Prospecting is arguably the most underrated part of the sales process. What many salespeople fail to realize is that putting in the proper time and effort into prospecting can make all the difference between a wasted week and a killer sales period. It is crucial that our partners develop the right systemic approach to prospecting. Here are four critical errors to avoid when it comes to prospecting.  1. Your Salespeople Are Not Prospecting At All. A disturbingly large number of sales professionals fail to do any prospecting at all. It may be due to "call reluctance" or even a skewed belief that proper prospecting is ineffective, but really, any prospecting is better than no prospecting at all. If your sales force is reluctant to prospect for whatever reason, you need to instill in them the right habits and tools to properly prospect.  2. Your Salespeople Talk Too Much. Generally speaking, salespeople need to feel comfortable talking to new people in order to succeed. However, many salespeople, especially young salespeople, make the mistake of talking too much when they are meeting with a prospect. Whether they are jumping right into the pitch process instead of asking the important questions, or attempting to preempt objections by overwhelming the prospect with information, if your salespeople are talking too much at the prospect, your company is losing sales. If you suspect that your salespeople are tanking their relationships with prospects by talking too much, there are a few valuable habits and tools that you can coach them on. First, you need to ensure that your salespeople are familiar with active listening and how to employ it to put the prospect at ease. Second, you need to coach them on your firm’s expectations for relationship building with the prospect. There is a time and place to hard sell, and the first time you meet with a prospect is definitely not the time or place.  3. Your Salespeople Make Presumptions About the Prospect. There is no quicker way to lose a prospect than by making unnecessary assumptions and presumptions about the prospect’s business. If your salespeople rush in to say things like "I can help you!" or "I know exactly what you need!" they are essentially disrespecting the prospect’s authority as a decision maker. Once again, if your salespeople are making this critical error, you may need to coach them on active listening as well as the proper way to point out the utility of your products or services.  4. Your Salespeople Forget the Goal (or Do Not Have One).  What is the goal when you meet with a new sales prospect? Arguably the goal is to make a sale, period. More often than not, however, the right goal for a first meeting with a prospect is to create a personal relationship on which a sale can be built later. If your salespeople are not approaching a new prospect with a concrete goal, they are at risk of damaging the relationship with the prospect. Remind your sales force that they must be goal oriented in their prospecting.   Sources: http://www.doncooper.com/top-ten-prospecting-mistakes-salespeople-make/ http://www.oneminuteu.com/default.taf?page=content&id=3027 http://www.inc.com/ss/4-mistakes-young-salespeople-make#3 http://www.gmarketing.com/articles/16-the-10-biggest-goofs-salespeople-make http://www.tcwmag.com/5-mistakes-salespeople-make/

Here are some troubling numbers for you: - Fewer than 55% of all sales reps regularly make their quota - 65% of all sales professionals give up on a sale after hearing their second "no" from a decision maker - 7 out of 8 companies will never achieve profitable growth, despite having adequately detailed strategic plans. If you are concerned that any of these statistics might eventually apply to you and your company, it is time for you to rethink how you approach your training, motivating and supporting your sales force. First, take stock of your situation. Have you identified your star performers, core salespeople and bottom third reps? If you have not yet grouped your sales force accordingly, you are missing a valuable opportunity to appropriately motivate your sales team. Super Sales Studs. Some people are just that good at sales. These are your superstar salespeople. Typically, they make making their quota look effortless and they do it by selling ice to the Inuit. These people tend to be almost entirely motivated by financial incentives, but they are the first to leave when a ceiling if placed on their ability to earn. Bottom Third. If you have developed an onboarding program that instills your sales team with the appropriate habits and tools to effectively make sales quotas, your bottom third should be made almost entirely of new people. Your bottom third are the first to become discouraged and can often not be counted on to do anything more than show up in the morning. Core Professionals. Your core performers probably do not get that much of your attention on a day to day basis. Core salespeople can be counted on to make their quota most of the time. They show up to work and will accomplish whatever task you hand them, but because they are not struggling or rocketing to the very top, you often miss the fact that they too can benefit from coaching and motivation. So now that you have figured out into which category each and every single member of your sales team falls, you can begin to coach them to be the best salespeople they can be. Here are some general rules and guidelines for being the most effective coach possible:  Find out what motivates your sales force. Apply individualized coaching strategies consistently. Allow your salespeople to invest themselves in their future with your company. Listen before you speak. Understand that small incentives yield big returns. With the proper coaching, even your bottom third will see massive improvements to their sales performance. Make sure that you are taking time each day or week to individually coach and support your salespeople.   Sources: http://blogs.salesforce.com/company/2013/04/the-secret-of-sales-performance-infographic.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=linkedin http://www.wikihow.com/Motivate-Your-Sales-Team http://saleshq.monster.com/training/articles/991-how-to-motivate-your-slacking-sales-team- http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-marketing/sales/seven-ways-to-motivate-your-sales-team/article11778433/ http://www.success.com/articles/1445-how-to-motivate-your-sales-staff http://blog.affinityexpress.com/2013/02/15/10-tips-for-supporting-the-sales-team-in-todays-environment/ http://intelligentdemand.com/resources/support-your-sales-team/ http://blogs.salesforce.com/company/2012/10/how-to-coach-and-develop-winning-sales-teams.html

