My best salesperson doesn’t understand our culture and is very disruptive to the rest of the company. This person brings in 50% of our business. What can I do?
This is a tough situation! I personally have faced it and, in my opinion, made the wrong decision! I kept the sales guy on and lost two of my best management people – a very bad trade-off for the long-term viability of my business. It took me years to recover!
Focus ALWAYS on Culture!
Culture is what enables your business to function as a team, to work together toward common goals. It is especially important in smaller companies where everyone wears multiple hats.
Studies have proven that a strong culture correlates highly with healthy profitability. (For more research on this topic, read “Leading with Noble Purpose” by Lisa McLeod, very compelling citing many examples).
Before letting the disruptor go, shore up your relationship with the clients he’s developed. Make sure they are well taken care of by an employee that embodies your culture. The difference should be immediately apparent to your customers (and hopefully, your clients won’t follow him)!
Culture is long term! It’s what makes your company unique. A salesperson can be replaced, but culture takes a long time to build. With a strong culture, it should be easy to attract a super salesperson to fill the position – one who is attracted to, and motivated by, the culture.
Please let me know your thoughts! Do you agree with me? Have you had this same experience? I’d love to hear more…
Want to talk further about this subject?
Contact me and book a time or consider joining a BOMBA Mastermind where you will get the tools to complete the sensitivity analysis on the margin compression and you can talk confidentially to a peer group who could give you constructive feedback on your pricing.