Sales Governance

It’s vital to have the right unified rhythm within our sales organization

This has become a key in mature organizations where there is a need of more structure. Small firms with few salespeople trigger usually this issue less, especially where the entire team reports closely to one specific person who still have the luxury of taking decisions based on his/her own intuition. But it is important to note that as much as “intuition based decision” is a luxury in regards of time and simplicity, it’s equally if not more, a liability when it comes to growing and the business or competing in tough times.

Thus the more the business grow, the bigger the sales force becomes and the economy slower things turns out to become less controllable.  Accordingly, the urgency of integrating sale governance become a foundation to keep steering the sales organization more efficiently and in the same direction.

Definition:

Sales governance refers to the set of standardized operating principles, guidelines and processes by which a sales organization is led on the strategic, operational and productivity level. It is a intangible framework that creates the necessary balance and comprehensive perspective for a standardized sales behavior, culture, and language that lay the foundation and room for tangible optimization and maximization of sales results.

Importance behind sales governance:

It can be best visualized in a framework divided into four elements:

1. Sales Management: This entails both the strategic and operational level
   1. Strategic Level: It will clearly share a unity of direction to the salespeople: whom to best target from customers, which products to focus on most, and how to properly position yourselves. This framework will assure your sales force efforts are put in the right direction.
   2. Operational Level: 80% of the companies, state that they have a clear Sales Management process and cooperation among the cross-functional departments. Yet when targets are not met, intragroup fighting becomes their new job description. That’s another area where Sales Governance comes to align and clearly define the interest, role and responsibilities of other functions and departments involved in the sales process.
2. Sales Forecasts and Visibility: It’s the absence of the Lead Management System methodology what makes the visibility unclear, and the forecasted numbers unreliable. It’s a vital step to unify scientifically the status and category of every lead, prospect, and opportunity within the sales funnel. It’s the Forecasting 101. For further information, Refer to Lead Management System article
3. Sales Process: It’s the key to secure a standardized behavior, language, and process for your salespeople when interacting with customers. It’s the methodology that can bridge the gap between rainmakers, star sales performers and average performers. For further information, Refer to Sales Process article
4. Sales Performance Measurement: There is big difference between results and drivers. By only measuring targets you are not able to intervene quickly and take actions. That’s why the best practice for driving the sales performance forward, is to set a standardized set of indicators or objectives for each sales stage within the sales funnel. For further information, Refer to Performance Metrics article

The difficult aspect lies in considering the customer aspect within the formula of each of the above stated elements. The complexity of understanding the unstandardized customer behavior is the key to success.

How We Could Help You

If you are looking to build a standardized operating practices and unified language among your sales force to be followed when collaborating with the same department, other departments as well as with your clients, we are happy to come in to aid in developing this methodology and deploy all tools needed to accelerate the performance by:

1. Examine: Some clients have described our approach to Sherlock Holmes approach towards investigation. We thoroughly analyze your challenges and have a deep understanding of your organization prior to sharing any observation
2. Research and Best Practices: Accordingly, we conduct our research, reach upon all information and best practices we have access too, to study structure to do the required observations. Such structured approach towards our analysis will give more clarity to the problem especially when dealing with complex interrelated problems.
3. Actions & Plans: We join our expertise together with the client to discuss the insights and observations in order to develop together the best fit governance
4. Execute: We continue to execute the set plans that link together people, plan, processes and systems.

Impact

Studies revealed an indirect impact in the very short future. It brought visibility into perspective in order to steer the sales organization better in tough economical days.

Our case studies have proven that such practice led to a direct increase in sales ~22% within 1-2 years of being implemented.

What’s different in our approach

Our unique boutique approach towards achieving results and the success of this engagement specifically lies behind coming from a solid sales on-ground experience coupled with our pragmatic structured process consulting approach:

1. Solid Sales Background: Coming from a sales profession with a solid experience in sales and scientific analytical mindset coupled with our understanding of the market give us the privilege to integrate the customer behavior factor perfectly into the formula. Such exercise is the key differentiator between a successful sales governance and a great theoretical one.
2. Pragmatic Process Consultants: We believe that the best way for us to work for you is to collaborate with you. Thus coming from a third point of view and as process consultants we move in tandem with our clients to collaborate with the entitled people to develop and build the best fit solution.
3. Discipline of Execution: Companies have been hiring us to work closely with them to achieve results. Such projects’ success or failure could be easily spotted, thus it’s our main interest to “guarantee” results. As such, we follow closely in building up the momentum of flywheel model to insure consistency and coherence until we guarantee the success of the project.

As a boutique sales management consulting firm focusing solely on assisting organization in developing, transforming and optimizing their sales organization, we can further help in any of your uncertain sales challenges, and sales performance optimization.

Feel free to contact us or directly respond to mazen@logicshape.com.