

But there is also another key component to deciding where to place your development focus and that is the “fit” issue. As the authors note in their article, “We recommend that developing leaders focus on competencies that matter to the organization and about which they feel some passion, because a strength you feel passionate about that is not important to your organization is essentially a hobby, and a strength the organization needs that you don’t feel passionate about is just a chore.”

Having some of these 16 leadership competencies is great, but if you are in a position where you can’t utilize them or they do not match up with what the company needs, then you aren’t going to be effective. You have to fit your talents to the task.

Step 3: Maximize your strength areas.

It’s tempting to think you don’t need to work on your strengths because they will always be there. But research shows that isn’t the case at all. The Chally Group, a performance measurement and research firm, has found that with the right training and development, someone can get about 20% better in an area where he or she has some competency. But take that same training and development in an area of natural strength and the person’s achievement can be produce spectacular results.

The moral of this story is, don’t worry about being well-rounded. Focus your time and energy in getting even better in the areas where you already have natural strengths, align those strengths with your company’s needs, and you’ll go from being a good leader to a great one.

April 11, 2013

9 Ways For Gen Y Professionals To Kill Their Careers

Gen Y workers are critical components of the workforce and make up the largest generation of workers at 35%. Like any new generation that enters the business community, Gen Y has to deal with the perceptions that their Gen X and Boomer bosses and co-workers have of them, some of which may or may not be valid. However, I do think that there are some areas that tend to trip up many Gen Y professionals, and I’ve put together a list of the ones I think are the most important.

1. You are impatient and want instant gratification. Being ambitious and driven to succeed at what you do is a tremendous strength, except when it becomes your weakness. Putting unreasonable time limits on yourself to achieve in a position can be your undoing.

Is it reasonable that a majority of Gen Y workers do not think they will be in the same position longer than 2 years? Perhaps, that depends upon the job and the field. But it isn’t reasonable to think that if you are not a V.P. after a year on the job you are “going nowhere.” Interestingly, a lot of you seem to agree with your older counterparts on this topic. A research study¹found:

45% of Gen Y respondents agreed with the statement

“Gen Y feels entitled to job benefits they haven’t yet earned.”

73% of Gen Y respondents agreed with the statement

“Gen Y wants instant gratification.”

2. You substitute technological interaction for human interaction. Gen Y’s technology skills are one of this generation’s greatest assets. But like any strength when overused or used inappropriately, it can have a negative effect. This preference for tech interaction versus face to face or “live” can get in the way of building business relationships with clients and co-workers. It decreases the opportunities to create trust, especially with the older generations.

3. You don’t manage up. As Gen Y professionals are now entering the management ranks, this has brought new hurdles into the generational divide. I’ve seen Gen Y managers who are terrific at managing their employees but terrible at managing their managers. You have to be able to develop the right relationship with your direct manager and at least one level up from that, in order to continue an upward career path in most companies.

4. You don’t know the difference between “good” and “great” yet. People who are “good” at their job go above and beyond the expectations the company has for them. People who are “great” at their job go above and beyond expectations to accomplish things no one even thought about doing before. Use that youthful optimism and creativity in your work, not just your personal life.

“Good is the enemy of great”

-Jim Collins, author, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’tpp

5. You’re focusing on the wrong things. To move ahead in your career you have to make sure you are on the right course to get you noticed by company leaders. You might be doing a great job in certain areas but are those the areas that matter most to your company? You have to look at your job from the company perspective and ask yourself how you can provide the most value to the business. That is where you need to focus your talents and energies.

6. You crave constant feedback. Almost everyone of any age wants positive feedback from their bosses. In fact, in every research study I’ve ever read this is always in the top three of the most important factors in whether people are engaged or not in their work. However, desiring feedback is not the same as needing constant feedback. 35% of Gen Y respondents said they want to communicate with their boss several times a day.² In many professions, this just isn’t realistic. You need to look beyond your boss and develop relationships with older colleagues and mentors who can fill this communication gap for you.

7. You don’t look the part. Yes, the workplace in general is a more casual world than it used to be. However, in most (not all) companies, the fact is that you ARE going to be judged on how you dress and that will factor into a boss’ decision (whether consciously or sub-consciously) on whether or not you are “promote-able.” The disconnect here is that only 4% of Gen Y said they want to dress in business attire². If you are in a field where all around you are in business attire, the old saying still holds true, “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have.”

8. You’re too casual. This one isn’t just about appearance. Gen Y is seen by other generational workers as just being too casual in general.¹ This includes things like being too informal too quickly in the workplace; informal language usage and misspellings in written communications; and lax in your time commitments. The best advice I think in this area is to adapt and mimic your environment and the people with whom you are dealing. If the boss signs off her text with “L8tr” and sends you emails with no punctuation or capitalization, than so can you. If not….

9. You constantly want to be multi-tasking. Multi-tasking is the enemy. It decreases your productivity by 40% and lowers your IQ by 10 points.³ It’s not just Gen Y, we’ve all been brainwashed to think that we must be able to handle a hundred things at once. But because Gen Y was brought up on electronics, this generation suffers the most from this problem.

Research shows that in actuality only 2% of the population can multi-task effectively.⁴ For the rest of us when we multitask, it’s like we’re doing things stoned (see Infographic below!). The key is to be able to handle multiple things and get them done quickly – but not at the same time. Focus on each task you need to accomplish. Give it your full attention, get it done right the first time and to the best of your ability, and done quickly. Then move on to the next thing. Your brain will thank you, and you’ll be amazed at how quickly you will learn new things and how much more productive you will be.

An Infographic On “The Perils Of Mulitasking” by OnlineCollege.org

Article’s Sources:

¹ Gen Y Perceptions Study by Spectrum Knowledge and The Career Center at Cal State Fullerton

² What Millennial Workers Want by Robert Half International

³ http://HBR.org/2011/05/stat-watch-multitasking-101/ar/1

⁴ http://www.PsychologyToday.com/blog/brain-trust/201202/is-your-brain-multitasking

April 8, 2013

What To Do When Your Star Salesperson Wants To Be A Manager

One of the hallmarks of top performing salespeople is the drive to continuously achieve and push themselves to attain more. This strength propels them to grow business and go beyond what they have done before. It also means they typically get bored quickly. Once a top performing salesperson has achieved something he or she will quickly look around for the next accomplishment – the next mountain to conquer. And if you’re not ready with the right challenge, they are going to assume that management is where they should aim for next.

For some, that might be the right path, but for many top performers, it isn’t. The talents and skills needed to be a top salesperson are quite different from the ones needed to be a successful manager. Yes, some people have both, but many times we see new managers, who have been highly impactful salespeople, fail in their new role. According to research done by Manchester, Inc.,

“40% of newly promoted managers fail within 18 months of starting new jobs”

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Often it is because the person has gone into a management role because he or she saw it as the only way to advance and continue a career path, and isn’t prepared or doesn’t have the talents and skills necessary, to succeed in the new position. When this happens, we have failed that top performer and the company. We’ve deprived the company of a star producer and we have neglected to provide ways for a talented employee to grow within his or her areas of strength.

To retain top talent we must find ways to offer growth opportunities that are not limited to a “promotion” to a management position. The best way to reward the people you want to keep is to find new ways to let them use and grow their natural talents. Decide together what would be the best reward for their excellent work and appropriate challenges. This should be an on-going brainstorming collaboration between leaders in the company as well. Find out what types of things your company can offer to top performers. It might be additional training, certifications, mentoring, cross-department training, exposure to senior executives, top performer perquisites, the opportunity to teach others, or maybe creating a unique new position.

It’s also important to help your star seller figure out if management really is the logical next step. There are several ways you can do this. The first question to ask your top performer is,

“Why do you want to become a manager?”

In the book, Discover Your Sales Strengths: How the World’s Greatest Salespeople Develop Winning Careers by Benson Smith and Tony Rutigliano, the authors list the right and wrong answers to this important question. How your salesperson answers this question will give you some insight into where to go next in the conversation.

Wrong Reasons For Wanting To Become A Manager:

I deserve a promotion

It will look prestigious and be good for my career growth

It’s time, I’ve been a salesperson for x years

I want to make more money

Want more control & autonomy

The company wants me to

I’m bored and need new challenges

I’m tired of the pressure to sell

I want the respect that comes with being a manager

Right Reasons For Wanting To Become A Manager:

I want to help develop others

I like seeing others succeed and win

I want to build a team

I like encouraging others to reach goals

I like working with talented people

I like recognizing and growing people’s talents

I am energized by teaching and coaching others

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Ask your top performer to write down his or her top 3 strengths. Before revealing them to you, go through these follow-up questions first:

1. Will you be able to attract and develop star performers or will you want to compete with them?

2. Can you sit on the sidelines and watch others play and be the coach or will you want to grab the ball and run?

3. Are you willing to give up the control of being accountable only for your performance to being accountable for an entire team’s performance?

4. Do you want to take on the responsibility of (insert number) salespeople?

5. Will you enjoy watching someone else get the big sale and the recognition that comes with it?

6. Will you want to deal with the administrative work?

7. Will you be able to fire someone that you may have a close relationship to and respect?

8. Are you genuinely interested in the opinions of others or do you just wait for them to stop talking so you can?

9. Does the prospect of figuring out the best way to transform a salesperson’s talents into performance appeal to you?

10. Can you individualize your coaching according to each person and what he or she needs rather than what you want?

11. Are you energized by the prospect of dealing with talented but high maintenance, demanding salespeople?

12. Will getting things done through others be as rewarding to you as getting things done yourself?

Next, ask the person to reveal the top 3 strengths he or she wrote down. Are they an accurate description of the person’s top talents? Do those strengths lend themselves more to sales or management? Ask the salesperson to evaluate as well.

Following these steps is a great way to keep the dialogue open and flowing between you and your top performers about “next steps” and continuous growth. It’s not a “one and done” conversation. You also should consider utilizing a predictive sales management assessment tool to help you and your top performer understand his or her talents, skills, and motivations more clearly and objectively.

