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ENGAGE ME STRATEGIES FROM THE SALES EFFECTIVENESS SOURCE KEVIN HIGGINS blue 100 40 0 5 yellow 0 10 100 0 dark yellow 0 15 100 0 cards orange 0 45 100 0

Contents Great Sales Culture Engaged Sales Team 1 PART I ATTITUDE CHAPTER 1 Sales Culture 10 Personal Experience Compound Growth 12 Creating Your Sales Culture 13 Company Values 13 Coaching Mind Set 20 Company Meeting Structure 21 PART II SKILLS CHAPTER 2 Question Better Confirm More Respond Less Personal Experience Do You Have a Minute 32 Coaching Skills 32 Coaching Strengths 35 Coaching Opportunity Confirm 37 The Formula 30 39 KEVIN HIGGINS xi

CHAPTER 3 Effective Feedback Is Not a Sandwich or a Seagull 50 Personal Experience Constant Feedback Wins 52 Effective Two Way Feedback 52 The Model 57 Common Issues with the Four Steps 65 Timing and Balance in Feedback 70 PART III SALES MANAGEMENT DISCIPLINES CHAPTER 4 Good Versus Great People 76 Personal Experience Unforced Turnover 78 ROOMr 79 Recruiting 80 Onboarding 89 Ongoing Management 93 retention 104 CHAPTER 5 One on Ones Are About People and Performance Personal Experience No Chapter at Chapters 109 Standard Agenda and Form 113 1 Big Picture 114 2 Green Flags Build Confidence xii ENGAGE ME 108 The Typical One on One System 106 119

Great Sales Culture Engaged Sales Team This book is not theoretical It is a practical guide with the attitude skills and disciplines you need to possess for an engaged sales force that will deliver above plan performance A lot of what you will read is common sense it is not always common practice Many of us are familiar with the research that says people don t leave companies they leave managers We agree The we refers to myself and my colleagues at Fusion Learning Fusion Learning is a sales performance firm Our vision is to be The Sales Effectiveness Source The content of this book has been developed over the last 10 years as we have worked with hundreds of clients and thousands of sales leaders to help them dramatically improve their sales organizations Here s just a little of the feedback we ve received over the years We came in at 140 of plan Some might say Well maybe your plan was wrong No it was our most aggressive plan in years Wade Stayzer Vice President Retail Meridian Credit Union We needed to change from a transaction driven service culture to a proactive sales culture The process has produced impressive results freeing up significant time for Account Managers to meet with clients and KEVIN HIGGINS 1

My team at Fusion Learning www fusionlearninginc com is always ready to help your sales organization with its sales culture We believe a great sales culture has three components see graphical representation of a great sales culture 1 Sales Strategy 2 Sales Management Disciplines 3 Sales Process 2014 Fusion Learning Inc This book addresses the second of these three components The sales management disciplines required to have a great sales culture and an engaged sales team are 4 ENGAGE ME

Consistent and focused sales coaching and feedback Monthly One on Ones that are strategic and tactical as well as business and salesperson focused Weekly or bi weekly sales meetings that build skill and motivation Frequent Field Coaching with manager as coach and cheerleader not as captain Bi weekly pipeline management that focuses on overall pipeline health as well as individual deals Engage Me will provide a clear process and best practices for each of these disciplines This book is intended for all Sales Leaders in all types of businesses With no sales there is no company So if you are a business leader this book will give you concrete how tos to dramatically increase the success of your sales organization as demonstrated in the results shared by our clients The book is not a substitute for training it is a kick start before training or a great source book after training I wrote this book as a business leader as a coach as a trainer and as a salesperson I will at times switch voices depending on the chapter and the content Please enjoy the different styles and when we meet I will just be me Properly executing the learning in Engage Me will lead to a productive and engaged sales team Enjoy KEVIN HIGGINS 5

