There are many catalysts that bring on the need for sales transformation. Fluctuating economic conditions, changes in client expectations, technology developments, and product realignment are just a few of the many situations that are likely to land the need for change right at your doorstep.
Yet despite these needs, a surprising number of initiatives for change will fail. In Leading Change, author John Kotter revealed research showing only 30 percent of change initiatives undertaken by an organization succeed. A McKinsey survey of 3,199 executives confirmed those findings.
The fallout is evident.
Failure to change is a well-known contributor to stagnant growth and organizational complacency.
As a sales leader, you play a pivotal role. If your leadership relies on lip-service, you’re setting the table for failure. Employees quickly learn to adjust their own priorities by taking cues from the organization's leadership. If your words indicate a sales transformation is a priority, but your actions, behavior and attitude say something entirely different, failure to achieve high adoption rates should come as no surprise.
Beyond putting your words into action, how else can you improve the chance for success?
Phrases like employee "buy-in" or "engagement" are often used without any real thought as to what role they play in sales adoption of new processes and practices. These terms suggest leaders must win over employees. In reality, this is unnecessary if employees are contributors to shaping the transformation from the start. Successful strategies for sales adoption should be about ownership, not about buy-in.
Presenting the problem that is triggering the need for change and then providing a forum for employee perspective to shape the transformation that will result in a solution will make your job as a leader easier, yet more effective.
Employee ownership is critical. But as a leader, you must assure transformation is integrated throughout the organization. That means changes in behavior, changes in process and changes in job roles. You’re also tasked with ensuring employees see how the overall transformation is relevant to their own professional goals and personal motivators. This ensures their continued drive for its success.
While ownership will enable sales staff to carry the initiative forward, your leadership is still required to reinforce sales adoption, provide feedback and coach the team to success.
