For any sales leader to run a predictable, repeatable business and consistently crush it quarter-after-quarter—leveraging data is an absolute requirement.
The challenge is, there’s so much noise out in the market right now with all these sales tech stack vendors pitching their wares, it’s tough to separate fact from fiction.
The begs the question…
From a data and performance management perspective—what IS essential and what’s just noise?
Before I share with you my POV, it’s important we first get grounded on one simple fact:
When it comes to optimizing frontline sales performance, the fundamental problem we are solving for is NOT a technology problem—it’s a behavioral problem.
Implementing fancy dashboards, rev tracking apps, and dozens of KPIs is an easy quick fix, but it won’t solve the problem.
Changing frontline behaviors (and getting it to stick) is hard, but it will solve the problem.
Remember: What gets measure, doesn’t get done.
What gets measured AND CONSISTENTLY REINFORCED gets done.
In other words, the only way to move the needle is to ensure your
Frontline Mangers (FLMs) know how to correctly coach and positively reinforce the desired frontline behavior change.
No consistent coaching ➜ No consistent reinforcement ➜
No behavior change ➜ No performance improvement
The primary focus should not be on merely tracking data (the outputs of behavior).
The primary focus should be helping FLMs understand how to move upstream to proactively shape and positively reinforce key frontline behaviors that drive the numbers that produce the results.
My POV:
The most critical data points to track are Leading Indicators (LIs) tied to specific sales stages.
When you have the right LIs in place and FLMs are skilled at knowing how to correctly reinforce them, it allows for…
♦ Consistent understanding of the business that’s easy to forecast
♦ Optimization of each stage of the sales process
♦ Personalized, data-driven development of your salespeople
