Salespeople often raise problems with their sales managers that require fixing. There is more than one way to fix problems, and one way is more effective than the other. Here are two approaches for this problem-fix type discussion:
Approach 1 – Some salespeople raise problems with their sales leaders with the conversation culminating in the salesperson simply tossing the ball to the sales leader. The so-what-do-you-want-me-to-do approach.
This approach can be viewed in a couple of ways. Some may see the salesperson as seeking help. On the other hand, some may view this as the salesperson simply raising a complaint, or as the old poker expression goes, passing the buck. Regardless of the point of view, the salesperson is looking to the sales leader to solve the problem but providing no insight into possible solutions.
Approach 2 – Jennifer Dulski, president and chief operating officer of Change.org, recently summarized an alternative approach in a New York Times interview. Although Dulski was talking about management in general, we thought her insights were particularly appropriate for sales.
In her view, when a salesperson raises a problem with a sales leader, it should be accompanied by three ideas for solving it – what we’ll call the 3-Idea Rule. By using the 3-Idea Rule, the salesperson is not ceding responsibility for solving the problem, and the sales leader is not accepting the total responsibility for solving it.
What are the benefits of following 3-Idea Rule? Here are three to get us started:
The salesperson maintains ownership of the problem and therefore is ultimately responsible for solving it. The sales leader provides assistance in thinking through the problem, generating options and providing parameters for deciding what works best. This appears to us to be putting the responsibility where it belongs, and it helps the salesperson to learn how to handle future problems.
As Dulski points out, it avoids simply complaining – “If all you bring me is a problem, then it’s just you complaining to me.” Sales leaders usually have 10 or so salespeople reporting to them. It’s particularly easy to develop this complaint perspective if the behavior is repeated time and time again. Imagine the difference in the sales leader’s day if all 10 salespeople used Approach 2 versus Approach 1 – talk about having a better day.
By bringing three ideas to the table, the likelihood increases that the solution the salesperson and sales leader identify is better than if the salesperson simply relied on a sales leader for the solution. Plus, by advocating the 3-Idea Rule, the sales leader helps the salesperson to think through options.
Building a productive relationship between sales managers and their sales teams is a big deal. One step in that journey is creating a set of expectations that can provide a roadmap for the trip. This 3-Idea Rule is just one small step in the right direction.