Every year, strong salespeople get promoted to sales leadership positions, receive little or no training, and then just be expected to do their job. They put in long hours, trying to figure out what to do. Often they just don’t know how to go about solving some of the most common sales staff problems. In this episode, I talked with Suzanne about the guidance, training, coaching and mentoring that sales managers need to successfully lead their teams. We discussed:
The inspiration behind Suzanne's book.
How sales leaders attempt to solve problems.
The challenges that often impede their ability to solve problems.
Why, when things aren't working out, sales managers keep hoping things will change on their own.
A problem-solving framework. For example, your reps aren't prospecting as expected.
What sales leaders need to understand to be successful.
Enjoy the interview!
About Suzanne:
Suzanne Paling, who is a recognized leader in sales management, has over 25 years of experience in sales management consulting and coaching. She has helped more than 55 companies improve their sales performance and processes. Clients include product and service firms in the manufacturing, software, publishing, distribution, medical, and construction industries. Docurated selected Suzanne’s blog as one of their “Top 50 Sales Management Blogs.” She writes for Entrepreneur.com and American Business Magazine, publishes a monthly newsletter and was profiled in The New York Times Small Business column. Suzanne is the author of two award-winning books The Accidental Sales Manager, (Entrepreneur Press) and The Sales Leader’s Problem Solver (Career Press).