PA R T I ATTITUDE The attitude required to Engage Me where Me is your sales team is one of a high performing team We win together and I win individually The one chapter in this section deals with sales culture The definition I find most useful of culture is the way we do things around here It is not something that is written it is how things are done I will talk about the Fusion Learning culture not because it is perfect but because it is a strong example of culture and it delivers results a compound annual growth rate of 28 over the last 10 years Please do not try to copy it Take what is great in your culture and add in some new fresh ideas that you pick up here This chapter will introduce you to results from Fusion Learning s Sales Culture Survey The survey has three main components matching the three components of a great sales culture outlined in the introduction 1 Sales Strategy 2 Sales Management Disciplines 3 Sales Process KEVIN HIGGINS 7

The Fusion Learning Sales Culture Survey will be quoted at the start of each chapter It was conducted in 2006 2010 and in 2013 The respondents were from multiple industries Financial services High technology Office products Telecommunications Professional services Pharmaceutical Software Media Entertainment Packaged goods The respondents had sales forces that ranged from 50 to 500 and revenues ranged from less than 100 million 18 to 100 million 1 billion 45 to over 1 billion 37 Many questions were repeated on all three Fusion Learning Sales Culture Surveys but not all In the 2013 survey we added a number of new questions and dropped some that we had found not as useful The data reflects a generic viewpoint Use it as a reference point for your organization and how you stack up against peers in the same and different industries Engage Me is about having a great sales culture Let s begin with that 8 ENGAGE ME

CHAPTER 1 Sales Culture THE R ESEA RCH The Question We currently have a high performing sales culture The Response 2013 6 1 on a 10 point scale where 1 is not at all and 10 is most definitely 58 of respondents replied with 6 out of 10 or lower STR E NG T H S Strong sales cultures are easy to spot they consistently deliver above plan performance 22 of organizations ranked themselves between 8 and 10 They have a strong culture and they know it O PPO R TUN I T Y Weak sales cultures rely on heroics a few strong performers are driven to make the numbers Consistency is not present Senior management lives in fear of the bad month quarter or year 10 ENGAGE ME

D EFINI T I ON A process with the right attitude skills and disciplines for salespeople and sales leaders that holds salespeople accountable for delivering above plan performance in a way that supports our values and our culture Sales Culture that is metrics driven and predictable FU SIO N L EA RN I NG PO INT OF V I EW Sales Culture is a complex web a mesh of structure process reward recognition compensation training leading motivating coaching teaching providing feedback etc GO A L A sales culture that delivers consistent above plan performance quarterly and annually Everyone can have a bad month just don t have three in a row KEVIN HIGGINS 11

PERSONAL EXPERIENCE COMPOUND GROWTH Fusion Learning has been a Profit 200 company in Canada 1 for 7 consecutive years with a compound annual growth rate of 28 Everything you read in this book is practiced by our sales force Follow this formula and you will have a strong sales culture We did not design the culture it was more of an evolution In 2002 Fusion Learning was me and Tim Magwood the founder of Fusion We were not at all disciplined we were two individuals trying to create a company A key turning point was early in 2008 when after 7 years of consistent growth we woke up one day and said We are in trouble we have very little booked business and an extremely thin pipeline We began what became known as our all hands on deck period and formalized many informal disciplines especially sales meetings and pipeline reviews and moved from a sales team based on individual performance to a very solid team based approach We also took prospecting from an individual sport to a team sport What you will read is the culmination of our experience and the experience of the clients we have helped in a journey toward a strong sales culture that delivers results see Great Sales Culture Engaged Sales Team Many sales organizations have the components discussed in this book but may not have the results look at the quality within your disciplines if you feel the quantity is there but results are not This is not meant as the formula this is meant as the formula that works for Fusion Learning Use what you feel fits for your sales organization The top 200 fastest growing companies in Canada as named by Profit magazine 1 12 ENGAGE ME