If you have been paying attention to legal news, you know that by this point in time, the United States government is building its case that Apple - headed at that point in time by the late Steve Jobs - engaged in a nefarious price fixing scheme for eBooks in the iBooks store. The courts ordered the release of a series of emails between Jobs and a number of News Corp. executives, including Rupert Murdoch’s son. Beyond the legal implications of the emails, reading them over it becomes clear that Steve Jobs had mastered many tactics about negotiations that added to his success. Here is what we can learn about the art of negotiation from Steve Jobs: 1. Listen Before You Speak. If you read the emails carefully, you will be able to notice that Steve Jobs never once makes an assumption about Harper Collins or News Corp. without getting direct confirmation or clarification from a member of the News Corp. team. By taking the time to get adequately informed, Steve Jobs sets himself up to give his terms without the risk of getting surprised by his opponents. 2. Present the Options. When Steve Jobs presents the options to News Corp., he is clear, concise and certain. In writing, Steve Jobs’ presented options look especially powerful because he numbers them and keeps each option to two sentences tops. By keeping the options brief, Steve Jobs is ensuring that News Corp. is aware that these options are the only options. 3. Speak Respectfully. The incredible thing about the Apple/News Corp. emails is that, despite the fact that the conversation is certainly heated, Jobs is never derisive or disrespectful. At all times during the negotiations process, he is careful to remain courteous and level-headed. While these three tactics added to his success, we disagree with his last tactic of backing them into a corner. He used the trick of slowly but surely backing the opponent into a corner where the only viable option is for them to acquiesce to your desires. While this may have added to his short-term gain, he could’ve improved by thinking more about the other side’s objectives to create a "WIN-win" deal that would’ve aided the advance of the relationship, deal, and further benefit both sides in the long term. Steve Jobs will be remembered as a lot of things. He brought us the iPhone, the MacBook and A Bug’s Life. He is now also being called a "ringmaster" in an eBook price fixing scheme. No matter how this lawsuit shakes out, he should also be remembered as a good negotiator whose willingness to hold fast resulted in many successful business maneuvers.

Take a minute to think about how you incentivize your sales force. Do you rely solely on the commission they can earn with a yearly or quarterly bonus thrown in for good measure? If so, you may be missing out on one of the most powerful ways to motivate your sales team. The fact of the matter is that not everyone can be sustainably motivated by commissions and bonuses. Some members of your sales force may prefer smaller, more regular incentives to motivate them to meet and exceed their sales goals. To find out how to best incentivize and motivate your salespeople, try this little thought exercise: Ask sellers how they would like to be rewarded if you have no money to spend, if you have $100, if you have $1000, or if you have unlimited dollars.  You may be surprised by the answers. Perhaps your top seller would prefer the opportunity to leave work in time to catch her son’s t-ball game more than she likes an extra few hundred dollars at the end of the quarter. Maybe your newest member feels a little shabby and would appreciate a gift card to a haberdashery to commemorate a training milestone. Once you have a good handle on what would truly incentivize your sales team, you will be able to begin a campaign to keep them motivated. Start Small. There is no reason why you should roll out a massively expensive campaign. Some of the best incentives are small ones. Here are some small (re: reasonably priced) incentives you can try for your sales team: Buy lunch for the top seller of the week. Gas compensation for quota-makers. "Earn" a day off by meeting and exceeding sales goals. Public commendation on the company social media websites when goals are met. (Bonus: It’s free!) Allow top salesperson to run a training session for newer sales professionals. (Also free, and for many people the opportunity to grow as a coach and leader is a huge motivator.) Don’t Forget to Recognize the Team. It is easy to remember to thank and incentivize your top sellers when they meet and exceed their goals, but it is just as important to commend the whole group when a given team meets their goals. Even if some members of the group did not meet their individual quota. Here are some ideas to recognize a whole sales team: Bring in bagels/donuts and coffee for team breakfast. (Food is a powerful motivator.) Consider increasing their commission, if feasible for your business plan. (Especially if this team consistently meets and exceeds their goals.) Give this team more autonomy in day-to-day operations. (They know what they’re doing, let them run with it!) Ultimately, offering small, regular incentives will provide your sales force with regular motivation to meet and exceed their sales goals, which is key to the growth and profitability of your business. Take some time to figure out the best incentives for your sales team and then put your plan into action. You will be amazed at the results!   Sources: http://blogs.salesforce.com/company/2013/04/the-secret-of-sales-performance-infographic.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=linkedin http://www.wikihow.com/Motivate-Your-Sales-Team http://saleshq.monster.com/training/articles/991-how-to-motivate-your-slacking-sales-team- http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-marketing/sales/seven-ways-to-motivate-your-sales-team/article11778433/ http://www.success.com/articles/1445-how-to-motivate-your-sales-staff http://blog.affinityexpress.com/2013/02/15/10-tips-for-supporting-the-sales-team-in-todays-environment/ http://intelligentdemand.com/resources/support-your-sales-team/ http://blogs.salesforce.com/company/2012/10/how-to-coach-and-develop-winning-sales-teams.html  

There’s no mistaking the simple fact that leadership styles differ enormously from person to person. There are, however, a number of shared traits that successful, effective leaders possess. Research has proven that these traits of sense and success are deeply linked to the thriving of effective leaders. Good leaders are immediately open to new understanding. Leaders do not necessarily understand complex concepts immediately, but they must be open to learning efficiently. Effective leaders are constantly asking themselves how to make sense of something new, and how to do it quickly. Good leaders create safe spaces. In order to lead effectively, good leaders are warm and welcoming, rather than intimidating or aloof. By allowing room for other people to speak up and share their thoughts, perspectives, and opinions, good leaders can use their inherent executive power to create an empathetic environment that encourages colleagues to approach them with tact and professionalism, knowing that they will be heard. Good leaders approximate, and this is because they have to. Not every project will provide every single snippet of detail that may normally be considered necessary to move forward, but leaders are able to continue to inspire their colleagues to progress without having all the information. Rather than charging blindly ahead, leaders are able to foresee what effect each step will have, whether or not they have all the information right away. Good leaders are accountable. Everything about being a leader means being available and open to feedback, but that does not mean leaders are doormats. In fact, accountability is quite the opposite: by being accountable, effective leaders are able to implement feedback they receive to more effectively move forward individually, and to help the entire team move forward. Good leaders are self-aware, and this means that they are also aware of others. In order to effectively build a team, they must understand the effects of their own actions - before they implement them. As such, they must complement the actions of other teammates, and they must be able to act well on the actions of others. Good leaders act fast. In cases where there are a lot of unknowns, leaders have to move forward with limited information. This usually happens under a time crunch - after all, if there were more time to act, then leaders would be able to wait on implementing projects until they have all the information. Rather than waiting around, effective leaders move forward with whatever they have. The workplace is a highly unpredictable space, especially when things are constantly happening on a tight deadline. Nonetheless, with good leaders in place, projects get done - even with limited resources. As a leader, the best way to start is to ask the right questions - both of yourself and of your colleagues.  