___________________________

Infographic: When Your Star Wants To Be A Manager

March 18, 2013

The Secret Of Top Performing Sales Teams

While sales success is in many ways an individual pursuit, a salesperson is usually a part of a sales team as well. Even though there might be healthy competition between members of a sales team, many of the same team dynamics that apply to other departments, apply for the sales department as well. Interesting research has been done on what factors go into separating top performing teams from bottom performing teams.

A recent article in the Harvard Business Review looked at this research¹, which showed that there was one factor that stood out as the greatest difference between top and bottom performing teams…the ratio of positive to negative comments among the team members. (Top performing teams were defined by financial performance, customer satisfaction ratings and 360 degree feedback ratings.) It’s interesting that the positive comments were not just by managers, but by the members of the team, to each other.

Among top performing teams the researchers found that the average was 6 positive comments for every 1 negative comment. Conversely, on bottom performing teams, there were an average of 3 negative comments for every one positive comment. Ouch!

Obviously, this is a huge difference. It’s not hard to imagine the difference in environments and how this would play out in an office. Don’t you think you would sell more in a supportive environment where you feel like your co-workers are pulling for you and noticing great work?

(The same researchers did studies on positivity ratios needed for individuals to thrive, as well. See my earlier post, “The Number 1 Thing Your Employees Want More Of…”)

Study after study points to the same conclusions; positive feedback is what motivates people to improve, repeat top performance behaviors, and continue striving for success.

Positive feedback can come in the form of praise or recognition, private or public, verbal or written. EVERYONE needs it – whether the person is a seasoned pro or a rookie just starting on the job. EVERYONE NEEDS IT AND EVERYONE BENEFITS FROM IT.

For some people, positive feedback comes naturally. For others, it may be that they simply forget to do it, or are not sure how or when to do it.

Managers should encourage co-workers to do this and set the example as well. As with any feedback you give, strive to make it specific to a particular action or event, timely (as close to when it happened as possible), and of course, it should always be sincere. Smile and nod sincerely when you are listening – let them know with your non-verbal actions that you appreciate them. Listed below are some quick ways team members can give support to each other with a positive comment:

Great job on that project!
You should really be proud of yourself.
Wow, tell me about how you did this!
I’ve learned a lot from you.
Thanks for sharing that info with me.
You are so good at that, will you help me get better?
Can I ask your opinion on this?
Great catch on that mistake, you saved the day.
Let’s try your idea!
Thank you for listening.
Thank you for helping.
I keep hearing great things about you.
You really make things happen!
You are so creative.
You are a great problem solver.
I can see how much hard work you put into this.
How do you manage so many things at once?
You are always prepared for anything.

Now go out there and start spreading those positive comments!

¹ ”The Role of Positivity and Connectivity in the Performance of Business Teams: A Nonlinear Dynamics Model” by Emily Heaphy & Marcial Losada American Behavioral Scientist.

See Related Articles:

10 Phrases your Salespeople Want To Hear

Steve Jobs on Hiring And Managing Talent People

20 Low-Cost or No-Cost Ways To Increase Employee Engagement

Tips For Coaching your Salespeople

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An infographic on the power of praise:

March 13, 2013

Salesperson Turnover: Is Your Manager Hiring The Wrong People Or Did You Hire The Wrong Manager?

Unwanted turnover on a sales team can be a fatal blow to achieving revenue goals. Unfortunately, many sales managers still have the mindset that turnover or “churn” is to be expected, especially in rookie sales positions. I couldn’t disagree more. Not only shouldn’t it be expected, it shouldn’t be tolerated either. If you are a sales manager with a high turnover ratio (or the manager of someone who does) you need to find out the reasons and quickly. Not only does this churn cost you thousands of dollars in recruitment and training costs, and untold thousands of dollars in lost opportunities costs, but it also is damaging to morale and makes your company look bad in the eyes of your customers.

So, back to the original question, is the sales manager hiring the wrong people or is the sales manager the problem (or both)? To find out the answers, here are the questions you need to ask…

1. IS THERE ANYTHING HAPPENING IN THE MARKET THAT COULD LEGITIMATELY BE THE CAUSE OF AN INCREASE IN TURNOVER? Is your turnover significantly higher than your competitors? Have there been any major changes in the market or your industry?

2. ARE YOU DOING EXIT INTERVIEWS? YOU MUST! An exit interview should be done by an HR representative for every salesperson who leaves, whether the person is fired or leaves voluntarily. Or, you can use an online service to do this. (Questionpro.com is one that is free and has exit interview templates you can customize.) You need this information to help diagnose and get to the root of the problem.

3. ARE YOU DOING 360 SURVEYS WITH EXISTING SALESPEOPLE? This is an important tool in revealing many potential problems before it’s too late. Again this can be done online and anonymous with free tools such as freeonlinesurveys.com. The following questions are ones that will help you determine whether you have a hiring problem or a management problem, and where the issue(s) may be:

Did you receive the initial training and onboarding needed to be successful in the position?
Do you feel you are getting the on-going managerial coaching and training you need?
Do you have the tools and resources to be successful in your sales role?
Are you recognized for excellent performance?
Is poor performance addressed and confronted quickly?
Do you feel you have a career path with the company?
Do you feel you are continuing to develop your professional skills and knowledge?
Was your compensation package presented to you accurately?
Has the company and your manager lived up to what you expected when hired?
Are you proud of what you sell and do you feel the company has a solid reputation in the business community?
Do you believe your manager is invested in your success and can help you achieve your goals?
Does your sales manager meet with you on a regular basis and communicate information you need to know?

4. ARE YOU PAYING YOUR SALESPEOPLE APPROPRIATELY? You need to analyze your comp plan and consider the following questions:

What is the likely amount a salesperson will make the first year under this plan?
Is this competitive with what the salesperson could make with an industry competitor? What about a sales position with another industry?
Are you asking the salesperson to take all the risk?
Is the comp plan designed to launch the person successfully or is it full of potential roadblocks?
Is the comp plan straightforward and easy to understand?

5. ARE YOU SETTING AND MANAGING EXPECTATIONS IN THE INTERVIEW PROCESS? Starting a new job is fraught with stress coming from all areas of a person’s life. The last thing you want is for that new salesperson to feel he was misled (whether intentional or not) about the position. The sales manager must make sure she is 100% transparent about the pros and cons of the job, what the salesperson should expect in the first 30 days, 6 months, one year, and very clear about what expectations the manager has of performance. This should be continually reiterated in each interview and spelled out in writing in the offer letter.

6. ARE YOU FOLLOWING A SET HIRING PROCESS DESIGNED TO FIT TALENTS TO TASK? This means having a set hiring process in place which is specifically designed to identify a person’s talents and skills; then determining if those are a fit for your sales position. The following is the process I use and have found to be effective:

Define the sales position. What exactly will the salesperson be asked to do? What are the requirements of the job?

Based on the above information, what talents, skills, and experience does the salesperson need to have on day 1? What are the skills you are willing to train for? This doesn’t mean describe your “IDEAL” candidate. This means list the “deal breakers” those competencies the person MUST have to be considered and those that you would “like” but don’t have to have.

Based on those requirements, vet every application you receive against those and only proceed with candidates who meet those requirements.

Do preliminary phone interviews FIRST with those candidates whose applications/resumes you have vetted. The phone interview should be 20-30 minutes and you should use a prepared list of behavioral based interview questions. (see related article “My 25 Favorite Salesperson Interview Questions”) Every person you phone screen should be asked the same questions so that you can fairly assess the answers and stay in EEOC compliance.

Do face-to-face interviews with those candidates who have “passed” your screening interview. These in-person interviews should also be comprised of a set list of behavioral based questions that are the same for each candidate.

Do reference checking and background checks at this stage. Don’t wait until you’ve decided on one candidate only to find out the person has something in his or her background or former job that knocks him out of the running. Use an online reference checking system like www.Checkster.com. (see related article ”5 Steps For Getting real Information From Candidates’ References”)

The candidates should interview with a minimum of two people in the company. Ideally interviews should include the sales manager, the sales manager’s manager, an existing sales person, and an H.R. or manager from a different department that interacts with sales. The interviewer should take specific notes on the candidates’ answers. Then all interviewers should give their evaluation of the candidate to the sales manager or fill out a candidate evaluation form.

Use a validated, PREDICTIVE, sales assessment for final candidates. Sales assessments are key to increasing your successful hires. Only 14% of sales people hired based on only interview information are successful hires. A good sales assessment should boost that number to about 80%.

Evaluate ALL the information you have on a candidate before offering the position. This includes interview information, reference checking information, sales assessment results, and of course your “gut instinct.” This is referred to as the 30%-30%-30%-10% rule.

7. DO YOU HAVE AN ONBOARDING PROGRAM IN PLACE? Even if you’ve done everything right in the hiring process up to this point, if you don’t have a well-designed onboarding program you are setting your new hire up for failure. Research shows that salespeople get up to speed 51% faster when a company has an onboarding program. Onboarding includes not just outlining first day or the first week, but the first 30 days and beyond (see related article “Steps For Keeping Your New Sales Hire From Circling The Drain” for onboarding tips).

8. DO YOU HAVE AN INDIVIDUALIZED COACHING PLAN FOR EACH SALESPERSON? It is the sales manager’s responsibility to develop a salesperson’s talents and skills through coaching (see related article “Tips For Coaching Your Salesperson”). To effectively coach you must first know what those specific talents and skills are (the sales assessment should tell you that) and then have a plan in place for how you will best manage and develop them. A coaching plan should include at a minimum the following information.

Goals we have agreed upon and date to be achieved
The salesperson’s expectations of me the sales manager
My expectations of the salesperson
Top 3 motivators
I should remember NOT to do
Likes recognition in the form of
What salesperson likes best about sales
What salesperson like least about sales
Long range career goals
Key strengths/weaknesses
Growth area salesperson would like to develop and how I will assist

All of this information should be discussed in the first days after the new hire begins the job and should be updated every 6 months.

ppp

How to Successfully Recruit and Hire New Employees When You Don’t Have an H.R. Department

Infographic: What Mis-hired Misfires Cost You

March 3, 2013

4 Reasons Why You’re Not Attracting Top Sales Talent (And How To Fix It)

What is the most common challenge I hear from managers? Hands down, it is that they have difficulty finding top sales talent. And, when they do find a qualified candidate the person often opts for a different opportunity (many times a competitor). Why? Obviously there can be many factors for why you aren’t attracting top sales talent, but these are the ones I’ve found to often be at the root of the problem:

1. Not looking for talent in the right places (and not looking continually).
2. Using job ads/posts that are poorly written.
3. Not addressing top talent’s hot buttons.
4. Not setting expectations with the candidate about the hiring process.

