That’s why one of my most memorable leadership moments was the first time a rep came to me for advice and opened with, “David, I have a problem that I’d love your advice on. Now, I know you’re going to ask me what I think we should do, so let me explain the problem and how I’m thinking of solving it.” If your goal is to become the type of leader your team would fight to work with again by helping them grow and unlocking their discretionary effort, predictably biasing toward the collaborative mode of coaching is the approach you’re after.
Counterpoint: When Is Directive Coaching OK? When I was gambling data vietnam interviewing for a vice president of commercial sales role at Salesforce, the EVP of our division, Tony Rodoni (who graciously wrote the foreword to The Sales Leader They Need), asked me a powerful question about the balance of directive versus collaborative coaching. He said, “David, I know as leaders we strive to coach our reps and lead them to the answers they need. But under what circumstances do you think it might be OK to just tell them what to do?” Indeed, there are periodic instances when directive leadership makes sense.
For example: 1. Security, regulatory, or compliance-based scenarios When there are strict rules and guidelines the team needs to follow, being more directive ensures the team both follows those rules and appreciates their importance. These might include things like the protocols for executing and processing sales agreements, making changes to legal terms and other official documents, or human resources procedures related to recruiting or termination conduct. 2. Sales process and methodology Most sales organizations have a defined sales process and methodology that the team must follow.
Using Contests and Giveaways to Attract
-
- Posts: 339
- Joined: Tue Jan 07, 2025 6:23 am