If you’re in sales, then you know that the achievement of transactions is the bread and butter of keeping a business going. But your relationships with your clients should not be "transactional" in the same way. Strategizing effectively takes a little more care and insight, and it all boils down to being proactive. Know Your Client’s Business The concept of knowing your customer is a basic aspect of business, and for good reason. If you are invested in helping your client achieve their business goals and objectives, then you need to know their business inside and out. You don’t need to have quite the level of comprehensive knowledge that, say, a manager in the industry might, but you definitely need to have a full working knowledge of your client’s business model. Can you answer a simple question? How does your client make money? If you’re coming up empty, then you have some homework to do. Be Proactive If you know the ins and outs of your client’s business, including their business motivations and objectives, then you should have the tools to bring ideas to the table when you are working with the client. It’s important to work in collaboration with the client in response to their needs. After the client delineates their needs, you should be able to meet these needs so they can better accomplish their business goals. That’s a pretty basic model - and you’re probably already doing that. But what if you could take it a step further? If you want to help your client succeed, then you need to be innovative rather than reactive. If a client has already diagnosed their own needs, that’s great. But here is the biggest reason you need to have a comprehensive understanding of your client’s business: you should be able to pinpoint where the client’s business needs are, even if the client can’t see it on their own. If you have an intimate sense of what they do and why they do it, your outside perspective will be invaluable when it comes to building on what’s working and fixing what is not. Help Them Strategize Helping your clients strategize means that you can help them figure out how to leverage online tools available to them. You can figure out how to help them meet their needs in a way that works for their budget. You need to help them figure out how best to serve their own clients. By being an advantage for your clients, you drive results and take responsibility for the outcomes. Sources: http://www.forbes.com/sites/alanhall/2012/06/14/to-succeed-as-an-entrepreneur-know-your-customer/ http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2011/11/28/how-to-be-a-strategic-advantage-for-your-clients/ http://www.searchenginejournal.com/data-to-help-your-clients-strategize-for-2012/38356/

It’s no secret that good, effective leaders drive forward a successful business. But what makes a good leader? Technical leaders in particular, including as people working in marketing, finance, and sales, have a specific set of needs. Leadership Needs for the Technical Workplace Effective leaders should be the driving force behind achieving business goals and objectives, which requires that they meet a number of business needs. Supporting colleagues. This is the first point on the list for a reason. Business leaders are not just there to crack the whip on their team members. Employees and teammates who feel well supported in their work are going to work harder, as long as the leader balances support with the importance of meeting deadlines and accomplishing goals. Autonomy. In business, employees should have some level of freedom and discretion over the work that they do. Tying in with support, the autonomy awarded to colleagues also means high expectations. Employees who have a lot of free reign over their work also have high responsibility, and it is the leader’s job to motivate and check in. Leaders should also be able to reassess what is and is not working when it comes to employee responsibility. Achievement. Ultimately, the greatest needs of businesses are those of actually meeting business objectives and goals. Common Leadership Pitfalls When leaders are ineffective, businesses suffer. But just how much? While it may be obvious that productivity decreases, it’s also true that retention falls short, employees are unengaged, their talents go undeveloped, and time is wasted. What makes for some of these pitfalls? Micromanaging. It comes back to the question of autonomy in the workplace. If teammates feel that they have more freedom, they are much more likely to take on greater responsibilities. Failing to step up. Leaders need to improve their skills and take on new responsibilities just as often as their employees, if not more so. Leadership is not solely about delegation. Not managing at all. The opposite issue of micromanaging? Leading without a sense of the whole. Being a leader means managing all the projects in the workplace. Training to Achieve Essential Leadership Skills It all boils down to a few very important essentials. Good leaders know how to build trust and collaborative relationships with their colleagues and their clients, as well as how to communicate successfully with all of the above. Technical leaders face a lot of challenges in the industry, but with good training that addresses ways to leverage limited resources and balance all the various aspects of teamwork in the profession, good leaders can become excellent leaders. Sources: http://www.trainingindustry.com/training-outsourcing/products/research/leading-technical-professionals.aspx?display=ig http://www.shapironegotiations.com/blog/6-leadership-best-practices-how-to-make-sense-of-the-unfamiliar/  

