Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/80263
Building continued watched several talented individuals fail in a company because they could not assimilate into the company culture. I have personally tried to bring in sales managers and other higher level per- sonnel from the outside. In most cases, the hire fell flat on its face. It had noth- ing to do with the person's experience or knowledge of the industry. It was a cultural mismatch from the beginning. I have friends who have been able to make this work, but it is certainly the exception, not the rule. It has been my experience that many successful managers are home grown. They have come through the ranks of the organization. They know the way business is conducted in the company. They have learned from their prede- cessors.They understand the customer service philosophy.They know the sup- pliers and how to get the most from them. Their ascension through the ranks has earned thema level of respect If we are going to continue the tradition of growing our own talent, we need to start formalizing the process. As my client came to realize, his company did not have a method to develop future managers. fromthe team.This is a tough hurdle for an outsider. If we are going to continue the tra- dition of growing our own talent, we need to start formalizing the process. As my client came to realize, his com- pany did not have a method to devel- op future managers. When he was small, it was easier to manage that pro- gression. He could coach and advise people along the way. As the entity grew, it was tougher to make sure that people were ready to make that leap. Many distributors, like my client, are still trying to develop their employees the same way they did 20 years ago. The first step to breaking out of this paradigmis to define your progression. I suggest that you gather a small group of employees together and rough out the perceived progression. Most of us will start in the warehouse.What is the first job? I happen to put newbies in picking, but the starting place is up to you.Once someone"graduates"from the warehouse, they may enter the counter sales function.Then, they may move to an inside sales or customer service position. Often, the person will move on to a telesales role or outside sales function. Management may be in the future. Remember, the path doesn't always lead to sales. I often see a diversion fromthe customer service role into pur- chasing or operational management. There are many different ways that a person can progress through the entity. There is no reason anyone should become stagnate.Our goal here is to try to define this progression. Once the progression is outlined, the next task is to establish a list of skills associated with each position. In the case of my client,we broke the count- er sales function up into four positions – counter one, two, three and lead.We defined the skills a person had to mas- ter before moving on to the next posi- tion.The candidateworked through the list and learned how to perform each task. As they advanced, the skills became more difficult to master. The beauty of the program was that we could see who was willing to work on mastering each skill. Some were more motivated than others. This approach can work for all levels of the progression. The challenge will be to come up with all of the skills nec- essary for mastery—which will change as policies, technology and the business climate changes. In order to break down the enormity of this process, I suggest that you hand pieces of the pro- gression off to different individuals in the organization.They are closest to the 30 FEDA News & Views26 News & Views