Sales Managers - JDI is not good enough

I have been speaking to a lot of Sales Directors and Sales People who are at either end of the frustration spectrum:

• Sales Director - "the activity is just not there, we are not seeing the results, pipeline is poor and forecasts are not accurate"
• Sales Rep - "I don't have time to do my job, I keep being asked to update reports, do account plans, focus on this product and then that product. They have cut head count and handed the work over to me, there is just not enough time in the day"

Clearly the person who is supposed to bridge the gap is the sales manager but I keep hearing the same message "it's tough out there for everyone, they just need to get on with it, I used to and I got the results....."

I am sure many of you are thinking, what's wrong with that, "I was brought up on the JDI school of management and it didn't do me any harm". But think back, how many people fell by the wayside as you progressed through sales, and how much of your experience was based around a sellers market.

So here I go back on my favourite theme coaching - the JDI approach to sales management relies on people knowing what they are supposed to be doing and a philosophy that activity equals success. However we all know now that it's not just about activity, but it is about focus and quality leading to effective activity.

Before you say JDI, find out what they are currently doing. Remember Einstein defined madness as "doing the same thing in the same way and expecting a different result". If sales management follow a pure JDI approach to life they are re-enforcing the madness and we are just creating a lunatic asylum.

So let's move away from JDI and introduce a new mantra for sales management Observe. Listen, Analyse, Coach.

Once sales managers, or your best performing sales people (the ones that just get it and do it well), have done this then by all means they can tell their people to JDI, but at least they know what they should be doing.