It’s not easy to be in the sales industry. Buyers may not have a sense of what products and services are available to solve their problems, or even that your company exists. The solution they need may be right under their nose the entire time, and that’s where effective sales people come in. Smart sales people know the ins and outs of lead conversion and how to make sure everyone wins. What Makes a Good Sales Person? A good sales person meets a number of criteria. Great sales people focus on results. They are goal oriented, and can figure out an effective path to take to achieve their objectives. Great sales people are self-starters. They manage themselves without becoming distracted, and do not need to be immediately supervised. Autonomous sales people have a lot of freedom, and carry a lot of responsibility as well. Great sales people do not take rejection personally. This is one of the basics of being in the industry: you’re going to get a lot of "no" in comparison to "yes." Great sales people are persistent. In sales, it’s important to be resilient, and not to give up if they are rejected or lose a deal. They remember that selling is a time consuming process and that they need to be patient and keep at it. Great sales people are good listeners. They often listen more than they talk, because without an intimate understanding of a client’s needs, they will not be able to provide solutions. They can then provide honest answers about the products and services available to meet - or not meet - the needs presented to them. Great sales people are balanced. They approach the work with a good blend of introversion and extroversion, and know when to step up and when to pull back. It Isn’t Easy to Find Good Sales People It’s difficult to find great sales people. Many managers lower their standards because they have trouble finding the best performers out there under pressure. A lot of this is because of the bad reputation that sales people are pushy and are only in the business to make money on products that people don’t really want. There is little education and professional development available in sales. This makes recruiting all the more difficult. Aim High in the Face of Adversity It’s not easy to recruit a good sales person in today’s market, but with the will to work hard and learn the language, it’s possible to become an excellent sales person. It takes resilience, an ego that won’t be bruised, and self-motivation, but with the right tool set, a person with sales potential can become exactly what recruiters are looking for. Sources: http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikaandersen/2013/04/12/the-unexpected-secret-to-being-a-great-salesperson/ http://www.youngupstarts.com/2012/03/29/infographic-anatomy-of-a-top-performing-salesperson/

Your prospective clients, like any clients, are bound to see the business world in their own way. Their experiences in the industry will undoubtedly influence their point of view. It all comes down to their understanding of the industry and how their own business or personal needs relate to the products or services they are going to pursue in order to get a leg up in a competitive industry. These aspects of business give clients a particular outlook on their own business model, as well as the challenges they face and the opportunities available to them. This outlook is a major factor in how your client understands and deals with the concept of value in business - that is to say, just how much products and services are worth in relation to their own needs and objectives. Breaking it Down: Point of View and Value It should be a given that you have an intimate knowledge of the industry and of your prospective client’s needs and goals in business. With this in mind, you should be able to create a value that is aligned with the client’s objectives. When the value you generate is in the ballpark with your client’s outlook on value, then making the transaction is easy and doesn’t require any further analysis. This makes for a smooth relationship between you and your client, because they understand the worth of your product or service in much the same way that you do. Distortions of Outlook Difficulties arise when the client’s outlook creates a distorted sense of value. For example, if your service has been proven to create much more effective results than those of your competitors, with solid statistics on such fundamental aspects of business as improved ROI and lead conversion, then it should be clear that your service could be an invaluable aspect of any client’s strategy. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Many people opt for lower quality for a lower price, so being the best is not always going to cut it for these clients. If this particular client does not see that your price is lower, then you will not be able to win them over. What to Do? What does this mean for you? Well, there are two options: either change your own value, or change your client’s perception of value. Neither of these answers are particularly simple. It may not be worth it to realign your sense of value with your client’s; then again, it may not be worth it to put in the work to change that of your client. Either way, the aforementioned understanding of your client’s needs and goals will be a crucial factor in making the next steps forward. Sources: http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2013/07/05/your-clients-value-lens/ http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2013/06/25/the-urgent-case-for-business-acumen/

When you’re seeking out talent to bring your organization to the next level, you generally have two options: go fishing for a new hire, or take a closer look at your existing pool of employees. Leaders might assume that starting the hiring process and recruiting talent from the outside is the simplest option. Smart leaders, however, understand that they already possess the workforce resources that the business needs to succeed. With smart leadership and strong management practices, you can simultaneously avoid the hiring process and grow the talent of the people you already have on board.   Why Nourish Existing Talent? Simply put, hiring is expensive. Between direct and indirect costs like advertising and a gap in productivity, you could be looking at a few thousand dollars for replacing a low-level employee and over $100,000 to replace or add on an upper-level employee with specialized skills. Expanding talent within your organization generally requires far less financial investment, and comes with little risk. A mis-hire, however, could set you back even further. Additionally, nourishing existing talent increases the productivity of your organization as a - or the equivalent of hiring an additional 25 employees. Meanwhile, morale is boosted when employees are more engaged and feel like management in invested in their growth.   How Smart Leaders Get the Most From Employees Clearly, investing in the talent you already have can dramatically strengthen your organization from multiple standpoints. But how can leaders go about helping employees perform their best? These smart leadership practices form the foundation of growing your existing talent… Give employees more freedom. Talent needs room to grow, and providing opportunities for employees to take initiative and develop their own ideas creates that space. Learn from mistakes. People slip up, and at the beginning, giving employees room to grow may result in a few errors. Create teachable moments out of mistakes, and your employees will come closer to finding solutions on their own. Take a hands on approach. All of that said, it’s important to take an active role in nourishing talent. Bring employees on to new projects to see how it’s done, keep an open door for inquiries, and provide regular feedback on performance. Lead by example. Demanding excellence won’t get you very far, but showing employees what excellence is will. Present leadership opportunities for employees. There’s no better way to learn something than by teaching it. When appropriate, allow your talent to take a leading role on a project. Offer advanced leadership training for those with the most potential. Investing in the talent that you already have takes time, commitment, and leadership savvy, but the return on that investment comes in the form of increased productivity, greater employee satisfaction, and a high bar that you’ll consistently be able to meet. Start nourishing your talent today to begin reaping these benefits, and you may be surprised by just how great your talent can be!