Fusion Learning Culture A to Z One of our goals at Fusion Learning is to be recognized as a top employer We have not yet won that honor but I know we will We are going above and beyond in creating a great atmosphere at Fusion Learning with highly engaged people What keeps me awake at night is What are we missing What else should we be doing Recently on a day that this was bothering me truth be told another list of top employers came out one that we were too small to apply for and as I reviewed the facts provided for what made them the cream of the crop it felt like we had it all and then some I created the A to Z of culture at Fusion Learning Actually I got to 17 of 26 and then I went to our kitchen for Beer Fridays and had our team help me complete it Here is the list with explanations I am not suggesting that you need to follow this list to have a great sales culture I provide it as a list of examples that can help you create your A to Z culture list Undoubtedly you will notice how Fusion Learning s attitude its values and coaching mindset work into this list A Annual Incentive Trip If the team passes its annual stretch target usually about 15 over budget they are rewarded with an incentive trip Past years have included Cancun Jamaica New York City and Collingwood B Birthdays Birthdays are celebrated with cake can dles and singing You even get your choice of cake C Club Membership All employees get up to 80 per month to pay for a health club membership or a fitness activity KEVIN HIGGINS 17

O One on Ones Every employee has a formal One on One with their manager monthly These are indepth reviews that recognize success and help to build skill see Chapter Five P Play Space A recent office renovation included an 800 square foot play space including ping pong darts and HD TV Q Quarterly Bonus Every employee at Fusion Learn ing has received a quarterly bonus every quarter for 10 years R Retirement Savings The company matches up to 3500 annually S Summer Retreat Three day off site retreat every year to build skills and the team locations have included Muskoka Haliburton and Niagara onthe Lake T Taxi and Dinner Stay past 7 pm and they are paid for U Unique Work Space Brick beams open concept and glass V Vacation 3 weeks to start plus 6 personal days 4 weeks at 4 years and 5 weeks after 7 years W Wheel to Win For every new deal a salesperson chooses a co worker who helped them get the deal The co worker spins a wheel for a gift card valued from 5 to 50 X eXternal Fun Days Once per quarter a fun day past days include bowling sailing patio drinks team competition charity visits Y Yoga Weekly yoga session in the play space KEVIN HIGGINS 19

Z Zoo Days Bring your pet to the office Kipling Kya and Ellie have joined us so far Coaching Mind Set Great sales cultures view the sales team as a learning organization that can always improve Exceptional sales managers convey this attitude by looking for opportunities to groom and prime salespeople in the company s values Coaching should be a chief activity I BELIEVE A story from my former CEO that helps to illustrate this principle Our industry had created a productivity norm for salespeople that the average salesperson could sell 1 million in training per year Everybody knew the norm and if they had 10 salespeople they expected 10 million in revenue Twenty salespeople meant 20 million During a management meeting our CEO jumped on his soapbox and proclaimed Why can t the average be 2 million per salesperson We have people who sell that amount so it is possible And if we get the average to 2 million we will probably have someone selling 3 or 4 million At the time we had just over 30 salespeople and just over 30 million in revenue Fast forward a few years and the results just over 30 salespeople and just over 60 million in revenue With one salesperson breaking the 5 million mark How did we do it A strong sales culture with a clear goal to improve 20 ENGAGE ME

The sales organizations that do not believe their own press always look to improve Sales managers are the heart and soul of this consistent improvement They constantly look to Develop Sales Team Capabilities Every performer can improve from new to veteran from below plan to above plan The manager and the sales leadership team must constantly be looking for ways to take their game to the next level What are we doing to break the mold change the game and stay ahead of the competition Build Relationships with Salespeople Each salesperson is unique Each salesperson needs a strong manager They need help support guidance and often a swift kick in the butt Create Value in All Coaching Each coaching moment a One on One a funnel review field coaching and fly bys must add value to the salesperson They must say that was a good use of my time I am better off for spending time with my manager These principles are not rocket science but they must be present to create a great sales culture Are you modeling these in your sales organization Company Meeting Structure Another huge part of culture is team gatherings These can range from casual to formal from team to organization they can be used to celebrate and reward or inform and set challenges The best sales cultures have a structure that keeps KEVIN HIGGINS 21

