The Sales Management. Simplified. Podcast with Mike Weinberg

Continuing this series tackling common sales leadership sins, Mike challenges us to pull back the covers and take a hard look at ALL the things we are asking our salespeople to do. He also makes the strong case that it's really hard to win big in sales management when you have the wrong people in the wrong roles.

Beware: Mike does not hold back putting HR people and executives on the stand asking difficult questions about their flowery, feel-good job descriptions and what feels like an insatiable desire to put kind, gentle, collaborative team-players in sales roles… Even sales roles that require developing significant new business…Roles where just about every highly successful top producing seller exhibits these two characteristics:

1. They Are Intensely Competitive

2. They Are Not Conflict Averse (they don't shy away from a fight)

Take a listen as Mike debunks the myth of the highly relational, collaborative sales superstar, makes the case that SALES MANAGERS' LIVES AND JOBS WILL BE MUCH EASIER WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE ON THEIR TEAMS, and challenges us to consider whether we are overloading our salespeople with so many tasks and responsibilities that we are actually hindering their ability to sell and bring in the new business we need!

Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

Supercharge Your Sales Leadership Full-Day Intensive (mikeweinberg.com/events)

Six-Month Sales Leadership Coaching Cohort (mikeweinberg.com/leadercohort)

Episode 12: Ask Candidates These 7 Intriguing Questions to Upgrade Your Interviews

In Episode 54 Mike continues the series on Common Sales Leadership Sins, and this time he touches the "third rail" — compensation! If you have complacent salespeople, Mike argues that the very first place to look is at the compensation plan... And he claims to be the very first person to discover and publicly declare that the words COMPensation and COMPlacency start with the same four letters! As the sales leader, you may be the very best at selecting and developing talent, arming, equipping, and enabling your team, coaching on sales skills and deals, and even at holding people accountable, BUT if your sales comp plan is incentivizing the wrong behaviors and is not driving the desired results, then you have a massive problem. Mike unpacks his three big pet peeves when it comes to comp plans: 1. Plans that are too flat (not enough difference between what top and bottom-performers "earn") 2. "Commission Annuities" (commission in name only, commission that really isn't variable, or paying people in perpetuity to service/renew accounts for deals that were sold years ago) 3. Not rewarding New Sales (paying the same rate/percentage in variable comp for renewing/servicing existing business as for the heavy lifting to develop true new business - major cross-sell/up-sell victories or acquiring net new customers) Resources mentioned in this episode: Mike's Article: 4 Very Common Causes for Lack of New Opportunity Creation Supercharge Your Sales Leadership, October Event in Atlanta. Only 2 VIP and 21 full-day intensive spots remain available

In Episode 53 Mike resumes the series on Common Sales Leadership Sins by tackling two biggies:

1. Desk (and CRM/screen) Jockey Sales Management

2. Not coaching and mentoring salespeople

Prepare to be challenged about your priorities as Mike asks you to open your calendars for a time (and gut) check on whether there is enough evidence to convict you of being a people-development-focused sales leader.

Too many frontline sales leaders are cheating themselves of what should be one of the most satisfying and results-driving parts of their job — helping their people get better at doing their own jobs! Buckle up for a dose of blunt sales management truth that you cannot effectively lead a team staring at analytics, dashboards, or CRM screens. Salespeople win by connecting with other humans. What makes us think we can lead and develop them with our heads buried in data or via email?

From the Heart: After concluding the episode Mike took a few minutes to share personally about two losses he just experienced with the passing of his step grandmother and a meaningful spiritual influence in his life, Tim Keller.

Resources, Posts, Events mentioned in this episode:

JUST ANNOUNCED: The next Supercharge Your Sales Leadership event: October 3rd, Atlanta. More info at mikeweinberg.com/events

Mike's article from the 2020 World Series: This MLB Manager Blew It Relying on Analytics Rather Than His Eyes

Episode 13: Game Changing Lessons from My World-Class Golf Coach

In Episode 52 Mike takes a break from the current series on sales leadership sins to host fellow St. Louisan and sales rockstar, Carson Heady. Carson is a managing director in Microsoft's US Health Solutions business and was a highly decorated, multi-year award winning salesperson and Microsoft's Social Selling Lead prior to taking on his current leadership assignment.

