Are You Looking At Your Team As An Asset?

Here is the definition of an asset: “An asset is a resource controlled by the enterprise as a result of past events and from which future economic benefits are expected to flow to the enterprise.”

Your Sales Force Could Be a Killer Asset 

We have been teaching for years that your sales force is a killer-asset, a super-asset of sorts because it creates wealth for the organization.

As with any asset, it can provide mediocre returns, profound returns-or returns anywhere in between. I prefer to think about your sales asset (sales team) as a machine that prints money. Think about the three ingredients of such a machine:

1. It must be maintained. Let your car go 40,000 miles without a tune-up, and you’re in for big trouble. Why? Because there is a level of maintenance that helps the car run smoothly. Same for your sales team. Are you working to grow your team so they can perform at a higher pace? Is it running smoothly? Are you constantly working with them to improve their skills in approach? In finding the client’s pain? In controlling the process? In getting the truth?
2. It needs to be measured. Think of a machine on a factory floor. It gets inputs and delivers output. How do you know what’s possible for your sales force if it’s not measured. But don’t just measure the output (sales). Instead be clear about the ‘inputs.’ After all, that’s the only thing you can control.
3. You need to test new ways. What if you altered the machine in a way that allowed it to throw off 50% more than it was. Maybe you souped it up–or modified the governor–or did something that you weren’t even sure how it would benefit you. An asset should never be left alone. Don’t leave your sales asset alone either. Play with it. Toy with it. (Don’t toy with people – just with the processes).

What you can learn from this is to begin looking at your sales team (and all supporting tasks) as an asset that can deliver multiples of what it’s delivering now. Begin making a list of the things you see that could be improved.

Then sit down and review these with your VP sales and review the team one by one. When you start looking at things this way, you’ll be amazed at the possibilities this creates.