people connected to the business and driving to surpass the stated goals Meetings set the tone for your culture Chapter Six will discuss sales team meetings in more detail The ideas in the chapter can apply to any meeting B R E A K FA S T I N C L U D E D My first sales role was at Xerox Without dating myself they were at the time known as the best sales culture They had meetings down pat Every Monday morning at 8 am every salesperson was in a meeting room with their team and their manager to kick start the sales week It worked We were there We got the week started early They also held monthly district meetings All five sales teams gathered to hear the update versus the plan celebrate some success and share some war stories Prospecting Blitz Days were held about once a month Then there were the informal meetings Lunch with anywhere from three to eight colleagues at Swiss Chalet once a week When our district manager became a stickler for in the office at 8 am and on the road by 9 am it was not odd to find the need for a hearty breakfast with colleagues at a local diner just after 9 am if he only knew where he had driven us These meetings formal and informal were a huge part of the great Xerox sales culture that I fondly remember Company meetings take some planning and tend to be of a more formal nature Here are some ideas and guidelines for frequency 22 ENGAGE ME

Sales Team Meetings Weekly My belief is sales is an hourly daily weekly activity and even the most sophisticated sales force with incredibly long sales cycles can benefit from interaction with colleagues and management This assumes an interactive productive meeting that delivers value to participants Division Company Updates Monthly From 20 to 200 to 2000 people with modern technology it is possible Live conference call webinar and e mail with an embedded video from the leader can reach the desired group Keep your team informed Thank them for their service Reward and recognize the above and beyond effort Information leads to connection and connection leads to engagement Training Sessions Daily Just kidding I am in the training business so I need to put in a plug when I can Seriously every salesperson should get 5 days of training annually 2 should be product service and 3 days should be skills training Off sites Semi annually Two critical elements to offsites formal and informal What happens at the bar at midnight is often as important as what happens during the address from the CEO Both are important Semi annual is fine as one can be a smaller local gathering maybe just the sales team and one can be larger a regional national or international meeting to build skill motivation connection and society Holiday Parties Annually Hold it in January if the December prices are too high Organizations who put on an event for their team get great publicity with KEVIN HIGGINS 23

Figure 1 Top 10 Conference Tips 1 Do nothing until you answer this question What do I want to see my people do differently as a result of the conference By creating OutcomeFocused Activity rather than Agenda Focused Schedules you will be a leader of change setting more actionable tasks for your team to grab hold of and run with 2 Include an Open Mic or Questions and Answers time hosted by executives By merging management members in the learning session with your team you ll ensure corporate goals and daily activities mesh thus increasing opportunities for individual success as part of the corporate mandate 3 Invite Clients to the meeting and create structured learning activities with them Their feedback will be instructive ensuring authentic scenarios lead to real world success strategies 4 Frequently put people in teams or groups to demonstrate the most recent learning and skills i e Mid Morning Recall Game You ll ensure participants are consistently paying keen attention learning by doing Repetition is essential 5 Encourage executive presentations to have less detail and more activities The process of learning works best when participants focus on doing a few things really well rather than trying to do many things sparsely 6 Include White Space allow times for people to have unscheduled downtime Sure intense boot camps sound like you mean business but employees who sense that the company cares about them as people by offering them a quality experience will always give back more 7 Cross pollination have time in regions AND have learning activities for people across regions to share challenges successes etc This isn t just a head office meeting It s important for everyone to feel fully involved on a highly personal level 8 Invest in the sizzle location entertainment award dinners etc as well as the steak workshop design and content A prudent blend of education and relaxation always makes for more memorable and impactful learning while rewarding success 9 Remember that workshops can have Presentations Multi media Stations Role plays real plays Pairs trios teams Competitive exercises Simulations Games Debates 10 Think of at least one activity each day that can remove people from their comfort zone This will help them think outside the box promoting self examination of their skills attitudes and the views that they are accustomed to following all of which leads to discovering ways to make improvements in their daily approach to their work 2014 Fusion Learning Inc KEVIN HIGGINS 25