The good news is that all 4 of these problems are easily fixed. Here are the steps you can take to not only attract sales talent, but get them eager to come aboard.

Not looking for talent in the right places (and not looking continually).

The first rule of successful recruitment is you should ALWAYS be recruiting and ALWAYS be interviewing. It serves two purposes; it sharpens your interview skills and increases your networking and scope of influence. Like sales, you should never be without prospects in your funnel. If you don’t currently have an opening then simply tell the prospective candidate the truth and add that you would like to meet to get to know the person better. It’s flattering and I’ve never had a person say “no.”

Are you targeting your job ad in the right places? Analyze where you are looking for talent. Ask yourself how someone might reach you if you were not actively looking for a job, because most talented salespeople are NOT actively looking – they have a job. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have one eye open at all times on potential greener pastures! Think about your industry and what media those salespeople are consuming. It’s likely that placing a job ad on industry specific websites or publications versus putting an ad on Monster.com, makes a lot more sense.

Where are some other places those potential candidates might be? I’ve found that posting to the “Jobs” section of industry related “Groups” on LinkedIn yields much more qualified candidates than generic job boards and websites. (See “6 Free Ways To Recruit Salespeople On LinkedIn.”) And while you are on LinkedIn, make sure you do a status update about the position and ask your connections to forward it to those they think might be interested. Ask your current top performers to do the same thing. I’ve found that they tend to know other top performers and have very large networks of work acquaintances.

Another obvious social media choice is Facebook. If your company has a Facebook page, do a post about the job opening. People who are your company followers are fans or your company and likely to be interested. It’s possible that your next great hire could be one of those fans. Or, someone who knows them is, and forwards the info to them.

Get creative. Maybe you make a quick video about the job opening and post the video to your website and YouTube. Send the link out as an email blast to your contacts and ask them to forward it to anyone they know who might be interested. Ask your current salespeople, “If I was a company who wanted to hire you, where would be the best place for me to put my job posting to reach you?”

Using job ads/posts that are poorly written.

Think of a job post as one big news headline. Meaning, your focus should be how you are going to hook the person into reading it. Unfortunately, most job posts/ads read like a laundry list of desired traits that are more like an online dating site request than an engaging and dynamic job overview. The Harvard Business Review did a great article about this, “Your Job Ads Are Driving Away Talent.”

Too often they start off with a P.R. paragraph about the company…Here’s a recent one I saw (names deleted to protect the inept)

XYZ Holding Company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pennsylvania-based XYZ Inc. and is comprised of: ABC Company and WYZ Company. We are the fastest-growing widget organization in the United States. Consisting of more than 570 retail stores in 39 states and the District of Columbia through 12 retail store names, we are the industry leaders in each of their respective markets. Find a better career and A Better You! We believe that our Associates are our most valuable resource and are, therefore, the key to our future growth, performance and success. We offer opportunities to grow and develop your career while providing world class customer service for our customers!

Wow – doesn’t that just grab you and reel you in? Um…no. It’s all about what the company wants you to know, not what you want to know. The start of the job ad reads like a press release. The opening paragraph needs to hit that salesperson’s hot buttons. Where are the specifics? Where is the mention of money, career advancement, challenges, selling tools, growth potential? Those are the things that grab a top performer’s attention.

A good tip to writing a great first line for a job ad is to ask the candidate a question i.e., “Do you feel you have gone as far as you can with your current company? Do you sometimes feel you spend more time selling your ideas internally than you do with your clients? Do you get the support and the resources you need to be at the top of your game?”

Don’t use third person language in the ad. Things like, “The ideal candidate will have…” do not engage the reader. Write the ad as if you were speaking directly to that talented salesperson you want to hire – because if you’re lucky, you are! When you are listing the “Responsibilities” describe the key aspects of the job, not a list of every possible thing the person might encounter. When listing the “Requirements” you should only list the things that are deal breakers. For example, does the person really have to have a college degree? Is it a must that the person has experience in your particular industry? Keep in mind that the more things you list here, the more likely someone will self-select out. Many people think that if they don’t have a stringent list of requirements they will be inundated with unqualified candidates. But actually, research shows that isn’t the case. Don’t describe your “ideal” candidate, because that person may not exist and you may be inadvertently turning away great candidates.

Not addressing top talent’s hot buttons.

These “hot buttons” are the key things that highly talented salespeople want to know when considering a job. These are the items that should be included in the job ad as well as in an interview. What are those “hot buttons?” The company Sales Benchmark Index did research specifically on that question to find out. I have summarized their findings as to what are the primary concerns that top performing sales people want to know about when considering a job:

• What opportunity (accounts, industry or geography) does the position offer?
• What is my earning potential? Now and in the future?
• Does my new manager have the skills to coach me and hone my skills?
• Will I have a chance to advance my career? In what ways?
• Does the new role offer unique challenges beyond just winning deals?
• What kind of training and professional development will I receive?
• Will I earn recognition for outstanding work? In what ways?
• Will senior leadership listen to my ideas?
• What kinds of tools will I use? Will the infrastructure shackle me or help me win deals?
• What type of internal resources will I have to help me?
• Does the brand and/or reputation of the company open doors? Are the products/services respected?
• Who are the customers? Do they give positive referrals? Are they irritated or delighted?
• How will I quickly ramp up during my onboarding period? Is there an adjusted quota or a guarantee?
• What is the culture like? Is this a winning team? Are the sales people respected?

You won’t be able to address all of these in a job ad but make sure you are hitting as many as you can in order to increase your chances of catching the eye of the right candidate for you. And make sure you are covering these items in your interviews with top performers.

Not setting expectations with the candidate about the hiring process.

Many times I’ve had managers tell me that when they have found a talented salesperson they lose him or her because the person gets irritated with the interview process. This might be because it is taking too long or involves too many steps. The solution to this is to clearly outline the process for the candidate from the beginning.

Map out each step and explain the reason for each step. It’s like how people feel about airline delays, the worst part is not knowing what is happening. Even if you are aggravated by the delay, you definitely prefer knowing the reason for it versus feeling left in the dark or jerked around and not appreciated. Stay in CONSTANT contact with the candidate through email and phone. Don’t let more than two days go by without some kind of contact and/or update. You want this person to feel that they are a top priority for you and your company. After all, he or she might just be your next superstar.

My 25 Favorite Salesperson Interview Questions

Looking To Hire? 10 Free Recruitment Websites

Why Do Job Candidates Do These Things??? (And If They Do…Run!)

Steve Jobs On Hiring And Managing Talented People

The DOs And DON’Ts Of Interviewing

What Is A Realistic Job Preview And Why You Should Care

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Here is an interesting infographic on the signs that your “rockstar” may be looking to hit the road!

February 21, 2013

Salesperson Plateauing Syndrome, How To Prevent This Revenue Killer!

It’s a familiar scenario…A salesperson’s first year in a new job is filled with challenges; learning the products or services, navigating the internal company waters, establishing relationships, filling the funnel. Year two for the successful seller, is about seeing the fruits of those labors start to pay off. It’s exciting and unpredictable. Year three and the salesperson has really hit his or her stride. A solid book of business is established, the salesperson is seen as a leader on the sales team, ah… life is good. Or, is it? Research shows that for many top performing salespeople, this can be the point where they contract “Plateauing Syndrome” which can lead to that silent revenue killer…turnover. Like many diseases, the key to dealing with it is to spot it early and treat it before it becomes pervasive.

Luckily, there has actually been research done on this phenomenon that can help sales managers understand it, see the warning signals, and effectively deal with it before it derails a valued salesperson on your team.

What Causes Plateauing Syndrome? Two research studies* that addressed this issue, one done back in 1989 by the trade publication, Sales And Marketing Management and the other done more recently in 2007 in the Journal Of Selling And Major Account Management, remarkably found almost identical reasons for why top performing salespeople are susceptible to plateauing. They also found that when this plateau effect happens, it usually leads to the salesperson quitting for another job opportunity so it’s critical for managers to address. Here are the top reasons found for why a salesperson can plateau:

Boredom. The salesperson feels she’s done the job so well that there is no challenge left in it. It has become routine and she feels she has stopped learning and growing her skills.

Dead end. There is no clear career path to follow. Where do I go from here? It is the feeling that there is no opportunity to move forward.

Inadequate Management. This encompasses many areas that fall under a manager’s control. The salesperson may feel overlooked by a manager, feel a lack of support from the manager or that he is unappreciated, or that he is not being treated fairly by management. Remember, this may or may not be the case but if you are a sales manager, their perception is your reality.

Burnout. After several years of going full speed all the time, the salesperson is physically or emotionally (or both) exhausted. She may have neglected other parts of her life and now that work is going smoothly, everything else seems anti-climactic.

Economic Complacency. While salespeople are motivated by money, even top performing salespeople can have a point at which they become complacent and need external motivation beyond money to get them motivated to achieve more.

What Are The Warning Signs? The research studies found that there are some advance, cautionary signals that a sales manager can be aware of that indicate the salesperson may be in the initial stages of the Plateauing Syndrome.

Client relationships suffer. This can manifest itself as not establishing rapport with new clients the way the salesperson has in the past, not identifying client needs and responding appropriately, or not following through on commitments.

Detachment. The salesperson seems more distant and detached from co-workers or clients, or both.

Prospecting dwindles. Prospecting activity is no longer proactive and is ineffective.

Resistant to management. The salesperson seems indifferent to a manager’s input, or even insubordinate.

Resistant to new things. When the Plateauing Syndrome is taking hold, a salesperson begins to go into an “auto pilot” stage where she isn’t interested in doing things differently or selling new ideas. (And yet, this is precisely what can snap a person out of a plateau as we’ll see below.)

