Sales Management Transition – How bad could it be?

Of all the mistakes companies can make, one of the most expensive can be a four-part train wreck that goes like this:

• Make a sales manager role that’s impossible
• Promote the top salesperson into it
• Give no coaching / training support
• Expect the new sales manager to “clone” him/herself among former peers

 What happens if this doesn’t work? Well, a lot, and none of it’s good.

•  The top-producing salesperson gets a job they can’t do and don’t like.
• Every motivator and source of satisfaction gets turned 180 degrees.
• The top producer’s clients may get ignored, and leave.
• Other good salespeople get frustrated, and quit (or stay, but just go through the motions – and may even complain to customers).

 

That’s a staggering cost! Many companies can't survive it.

 

I once asked a very senior executive in a major pharmaceutical company what a mistake in promoting a great rep to be a bad district sales manager might be. She had given it some thought, and answered quickly “At least $2 million – and that’s before the lawsuits!”

 

She explained “A bad DSM causes good reps to leave, and when they do, it can spoil the relationship they worked so hard to earn. Sometimes, a bad DSM creates so much stress that there’s a spike in health issues and absenteeism among the reps. And if the DSM puts too much pressure on reps to produce, they may start overstating what they say – and that’s where the potential lawsuits and major damage comes in. A really disgruntled, unhappy rep who sticks around for a few months can poison every relationship in their territory, and you just can’t easily come back from that.”

 

So why do companies promote a superstar into a job that’s set up for them to fail?

 

That’s next week’s blog.