Making Decisions

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Making Decisions

July 9, 2008 in Attitudes & Behaviours, Sales Relationships, Value Creation, Wellbeing Support Services

Several years ago I read a great book called ‘Kids Are Worth It – Giving Your Child the Gift of Inner Discipline’ by Barbara Coloroso.

This book has served me very well as a parent giving me guidance in how to raise self-aware and self-disciplined children. In particular, I learnt by heart the following questions which I ask myself whenever I make decisions and in turn, have taught my children to ask whenever they make decisions.

The 3 Decision Questions are:

Is it life threatening?
Is it morally threatening?
Is it unhealthy?

For instance, when my then 7 year old son asked if his 2 year old brother could get up on the cubby house roof with him I suggested he ask himself the 3 Decision Questions. He did so and decided it wasn’t a good idea for his brother to get up on the cubby house roof after all, for all the right reasons you would come up with. The good thing was that I didn’t have to tell him what they were, he came up with the reasons by himself.

The aim of the 3 Decision Questions is to give children ownership and control of their decisions. As they get older I will have less and less control over how they choose to live their lives and what paths they take so I hope that the 3 Decision Questions help them make the right choices and decisions. As we all know they may be pressured by peers to try drugs or do other things that may cause harm to themselves or others. My hope is that they can stand up for themselves and choose wisely and well. While what they do when I am there is important, it is what they do when I am not there that is most important.

So what has all this got to do with business or making sales? How can these questions apply to our roles in business? I happen to think the 3 Decision Questions can serve us very well especially when all of us could be tempted to do things that are potentially life threatening, morally threatening or unhealthy. Just think of some of the recent business and financial collapses. Or the sub prime fiasco in the US. Maybe if those in charge of sales and the businesses concerned had applied the 3 Decision Questions we may not be in such a state today.

Now I know some people may be bristling as they think ‘what’s wrong with that? It’s a free market. They can sell to whomever they like. Buyer beware and all that’. Sure these people are entitled to their opinions, however I just happen to think that deliberately going after victims instead of prospects and making money at someone else’s expense is wrong, that’s all. It’s not life enhancing, moral or healthy for anyone.

As a sales person, leader and business owner I choose to apply the 3 Decision Questions to my business dealings and found them to be very helpful when choosing who to do business with and how to do business with people. My team and I also use the 3 Decision Questions to review our product offerings and work practices to see if they meet ethical and environmental standards.

Do we get it right all the time? Of course not. However, I have found that by using the 3 Decision Questions it makes things very clear about where we stand, what we stand for and how we like to operate.

The 3 Decision Questions support findings from around the world that more and more people want to work with others (suppliers, partners and customers) in a spirit of cooperation, consultation and respect not competition or deceit. They want to know that you are not potentially life threatening, morally threatening or unhealthy to deal with.

In a world that is now asking for each of us to stand up and be counted and declare our position on sustainability at all levels maybe the 3 Decision Questions could serve us well in helping us choose the right path for us and our businesses and in turn help us be more successful and profitable for all the right reasons.

But rather than me tell you what to think I’d rather you decide for yourself.

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An Audience with Procurement

June 20, 2008 in Procurement, Sales Relationships, Value Creation

Recently I was approached by the head of CISP Australia (Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply) www.cipsa.com.au, Jonathan Dutton to be their after dinner speaker at the Women in Procurement Conference on 19 June 2008.

This was a new event on CIPSA’s calendar which provided a unique educational and networking opportunity for those interested in the advancement of women within the procurement profession. While procurement has traditionally been a very male-dominated profession, an increasing number of women have achieved success and recognition in recent years. The conference aimed to examine the challenges women face as they try to make their way in this male-dominated environment and what lessons can be learned from those who have successfully gone before them.

So given my career background in sales it may have seemed like an odd choice to have me as their after dinner speaker. In fact if the truth be known they probably came to the conference to get away from people like me.

However the organisers had their reasons. They asked me if I would be prepared to give the audience an insight into what it is like being in sales today, what it’s like from the other side of the table and, in particular, what it’s like to be a sales woman in what has been a traditionally male dominated environment.

