Sales Archives

Leadership Caffeine™-Need Market Insight? Ride with a Sales Rep and Learn

I had just been hired on in a senior strategic marketing role in an industry new to me, and job one was acclimating to the market and industry dynamics and trying to understand what a customer looked like in this world. After the obligatory round of meetings with company executives, division heads and as many of their team members as I could convince to allocate some time, I recognized that the context, while appreciated, lacked the depth you can only gain from connecting with customers and industry players on their home turf. No rocket science here, just good common sense. Here are 5 valuable lessons I learned through the eyes and windshields of some top sales representatives.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:11:39-05:00June 13th, 2011|Career, Leadership|4 Comments

Three Great Hiring Habits I Learned from a Remarkable Manager

One mis-hire can poison the workplace pond, tarnish your reputation and impact your team’s/firm’s ability to execute. Do this a few times and your mistakes will likely knock you out of the hiring game and potentially into the cozy confines of today’s crowded unemployment lines. Unfortunately, the average manager isn’t very good at assessing talent and making the right call. Here are three great hiring habits I learned from a remarkable sales manager:

By Art Petty|2017-10-14T11:19:28-05:00June 9th, 2011|Career, Decision-Making, Leadership|2 Comments

Smiles, Sales and Leadership

I enjoy observing how the help in stores engage with their customers. What you see and hear speaks volumes about the leaders they work for. Want to know how people feel about their jobs and their bosses? It’s on their faces. Employees mirror the treatment they receive from their leaders.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:11:44-05:00December 20th, 2010|Career, Leadership|12 Comments

10 of My Favorite Dumb Ass Management Mistakes

In the spirit of my post, “At Least 20 Things to Stop Doing as a Leader,” which has grown well north of 50 thanks to a deluge of reader comments, I’m back with a list of some insanely stupid and all-too-common management mistakes. These focus more on the decisions, actions or inactions that contribute to creating even bigger problems. While I’ve remained on the positive side of the law here (felons, you’ve had your day!), some of these mistakes are truly criminal. Please feel free to chime in with your additions.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:11:45-05:00December 7th, 2010|Career, Decision-Making, Leadership, Marketing, Strategy|9 Comments

Sales & Strategy Playbook: Competitor Acquired? It May Be a Gold-Plated, Gift-Wrapped Opportunity

In talking with a CEO friend running a smaller tech firm, he indicated that there is increasing buzz about various potential combinations and roll-ups that will impact his specific sector. He said this with a smile, and an interesting observation that “when my competitors are acquired, our business spikes and new opportunities are uncovered.” That's an Interesting way to look at the situation. I know a lot of people who fear the outcome of Competitor X merging with Firm Y.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:04-05:00August 11th, 2009|Leadership, Leading Change, Marketing, Strategy|0 Comments

Want Different Results? Change Your Definition of Success and Don’t Forget to Align the Measurements

The old adage of “you get what you measure” is an old adage for a reason. It’s generally true.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:05-05:00July 23rd, 2009|Decision-Making, Leadership, Leading Change, Strategy|2 Comments

Want to Improve Sales? Leave Your Reps Alone!

A neighbor was out walking the dog a few nights ago and stopped to chat, which offered a welcome break from trimming the hedges. Friendly conversation turned to business and he offered his own encouraging news about his recent sales results. It turns out that he had just completed his best month ever in an industry and an economy where those words are seldom heard. When I asked what he attributed his “best month” to, he thought for a moment and said, “Quite honestly, I think it’s because corporate finally left us alone.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:06-05:00July 14th, 2009|Leadership|7 Comments

Develop Culture Sensing Skills and Take the Blinders Off Of Your Career

One of my greatest career misfires was accepting a role in a firm where I had failed to properly assess the culture. I was blinded by the allure of this successful and global firm and by the sharp people that I met during the interview process. I can think of few skills more important for professionals, product and project managers and other lateral leaders to develop than culture sensing. All of the functional or vocational expertise in the world is for naught if the individual fails to take into account and leverage cultural idiosyncrasies to achieve results and drive performance improvements.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:11-05:00April 3rd, 2009|Career, Leadership, Product Management, Project Management|4 Comments

Redefining Your Industry Landscape in an Economic Hurricane

As companies teeter or plunge over the brink, you will be faced with a host of remarkable opportunities and complex decisions. One of the greatest opportunities is for you to develop programs to capture the nervous customers of your competitors, who are most concerned about continuity in their supply/service chains.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:17-05:00December 16th, 2008|Strategy|1 Comment

Preventing Product Launch Failure: Watch Out for the Pitfalls!

G. Michael Maddock and Raphael Viton writing in the Innovation Engine column at BusinessWeek online, offer a sobering look at the Ten Reasons Your Next Launch Will Fail. From the propensity of companies to create solutions for unknown problems (Science Run Amok) to the recurring theme of teams convincing themselves that they can't miss (Death by Consensus), this insightful and witty column offers some priceless guidance for marketers, product and project managers and executives everywhere.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:24-05:00June 8th, 2008|Leadership, Marketing, Product Management, Project Management|0 Comments

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