Categories: Sales Transformation | Sales Enablement Technology
This blog contains content from Chapter 5 of our eBook, Taking Command: How On-Demand Technology Drives Adoption of Sales Methodologies. Start from the beginning here.
A big part of your company’s sales transformation success will depend on how you support your front-line sales managers. Ultimately, it’s the sales managers who are responsible for leading, coaching and inspecting their team of sellers throughout the transformation process; and, that’s a tall order. Opportunity reviews, deal coaching, negotiating the right margins – it’s a team effort that requires you to arm your sales managers with the tools and content to help drive success.
Transitioning from Seller to Coach
The “coaching” role can be a tough assignment for many sales managers. They may have earned their sales manager position by first becoming a successful seller. But as a seller, they were more concerned with catching the biggest fish than with teaching others to fish. And while they might be great at selling, they’re not necessarily equipped to coach others to success. That means they’ll need some additional help and a strong content platform to coach and reinforce new or less experienced sellers on their team.
Sharing Interaction Between Managers and Sellers
A shared engagement portal can elevate and accelerate a successful learning model by giving managers and sellers consistent content and a shared interactive experience.
For example, the platform provides sales managers with insight into:
- the content and learning modules each seller is utilizing
- the skills each seller is executing successfully
- the areas where that seller may need some extra coaching
Providing Managers With Leverage and Visibility
If you want your front-line sales managers to truly become great coaches, you’ll give them leverage and visibility into how well sellers are internalizing and executing your organization’s sales methodology.
As part of the learning experience, sellers can put their skills to work recording audio and video presentations. Managers can easily review these outputs to see how well each seller has internalized important concepts, then provide quick and customized feedback.
Having access to successful practice runs also creates great opportunities for managers to lift up shining examples, celebrate successes, and use as teaching tools for others.
Bringing New Hires Up to Speed
When it comes to new hires, customizable content enables managers to on-board and train new sellers more quickly, decreasing time to productivity and accelerating adoption.
Learning Before You Coach
Another way the right on-demand content supports managers is by giving them the opportunity to access and learn important content before their team, instead of at the same time. This approach accelerates the manager’s ability to coach and lead from the front. It also enables managers to keep their head of sales informed by giving them insight into the progress of their teams.
Using a Common Language
The right engagement management platform acts as a coaching tool, not a check-the-box compliance system. It helps drive a shared understanding of how your new sales approach will change the trajectory of your sales organization and drive revenue. Ensuring that everyone in your organization is on the same page and using a common language will drive powerful results. It's a shared perspective that will give both managers and sellers the foundation they need to successfully execute your company's new sales methodology.
Next Up? A Customer Perspective: Read Epicor's Command Center Success Story >
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