Given the tradition male orientation of sales and procurement, I thought that maybe it would be a good opportunity for women in procurement and women in sales to reflect on what we work with everyday and what we would like to see happen in the world of business to make our lives and those we work and interact with better.

In preparing for this presentation, I also realised that I had never given any real considered thought to the world of procurement and in particular women in procurement. I know technically speaking any sale is a form of procurement however I have always thought in terms of the ‘customer’ not procurement specifically.

While I have selectively responded to many an RFP in my time, participated in formal procurement processes good and bad and worked with various stake holders on large projects over the years, I realised that I had viewed procurement as a process rather than considering the people involved in the process. I realised I had missed something important. So I saw this invitation as an opportunity for me to learn more about the world of procurement and share experiences as women in business.

This was the fist time I had ever been asked to speak to formally to people in Procurement and I understand this was a first for CIPS Australia as well.

In preparation for this talk I contacted and spoke with a number of women in procurement. I asked them about their views and thoughts around sales people, being a woman in procurement and the changes they are seeing taking place in the world of business today.

Here is what the women had to say:

They were sick of dealing with sales people who promised the world and didn’t deliver what they say they would
or sales people who are too pushy and tried to bully their way into a sale by aggressive or intimidatory means
or sales people who didn’t listen to want you needed and just gave you want they wanted to sell
They were tired of the professional visitors masquerading as sales people who only want to ‘do coffee’
They wanted sales people to educate not just gesticulate.
They were also frustrated by their own managers who went behind their backs to do ‘deals’ and didn’t respect the procurement process, or managers who wouldn’t look outside the square at new opportunities, innovations or ideas or other suppliers who could bring better business outcomes
And the women didn’t want to go out and have lunch or dinner or drinks to ‘do the deal’ for all sorts of reasons including: they don’t have the time, they’re not interested, it’s not transparent, it could lead to other unsavory conclusions being made, and its OH SO 20th century.

They also pointed out the following to me:

They are noticing many of the younger sales people are taking a far more professional approach to selling, are better informed, more business savvy and are better to deal with overall than the more traditional transactional sales person who remained too product focused and blokey.
They believed that Procurement started from the top down and the more informed their people were about the business, personal and global benefits of procurement practices the better it would be for all concerned.
They stated that their ability to communicate and take quality briefs from their key stake holders was critical to their success.
They stated that the ability to assess the total live cost of procurement was critical as this related to the opportunity to really make a difference around overall sustainability, business viability, the environment and cost effective solutions.
They realised that procurement was more than just a numerical figure on a spread sheet and they were looking for real value add in the form of other services, creative ideas and innovative thinking to solve otherwise to hard to solve problems.
That procurement need to professionalise itself even more with better education and better career paths.
And rather than the adversarial model that is often talked about and promoted in business they see and regard a more professional consultative model as being better able to serve their needs to make informed business decisions based on value at all level not just economic ones.

These findings came as no surprise to me because this is what I am finding out in the sales field and what my Sell Like A Woman research has also highlighted.

I went on to give them overview of the changing face of sales and the shift away from the old stereo types and approaches which are making way for a more enlightened, consultative, big picture focused, business oriented, cooperative sales person who is well organised, disciplined, can prospect proactively, is fully aware of their product and business’ value to their customer market, their competitive edge and how to make business work for them and their customers.

Next week I will delve further into the view from the other side of the table and how, we, as sales people, view procurement and some of the practices which help or hinder sales and partnership effectiveness. And what our common enemy is.

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First Impressions

June 12, 2008 in Attitudes & Behaviours, Customer Service, Sales Relationships, Value Creation

Picking up from my recent posting We’ll meet again… I thought it would be worth looking at how First Impressions can impact our opinions of other people and their opinions of us. In turn first impressions can affect the desire to work together or not. Have you ever regretted a time when you didn’t make a favourable first impression? Did you wish you could have your time over again to make a more positive impression? I am sure you are not alone. We can all think of a time when we messed up. As the old saying goes: ‘You don’t get a second chance to make a good first impression’.

According to one university study*, people make eleven decisions about us in the first seven seconds of contact.