Works patterns change. If the salesperson suddenly begins working fewer hours, coming in late, is late for meetings, or is taking a lot of sick days this can be a warning signal. Sometimes reducing work hours is the right response to being burned out or feeling overly stressed. The important thing is for the manager to be aware of the reasons why this is the case and discuss it with the salesperson.

How To Prevent Plateauing Syndrome. Interestingly, the research study in the Journal Of Selling And Major Account Management went straight to the source and asked top performers who were in the midst of a plateau, what they felt would be the best way to remedy this situation. Here are their top responses:

Provide opportunities. Because a leading cause of Plateauing Syndrome is when a salesperson feels he is at a dead end in terms of career growth, identifying a career growth plan is critical. A career plan does not necessarily mean a promotion to management. It means a plan that shows how the salesperson can continue to grow his skills, knowledge/expertise, and income.

Avoid excessive job demands. If the plateauing is being caused by burn-out, reducing the amount of job pressure the salesperson feels can reinvigorate her. Many times top performing salespeople going through this think that their managers don’t really understand all of the effort they have put into growing their business and that, “Nothing I do is ever enough.” Make sure your expectations and job demands are fair and in-line with the salesperson’s talents and skills.

Re-design the job to fit the salesperson. If the salesperson is particularly strong in certain areas, try to match those strengths to the tasks you are asking the person to do. Working on things where you are using your natural talents is the most energizing and rewarding work someone will do.

Monetary incentives for superior performance. Obviously if the plateauing is caused by a person feeling complacent because he has met his economic goals, this remedy isn’t the right one. However, plateauing salespeople listed this as a top remedy because many don’t want a ceiling or cap on their income. Set monetary incentives that stretch the salesperson but are reasonable. Unattainable monetary incentives are as bad as not having any incentives, which means they are incredibly de-motivating!

Individualized perks. Look for creative ways to reward the salesperson. Find out what are their interests, personal motivators, what is important to them, and create unique prizes that are developed around those. Or, it might not be a prize at all. It might be putting them in charge of an important project or coaching new salespeople. Find out what their hot buttons are. Not only can it get them out of their funk but it shows you care about them individually and took the time to do so.

Discuss the issue and offer solutions. When you see a top performer heading into the Plateauing Syndrome, address it head on and get it out on the table. Find out the salesperson’s take on why it might be happening (probably one of the reasons listed in the first section above) and brainstorm ideas for solving it. Many times identifying the problem and giving a name to it lets the salesperson know it’s ok to admit it and talk about it.

More competent sales managers. If salespeople are plateauing because they feel their manager isn’t able to address their particular needs, that’s a big problem. Managers (and their upper management bosses) have to be able to assess if they are providing the motivation, coaching, and resources needed for the salesperson to perform.

Because Plateauing Syndrome has been found to correlate closely to salesperson turnover it’s important to watch for it and address it quickly. Or, as Benjamin Franklin wisely put it,

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

See Related Articles:

Are You A High Maintenance Employee?,

How Much Time Should Sales Managers Spend Coaching Their Salespeople?,

Why Your Salespeople Quit, The Number 1 Thing Your Employees Want More Of (No It’s Not Money),

10 Phrases Your Salespeople Want To Hear, 20 Low-Cost Or No-Cost Ways To Increase Employee Engagement,

Tips For Coaching Your Salespeople

*Sources: Sales And Marketing Management study by William Keenan Jr., 1989, the Journal Of Selling And Major Account Management study by Robin T. Peterson & Minjoon Jun, 2007

Salesperson Plateauing Syndrome Infographic:

February 12, 2013

Are You A High Maintenance Employee? Is That Good Or Bad?

There seems to be a lot of discussion out there right now about “High Maintenance” employees. Depending on what you read, these are either the folks that are destroying companies or the ones that are driving the success at companies.

Which is it? Is being a high maintenance employee a good thing or a bad thing? Should we hire these types or avoid them like the plague?

In a word…yes. Because, there are different types of high maintenance employees. In her book, “High Maintenance Employees” Katherine Graham Leviss classified two types as:

I propose that there is also a third type of high maintenance employee:

The High Maintenance High Performers are the highly talented employees who are challenging to manage but produce the biggest results and are worth it. The High Maintenance Low Performers are the employees who spend more time figuring out how to game the system than they do working. They need to be ferreted out of a company because they are dead weight dragging it down. The High Maintenance High Performers But Just Not Worth It employees are really the biggest threat to a company. They are the highly talented employees who produce results, but in the process exhaust everyone and can destroy morale and company culture.

Based on some great books and articles on this subject (see footnotes below for links) and my own experience analyzing employee performance, I’ve put together some of the characteristics of each High Maintenance “type.” As you read through these, do you see yourself or people you manage? (And, if any former bosses of mine happen to be reading this…yes, I know I’m in here too.)

High Maintenance High Performers:

Confrontational and Blunt. They usually get right to the point and are direct about what they want because they KNOW what they want very clearly.

Bored Easily. They master new things quickly and then get bored once they have, and look for new challenges. That is why they frequently are job-hoppers. They simply must feel they are continually learning and moving forward.

Low Bureaucracy Threshold. They do not deal well with bureaucratic obstacles and are not typically diplomatic in dealing with it. They usually ignore corporate hierarchy and do not have an innate respect for authority. They respect accomplishments – not titles.

Demanding. These are talented, high performing individuals who know their worth. They are demanding of themselves and have very high standards. They push limits and boundaries to see what’s possible. This also means that they demand the same from those around them. They have high expectations and do not “suffer fools gladly.”

Independence. They want clear, direct communication of what is expected of them and then the latitude to get it done their own way. They want freedom and control over their work. And, to that end, they question EVERYTHING. It’s not meant to be disrespectful. It’s because this is how they learn and because they need to know the “why” of something in order to evaluate what they are being asked to do.

Emotional. It could be something big or something seemingly insignificant, but if they feel it is important they will get involved and give it their all. A favorite phrase is, “It’s the principle of the matter.” They fight for what they believe in.

What I Do Matters. These high performers need to feel that their work makes a difference in the success of the company. They are usually very entrepreneurial and see their work as running their own company within a company.

Recognition. They have a very strong ego drive and need continual recognition for their accomplishments. They must feel they are appreciated for their expertise and what they bring to the company. They want to be asked their opinion about things and be “in-the-know” when it comes to company politics or inside information. I’ve always said, praise high maintenance high performers and they’ll kill for you.

Quick Decisions. They are very decisive, trust their gut, make decisions quickly and expect others to do the same. They get frustrated when dealing with people who want to analyze and think through all the possible outcomes first.

High Maintenance Low Performers:

Blame Game. Nothing is ever their fault. They are unable or unwilling to see their part in any situation where they have made a mistake. The closest they might come is to admitting they made a mistake but then follow it up by saying they only made it because of someone else.

H.R. Groupies. Because they are chronic low performers, they are constantly in H.R. complaining about something in order to cover their butt and deflect attention away from the real issue; which is of course, their sub-par performance. Many times they take advantage of well-intended H.R. managers because they are so adept at playing the martyr.

Everything Is “Unfair”. They are always complaining to their manager about some perceived slight they feel they have received. It seems that someone is always getting more of something than they are and they believe if only they had a level playing field they could be a top performer. They make it their business to know everyone else’s business and they are obsessed with knowing just what everyone else is doing and getting.

Bad Money Management. Because they are overly concerned with what others have, they frequently are materialistic and live beyond their means. This creates more stress as they find themselves increasingly in debt with no way out. Often they look to their company to bail them out.

Always An Excuse. No matter what the situation, these people are masters at having a well thought out and prepared excuse for their lack of performance. It might be something in their personal life or something work related, but you can be sure it will be creative.

The Lifetime Movie Effect. Something is always going wrong. One day it’s a flat tire, the next day maybe it’s spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend trouble, or kid problems, or someone is sick/dying/in a car accident, you get the idea. No one can be this unlucky. Usually they are just more weapons in their arsenal to make you either feel sorry for them, not put them on probation/fire them, or buy themselves some more time.

Nothing Is Ever Enough. You can give them everything they have asked for and yet it is like filling up a sink with no drain plug. No matter how much you give, it will never be enough and they will continue to under-perform and sap your strength. Why? Because they just don’t have the talent to do the job, or they are just too lazy to do it.

High Maintenance High Performers But Just Not Worth It:

ASAP Syndrome. Everything is urgent. Everything is needed As Soon As Possible. They constantly expect everyone to drop what they are doing to help them with even the smallest of details. Big things, small things, it doesn’t matter everything is a crisis and top priority.

More Drama Than A Soap Opera. This is one of the most insidious problems with these types of high maintenance employees. They create drama by intentionally stirring the pot. They gossip, they divide and conquer, they look for ways to increase their stature at the expense of others (usually their boss). They manage to get people all whipped up and upset over things they ordinarily wouldn’t have given a second thought to…It’s like the little devil sitting on your shoulder whispering in your ear.

Reply To All Disease. They are constantly emailing EVERYONE about EVERYTHING. They feel the need to involve everyone in what they are working on, usually in an attempt to point out, “See how great I am, look at all the things I’m doing.”

“You Do Know Who I Am Right?” The ego drive has really warped into something sinister; a sense of entitlement that is way out of proportion to who they are. Yes, you may be a top performer, but you’re not curing cancer. They feel the rules, guidelines, procedures, etc. just don’t apply to them and it creates resentment and chaos with the mere mortals who work with them.

More Of A Hog Than Boss Hogg. Not so much a money hog (although they can be) as a credit hog. They are constantly hogging all the glory for any accomplishment and fail to credit those that helped them achieve it. Rarely is an accomplishment in a company the sole work of one person. Yet these types of employees would have you believe that without them nothing would ever be achieved. It infuriates co-workers and destroys any team building and teamwork culture a company has tried to build.

The Grudge Master. They can remember every slight (perceived or real, large or small) that has been done to them. They just can’t get past it and take everything personally. They use these as justifications for their own poor behavior or choices.

