Throughout my career, there have been a handful of times where I came across some of the most successful entrepreneurs you can possibly think of. Of them, you’d be shocked to know they too struggle with the same obstacles that we all do. Whether that be creating an amazing product that will generate great results in a number of ways, getting their teams and departments all on the same page or creating a great work environment for all to thrive in. Regardless of business need and regardless of the level these folks can be, they too find that a fresh pair of eyes can truly help enhance the quality and overall performance of their ship.
Colin reached out to me as the founder of a very successful start-up organization based in Silicon Valley. He had a decent-sized team in total, ranging coverage in software engineering, product, sales, HR, customer support, etc. He had a great relationship with each and every one of his employees. However, his business started to face a few obstacles in generating enough revenue to help keep his responsibilities afloat. He had created a stellar product that clearly solved a problem in the market he was serving. We just needed to make a few adjustments to help it operate a bit more properly.
After going through a good chunk of his business analytics and understanding that the root of the problem was in his sales department, we started to work together diligently to get things moving in an ideal direction.
Like any business owner, Colin knew that his sales department funded the rest of his business. It was the only department that brought in capital to help fund the rest of his departments and all they needed to do their jobs appropriately. This is not including the capital Colin generated from investors upon starting his business.
After going over all the ins and outs of his business, it didn't take long for me to figure out what exactly was going on. The sales department consisted of two teams of ten representatives. One was clearly exceeding the other in their performance metrics. On top of that, there wasn't enough leadership to help keep that department stable. As a result, a good chunk of the employees weren't generating anything remotely close to what they were expected to for the company to stay afloat.
I wanted to ensure everyone kept their job. With that, I knew I had to use a different tactic to help trim the fat. Right away, I implemented all of my sales coaching material into their organization. I started to work one on one with the two sales managers and all their team members. Call after call, interview after interview, I began building out a new reality for Colin and his organization.
----
There were a series of steps that needed to take place for us to bring about the results Colin was asking for. In addition to the ones already listed here, I came up with ways in which we can help improve the overall company morale and mindset for everyone involved. This started with Colin and trickled into every other department within the company, touching every employee within each sector. The goal here was to get everyone on board and bought into the new team spirit; one that empowered its contributors to make tremendous strides within their positions.
My mission was to go into his company, get all his salespeople into prime shape(meaning each generating at least double their metrics), and work closely with HR to help bring in qualified talent that could add more to the fire. While we underwent a tremendous shift in their revenue efforts, I began to get to know the employees a bit more and started to better gauge where they would be the best fit within the company.
Yes, some just weren't made to be witty salespeople but instead made great customer support agents or assistants to our executive team. Regardless of how I went about making the necessary changes to ensure the organization would continue standing, I made sure to go about my strategy to keep everyone's best interest in mind. With that, all the employees were encouraged into positions where they felt they had the skills to excel in their roles, were much appreciated for their commitment to the organization, and felt they were set for success, with many career growth opportunities that lay ahead of them.
After having made some significant changes in the organization, Colin started to see massive shifts in his numbers. Within just a matter of weeks, his organization nearly doubled the revenue they generated just from the previous quarter. I continued on with these efforts, and over time, Colin's organization started to keep itself afloat at a much more significant rate than ever before.
——
Until next time my friends, keep your head up and know that whatever “obstacle” comes your way throughout your business journey, it’s a blessing in disguise.
XO
-Bauer
P.S. Want to stay in the know and join other high-performing entrepreneurs?! Be sure to subscribe to our monthly newsletter here with up-to-date blogs, exclusive freebies, and more!
Comments