They are:

1. Education Level
2. Economic Level
3. Perceived Credibility, Believability, Competence and Honesty
4. Trustworthiness
5. Level of Sophistication
6. Sex Role Identification
7. Level of Success
8. Political Background
9. Religious Background
10. Ethnic Background
11. Social/ Professional / Sexual Desirability
(*Source: Michael Solomon, PhD, Psychologist, Chairman, Marketing Department Graduate School of Business, NYU.)

And then according to this study the rest of your time is spent finding evidence to prove your original impression of that person, whether that impression is true or not. This study emphasises the importance of creating good first impressions.

Here is an interesting exercise to test the impact of making a good impression:

Check out the next 10 places where you spend your money, whether in person or on the phone, and see how effectively the people you come in contact with make a favourable impression with you.
Notice how you are greeted when you call or go into a business or are contacted by its employees.
How effective are they in creating a favourable and positive impression with you?
Do they pay attention to you and treat you, as you would like to be treated?
How do you and your team make good first impressions?

Not everyone knows how to make a good impression. Many people are often too preoccupied with themselves to pay due attention to you. And many people forget about using common courtesies that could make all the difference when communicating with you. Common courtesy, sadly, isn’t so common any more. So here are some tips on making a good first impression:

Tune your world out and them in – really listen and pay attention to what they say and do.
Think about what you can learn about them and in turn what you can learn about yourself by interacting with them.
Think, “There is something about you I like” especially if they are very different from you.
Whenever someone treats you kindly, show your appreciation, express your gratitude, and offer your thanks.
Scatter the dark clouds of gloom and spread sunshine with your smile. Remember, a smile is a curved line that can straighten many problems.

I hope this goes some way in helping you and your team make positive first impressions with those people you interact whether it be in business or on a personal level.

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The relationship of revenue growth to your job?

May 29, 2008 in Customer Service, Value Creation

Every sales person knows the relationship of prospecting to sales is critical. Without prospecting you are not likely to get a sale. We all know the relationship of sales to revenue growth is high. But how many people in your company know the relationship of revenue growth to their specific job?

The sales people do. Owners do. They think about it every day.

Yet many people not working directly with customers don’t often think about how their roles impact sales and revenue growth. Even in some customer service teams they don’t realise the connection either. How many sales leads or up-selling or cross-selling opportunities pass them by?

If I had my way everyone in every business would know their line of sight to the customer. Everyone would have sales and service key performance indicators in their job description and performance expectations. Everyone would know how their job impacts on revenue and profit growth. And everyone would know what a sales opportunity looks like so they could spot them and capture them for your business.

Here’s the test. If I came into your business and interviewed everyone separately what answers would you expect from each of your people to the following questions?

How does your organisation generate revenue?
Who pays this revenue to you?
Why do your customers choose to do business with you?
What is your role and who do you support in causing customer satisfaction?
How does your position or job function impact the profitability of your organisation?
How does your position or job function impact customer satisfaction?
How does your position or job function impact sales?
What are your Standards of Service?
What is your own purpose statement?

If you do not know what a purpose statement look like here is an example:

“I’m in business to support and fulfill my customers’ needs, help create an enjoyable work environment and help my organisation operate ethically and profitably.”

Knowing what business you are in and what you stand for is very important to generating revenue growth in business whether you are in the front line or back office.

Take the test and see what happens. At your next meeting or interaction ask your people these questions and see what they have to say.

Let me know what you find, I’d be keen to hear from you.
You can reach me via this form.

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Culture and Communication

May 15, 2008 in Sales Relationships, Value Creation

Selling and servicing across cultures is more common now than it has ever been. And as more and more of us come across international sales opportunities I thought it would be worth while looking at some of the challenges we may come across when trying to communicate effectively cross culturally in sales or other business areas.

In many of the articles I have written I advocate for open, honest, trust based relationships. And I still do, however being a direct, no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is person that is what I value most. Therefore, by contrast, I can often find indirect, seemingly non-committal, indecisive communication a real chore. ‘Just get to the point’ I hear myself say. Or ‘are you just saying “yes” to just be nice or do you really want to go ahead?” Aaggh.

