I recently hosted an executive roundtable at the Russ Berrie Institute for Professional Sales at William Paterson University. In attendance were a small group of leaders from various businesses and industries. Also in attendance were students from the College of Business - two of whom are either majoring or minoring in Professional Sales and one who is majoring in Global Business Managerment.


When I first considered hosting this event, the goal was to provide space whereby thought leaders could identify and share insight into some of the most challenging issues that they currently face. The purpose of inviting the students was to expose them to the realities that they will face in just a few short years. While I had hoped that this event would launch a series of ongoing discussions, I didn't have a clear picture of what the long-term goal would be. What I did know was that I wanted everyone who participated to take away something meaningful. Something useful.


The event, which was facilitated by Richard Magid of Soundboard Consulting, began with open introductions that enabled everyone in the group to get to know each other. He then divided us into 3 groups- each group was to work together to identify one current problem, challenge and issue that was relevant to all members of the group. I placed one student with each group and encouraged them to listen, learn and provide insight. The 3 topics that arose were:

• How does a company who truly wants to sell value differentiate itself from the competitor who is sellng cheaper?
  
• When does brand image become a deterrent?
  
• How do you move your sales force from solutions based selling to outcome based selling?

In our larger group of 12, we then chose one topic:

• How do you move your sales force from solutions based selling to outcome based selling?
  

We then worked the issue through a Problem-solving process. The executive who posed this issue agreed to be on the "hot seat" and others posed questions:

• Does every customer want this new way of selling?
• Is there value in “vertricalizing” the sales force?
• Is the marketing/messaging in line with your sales methodology?
• Does this new way of selling require compensation restructuring?
• Have you assessed your desire competencies now?
• Have you considered your sales force to re-interview for their job.

The group then moved into an idea generation phase. Some of the ideas considered:

• Consider the impact the transition will have on your sales force; especially those who are perceived as “not prepared” to make the transition.
  
• Begin by communicating to the company that an organizational change is about to take place. Letting the employees know helps them to prepare and does not single out any individual employee.
  
• Evaluate the competencies needed for the “new performance.” How different are they from the competences needed for the “current performance?”
  
• Rewrite job descriptions that are aligned with the new skill sets.
  
• Conduct 360 assessments of the sales force to identify skill gaps.
  
• Institute a re-interview process to ensure that you have the right employee in the right job. This allows you to afford employee the opportunity to opt into right job.

It wasn't until we were winding down, that it occurred to me that we would not realize the benefits of this experience until sometime down the road. Not until we had really worked through these issues. In a society of quick fixes, where everything has to be done now, it was refreshing to see that these exceptional leaders were willing to commit to returning to the Russ Berrie Institute on a bi-monthly basis to ensure that, as a cohort unit, they worked these issues through to implementation.

But what struck me as the most value aspect of this event was the feedback I received from the students. These young men and women who are the future brought a fresh perspective to the table. They truly appreciated the ability to be a part of this collaborative event and learn from industry experts.

I am looking forward to our next roundtable discussion in June, 2010.