Teamwork is the cornerstone of creativity, innovation, and problem solving. While one person might be limited by the constraints of their own experience or mode of thinking, a whole group of team members working in conjunction can come up with and implement far more solutions to the problem at hand. On a more qualitative scale, team building is crucial to maximizing employee satisfaction and engagement. Employees who have positive relationships with their coworkers and feel like they are contributing to a greater whole tend to be happier - and employees who are happier tend to be more productive. This is true of both a business in general and smaller work teams created for the purpose of taking on specific projects. That said, putting together a work team isn’t as simple as throwing a few employees together and telling them to get to work. A poorly constructed team can lead to interpersonal conflict, unclear objectives, and decreased productivity. Looking to build work teams that achieve goals rather than hamper your success? These tips can help.   Tips for Team Building: Define your expectations. Teams perform best with clear guidelines and expectations. Make sure that your team members know the purpose of the team, why they were chosen, and finer details such as how much time they have to complete the task and whether there is a chosen leader of the group. Value diversity. If everyone on the team shares the same perspective, they’ll be less likely to generate innovative solutions. Choose team members with a variety of backgrounds and skills to maximize the potential for creativity. Be aware of how team members work. Different people process information in a variety of ways, which can either complement each other or clash in a team setting. One person who thinks out loud may be seen as an annoyance in a team made up entirely of people who generally have a fully developed plan before they speak, whereas a quieter member’s input might get lost in a more assertive group. Know employees’ strengths and weaknesses so that you can best match them. Don’t over-complicate. The old adage "too many cooks spoil the soup" can apply in team settings. Understand which tasks are best suited to teams, and what size team can best accomplish it. Keep an eye out for teams that seem to be going in circles instead of forward. Evaluate and provide feedback. Just like individuals, teams can benefit from an outside observer, and leaders can improve team-building skills from seeing what works and what doesn’t. After every project involving work teams, spend time evaluating what could be improved. Great work teams not only perform better on individual tasks, but they can also foster positive relationships between coworkers and help individual employees hone their skills, gain leadership experience, and improve communication. What can you do to improve your team building skills?

Strengthen Your Company with These Building Blocks of Corporate Culture Successful businesses across numerous industries are all finding the same thing: a strong company culture can go a long way. Zappo’s, for example, credits their corporate culture for a 5% employee turnover rate and a 75% customer return rate. Tech startup SumAll credits their culture for a massive talent application pool, which allows them to cherry-pick new hires with the experience, skills, and personality necessary for success. Hospital call center experts BerylHealth used their corporate culture to situate themselves as a premium provider, drumming up increased business and profits. Beyond the measurable effects of strong corporate culture, there are more personal benefits, too. A strong identity can help employees feel like a part of a larger, meaningful organization, and can reduce the feelings of alienation, stagnation, and frustration that can often occur from spending one’s days in an office environment. And of course, when employees feel better about where they work, they tend to be more productive. Growing Your Corporate Culture Looking to build your company culture, but not sure where to start? These building blocks provide a strong foundation to expand upon. Define yourself. The first step to building a corporate culture is deciding exactly what you want that culture to look like. Identify your priorities and values, figure out how your business model fits into your desired culture, and strategize ways that you can turn abstract culture into actual practice. Encourage open communication.Culture is only possible when the whole company comes together to create it, and one of the best ways to foster this togetherness is to value each person’s input. Transparent management also goes a long way toward keeping everyone in the loop and ensuring that even entry-level employees feel like part of the decision-making process. Celebrate success. Positivity is one of the shared traits of many of the successful start-ups (and some more established companies) noted for their strong company cultures. Take every opportunity to praise employees, turn every mistake into a teachable moment, and reward hard work and results. Hire for your culture. Personality is often overlooked during the hiring process, but you can’t build a culture without employees who support it! Search for talent with the skills and experience you need and a shared sense of values. Have some fun. Some companies are known for the break room air hockey tables and on-staff massage therapists. While you don’t necessarily need to take those routes, make sure that your employees have opportunities throughout the day to relax and take breaks. Performance goes up when employees feel positively about their environment! Corporate cultures don’t just spring up out of nowhere - they take innovation, effort, and a willingness to shake things up to truly work. But if you’re willing to invest in the spirit of your company, you may be pleasantly shocked at the results!

Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Successful Entrepreneur? A fresh take on things is necessary for successful entrepreneurs, but those independent spirits who really make it in the business world definitely have some major personality traits in common. Of course, hard work, good timing, and just a little bit of luck help, too. If the following apply to you, you might have just the right personality for making your business dream a reality.   Confidence In Your Success Entrepreneurs don’t succeed by not being entirely sure about their ideas. In fact, building a business venture from the ground up requires jumping over plenty of hurdles that can stop you right in your tracks if you don’t have faith in your ability to scale them.   A Little Humility That said, being overconfident can bring you down just as quickly. The most successful entrepreneurs keep an open mind and have a commitment to constant growth and learning. Humbly seeking out mentors and peers is an important part of making it all work, as is giving credit where credit is due.   Dedication and Tenacity  Starting from the bottom isn’t easy. Your first business venture may fail, an economic downturn could put a wrench in your plans, or a competitor may simply outdo you. Successful entrepreneurs get back on their feet and dust themselves off when things don’t go according to plan, and they’re always ready to learn from their mistakes and do better next time.   Serious Self-Motivation As an entrepreneur, you’re not going to have anyone telling you what to do, when to come into the office, or when you can do better. Successful entrepreneurs have a fire under their feet that they feed themselves.   A Penchant for Rule-Breaking Paradigm shifts and game changing ideas come from an ability to defy convention. Detractors may claim ideas are crazy or impossible to achieve, but successful entrepreneurs know that such claims mean that they’re on the right track.   Willingness to Take a Risk (Within Reason) Entrepreneurship requires a good deal of risk-taking, from financial investments to innovations that present the world with something a little bit unfamiliar. A recent study actually found that successful entrepreneurs engaged in more risky activity in their youths than unsuccessful ones! Of course, the key to success is to take calculated risks.   An Eye for Opportunity Finally, successful entrepreneurs know how to spot gaps that they can fill with their own ideas, and the most successful ones can spot those gaps across multiple industries. Richard Branson, for instance, has managed to grow successful business ventures ranging from transportation to communications.