I don’t think I am alone, however, in recent times I have really had to take a look at Direct vs. Indirect communication styles as we are quoting for some sales and service training in Asia. I have trained in Asia before, but I really need to be much more aware about the potential communication divide and the value different cultures place on Direct versus Indirect communication. Especially when I am putting relevant sales and service programs which are all based around effective communication.

For instance a well known company have located a main part of their internal services off shore. The people in this offshore team need to answer queries, solve problems and pro-actively deal with their Australian counterparts. While the technical aspects of the job are easy to train, the issue lies in how to equip these people with Direct Communication styles that suit their Australian audience. Some of us have seen Asian call centre staff being trained in the Australian vernacular i.e. G’day mate, etc. However it is so much more than that.

Tackling this issue is not easy especially given the cultural / communication divide. Understanding the core competencies and specific behaviours needed in the offshore team at each level is critical to gaining clarity and providing evidence as to the standards of work performance expected in each role would make a good start. Understanding the business and personal values shared by the people, in each country team, is also critical. These shared values can provide a link and bridge to connect with each other. Building a further bridge between different communications styles and cultural morays is the challenge.

This issue is one of the communication dichotomies which can cause problems between Asian and Western co-workers. Each of these styles has its own intrinsic, often unspoken, rules. When a person used to communicating under one set of rules is thrust into a situation where another set of rules is being used, it ultimately leads to frustration.

Frustration is what the company I referred to before is experiencing. You can try cultural training but unless it is backuped by direct behavioural interventions, shared values, links between direct and indirect communication and ongoing support then nothing will change.

I am no expert in this area, but if I am going in to train a team that uses Indirect Communication in their daily life and culture in Direct Communication approaches and techniques that are part of another country I had better sort it out fast. Here is some information I found as part of my ongoing study in this area. A great article I found really expressed some of the issues and options very well:

SOM@Work » Blog Archive » How to Communicate with Your …

Some cultures, such as in the Australia, U.S., Germany and the U.K. generally value a direct style of communication. They like to “get down to business,” “cut to the chase,” and “get to the point.” They do not feel offended or shamed by the kind of direct statements that might be considered offensive in indirect cultures such as in Asia. In fact, when things are not stated directly, people from direct cultures (such as Australian co-workers) can become confused and frustrated, and might not understand the message at all. They are used to communicating with people whose mantras are “say what you mean, and mean what you say” and “let your ‘yes’ be ‘yes’ and your ‘no’ be ‘no.’” In these cultures, being direct is how people show respect.

In cultures that use an indirect communication style, such as India, China, Japan, and other Asian cultures, it is very common to encounter situations where people communicate in a way that would not cause someone to lose face. Thus, communication happens indirectly. Messages are subtly implied rather than explicitly stated, and people are accustomed to reading between the lines for the message. Words such as “perhaps” and “maybe” are often code for “no,” since saying “no” could risk shaming someone. In these cultures, being indirect is how people show respect.

Those from indirect cultures think of their own style as polite and face-saving, and sometimes see direct communication as rude, blunt and overly aggressive. Those from direct cultures think of their style as open and honest, and sometimes think of indirect communication as “beating around the bush” and a sign that the communicator is trying to be difficult, shifty, or maddeningly vague.

Akio Morita (co-founder of SONY) once said that when Westerners “ask questions or express an opinion, they want to know right away whether the other party agrees or opposes them. So in English, ‘yes’ or ‘no’ comes first. We Japanese prefer to save the ‘yes’ or ‘no’ for last. Particularly when the answer is ‘no,’ we put off saying that as long as possible, and they find that exasperating.”

Each of us intrinsically feels that our style is the “right” style, and the other is the “wrong” style – but in the end, it’s not a matter of right or wrong, but of getting on the same wavelength.

The author of the article suggests the keys to effective cross-cultural communication are to:

try to understand the rules by which people are playing
play by their cultural rules as much as possible when we communicate with them,
give them grace when they have trouble understanding and playing by the rules of our culture.

I’d be interested to hear from other people as to how they are approaching this area. Contact me via this form. I’ll keep you posted. It’s an ongoing journey.

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