Categories: Sales Leadership | Company Alignment | Buyer Alignment
Every sales leader wants to get more out of their current sales team and implement a strategy that drives immediate results. In our recent webinar, Force Management President, John Kaplan, discussed three critical areas where leadership alignment supports sales resilience and growth. We’ve compiled some of the most impactful topics and resources that you may find valuable to support your sales team in hitting revenue goals.
If you want to watch the full discussion, access the on-demand webinar here.
1. How do you move a sales culture from reactionary to one that plans?
Fueling predictable sales growth often demands a shift to your company’s mindset as a whole. This shift is critical to your success moving forward.
A company that’s sales-focused and capable of driving predictable revenue growth has a clear mission and vision. The entire organization has clarity around the company’s vision (what the future will look like) and the steps it will take from the sales organization and supporting departments to get there. Focus on the outcomes you need your sales organization to achieve and work back from there. Developing your own leadership footprint is an effective way to outline transparency around your vision for your sales organization. All the components of the leadership footprint come together to effectively manage and lead teams in a way that aligns with company objectives. Use it to outline your purpose, passion, vision, strategy and skills and define how you'll communicate these priorities with your team.
2. What are the most effective ways to get sales leaders to work as one rather than in different silos?
Start by not accepting silos. The most effective leaders do a great job leading through change and capturing collaborative alignment on what’s next.
No matter what solutions you offer, the end goal is to drive a successful customer experience, helping your buyers achieve their desired business outcomes. If critical customer-facing organizations (Marketing, Sales, Product, Customer Success, etc.) operate in silos, then you’re not accounting for the entire customer experience, and your customer outcomes and process inefficiencies will reflect that.
One of the best ways to begin a conversation on minimizing silos amongst your leadership team is to articulate the challenge. Pinpoint where your team has the opportunity to improve alignment. Articulate how that improvement will benefit each department’s ability to hit KPIs and ensure positive customer outcomes. Here are a few steps you can take to drive alignment around your sales strategy and how it will impact the overall customer engagement process.
3. What does the future of work look like for sales organizations?
As organizations move forward to what’s next, many companies are focused on realigning with their buyer.
Defining what to prioritize to adjust for the future of work will largely depend on your company’s growth plan and your customer’s evolving needs. Consider:
- Who are your buyers?
- What are their biggest business problems?
- How is your solution set up to solve those problems and solve them in a way that’s different or better than the competition?
- Can your sales team articulate these answers to buyer prospects in a way that’s meaningful?
What's driving value for your customers today has probably shifted from what was driving value for them before COVID. Your company may have also realigned (new product rollouts, acquisitions, etc.) to drive additional value for your buyers. It’s important to ensure your reps have the skills and knowledge they need to be relevant to your buyers and sell on value.
Define where you may need to rethink and realign cross-functionally as it relates to your solution’s business value and competitive differentiation. Realignment supports companies in driving significant revenue growth in today’s complex sales environment. Sysdig and Plex are two notable examples. Consider what’s changed and how you can invest in your people so they can deliver ROI. Your SKO may be a great opportunity to start the process.
4. What is the most effective way, as a sales leader, to drive adoption and accountability around enhanced sales behaviors?
When working to drive adoption around new or enhanced sales behaviors, find ways to reach the hearts and minds of front-line salespeople and managers. One of the most critical alignment areas that a sales leader can influence is the alignment between sellers and their front-line sales managers. Think about your managers. They’re on the front lines working to drive that adoption. They can have an impact on every deal. How can you help them have a greater influence on reinforcement and accountability?
As a sales leader, it’s up to you to equip your managers with the skills and resources to make an impact on front-line execution. Provide them with the right cadence and support to dig deeper into deals and equip reps with what’s needed to adjust the course and achieve positive outcomes. Here are the coaching resources sales leaders have found most helpful as they work to enable their managers to have a greater impact on revenue numbers.
5. What is the highest impact or top-priority activity a Sales Manager can focus on to increase team performance?
It’s clear that supporting front-line managers is a top priority for sales leaders, especially those operating in remote or hybrid work environments. The most elite sales leaders right now are focused on enabling their managers to be present and involved with their sales teams.
Your managers can have a significant impact on rep accountability and execution of critical sales activities, but their success will relate back to how well they are supported. Do they have the skills, tools and resources they need? Find ways to coach your coaches and focus them on helping sales reps get to a place they couldn’t get to on their own. Additionally, consider implementing a management operating rhythm or MOR. A MOR supports your managers’ ability to execute account planning activities and deal reviews on a consistent basis. When implemented correctly, it will help your managers ensure they’re in sync with sales reps around critical areas impacting sales. Here’s an example of what good looks like when your sellers and managers are aligned.
How to Capture Alignment and Move Your Sales Organization Forward
Consider how you can act now and build the right foundation to support your sales team in successfully hitting company growth goals. Understand what initiatives sales leaders are prioritizing as they equip their sales team to hit critical benchmarks. As you decide what sales execution areas to improve, watch this on-demand webinar on, Sales Leadership and Accountability. Get access here.