  Join SNI at the 2013 World Business Forum. On October 1-2, thousands of business leaders will gather from around the globe for this event at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Speakers include: Jeb Bush | Gordon Brown | Ben Zander | Jack Welch | Sam Palmisano | Nancy Koehn | Claudio Fernández-Aráoz | S.D. Shibulal | Bob Moritz Maggie Wilderotter | Denise Morrison | Clayton Christensen | Alec Ross | Steve Levitt | Stephen Dubner. When is SNI’s session and what is it about? On September 30th, our Co-founder and Chairman, Ron Shapiro, hosts an official pre-Forum workshop, "The Power of NICE: How to Negotiate So Everyone Wins - Especially You." Discover the systematic process to negotiation that helps you close more deals, faster, and at higher margins while maintaining an ongoing relationship. Find out why companies such as ESPN, Sherwin Williams, Ryland Homes, PwC, Verizon, San Antonio Spurs, and the Corporate Executive Board choose SNI for sales, negotiation, and influence training. To find out more about SNI’s pre-Forum session and to register with the discounted price, please go to: http://www.wobi.com/events/additional-opportunities-0.  

By: Jeff Cochran, SNI Master Facilitator. During the middle two weeks of August, Chip Tames and I were fortunate enough to be in the Philippines teaching and coaching negotiations skills. During our second week there, the rains generated by Typhoon Maring caused wide spread flooding throughout Metro Manila. Quezon City and Makati were the hardest hit. Unfortunately, many of our participants lived in those areas. As a result, a few of the days of training were sparsely attended as some folks were unable to leave their homes on impassable, flooded streets. My colleagues back in the states, upon hearing the news were concerned and curious how we coped with the flooding. I honestly told them that we coped the same way we do in the Northeast when there is a bad winter storm. The safety of the participants was our highest concern, and we told everyone if they could not make it in safely to stay home, and if they could make it in safely we would see them tomorrow. In fact, it was exactly how we cope with natural disasters everywhere. People often ask, "How do you teach negotiations in such diverse cultures?" My response always is that wherever you go, people are people and there may be subtle nuances, but the basic tools remain valuable everywhere. The flooding in Metro Manila reminded me of that. Monsoonal Flooding is very different from a Winter Nor’easter that causes a blizzard, but folks respond pretty much the same way. They hunker down, make sure their family is safe and rely on their neighbors to help them out if they get in a real jam. It’s nice to know that regardless of subtle differences as the result of culture, humanity remains basically the same all over.

High turnover and worker attrition rates in the recent economy have left many businesses short of staff or working with a bunch of new hires who lack a grasp on the business. In addition to this, the last several years have produced some significant changes in the philosophy of worker training. Applying these new tips and techniques for training your workforce can get your business working more smoothly and make your employees more confident that they understand their roles.   Cross-Training Isn’t Just For Fitness In order to deal with the high turnover rates of recent years, many businesses have on-boarded a group of less experienced employees to fill those roles. What may make more sense for many companies, however, is to cross-train existing employees. Many individuals already on your team can handle more responsibility, and more time on the job will have given them a clearer sense of how those responsibilities fit into the larger corporate scheme. A group of cross-trained senior employees will outperform a group of new employees tasked with a single role.   Training Is A Game Gamification is one of the new tricks in employee training that has come about in the last few years. Turn training into a large-scale game, with tasks and quests that your employees must complete. This element of fun helps to keep employees engaged and motivated to participate in training activities. In this respect, training employees can be like working with children - learning needs to be fun for workers to engage enthusiastically, which is why turning training into a game is so effective.   Embrace Technology More and more training can be done on an individual basis using technology, rather than in group settings. Employees today are increasingly comfortable using technology in all parts of their lives, and work training should be no exception. eLearning and other digital formats may hold the attention of workers who spend much of their time using technology.   Understand Their Goals There is a large psychological element to training techniques today. If you better understand the goals of your employees, you will be able to motivate them more effectively. Helping your employees to pursue their own goals gives them an incentive to engage fully with the training process. Other psychological tools utilized in best training practices in recent years include providing positive reinforcement and embracing different learning styles. If you provide employees with training materials best suited to their learning style, they are more likely to retain the information.

Recently, PressBox named the Top Thirteen Sports Power Players in Maryland. For each ranking, they calculated a numerical impact score from factors such as: "overall wealth, financial success and social influence; the value of their sport enterprise; the influence their work has had on other places or people in sport; their philanthropy efforts in the community or across sport; their community engagement; and the strength of their particular brand in the sports industry."   Ron Shapiro, Chairman and Co-Founder of SNI, ranked #7, recieving an 8.9/10 impact score, only ranking under team owners and the CEO of Under Armour.  When Pressbox described his impact throughout Maryland they noted that: "Team owners, business leaders and civic leaders keep Shapiro on speed dial because he is known for his deft touch in dispute resolutions, business transactions, public relations and negotiations. Shapiro has served as chairman of the boards of more than 25 civic and charitable organizations. His impact score is derived from his network of relationships in sports and the many organizations that have relied on his influence in setting their course and direction." SNI congratulates and thanks Ron for his incredible impact.   To see the full article clink the following link: http://www.pressboxonline.com/story/10429/The-Top-13-Sports-Power-Players-In-Maryland