PA R T I I SKILLS We have the right attitude to create a great sales culture and we are going to look at the sales management disciplines required but before we do we must visit the fundamentals of great sales management coaching and feedback Think of your favorite sport they all have fundamentals that require constant focus and constant work to continuously sharpen the saw Golf has grip stance and swing Tennis has grip forehand backhand and serve Even the most accomplished professionals who have won many tournaments spend more time practicing the fundamentals than they spend playing matches Coaching and feedback when done correctly and frequently will elicit engagement If your salespeople are constantly improving how can they not be engaged One professional services firm used to publicize to new hires that they were not the highest paying firm but they were the best at coaching Those who joined them would learn faster and climb the ranks quicker ultimately leading them to make more money than if they went to a higher paying competitor The two chapters in this section will not teach coaching and feedback but rather encourage you to hold up a mirror KEVIN HIGGINS 27

CHAPTER 2 Question Better Confirm More Respond Less THE R ESEA RCH The Question We have a strong culture of coaching development and continuous improvement in our sales organization The Response 2006 From sales leaders 5 4 on a 10 point scale where 1 is poor and 10 is most definitely Ouch The Response 2010 and 2013 6 5 out of 10 and 6 3 out of 10 respectively About 50 of respondents replied with 6 out of 10 or lower The Question Sales leaders and sales managers are held accountable for the coaching development and performance improvement of their staff The Response Using our 8 out of 10 standard 50 are held accountable while 50 are not STR E NG T H S Sales leaders are committed to helping their teams to hit plan 30 ENGAGE ME

New sales team members are given time and encouragement for a few months When sales managers are not rushed they are very consultative in coaching O PPO R TUN I T Y Very good intentions to make time for coaching With too much to do it becomes the D priority Do it if I can Rush to solve sales team issues which leads to us solving their problems D EFINI T I ON Coaching is about questioning and listening a lot more than sharing your knowledge ideas and suggestions FU SIO N L EA RN I NG PO INT OF V I EW Sales leader s job is not to create sales it s to create salespeople Coaching skills are critical to success GO A L Measure talk time in coaching sessions should be 2 3 salesperson 1 3 manager Measure frequency of coachee finding solution vs manager they should determine their own action plan 75 of the time Are you catching fish for your salespeople or teaching them to fish KEVIN HIGGINS 31

PERSONAL EXPERIENCE D O Y O U H AV E A M I N U T E Giving advice is easy coaching is tough My first workshop with managers was in 1992 and the skills taught then are similar to the skills taught today In the classroom I can demonstrate great coaching with no trouble But in the office e mails are stacking up my calendar is back to back my to do list is long and I hear the knock knock on my door Do you have a minute What is my reaction Sure come on in What am I thinking This is not going to be a minute I have so much to do hope this is a simple one and quick Let s get through this STOP This is a coaching moment and I need to be careful not to solve their problem unless they are not capable of solving it on their own Solve it this time and they will be back again and again Why wouldn t they Tough issue go see the boss they always know what to do If you solve you train them to come to you with issues If you coach and allow them to solve for themselves they will learn that it is not necessary to go to the boss for help with problems When they do come you will know it is a tough one that they really do need help with Coaching Skills I have some great news You have the skills that you require to be a world class coach You need to learn nothing new to be fantastic Well that s not quite true You need to learn how to adjust how you use the skills that you already have to be even more successful than you are currently As we all know sometimes un learning can be more difficult than learning 32 ENGAGE ME

Here are the five skills we ve all learned to use when coaching see Figure 2 Figure 2 Coaching Skills 2014 Fusion Learning Inc 1 Acknowledge The use of verbals i e Yes Hmmm Ah ha etc and non verbals body language like nodding our heads and making eye contact Acknowledges to the salesperson that we are genuinely listening to them and we are interested in what they are saying 2 Question Questions help us gather information about the salesperson their situation and their challenges Ask them about their perspective A good phrase to use is Tell me more about that 3 Confirm We use Confirm to help us make the prog ress of our discussion very explicit In communication messages can get lost Confirm allows us to KEVIN HIGGINS 33