“That’s Not My Job.” Not only are they not team players but if you ask them to pitch in and help out with something they deem beneath them, they will be insulted and pout. If they feel certain tasks or jobs are beneath them, what message does that send to the person who normally does those things?

Obviously, High Maintenance Low Performers need to be terminated or helped to “de-recruit” themselves as I like to say. But what about the High Maintenance High Performers But Just Not Worth It employees? Can they be reformed and join the High Maintenance High Performers group? And what are the most effective ways to manage High Maintenance High Performers? I’ll leave those questions for Part 2!

Resources:

“Confessions Of A High Maintenance CEO”, David K. Williams, Forbes,

“The (Unlucky) 13 Traits of High Maintenance People”, Cheryl Conner, Forbes

The 3 Types Of High Maintenance Employees Infographic:

February 4, 2013

How Much Time Should Sales Managers Spend Coaching Their Salespeople?

We all know that coaching salespeople is a critical part of a sales manager’s job, but just how much coaching is necessary to make an effective impact? How many hours should a sales manager spend on coaching salespeople? Who benefits most from coaching – top performers, core performers, or under achievers? And, what constitutes great sales coaching – how does a sales manager best implement it?

These were my questions as I set out to research definitive answers. It turns out there are several studies that have been done on these exact questions. So, here are the answers…

How many hours should a sales manager spend coaching? About 5 hours per month, per salesperson. Therefore, if you have 10 salespeople you should be spending 12-13 hours a week on individual coaching or roughly 1/3 of your time. The Sales Executive Council’s research study showed that salespeople who received more than 3 hours of coaching each month performed at 107% of goal, with 5 hours per month, per salesperson as the optimum amount.

A study reported in the London Business School’s Business Strategy Review found some startling results as well. A sales manager of a large insurance company freed up 2 hours a day to dedicate to coaching her salespeople. In the course of just 3 weeks, sales were up 5%! The article points out that this required her to pass off some admin work to others and decrease her attendance at internal meetings, which brings us to our next question.

Given that coaching salespeople is the number one thing a manager can do to increase revenue, what is keeping them from doing it? The answer is mainly two things – too many other time draining tasks (being bogged down by administrative work i.e., paperwork, reports, emails, phone calls, internal meetings, etc. that have no direct impact on revenue growth), and lack of training. This is backed up by what the research says is the problem as well as what sales managers themselves say they need.

Most sales managers spend almost half their time on administrative tasks and selling (results of a study by the Sales Management Association). In contrast, top performing sales managers spend almost half their time on coaching and motivating sales people, according to Objective Management Group research. Additionally, only about 15% of all sales managers even spend as much as 25% of their time on coaching, even though salespeople that are coached daily outperform other salespeople by 30%!

The other issue that prevents coaching is a lack of training for sales managers. Many sales managers are promoted because they were of course, top performing salespeople. However, they often receive little training in how to effectively coaching others. Only 7% of sales managers were found to be effective at coaching without training in Objective Management Group research. Sales managers themselves seem to know this because increased training was cited as a top item that they feel would make them more productive, along with better time management, increased admin support, and less paperwork (Pace Productivity Inc. research).

Who benefits the most from sales coaching? The answer may surprise you. The Sales Executive Council research study found that great coaching from a sales manager does not improve the performance of all salespeople equally. In fact, great coaching impacts the middle or “core” salespeople the most. Core salespeople who receive ineffective coaching average 83% of goal attainment. However, when they receive great coaching, that jumps to an average of 102% of goal. Coaching had very little impact on under performers. While the research didn’t show coaching to have a large impact on increasing goal attainment with star (top) performers, it did have a significant impact on RETAINING those star performers. Top performers were 50% more likely to stay if they received good coaching. In essence, the study found that you coach your core performers for increased productivity and the top performers to keep them happy.

What is great sales coaching and how do you implement it? It’s important to remember that coaching and training are not the same thing. Training is more about teaching and acquiring new skills. Coaching is more focused on how those skills are applied, the “doing.” I think this graphic outlines the essential elements of sales coaching.

The Sales Executive Council research found that what separated top performing sales managers from others was not just about who and what they coached, but HOW they coached as well, starting with the commitment to 5 hours a month per salesperson. The research identified ten “hallmarks” of outstanding sales coaches as outlined in this graphic.

Where do you go from here? My suggestion would be to first get a true handle on where you are spending your time. You can track your time with a planner or there are online resources too. An easy, and free way to do this is at www.MyHours.com. Track yourself for two weeks and then look at the resulting data. You will probably be surprised at what you find out!

Sales Managers Time Priorities Infographic:

January 28, 2013

Are You On A “Bad Boss” Website?

Think you are a good boss? Think you know how your employees (past or present) would rate you? Want to know for sure? Several “Rate Your Boss/Company” type websites have sprung up around the internet and you may want to check them out. And if you are considering a new job, you definitely want to check out your potential new boss and company.

One of the most popular is eBossWatch.com. The eBossWatch website is an anonymous (and free) way to either “Rate Your Boss” (good or bad) or look up a potential boss. The website describes their service as enabling “people to anonymously rate their bosses and employers using a respectable evaluation form so that job seekers can search potential workplaces and can access inside information about what it’s like to work there.”

The founder started the website in 2007, the website states, “after experiencing first-hand the nightmare of working in a hostile work environment. He decided that there had to be a better way for people to evaluate prospective employers.”

A person can go to the website and choose to “Rate My Boss” or do a “Boss Search.” The “Boss Search” database is searchable by name or by company.

When “Rate My Boss” is selected, the person is asked 6 questions and can respond as Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Somewhat Disagree, Somewhat Agree, Agree, or Strongly Agree.

For each rating that a boss receives, a graph is generated that a person can click on to view.

Critics of sites like these point out that there is no verification procedure that ensures the person doing the evaluation of the boss really did work for him or her; the boss does not have an opportunity to respond on the website; and the boss is not notified of the posting. But there is no denying the increasing popularity of these types of sites. eBossWatch even does a yearly “Worse Bosses” that they post on the website. It is an interesting mix of the famous and non-famous.

If you want to be proactive and find out what your employees are thinking, you might want to encourage them to go to TellYourBossAnything.com. On this website, employees can type out a message to their boss and the website emails it to the boss.

The boss can respond back to the feedback and the website sends it to the employee. There is no charge for the basic service. You can upgrade to a paid account if you want more options.

But how about taking it a step further? If you are a boss and manage more than a few people, you can ask your employees to respond to a poll question or a survey with several questions. It is a great way to get 360° feedback, and if you go to FreeOnlineSurveys.com, it doesn’t cost you anything to do so. If you have something simple you want their input on like, “What would be a good team building outing for us to do?” you can create a simple poll (similar to my blog poll question).

For more in-depth information, you can create a survey with many questions, and have multiple choice answers or fill-in answers. It’s a great way to proactively solicit feedback from your direct reports in a way that is easy, convenient, and anonymous. You might even consider creating one for feedback from customers as well. You can send employees (or clients) the poll or survey as an email with a link to click on or embed it on your website with the html code they give you.

Now, go see if you are on ebosswatch.com, I know you’re dying to do it!

If you think your teacher is tough, wait until you get a boss. He doesn’t have tenure. -Bill Gates

Related articles

The Number 1 Thing Your Employees Want More Of (No, It’s Not Money)

10 Phrases Your Sales People Want To Hear

Why Your Salespeople Quit

Tips For Coaching Your Salespeople

It’s Not Me, It’s You: 5 Ways To Avoid Another Horrible Boss (business.time.com)

Here’s an interesting Infographic from Inc.com on the real costs of bad bosses.

January 27, 2013

What Is A “Realistic Job Preview” And Why Should You Care?

I was recently discussing with a General Manager the unprecedented success the sales team was experiencing, having made 24 revenue budgets in a row. Spectacular results under normal circumstances, but even more so with a turbulent economy. While there isn’t just one reason for this success, it wasn’t lost on me that they had retained all of their talented salespeople over that same period. More than ever, it drove home the point that retention is a critical component in achieving sales goals.

While there are many strategies for retaining your talented people, it all begins with making sure you are hiring the right people in the first place. This is where a Realistic Job Preview (RJP) can play a big part in helping you and your candidate figure out if the job is a good fit. When you hire someone that not only has the right talents, but also the right fit for your company, you increase the likelihood of retaining that person and lowering your turnover costs. (Curious about what the turnover costs are for you, specifically, for just one position? Click here for a Turnover Cost Calculator.)

What is a RJP? A RJP is usually a brief video or PowerPoint presentation that gives a candidate a feel for what it’s like to work at your company, by presenting a balanced overview of the position. It communicates the responsibilities, challenges, expectations and rewards of the job.

Why do a RJP? Research has shown that having candidates experience a RJP increases retention by as much as 10%. Some experts estimate that RJPs screen out between 15% and 36% of applicants*. Wouldn’t you rather people decide the job isn’t right fit for them BEFORE they go through the job interview process with you?

How the RJP benefits you, the manager. Just as we continually reiterate to salespeople that they must “manage” clients’ expectations, an RJP helps you “manage” a potential new employee’s expectations.

Because the RJP gives candidates a specific, realistic picture of the job and the company, they know better what to expect, and if hired, they don’t experience “buyer’s remorse” after they start.
Another way in which RJPs can reduce turnover is that employees who are made aware of the challenges of the job in advance, are better able to cope with them when they arise, and less likely to leave.
RJPs also communicate an “air of honesty” to applicants. New employees tend to be more committed to their job because they feel the company represented itself honestly.

Different types of RJPs. A RJP can be done as a brochure, or orally presented in an initial interview, or even a detailed email. However, I think the most effective ones are those that are short videos or PowerPoint type presentations. You want the RJP to help a candidate “visualize” what your company’s environment, values, culture, and employees are like, in addition to giving the balanced overview of the specific position. An RJP is NOT a branding or marketing piece.

