The Business Case for educating Sales Professionals and Sales Leaders in Business Acumen
More and more is being asked of sales people and sales managers when it comes to business knowledge and commercial acumen. Gone are the days of just being a product expert. Sales people need to be competent business people too.
Being able to understand strategy (sales strategy); how businesses, markets, and communities function; and where we, our products, services and business works in concert with our clients is on the agenda in business. Today, clients expect to communicate and deal with a real professional who knows how business functions. They want to have business discussions not product discussions.
Studies Show
Our studies reveal that there is little if any discussion about the big picture or business strategy, or innovation or supplier integration. A surprising finding was the low level of business knowledge and commercial acumen with sales managers in the technical product sectors – very focused on product quality, distribution and service they are not working at the required level to make business decisions and work strategically with clients.
Barrett has developed a 2 day Introduction to Business Acumen Program for sales managers and high level sales people.
The program is designed to:
- give sales professionals an overview of the key fundamentals of business management and what it takes to lead and manage a business
- help them plan and manage their business or client portfolios more effectively
- enhance their interactions with clients and allow them to present as a business person, not just a product sales person.
- build their awareness and deepen their empathy with their clients
- Help them be better corporate citizens within their own companies making sure they attract and orchestrate the right kind of business for their own organisation
Program includes cases studies, simulations and theory. Participants work on developing and running their own ‘fictional’ business.
The Business Acumen for Sales Professionals covers 9 key topics:
- Leadership
- Strategy
- Planning
- Culture
- People
- Customers
- Processes
- Measurement
- Execution
Speak to us about your sales training needs.
Talk to us, your selling better advisory team, and we’ll be able to advise you on the best training solution for your business.
Case Study
SCA Selling Better project unites state sales teams and creates a unique value proposition to increase market share
Industry: Media/Entertainment Type: Public
From declining share price and fierce competition to share price tracking north and united sales leaders leading the way, within 3 months.
Sales Telemetry: Why Excellence Lives in 273 Micro-Steps
In 30 seconds The Problem: Traditional "hero" sales models are fragile and unscalable. Personality-driven approaches leave organisations vulnerable when stars leave, and oversimplifying complex B2B ...
The Simplicity Trap: Why Reducing Complexity Makes Selling Harder, Not Easier
In 30 seconds The Problem: Leaders confuse complexity with clutter. They think "making life easier" means cutting steps and removing structure. Result? They create a vacuum where chaos takes over. ...
31 Years of Selling Better: Why Your Seat at the Table Matters More Than Ever
In 30 seconds The Problem: Complex B2B sales requiring human relationships and risk navigation are being forced into transactional procurement processes designed to commoditize vendors and slash ...
Why Your Sales Playbook Needs a 2026 Upgrade
In 30 seconds The Problem: Most sales playbooks were built for a world that no longer exists. They're linear, assume predictable buyer paths and universal cold calling success, and were designed ...