Carson self-describes as perpetual optimist, resourceful problem eliminator and an outcome driver! He's also a podcast host and author of two Amazon bestsellers, Birth of Salesman and Salesman on Fire.

Mike invited him on the show after an enlightening lunch conversation where Carson shared what it's been like leading his team through recent turbulent times in the world of tech. Enjoy this wide-ranging conversation that pivots from leading through uncertainty and "controlling what you can control" to mastering social selling. And prepare for your mouth to drop when Carson shares how many different contacts he engaged enroute to closing the biggest enterprise deal of his career.

Carson Heady on Linkedin

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Last Call: Take advantage of this once-per-year special on Mike's most focused course to help sharpen your most critical sales weapon – YOUR SALES STORY. 40% OFF through May 3rd at mikeweinberg.com/your-sales-story/

This fun episode combines management takeaways from Mike's first visit to Augusta National and the continuation of the current series covering sales leadership sins that damage culture and diminish results.

Mike happily declares that the Masters lived up to all the hype and he shares a few observations processed through a sales and sales management lens…

• Overdeliver. Go the extra mile and give customers/prospects/patrons more than they expect
• Professionals prepare and practice – like professionals
• Don't count out the old guy as a worthy competitor
• Winners don't whine about circumstances or the "luck of the draw"
• EQ and likability matter

While tackling Common Sales Leadership Sin #4 (Lack of Accountability), sales managers are reminded in a not-so-subtle fashion that their single most important job is ensuring that their people do their jobs! Mike unpacks a handful of reasons that managers struggle to hold sellers accountable and goes further declaring that ignoring underperformance is akin to sales management malpractice.

Resources to help upgrade accountability mentioned in this episode:

1. Download the free guide, "The Fastest Way to Increase Accountability, Reduce Complacency, and Create a High-Performance Culture" from mikeweinberg.com and link to a 15-minute video from that free PDF
2. Read Chapter 20 in Sales Management. Simplified. (buy on Amazon here)
3. Listen to Episode 9

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This episode is sponsored by Mike's least expensive, shortest, and most focused online course—YOUR SALES STORY. Sharpening your sales story is the fastest way increase a salesperson's or sales team's confidence and effectiveness and this week only (through May 3rd) the course is 40% of the regular price. Learn more at mikeweinberg.com/your-sales-story/

In Episode 50, Mike vents his frustration about senior executives who have lost sight of the sales manager's primary job as he continues this series tackling The Unlucky 13 Sales Leadership Sins That Damage Culture and Diminish Results.

Sin #3: IT'S REALLY HARD TO LEAD THE SALES TEAM WHEN YOU'RE BURIED IN CRAP!

Too many sales leaders are losing too much of their valuable time getting dragged into meetings, digging out from under an obscene amount of email, and being diverted and distracted from their primary job — and the consequences for sales are devastating.

Listen in as Mike addresses this common challenge and offers practical tips to help sales leaders unbury themselves (and redeploy that time on the precious few highest-payoff activities that truly move the needle on culture and results).

Mike begins Episode 49 sharing the pain from a recent lost deal that he really wanted along with the lessons learned from the experience. He takes this opportunity to remind listeners of the importance of doing a post-mortem analysis and that winners take ownership of the outcome (exhibiting internal locus of control) instead of playing the victim and blaming others and circumstances when they lose.

This episode also kicks off a new series reviewing The Unlucky 13 Sales Leadership Sins That Damage Culture and Diminish Results and Mike unpacks the first two of these common challenges:

1. Poor Goals and Results Focus
2. Unclear Strategy and Direction
3. Managers Buried in Crap
4. Lack of Accountability
5. Desk/CRM Jockey Sales Management and "Leading" via Email
6. Not Coaching and Mentoring Salespeople
7. Sales Leader Playing Sales Team Hero
8. Unhelpful Compensation Plans
9. Wrong People in the Wrong Roles
10. Painful, Unproductive Sales Team Meetings
11. Allowing Salespeople to Live in Reactive Mode and Forget Their Primary Job
12. An Anti-Sales Culture
13. Searching for Shortcuts or the Secret Sauce=

As Mike suggests, put your defense shield down, check your ego, and take a look in the mirror to see which of these very common sales leadership sins may be getting in the way of you having the culture and results you desire for your sales team.