How to do a RJP. You can be as creative or straightforward as you want to be. The most important component is that it is BALANCED. It needs to convey both the ups and the downs. Be realistic. Consider some of these options:

A video where several of your salespeople talk about their job; what they like about it, its challenges and rewards, what it’s like working for you and your management style, and what they like about the company.
A “Day In The Life” video that shows the candidate an average day on the job with one of your salespeople.
A “Meet The Team” video that enables the candidates to see and hear from their potential co-workers. It can also include a tour of your offices and “introductions” to other key department heads.
A PowerPoint presentation that uses photographs or video clips along with an audio narration – highlighting key information about the job, your culture, and your company.

* Research studies can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realistic_job_preview

Why Do Job Candidates Do These Things And If They Do, Run! ,

The Dos And Don’ts Of Interviewing, Steve Jobs On Hiring And Managing Talented People,

Steps For Keeping Your New Sales Hire From Circling The Drain

Here’s an interesting infographic on the costs of turnover…

January 22, 2013

10 Things You Should Know About Gen Y Salespeople And 4 Of Their Most Common Mistakes

It seems like every week there is a new article about Millennial/Gen Y workers. But when I read these articles, I always wonder if the information given also holds true for Gen Y SALESPEOPLE? I set out to find any current research I could on Gen Y salespeople (those born approximately 1980-1999). It turns out there have been several studies done. What follows is a summary of the most interesting aspects of the various studies and research. Be ready to be surprised because a lot of it is different from what we’ve been hearing about how to manage Gen Y. It’s time to separate fact from fiction when it comes to Gen Y salespeople and how to manage them.

“The Children now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority, they show disrespect for adults, and love to talk rather than work or exercise… They contradict their parents, chatter in front of company, gobble down their food at the table, and intimidate their teachers.”

Who made that astute pronouncement? Socrates (469-399 B.C.E.)! As the quote from Socrates demonstrates, every generation thinks the younger generation has it too easy and is obnoxious. And, that holds true for the older three generations currently in the workforce with Gen Y. It is probably felt more intently because Gen Y workers now make up the largest segment of workers and are growing.

As you read through this information it’s important to keep in mind that even though this is research done on Gen Y salespeople, it’s still generalized. Not every Gen Y salesperson is of course the same. You need to take into account the type of industry you are in, the type of sales, and the individual’s sales talents as well. This information is just a starting point. The best way to know which of this applies to your Gen Y salespeople? Ask them!

FACT 1: The Number 1 Motivator For Gen Y Salespeople Is Money: This one surprised me. Yes, I know that for most salespeople this is a primary motivator, but I didn’t think it would overwhelmingly be number one for Gen Y. There are so many articles about how Gen Y wants to make a difference in their work and are willing to work for less money if it is a company they believe in, yada, yada, yada. Well, guess what? That didn’t even make the top 5 among Gen Y Salespeople. Gen Y salespeople are motivated by money and access to good managers.

FACT 2: Gen Y Salespeople Are Mouthy Expressive. Keep in mind that GenY has grown up on the web. A research study done by Vorsight & The Bridge Group, Inc., on Gen Y salespeople calls it the “democratization of voice on the web.” It means they have always been able to express any opinion they have to just about anyone they want, through the internet. If you have an idea, you can float it out there to all your friends, as well as strangers, and see if spreads; if it has merit. Gen Y salespeople have taken this same expression into the workplace. What feels disrespectful or exasperating to Gen Y and Boomer managers, seems natural to them. That is, to express how you feel about something you are asked to do, or to have an idea put out there for evaluation by others rather than just being told “no” by their manager. If you are managing Gen Y salespeople you need to be willing to listen to their opinions and feedback – even when unsolicited – and be prepared to discuss. This is why many refer to this generation as Generation WHY rather than Generation Y!

FACT 3: Gen Y Salespeople Crave Recognition. Most salespeople enjoy recognition in some form. After all, it is this ego drive that helps propel them to achieve. The difference is that research on Gen Y salespeople shows that they need it a lot more often. Constant feedback is critical to their success or failure. And, they want it now. In a 2012 research study by Achievers and Experience Inc, 80% of Gen Y said they prefer on-the-spot recognition over formal reviews, and feel that this is imperative for their growth and understanding of a job.

FACT 4: Gen Y Salespeople Will Not Typically Leave A Job Just For More Money. Gen Y overall has been described as “job jumpers.” So, it would stand to reason that money motivated Gen Y salespeople would probably be even more like this. Actually, the research shows that isn’t the case. Most would prefer to stay with their current company IF there is a clear career path where they can continue to develop marketable skills and grow their income. In other words, if you show them that they can accomplish their work ambitions with your company, they would like that. If you can’t, they will jump. And really, weren’t you the same way when you were in your 20s? Why would you stay in a position if you feel there are no growth opportunities? Growth doesn’t necessarily mean management either. It means learning new skills, additional training, financial growth, etc.

FACT 5: Gen Y Salespeople Are Impatient But They Are Not Lazy. Yes, they are constantly looking for the next big thing and need to be kept challenged. They tend to work fast, and work on the go. So while managers say Gen Y salespeople aren’t willing to put in long hours, according to a research study by Sibson Consulting; it also found that in actuality, they are more willing to do work in off hours than other generations, but on their own terms. They just aren’t sitting at the office doing it.

FACT 6: Gen Y Salespeople Are Goal Oriented. This may explain then, why the same research study found that those managers also said that 92% of their Gen Y salespeople met their goals as well or better than salespeople of different generations. What this seems to tell us is that while Gen Y salespeople may not want to be at the office until 7pm or come in early, somehow they are getting the work done, and done well.

FACT 7: Gen Y Salespeople Need Different Training. Gen Y salespeople say that they feel the other generations move too slow. They hate going through training with older salespeople because they believe the others are holding them back. They are used to doing things online and quickly. Remember this is a group that grew up playing video games. They tend to learn by doing (experiential learners) rather than being lectured. They need training that is interactive and allows them to experience what is being taught.

FACT 8: Gen Y Salespeople Want More Coaching And Mentoring. When Gen Y salespeople were asked what would help them be more successful, this was the number one answer. This is a generation that is used to having hands-on guidance from parents and teachers. They look to managers to be their mentors and provide insight and feedback. Veteran salespeople can be called upon to mentor as well. And by the way, they are on to something when it comes to mentoring. A research study done on this topic found that 35% of salespeople who do NOT receive mentoring look for another job within 12 months.

FACT 9: Gen Y Salespeople Like Contests & Competitions. One of the common things you read about Gen Y is that they aren’t competitive because they are the “trophy generation” where everyone gets a prize just for participating. We read that they are group oriented (which is true) and that they prefer team goals to individual competition. But this is where Gen Y salespeople differ. They like having individual goals, and they want to know how their goals tie-in to the bigger picture of the company. Gen Y salespeople are competitive and like contests, with 86% responding to a survey that they participate. This is especially true when they get to have input on what the reward will be.

Just what are the rewards that Gen Y salespeople like the most overall? They want cold hard cash, career development opportunities, and trips. (Study by Dr. David Brookmire)

FACT 10: Gen Y Salespeople Don’t Respond Well To “Command and Control” Management. The “command and control” management style works through extrinsic motivators such as threats, dictates, and a manager who is a “commander” instead of a “coach.” That is not how Gen Y was raised and not what they experienced in school and college. This style of management stunts Gen Y salespeople because it inhibits their intrinsic motivation, which is the desire to feel ownership of their work and to feel good helping their clients and achieving goals. Gen Y salespeople work hard when they feel important and appreciated which is called the “psychological pay” principle. A “command and control” management style takes that feeling away from them.

The last piece information I’ll end with is from an article on Inc.com about the most common mistakes a Gen Y salesperson makes.

1. Giving The Prospective Client Too Much Information At Once. This is a common mistake – where the salesperson just throws up information all over the client. Because Gen Y is so good at collecting information – especially about their product, they go overboard and inundate the client with more data than most could ever want. Teaching a Gen Y salesperson to edit is a valuable use of your coaching time.

2. Not Having Information About The Client’s Company. Interestingly though, they tend to not do enough due diligence on the prospective client’s product or services. They need to be focused more on learning about the client and less on presenting why their company’s products are the best.

3. Not Showing Proper Deference To The Client. This issue relates to style as much as anything else. Gen Y salespeople can come across as cocky little know-it-alls to prospective clients. Instead of telling a client what they should be doing, they need to be more consultative and ask questions. They also need to remember that the client knows more about his or her business than the salesperson does, and show respect for that knowledge.

4. Not Having A Clear Expectation And Goal For The Meeting. Too many times a Gen Y salesperson will go into a client meeting and not have a clear idea of what he or she wants to accomplish in that meeting. They need to decide what the end result goal of the meeting is to be, so that they can properly evaluate if it was a success. Simply presenting an idea and ending with an “I’ll get back with you next week,” isn’t a clear goal. An expectation of a “next step” at the very least, should be a goal for each meeting.

“What I hear, I forget. What I see, I remember. What I do, I understand.” - Confucius

Gen Y/Millennial Salespeople – The Facts Infographic:

January 18, 2013

Why Do Job Candidates Do These Things??? (And If They Do…Run!)

I’m just going to start right off the bat and say, I know this whole topic is snarky and a little cynical. And, I know that this rant could be turned around and just as easily be stupid things interviewing managers say and do. (Hmmm, future blog post alert!) But, I’ve been compiling these “pet peeves” over the years and frankly, it’s time to air the dirty laundry. So, if you are interviewing or even just applying for a job – don’t do this stuff. If you are the hiring manager and see any of the things listed here, be wary! Oh, and feel free to pile on and add your comments as well.

Obviously when you are responding to a job posting, you aren’t going to use your email address at your current job; you use a personal email address. That’s fine. But if your personal email is a little too personal, like BustyBabe@whatever.com, don’t bother responding. Is it really that hard to go onto Yahoo or Google and create a new email address that is appropriate for business correspondence? How can I take you seriously, YouDaMan@ or LivinLarge@? (Yes, those are actual email monikers I’ve had correspondence from…)

If your mission statement/objective listed at the top of your resume says “Seeking a career position that utilizes my extensive knowledge of event coordination…” and the open position is for sales; I’m thinking “no.” Even if you don’t have relevant experience, at least tailor your objective to the position for which you are applying! Tell me why you want this position and what attributes you would bring to it. That opening statement on your resume is the hook – like the lead in a print article – to get me to keep reading. How about tailoring your whole resume to the job you are applying for while you’re at it? No, not lying, but customizing. That means listing the skills and experiences that are most relevant to this position.

