Cracking the Sales Management Code
Improved Sales Performance through
Better Sales Management
Tom Disantis
An Innovative Sales Leader
• Assigned Territories
• Defined Sales Processes
• Assigned Quotas
• Trained Salespeople
• Held National Sales Meetings
• Paid Commissions
• Ran Sales Contests
John Henry Patterson
1844–1922
What did he forget?
Times, They are a-Changin’
?
Sales has Radically (and Quickly) Transformed
Our
Managers
Our
Reps
Our
Customers
Then v. Now
Sales Management Then…
FOCUSED ON OUTCOMES
Sales Management Now…
FOCUSED ON… WHAT?
An Intense Job
Sales managers face many pressures daily
Pressure from Above
• Reporting & Analytics
• Forecasting
Pressure from Within
• Scratching the sales itch
• Hitting sales goals
• Urgent v. Important
Pressure from Below
• Fielding rep requests
• Activity tracking
• Helping with customer issues
The Real da Vinci Code
Simplicity is the
ultimate sophistication.
Leonardo da Vinci
A Brief Introduction
Vantage Point’s Four Pillars
• Focus on Sales Management
• Advancement through Research
• Sales Methodology Neutral
• We Simplify to Achieve Results
I don’t have less to do now, but I’m no longer rushed to
do it. I now have time to do what I am supposed to do.
Sales Manager, Medical Equipment Manufacturer
Starting from Scratch...
306 Pieces of Chaos
The Critical Question
Getting this Right is the Key
Can Sales Managers Manage this?
Can Managers Manage this?
Some YES
Can Managers Manage this?
Some NO
Can Managers Manage this?
Some Maybe
A Framework Emerges
Critical Differences Exist
Organizational outcomes that can
not be ‘managed’ whatsoever
Intermediate objectives that can be
influenced, but not directly controlled
Sales Rep and Manager activities that
can be proactively managed
Step 1: Build the Right Path for Success
Identify the Activities that Yield Results
Identify the results you want to achieve
Select and quantify the best objectives
that will lead to those results
Link the objectives to relevant activities,
and manage them relentlessly.
A Few Examples
Reverse-Engineering Success
 Create 1 each month
 Review Quarterly
A Few Examples
Reverse-Engineering Success
 4 calls/week to underpenetrated accounts
 Review Monthly
Why Does this Matter?
Focus on Execution of the Activity
 4 calls/week to underpenetrated accounts
 Review Monthly
Step 2: Establish Management Rhythm
When, Where, and How to Manage these Activities
•
•
•
•
Phone ?
Office ?
Field ?
Online ?
Step 3: Formalize the Conversation
Establish a Deliberate Conversation with an
Agenda, Inputs, and Outputs
Seeing it in action
Vantage Point Engages ABC Company
ABC wanted to increase revenue results
by > 20%
Vantage Point identified improving close rates as
the biggest objective to achieve growth results
Vantage Point found that early stage qualification
activities needed to improve dramatically
What a Difference an Hour Makes
The impact of focused sales management
This was the most practical training I’ve received as a sales manager.
Sales Manager, ABC Company
Then v. Now
Sales Management Then…
FOCUSED ON OUTCOMES
Sales Management Now…
FOCUSED ON… REP DECISION MAKING
The Task at Hand
Focus on Enhancing Sales Management
In Summary
The Keys to Unlocking Your Sales Investments
• Simplify your sales managers’ jobs
• Build the right path:
Results  Objectives  Activities
• Focus your managers intensely
on the execution of those activities
• Formalize and reinforce a management rhythm
For More Information
www.VantagePointPerformance.com/SAVO
• Copy of this presentation
• Download first two chapters of
“Cracking the Sales Management Code”
Booth 1
@salescode
Thank you
For more information
SAVO Web Site:
www.savogroup.com
Sales First Nation:
www.savogroup.com/sales-first-nation/
SAVO Products:
SAVO Phone:
www.savogroup.com/products/
312-276-7700