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Reminder: The next Supercharge Your Sales Leadership Event takes place May 3rd at The Porsche Experience Center adjacent to the Atlanta Airport. All previous ten events have sold out. Get more info and register at mikeweinberg.com/atlanta2023 to join Mike and 50 driven sales leaders for this powerful experience!

Mike recorded Episode 48 from a hotel during a crazy travel streak between sales kickoff meetings and the most recent Supercharge Your Sales Leadership Event. In this long overdue episode, Mike pokes fun at the "bandwagon jumpers" in the sales improvement space who are once again (looking for "likes" and "clicks") predicting the death of sales, this time due to ChatGBT. He references this LinkedIn post where he expresses his skepticism and reminds sellers and sales leaders that these very same people were proclaiming that AI would kill our profession five years ago! Inspired by his preparation for a workshop he was leading for a favorite client's kickoff meeting, Mike also shares his take on why so many sales calls and presentations fall flat and offers up his favorite trick to help salespeople radically power-up their presentations. Learn how the magic in "Slide 4" can transform the dynamic in the room, and how your seller, solution, and company are all perceived. ________________________________________________ Reminder: The next Supercharge Your Sales Leadership Event takes place May 3rd at The Porsche Experience Center adjacent to the Atlanta Airport. All previous ten events have sold out. Get more info and register at mikeweinberg.com/atlanta2023 to join Mike and 50 driven sales leaders for this powerful experience!

Mike is concerned that one month into the new year too many sales teams have not nailed down their strategic, finite target account lists. Too many supposed sales hunters are operating on autopilot while an abundance of account managers are simply doing the "milk run" in territory caretaker and maintenance mode!

In Episode 47 Mike shares why Selecting Targets is the very first piece of his New Sales Driver Framework and he challenges sellers and sales leaders to declare which target accounts (growable existing customers and ideal profile prospects) they are committed to proactively pursuing to develop new business.

Listen as Mike unpacks the four characteristics of a great target list:

1. Strategic
2. Finite
3. Focused
4. Written (yes, written or printed!)

To WIN MORE NEW SALES, sales leaders must get salespeople out of reactive mode waiting for leads and opportunities to chase and get them PROACTIVELY pursuing named target customers and prospects!

Posts mentioned in this episode:

Where Is Your Strategic, Finite Target Account List?

Mike's post honoring his step-grandfather, Ed Davidheiser

Unpacking the 5 Foundational Keys to Winning More New Sales

NEW EVENT DATE ANNOUNCED:

With the February 28th session now sold out, we are excited to announce the next SUPERCHARGE YOUR SALES LEADERSHIP dates:

The next one-day intensive will be Wednesday, May 3rd with May 4th as the VIP Day that includes VIP Q&A, private lunch with Mike and the Porsche Driving Experience on the track!

More info and register at mikeweinberg.com/atlanta2023

Episode 46 features one of Mike's all-time favorite senior sales executives.

Dennis Sorenson is a seasoned global sales leader with a reputation for building high-performance teams. He currently serves as the Senior Vice President of Revenue and Sales at Alegeus and Mike claims that no client has stretched or challenged him more than Dennis.

Listen as Dennis drops gem after gem offering…

• His sales management secret for effectively "managing up" and how to keep your executive boss from distracting and derailing you
• That consistency is one of the most underrated characteristics of great leaders
• His 4 P's when it comes to coaching sellers for big sales calls and presentations (Plan, Prepare, Practice, Play)
• 3 F's for leading the team through tough times (Filter negativity, Focus on what you can control, and stick to the Fundamentals)

Dennis and Mike also address the move from individual contributor into sales management and point out…

• The positives and pitfalls when a salesperson gets promoted to lead the team they were a part of
• How (counterintuitively) new managers must slow down to speed up their ramp up!
• The transition from winning on your own to winning through your people

Mike's favorite response came when he asked how Dennis found/made time for so many 1:1 conversations with individuals at every level of the sales organization:

"The number one thing on my list as a sales leader is talent. If I don't make time to find, attract, and bring in great talent, and take the talent that I have and develop that talent, then I'm not doing my job."

Links:

February 28th, Supercharge Your Sales Leadership Event: mikeweinberg.com/atlanta2023

Sales Leadership Coaching Cohort: mikeweinberg.com/leadercohort

Previous Episode featuring Dennis Sorenson: https://mikeweinberg.com/podcast/episode8