Have examples to back up your claims about successes. I WANT to hear about how fabulous you are, but I need you to be able to give me specifics. I’m continually shocked at how many times someone will talk about being a “top-biller” or landing a great account and then not be able to give me a specific example. Specifics give you credibility, vagueness gives you the aura of a faker.

But don’t ramble. Yes, give examples and detail, but keep it focused and stay on point. Sometimes I want to shout, “You’re circling over Omaha, bring it in for a landing!”

Please stop answering “a little of both” to every question I ask about preferences. As in, “Do you prefer working independently or having a set path to follow?” Or, “Would you say you are someone who prefers a steady pace or someone who prefers not knowing what each day will bring?” Yes, to some degree you might like a little of both, but we’re talking about overall preferences – as in, if you had to choose which one suits you best. Stop straddling the middle of the road; take a stand and answer how you truly think.

Stop saying “like” when you should be using “said.” This is particularly an issue with ”Millennials” but not exclusively. As in, “I was like, ‘you shouldn’t do that’ and my boss was like, ‘it really doesn’t matter’.” It’s distracting, and I find myself counting how many times you say “like” instead of listening to what you are trying to tell me.

When I call you for an initial phone interview, could you at least seem a little excited? I have no visual cues to go on like you do in an in-person interview, so amp it up! Have extra energy to compensate for that lack of non-verbal information.

If you don’t stop giving me one or two-word responses, I swear I’m going to just abruptly end the interview with a two-word response of my own, as in “we’re done!” An interview is about exchanging information to see if you are the right fit for our company and if we are the right fit for you. It’s a conversation not an interrogation. If you don’t elaborate and give some depth and detail to your answers, that’s hard to do. If the interviewer isn’t very good at asking open-ended questions and is asking too many “yes” or “no” questions, you can always answer “yes” or “no” and then follow-up with an explanation or example.

Please don’t take two days to respond back to my email. Yes, I know you are busy with your current job, but if you aren’t getting back to me right away then I can only assume you would not get back to a client right away either.

Proof read EVERYTHING you send. I actually tracked this for a couple of weeks a few months ago. 89% of the emails, cover letters, or resumes that I received had typos or grammatical errors. Not only does this show lack of attention to detail, it also can make you look stupid. How do I know that you won’t make these same mistakes with clients? (For a whole separate blog rant on grammar and speaking mistakes click here.)

Dress appropriately for your in-person interview. And don’t bring your Starbucks in with you.

Answer my objections before I even bring them up to you. Evaluate yourself as if you are the prospective employer and all you know about you is what is on your resume or LinkedIn profile. What concerns would you have about hiring you? Chances are, I have the same concerns so be proactive and address them. It’s really impressive when you do – it shows self-awareness and of course the ability to overcome objections with a prospective client.

Be interested in the position you are applying for please! I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been interviewing someone for a sales position only to discover in the interview that the person isn’t really interested in selling. (“What I really want is to be an on-air personality!” If you are only interested in this position as a way to get your foot in the door in the hopes of getting some completely non-related position in the company, you are wasting your time and mine.

5 Steps For Getting REAL Information From Candidates’ References, Yes It’s Possible,

My 25 Favorite Salesperson Interview Questions,

Looking To Hire? Ten Free Recruitment Websites, The DOS And DON’TS Of Interviewing,

6 Free Ways To Recruit Salespeople On Twitter, 6 Free Ways to Recruit Salespeople On LinkedIn

Here’s an interesting infographic for Interviewers and Interviewees!

Infographic from www.ClassesandCareers.com

January 14, 2013

The Number 1 Thing Your Employees Want More Of…(No, It’s Not Money)

What’s the number one thing talented employees want? To be praised and appreciated for what they do. Research studies continually show that this aspect of a job is the one that most determines whether or not you retain your top performers. Why then do those same research studies find that it is also the area employees say managers neglect? We all know that praising our staff is important and most of us feel that we are doing it on a regular basis. So again, why do most employees say they aren’t getting it? Probably it is because we don’t do it the right way. In fact, many managers are really bad at it. I know what you’re thinking, “Can praise ever really be bad?” Isn’t it like pizza, even when it’s done badly, it’s still pretty darn good? Actually, praise delivered in the wrong way can have the opposite effect of what you intended. More about that in a minute…

Praise, The Addictive Drug

Praise is absolutely critical to a person feeling positive about his work. Gallup found that 69% of employees prefer praise and recognition from their managers more than financial rewards, and 82% percent say when they receive praise it inspires them to improve their performance.

How much praise does someone need? Gallup suggests that most people need daily praise in their work environment. In a study* published in American Psychologist, researchers found that top performers experienced a positive to negative emotions ratio at a minimum 3:1 and as high as 11:1. This means that for a person to “flourish” he/she needs to experience at least 3 positive interactions for every 1 negative. When you think about how much negative feedback a salesperson receives every day, it becomes more apparent why sales managers in particular, need to supply the positive feedback in order to stimulate those positive emotions. That is where praise comes into play.

When you praise a person it obviously produces positive emotions. This causes a chemical reaction in the brain and a release of the chemical called Dopamine. This is the powerful and addictive chemical that when released, makes a person feel joy, pleasure, or pride. When Dopamine is released, it is exactly the same chemical response that happens after taking cocaine. If you praise someone for a particular behavior, Dopamine is released which gives the person a “high” and makes him want to repeat the behavior to induce that feeling again. And, praising your employees is a lot cheaper than cocaine.

All of this may sound very time consuming. How are you going to find time to praise all of your employees on a daily basis? First, YOU are not the only one who can be doling out the praise. Encourage a culture of peer recognition and praise. Getting praise from a co-worker can produce the same rush of emotions as it does when a person receives it from a boss. Secondly, it’s likely that you interact with your employees many times throughout the day and probably over a hundred times a week. Praising someone can take 10 seconds.

The more difficult thing is remembering to do it. When you see or hear about something praiseworthy make a note or enter it in your calendar or to-do list so that you don’t forget to deliver the praise. A helpful tool is a Praise Log. It’s a simple way to keep track of who and what you want to praise. if you track yourself with this tool, you will find it becomes second nature and you will develop your praise muscles!

How To Give (And NOT Give) Praise

Be Specific. Praise needs to given for a specific behavior. Passing someone in the hall and saying, “Hey, you’re doing a great job, I appreciate it,” is NOT praise. In fact, that is the type of thing that will have the opposite effect on a person. Now that person is wondering, “Does she even KNOW what I do or care?” Instead, try something like, “I really appreciate the way you took care of Client XYZ’s issue with billing. I know that was difficult and I just wanted to thank you.” When you are done, leave – don’t go on to bring up other work situations – that can be done separately. You want the person to have a moment to digest the praise and feel the release of Dopamine.

Go To Their Turf. Don’t call your employee into your office to deliver praise. It’s more effective if you make the effort to go to them. Besides, everybody’s stomach drops with a summons to the boss’ office even if you haven’t done anything wrong (it’s like that feeling when you see a police car behind you and are nervous even if you aren’t speeding). If you can’t deliver it in-person then write a handwritten note, email, text, call, or leave a voice mail message. In-person praise is powerful but I also think it’s good to mix in written praise as well. Written notes can be saved and pulled out and re-read when you need a little pick-me-up.

Be Sincere. Seems like a no-brainer, but don’t praise someone if you don’t genuinely feel appreciative. Most salespeople have a very well developed B.S. detector.

Be Timely. Try to give the praise as close to the action that warranted it, to reinforce the behavior.

Praise Something Less Obvious. Yes, you should praise a salesperson for getting a great sale. But it is also important to praise some of the “little things” that a person does that helps get to the accomplishment. Praise the behaviors you want to see repeated.

Praise Along The Way. Don’t always wait to praise an end result. Give praise for continuing work on a difficult task. This type of praise encourages a person to keep pushing and not give up.

Praise Everyone. It’s important to praise all of your employees, regularly. This includes your veterans as well as rookies. Don’t think a veteran sales person doesn’t need it – I guarantee you no matter how much praise the person has received, it’s like jello, “there’s always room for more.” What if you have an employee and you can’t find anything sincere and genuine to praise? Fire the employee – she is in the wrong position and deserves to work in a job where she can shine.

Praise Is Not Deli Meat. Therefore, praise should not be “sandwiched” between corrective feedback. Praise should ALWAYS be given without any “buts” or other information attached to it.

Manners Are Not Praise. Saying “thank you for getting me that report” or “thanks for your help” is not praise. It’s good manners to say these things (which are very important of course) but don’t confuse it with praise. Saying, “thank you for getting me that report and outlining your ideas the way you did; it really helped me understand the issues better and make a better decision” is praise.

Get Over Yourself. Sometimes managers are uncomfortable giving praise. They feel it comes across awkward or they get nervous. That’s ok. You still need to give it. Like anything else, practice makes it easier. Remember, this isn’t about how YOU feel, it’s about the person you are praising.

Commit to making praising your employees a top priority. You’ll boost those positivity ratios and you’ll see a boost in your team’s productivity as well.

“The two things people want more than sex or money are recognition and praise.” - Mary Kay Ash, Founder Of Mary Kay Cosmetics

*2005, American Psychologist, Barbara L. Fredrickson and Marcial F. Losada study

How To Be A Good Boss Infographic:

January 7, 2013

5 Steps For Getting REAL Information From Candidates’ References…Yes, It’s Possible!

Think reference checking is a waste of time? Out of 17,368 people who were interviewing for a job* and who were told their interview statements and resume information would be verified, 1/3 were found to have lied!

Contrary to what many employers think, there really ARE effective ways to do reference checking on a salesperson (or sales manager) candidate and get valuable information to help you in your hiring decisions.

STEP 1: The Consent Form Waiver. Each candidate that you plan on checking references for should sign a reference check consent form. This has become standard procedure in many industries and a candidate should have no problem agreeing to this. (Click here for a sample form.) Having this is critical to getting reference participation, because you can then tell references you have this waiver and can email it to them. This enables references to feel more comfortable in being candid about the candidate.

