Your firm is on task. Your numbers look good and your team is managing client projects; the usual business cycle seems to be going well.
But, there is a sense that your team could do better. Within your success there is stagnation and your future leaders lack consistency or balance in selling key solutions and taking the initiative to bolster a relationship with clients beyond the transaction. While experts in their field, your key leaders are missing opportunities to solidify and cross-sell clients on beneficial services and solutions. They may even echo your concern and know that we “should” stay in touch with past clients, cross- sell services and products they need anyway and be more relational. But “I don’t have time to follow up or I’m not good at sales, or I tried and they didn’t want it” are all indicators you have a “People Problem.”
When you experience this type of feedback or notice client retention and returns are weak, it’s time to take a good look not at your team’s expertise, but their behavior. Experts in key professional services companies tend to prefer to do what they do well: accounting, architecture, financial services, etc. They may be uncomfortable or just unsure of how to build client loyalty. Regardless of the reason, you must solve the “People Problem” to ensure exponential growth in your business and in your leaders. Assessing behavioral styles and understanding what motivates your team is a critical component of developing your leaders. That development will directly make an impact on your business numbers. Knowing their leadership style and understanding their behavior will give you insight and therefore solutions on how to develop each team member to be the most effective and motivated. Knowing yourself and your team is the egg in the cake batter: it helps your team grow and go more effectively.
You know this. You’ve even had your team assessed and your team member was given their results. Most firms stop here. Unless an assessment can spotlight on key behaviors and what motivates them, identifying their “style” or “personality type” may be useless alone.
You need an assessment tool mix to reveal a 3-dimensional picture of your key people. When you go 3D or from shallow to deep, you then have the right “tools” to assist them in being the best leader/professional they can. Use tools to understand behavior, functionality and their motivators, then use their unique results to empower them.
Robinson Performance Group administers, interprets and trains client teams using three assessment tools. We call it the shallow to deep assessment package. One assessment tool does not a “rock star” professional make. Putting someone in sales because they scored high in a sales personality profile will be disastrous if one doesn’t understand what motivates them. Not all sales types are motivated just by the commission incentive. Unless you dive deeper and understand what drives that person, and fine tune your training and approach for that, you may never see the expected results from those key employees.
A strong assessment combination that I use includes: The DISC Profile – starting wide with behavior
The Rainmaker Efficiency Profile – which looks at seven competencies for an Effective Sales Profile
The Motivators Assessment – helps in recognizing situations where they will succeed by understating seven dimensions of motivational drivers.
By assessing the whole person, behavior, personality and motivation and then adjusting your approach in mentoring and developing your team, you will be addressing the “People Problem” in a customized manner which will provide your firm with the results you had planned more effectively, consistently and for the long-term.
Ed Robinson:
- Why a “recovering CPA?”
- What do people want to know about you?
- Clothing sales lessons
- Your clients biggest struggles.
Ed Robinson transforms individuals into professionals, managers into leaders and leaders to Rainmakers. A Certified Speaking Professional and former CPA, Ed is the the author of four books and an expert in practice growth. His energetic, engaging and entertaining style is only one reason why Ed’s strategies improve performance, helping individuals manage change and increase revenue regardless of economic times and challenges.
Whether the task is leadership, sales training or dealing with change — and beginning with the particular challenges of an audience, Ed underscores the basics such as the attributes of professionalism, taking personal responsibility for one’s circumstances and for one’s career path and life. Change management and business growth are key to each of Ed’s keynote presentations. By not being a victim of life’s storms, and by reinvigorating passion in one’s purpose, Ed teaches individuals how to dance in the rain through all challenges.
Proven Business Advisement & Sales Expertise..
With over a 40% return engagement rate in his speaking career,Ed has spoken in over 30 countries addressing organizations such as KPMG, Wells Fargo, American Airlines, Blue Cross/ Blue Shield, HUD, Institute of Internal Auditors, MetLife, Merrill Lynch, Zurich Financial, Clear Channel/Time Warner, the US Postal Service, Deloitte, Environmental Protection Agency and NCR Corporation.
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