Can Companies Improve Their Sales Process Using Strength Based LEAN?
Sales are regarded as a mysterious art where performance depends almost entirely on individual ability. Organizations tinker with compensation schemes and metrics, but never really look to solve problems or eliminate the waste in their processes.
Most sales processes are 85% PURE WASTE and add no value whatsoever to either the customer, profitability of the company, or the performance of the sales representative. The way to unlock this huge cost drain is to apply Strength Based LEAN improvements.
By Kevin Klump
Sales are regarded as a mysterious art where performance depends almost entirely on individual ability. Organizations tinker with compensation schemes and metrics, but never really look to solve problems or eliminate the waste in their processes.
Most sales processes are 85% PURE WASTE and add no value whatsoever to either the customer, profitability of the company, or the performance of the sales representative. The way to unlock this huge cost drain is to apply Strength Based LEAN improvements.
Here is a great example. Let's say a sales person has a territory with a certain number of customers. Eighty percent of the time available to sell might be spent doing paperwork, waiting for things to happen, retrieving information or complying with internal requirements, which have nothing at all to do with the customer, the company's bottom line, or the company's or sales representatives profitability.
The Right and Wrong Way to Use Strength Based LEAN
Too often companies are afraid of making improvements to their sales process because they do not want to stop what they are doing and start over EVEN if their processes are broken. When applying Strength Based LEAN you can identify what is being done correctly -- and build onto it.
By David J. Cocks
Too often companies are afraid of making improvements to their sales process because they do not want to stop what they are doing and start over EVEN if their processes are broken. When applying Strength Based LEAN you can identify what is being done correctly -- and build onto it.
Strength Based LEAN allows clients to still remove waste from their processes while keeping their business and processes in place. Too often companies try to make improvements and end up destroying what is working and doing more harm than good; instead of building on what is right and identifying waste.
But the increase in productivity is the most powerful benefit. It is not at all unusual to see productivity gains of 30% in the first year sales representatives are given a choice of compensation plans.