Too often we rush to get some of the answer to the first question and then we lob a response that we hope will get them on their way Often it does not because they have already tried that idea We need to question better Everyone learns close ended questions and open ended questions What we are not taught is the difference between just okay open questions and great open questions Great open ended questions we call Thoughtful Questions A just okay open ended question will get the coachee talking and sharing all kinds of information We need this to get the facts A Thoughtful Question will force them to think Engage the Brain or to share feelings Engage the Heart Let s see a few examples of Thoughtful Questions that could be used in a coaching conversation ENGAGE THE BRAIN 1 Compare this month and last month What led to your greater success 2 Analyze your recent sales success What are the three key factors that led to it 3 Define a great sales week with specific activity metrics 4 Evaluate your current sales pipeline and steps you need to take to improve 5 Map out your next 60 days including a few key milestones 6 If you were in my seat what coaching would you give to you 7 Outline a strategy and timeline to respond to the Request For Proposal that will be highly effective 8 Substantiate why your bonus should be higher 40 ENGAGE ME

ENGAGE THE HEART 9 Consider the time when you were happiest in this role What made you feel that way 10 Describe the times in selling when you have the most energy and the times when you have the least energy 11 Express a frustration you have that is impacting your sales productivity 12 Give details of the steps you are taking to be more empathetic to your support team 13 Measure your emotional reactions at work when you are happy and when you are stressed What are the key differences 14 Share how you feel on a great sales day and how you feel on a really tough sales day Follow up question What steps do we take to get more great ones These are powerful questions We must be careful when we use them that we have earned the right to ask them They are also very situational and need to be developed for each coaching situation Looking at the list of 14 questions above in your coaching today how many Thoughtful Questions did you ask Questioning Better is not about more questions it is about less questions that unearth more and better information If you want to improve your questioning start to build a repertoire of Thoughtful Questions Create ones that work for you Create ones you are comfortable with Keep your list close when coaching so that you replace some close ended and some open ended questions with thoughtful ones When you ask Thoughtful Questions you will often get one of the following two responses KEVIN HIGGINS 41

1 That is a great question Or a slightly different ver sion might be No one has ever asked me that before 2 I am not quite sure what you are asking Can you repeat the question In both situations the wheels are turning as they try to formulate a response Be patient It is a tough question and they need time to create their answer Do not ruin a great question by interrupting their thought process In the case of comment number two you will need to repeat the question but be careful don t change it Repeat the exact same question but say it a bit more slowly or a bit louder just to change it up THOUGHTFUL QUESTION HELPS COACH AND COACHEE I once managed a sales leader who I found tough to engage in feedback It often started well but it would turn confrontational which would then require extra coaching time to try to unwind the tension It was frustrating for me and for him In getting ready for a One on One I prepared a Thoughtful Question to start our meeting Rate your ability to take feedback and explain He immediately responded Poor And I have always been poor at taking feedback He gave me a number of facts that really helped me to understand his point of view including some very important details from his past This led to a great discussion about how we could work together to make feedback work for him and dramatically improve my ability to coach him 42 ENGAGE ME

Confirm More Let s replay the definition We use Confirm to help us make the progress of our discussion very explicit In communication messages can get lost Confirm allows us to ensure that we have correctly heard the salesperson and that we have not missed any information they have given us One way to Confirm is to paraphrase what we have heard It is also our opportunity to create value by interpreting integrating or summarizing information Confirm is not repeating it is summarizing and adding value Help the salesperson to be really clear about the conversation you are having Let s review an example Sales Manager Tell me about your pipeline Salesperson I am really excited about the Real Estate Board REB deal We have potential for multiple units there and my relationship with Graham is excellent The study is completed and it is clear there is work that they are doing on the press that should be done on a copier Sales Manager Great REB is exciting Tell me about what else is on your pipeline Salesperson Well I have been spending a lot of time on REB I do have the deal at RR Financial RRF for two units that is supposed to go to the controller for approval and I ve started the study at the Wales Federation Longshoreman WFL on that older piece of equipment to see if it is time to upgrade Sales Manager In terms of timing let s look at these three deals Give me a time frame for closing on each KEVIN HIGGINS 43