Let’s face it: customer relationship management (CRM) is a jumbled mess. We come to CRM with an empty box, and then an uncoordinated group works to add information to it. The leads generated by various parts of the sales force simply don’t come together into a coherent image of who our customers are. But with evolution in the field of CRM, there is potential for that to change. From the revolutionary no software world of Salesforce, CRM is evolving. The CRM of the future won’t require an entire team of its own, generating leads and pouring information into it. The only CRM worth having in the future will be one that provides those leads on its own. Many highly successful companies have found that there is only one good way to deal with their CRMs, and that is to assign an entire team to the projects, along with thousands or even millions of dollars. The empty box that every current CRM starts out as gets filled by these teams, but only large companies have the resources necessary to make this happen. Instead, the rest of us are forced to work with conflicting information or missing updates. With a system like that, it’s impossible to know who needs our products. A properly functioning CRM in the future will have the answer to that question. Right out of the box, new CRMs will have a set of customer recommendations. And, to make the system even better, those recommendations will be consistent across departments. If one department discovers that recommendations are wrong, the CRM will update across all departments. Leads should be singular and consistent in this CRM of the future. There shouldn’t be duplicates or entire CRM-dedicated teams. And those leads shouldn’t cost millions of dollars to uncover. Finally, to really have an optimized CRM will mean that we get the big picture. The new CRM should be able to tell us whether our customers are on Facebook, or if they are Twitter users instead. A wide variety of information should be available within the CRM, and the system should be smart enough to know which representatives need which kinds of information. This may sounds like a stretch, but we are rapidly approaching this phase in the world of CRMs. It was exciting when Salesforce first revolutionized the market by getting rid of the extensive software needs that CRMs used to come with, but the future holds even more exciting prospects. CRM may still be a hassle, but coming down the road are changes that will streamline the lead process in ways we never imagined before.

When designing a mobile app, it isn’t enough to just code into the void and then launch the app to consumers. No - there are numerous ways in which apps should be optimized for maximum user enjoyment, starting with the selection of an appropriate mobile platform. Follow these five rules when choosing your mobile app platform to ensure ease of use and top performance. Choose a hybrid platform. Using a hybrid platform will allow your app to translate across different platforms and environments. This makes it less expensive to design and avoids the pitfalls of trying to translate a platform specific application. Make sure your hybrid platform is compatible with mobile coding, can run background activities, and can manage secure on-device backup. Adopt HTML5. HTML5 still has its problems, but because as a platform it embraces so many different functions, from messaging to data semantics, it is unwise to forego this platform entirely. Making HTML5 part of your hybrid platform will help to integrate your app into the growing community of HTML5 users, while still providing it with some firmer ground in the form of a joint platform. Engage with the cloud. It can feel strange to back-up your devices and programming in what seems to be the equivalent of thin air, but the cloud is the way to go these days. Don’t overlook more traditional back-end systems, but combine them with public and private cloud structures to improve the overall integration of your app with other programming. Choose your provider carefully. With the rapid changes that app platforms are undergoing resulting in constant turnover, it is important that you choose a supporting provider who is financially solvent and that has an extensive roadmap for product evolution. Your provider should be able to make new formats available to you rapidly, and their company framework needs to align with your service level agreements. Emphasize collaboration. Nothing in today’s marketplace is designed by a single person. Rather, it is much more common to find multiple teams of people engaged in the problem solving process of designing an app. With that kind of diversity, however, it is not uncommon to find different coding languages and conflicts between the groups. Make sure to choose a platform that can help to integrate the multiple groups into the final product and that offers collaboration software, resulting in a seamless experience for the consumer.

  Give The Sales Team What They Need…When They Need It Date: Wednesday, October 23, 2013 Time: 10:00 AM Pacific / 1:00 PM Eastern SNI, in conjunction with Brainshark, Training Magazine, and Sales and Marketing Management will be conducting a complimentary webinar: "Giving The Sales Team What They Need…When They Need It!" To make training stick and actually drive results, it must be practical, customized, and accessible when needed. How can you leverage on-demand training and tools to improve your sales team’s ability to execute? Join as our EVP of Design and Production, John Buelow, and Brainshark’s VP of Sales Enablement, Marc McNamara, present examples of training content that it can be easily created, consumed, and tracked. They will share: A systematic approach to sales and negotiation that increase accountability and drives results Tips and tricks for delivering training content to boost engagement How to measure and track results To register for our webinar, please go to: http://www.trainingmagnetwork.com/welcome/brainshark_oct_23.

One of the most nerve-wracking events at any office is the annual performance review. Employees tend to hate the stress involved with hearing a year’s worth of feedback in one sitting. Managers typically dislike the levels of formality that official performance reviews require. Still, performance reviews serve a vital function at any productive workplace. As we approach the end of the year - and the performance reviews that come along with it - let us stop to consider three tips for giving great feedback. 1. Be clear, concise and prepared. The most important step to giving a great performance review is to be clear, concise and prepared when you are speaking with your employee. We recommend that you prepare for the review by assembling all of the materials that you believe you will need to complete the review. Then, take the time to speak with a few of your colleagues (if applicable) about the employee in question to get a more-rounded impression of the employee’s performance. Once you have a complete view of the employee’s performance over the course of the year, you can distill that information down into a clear and concise review. 2. Engage with the employee and encourage their engagement. Many performance reviews end up being a manager reading off a sheet of paper to an employee. Although that method may alleviate some of the stress associated with a performance review, it is far better to engage with your employees as individuals during the process. As you work through the review, stop and allow your employee to ask questions, give explanations or even direct the conversation to topics that they think are important. When you truly engage with your employees during the performance review process, they are more likely to take your words to heart. 3. Set up an action plan for follow-up. Many employees (and employers, too!) secretly believe that performance reviews are not at all effective. This is due in large part to the fact most performance reviews have no real consequences. In order to ensure that your employees take performance reviews to heart, the onus is on you to schedule regular follow-ups. During the performance review, consider setting several concrete goals with your employee. You should also discuss the actions necessary to meet those goals. Finally, you should schedule regular meetings to discuss the employee’s progress toward these goals. Performance reviews have gotten a bad reputation for being stressful wastes of time. Still, a well-done annual performance review is vital to the success of any business. If you are willing to put in the work before, during and after the performance review process, you, too, can give performance reviews that are helpful and stress-free.