STEP 2: You Choose The References. This is key… YOU can decide who you want to be a reference and tell the candidate, instead of the candidate choosing. How does this work? First, in your interviews with candidates, make sure you take good notes on the answers to your questions about former bosses, co-workers, and clients. Then, if you decide to proceed in the hiring process with the candidate, you will have a list of names to request to talk to and specific information to ask the references about in your call. Here are the types of questions that will yield you this information:

Client Examples: Ask candidates to tell you about a sale (or accomplishment) with a customer they are proud of and why. Ask for one example from their current job, and one from a previous job. Jot down the names of the clients and a few key points. When you are ready to ask for references, tell the candidate you would like to talk to the current client. If the candidate says she can’t do that because she doesn’t want the current client to know she is interviewing, no problem, ask for the client from her previous position example. You can also ask for examples of long-term client relationships, clients where they grew them from small investments to large investments, etc.

Former Boss Examples: Ask candidates to tell you about the best boss they ever had and why. Again, take note if they say the name of the person, at the very least they will certainly mention which company it was. Variations on this question could be, “From which boss did you learn the most? Which boss would you be willing to work for again and why?” When it is time to do reference checks you can refer back to these examples and tell the candidate you want to speak with them as references. Make it clear to candidates that it is your policy to speak to at a minimum, one former boss so they know this isn’t optional. If you get excuses such as the person isn’t there anymore or they are no longer in contact with the former boss, be wary. Rarely does a person lose contact with a favorite boss and have no idea how to get in touch with him or her.

Co-worker Examples: Outside sales is an individual pursuit, not a team sport. However, it’s important to know if a candidate can play nice with others inside the building. Also, co-workers give you a different perspective of a person than that of former bosses and clients. Ask candidates for an example of how they worked with someone in another department to achieve a goal. A truthful example will almost always include a specific name of a person – even if it is just a first name. Note the key points of the example. Or, you could ask for an example of a co-worker they admired and why or who they learned from the most. Now you will have the name or names of co-workers that you can request to talk to for your reference checking.

You need to speak to a minimum of at least 3 references. It’s important to get a variety of perspectives in order to accurately judge the information you receive. Reference checking isn’t just about verifying facts, it also can significantly aid in understanding a person’s skills, and help you determine if the person is a good fit for your company’s culture and your management style.

STEP 3: How To Contact The References. What’s the best way for you to contact the references you have requested? You don’t, the candidate does. Once you have determined who you want to talk to you have the candidate call the references and set up the appointments. Aren’t they going to “coach” the references? If they are smart they will, but so what? That can happen no matter who is facilitating the calls, that doesn’t mean you aren’t going to get information that may help you.

Give the candidate several days and time windows to offer the references. By having the candidate set the calls, you don’t waste time chasing down the references and it dramatically increases the likelihood that the person will keep the appointment. Once the call appointments are confirmed have the candidate give you email addresses for each one so that you can send in advance of the call, a copy of the Reference Checking Consent Form Waiver that you had the candidate sign.

STEP 4: What To Ask The References. Obviously this depends on the relationship of the candidate to the person giving the reference. Here are some types of questions you might ask:

Client References: Certainly you will want to refer back to your interview notes about the example the candidate gave you and ask some specific questions about it; such as, “Jessica said that she was most proud of the XYZ idea she put together for you. Can you tell me a little about that and why it was successful?” You might also ask what the client’s first impression of the candidate was and if that changed once the client started working with him or her. Or, ask the client how the candidate first approached the client and what persuaded the client to give her business to the candidate. Another good question is, “Jessica says she is a creative problem solver. Was she able to demonstrate that with you?” These types of questions will tell you a lot about the process candidates use in their selling as well as their relationship building skills.

Former Boss References: You will want to ask some of the basic verification questions such as dates of employment, compensation, is the person eligible for re-hire, etc. Then you can get into asking questions about the specific example(s) the candidate gave you about that person. “John said that you were the best boss he ever had. What is it that you think was most important in managing him?” Other leading questions are, “What do you feel was John’s most significant accomplishment?” “How often did John surpass his budget goals?” “How does he handle stress?” “How does he build relationships with people inside the building?” “What are the most important things for me to do if I am his manager?” “What are his motivators?” “What should I be careful not to do?” You might want to wrap up with a “rating” question such as, “On a 1-5 scale with 5 being the absolute best, how would you rate John on: Professionalism… Dependability/Responsibility… Initiative… Sales Drive… Attitude?”

Co-worker References: Start off with questions about the examples that the candidate gave you in the interview about this person. Ask a co-worker for three adjectives that come to mind when describing the candidate. You can ask the co-worker what attributes set this candidate apart from other salespeople. Ask the co-worker how he would describe the relationships that the candidate had with clients. You might want to ask if the candidate was good at developing relationships with support personnel and examples of such. Co-worker references can provide great insight into a candidate because people tend to be more relaxed and truer to their real nature when with co-workers versus a boss or a client.

When talking to references, don’t forget…
♦ Take good notes
♦ Follow H.R. policies
♦ Be friendly and conversational (this isn’t an interrogation)
♦ Ask open-ended questions
♦ Listen, listen, listen

Step 5: Social Media/Online Resources. Always check the candidate’s LinkedIn profile. They can be a treasure trove of information. You can also fact check information candidates have told you in the interview with their profile. Scroll through the candidate’s connections and see if you have any mutual ones or even 2^nd degree connections. These are potentially people you may want to speak to in your reference checking.

There are online, automated services that can help you gather reference checking information and provide helpful additional insights. One such company is www.Checkster.com. You decide how many references and what type of references (i.e., 2 former bosses, 3 clients, etc.) you want the candidate to invite to participate. The references go online and answer a questionnaire about the candidate. The questions are tailored to your open job position and the information that is important to you. The references responses remain anonymous. This can significantly aid in references providing more specific information about the candidate.

The job candidate is required to sign an online consent form and a release of liabilities form. Because it is an automated process, it ensures that there is consistency in the questions being asked about each of your candidates. There is also a sophisticated reference fraud detection process in place. A minimum of 3 and a maximum of 20 references can participate and the candidate takes a self-assessment as well. The employer then receives a detailed report of the findings and a “gap analysis” report comparing the candidate’s self-assessment with that of the references. It’s economical (prices depend on volume) and a time efficient way to gather valuable information about your candidates. (Click HERE to test drive the process for free.)

One last thing… Don’t wait and do references on a final candidate. You may be too invested in the candidate by that point to evaluate the information you receive in an unbiased way. Instead, do reference checks earlier in the hiring process with perhaps your top 3 candidates. It’s too important to leave it to the last minute or not do at all!

“I don’t live to work, it’s more the other way around. I work to live. Incidentally, what’s your policy on Columbus Day?”

– Owen Wilson’s character in the movie “You, Me and Dupree”

* Research study by Julia Levashina, Frederick P. Morgeson, Michael A. Campion

Steve Jobs On Hiring And Managing Talented People

Why Every Newly Hired Salesperson Needs A “Sales Pal”

Steps For Keeping Your New Sales Hire From Circling The Drain

The Dos And Don’ts Of Interviewing

My 25 Favorite Salesperson Interview Questions

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45% of Gen Y respondents agreed with the statement

“Gen Y feels entitled to job benefits they haven’t yet earned.”

73% of Gen Y respondents agreed with the statement

“Gen Y wants instant gratification.”

“Good is the enemy of great”

-Jim Collins, author, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’tpp

An Infographic On “The Perils Of Mulitasking” by OnlineCollege.org

1 Gen Y Perceptions Study by Spectrum Knowledge and The Career Center at Cal State Fullerton

2 What Millennial Workers Want by Robert Half International

3 http://HBR.org/2011/05/stat-watch-multitasking-101/ar/1

4 http://www.PsychologyToday.com/blog/brain-trust/201202/is-your-brain-multitasking

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“40% of newly promoted managers fail within 18 months of starting new jobs”

“Why do you want to become a manager?”

Infographic: When Your Star Wants To Be A Manager

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¹ ”The Role of Positivity and Connectivity in the Performance of Business Teams: A Nonlinear Dynamics Model” by Emily Heaphy & Marcial Losada American Behavioral Scientist.

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An infographic on the power of praise:

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Not looking for talent in the right places (and not looking continually).

Using job ads/posts that are poorly written.

Not addressing top talent’s hot buttons.

Not setting expectations with the candidate about the hiring process.

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Here is an interesting infographic on the signs that your “rockstar” may be looking to hit the road!

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“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

Salesperson Plateauing Syndrome Infographic:

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The 3 Types Of High Maintenance Employees Infographic:

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Sales Managers Time Priorities Infographic:

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If you think your teacher is tough, wait until you get a boss. He doesn’t have tenure. -Bill Gates

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Here’s an interesting infographic on the costs of turnover…

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“The Children now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority, they show disrespect for adults, and love to talk rather than work or exercise… They contradict their parents, chatter in front of company, gobble down their food at the table, and intimidate their teachers.”

“What I hear, I forget. What I see, I remember. What I do, I understand.” - Confucius

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Gen Y/Millennial Salespeople – The Facts Infographic:

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Here’s an interesting infographic for Interviewers and Interviewees!

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“The two things people want more than sex or money are recognition and praise.” - Mary Kay Ash, Founder Of Mary Kay Cosmetics

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How To Be A Good Boss Infographic:

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“I don’t live to work, it’s more the other way around. I work to live. Incidentally, what’s your policy on Columbus Day?”

– Owen Wilson’s character in the movie “You, Me and Dupree”

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Here’s an interesting infographic on the most popular lies people use on their resumés and in interviews….

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¹ Gen Y Perceptions Study by Spectrum Knowledge and The Career Center at Cal State Fullerton

² What Millennial Workers Want by Robert Half International

³ http://HBR.org/2011/05/stat-watch-multitasking-101/ar/1

⁴ http://www.PsychologyToday.com/blog/brain-trust/201202/is-your-brain-multitasking