A fresh take on things is necessary for successful entrepreneurs, but those independent spirits who really make it in the business world definitely have some major personality traits in common. Of course, hard work, good timing, and just a little bit of luck help, too. If the following apply to you, you might have just the right personality and qualities to make your business dreams a reality. Confidence In Your Success Entrepreneurs don’t succeed by not being entirely sure about their ideas. In fact, building a business venture from the ground up requires jumping over plenty of hurdles that can stop you right in your tracks if you don’t have faith in your ability to scale them.  A Little Humility That said, being overconfident can bring you down just as quickly. The most successful entrepreneurs keep an open mind and have a commitment to constant growth and learning. Humbly seeking out mentors and peers is an important part of making it all work, as is giving credit where credit is due.  Dedication and Tenacity Starting from the bottom isn’t easy. Your first business venture may fail, an economic downturn could put a wrench in your plans, or a competitor may simply outdo you. Successful entrepreneurs get back on their feet and dust themselves off when things don’t go according to plan, and they’re always ready to learn from their mistakes and do better next time. Serious Self-Motivation As an entrepreneur, you’re not going to have anyone telling you what to do, when to come into the office, or when you can do better. Successful entrepreneurs have a fire under their feet that they feed themselves. A Penchant for Rule-Breaking Paradigm shifts and game changing ideas come from an ability to defy convention. Detractors may claim ideas are crazy or impossible to achieve, but successful entrepreneurs know that such claims mean that they’re on the right track. Willingness to Take a Risk (Within Reason) Entrepreneurship requires a good deal of risk-taking, from financial investments to innovations that present the world with something a little bit unfamiliar. A recent study actually found that successful entrepreneurs engaged in more risky activity in their youths than unsuccessful ones! Of course, the key to success is to take calculated risks. An Eye for Opportunity Finally, successful entrepreneurs know how to spot gaps that they can fill with their own ideas, and the most successful ones can spot those gaps across multiple industries. Richard Branson, for instance, has managed to grow successful business ventures ranging from transportation to communications.

"A winning effort begins with preparation." - Joe Gibbs "Before anything else, preparation is the key to success." - Alexander Graham Bell "I’m a big believer in the fact that life is about preparation, preparation, preparation." - Johnnie Cochran "One important key to success is self-confidence.  An important key to self-confidence is preparation." - Arthur Ashe Take any of the above quotes (or the countless others about preparation) and they boil down to one thing.  Preparation leads to success. In negotiation, preparation can be the difference between getting the deal you want and walking out of the room with regrets. It is the only aspect of a negotiation that is in your full control. There are lots of ways to prepare, but one great way is to use role-play.  Find a friend or acquaintance that can take the other side.  Let them play devil’s advocate and see how the negotiation may play out.  Do it a couple times to build confidence in your position and delivery as well as thinking through what the other side may say.

Every office has one: a morning person who skips into the office to begin their day with a grin and a loud greeting. Bypassing the coffee pot entirely, the morning person sits down to plow through the tasks in front of them, cheerily attempting conversation with their fellow officemates. If it seems like they are getting more done than anybody else, it is because they are. However, Super-Productive Suzy may not actually be "a morning person." In fact, very few people actually enjoy mornings. Instead, successful morning work is a result of a solid routine and not a genetic anomaly. Subsequently, even morning haters can get their workday started on the right foot if they commit themselves to five easy steps. 1. Exercise before work. Experts have been telling us for years that it is best to exercise in the morning. Still, people are reluctant to sacrifice their last moments of sleep in favor of going on a run. However, there are a number of reasons for why you should exercise in the morning before work. First, early exercise revs up your metabolism, which means that you will have more energy throughout the day. Second, crossing exercise off of your to do list before you "officially" start your day means that you will head into work with a deep sense of accomplishment. 2. Plan your day. The most successful people spend the first hour of each workday planning their workdays. When you first get to the office, clear off your desk and get to work on planning the flow of your day. This includes making a detailed list of everything that you need to accomplish. 3. Connect with others. Many people have a tendency to rush straight to their desks without even acknowledging the people around them. Instead, you should take the morning as a valuable opportunity to connect with your colleagues. Smile, say hello and ask them how they are. The morning is also a great time to check in with people who may need your time later in the day. 4. Ignore your email. It sounds completely counterintuitive, but the most successful people ignore their email for the first part of the morning. If you rush into checking and answering email, you will miss a valuable opportunity to make a prioritized plan for your day. Instead of spending your first hours at work searching through your inbox, do a quick perusal and respond to only the most important. Later on, when you have more time, you can answer the less-important emails. 5. Plan a break. Successful people know that they should always plan a midmorning break. This serves two purposes. First, it gives you a set deadline by which you should have all of your morning work completed. Second, a midmorning break serves as a great reward for powering through your morning to-do list.   Sources: http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/08/23/16-things-you-should-do-at-the-start-of-every-work-day/ http://www.forbes.com/pictures/efkk45jlkf/14-things-you-should-do-at-the-start-of-every-work-day-3/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2013/08/29/four-ways-to-start-your-work-day-right/ http://www.thegrindstone.com/2013/09/26/career-management/balance/start-your-work-day-off-right/