Just letting you know I’ll be one of the manufacturing leadership training experts taking part in Strategic Sales Leadership for Growth and Innovation on Thursday, May 27, 2010, in Hamburg, Pennsylvania. The objective of this Leadership Certificate Program, jointly developed and sponsored by the Manufacturers Resource Center, Iacocca Institute and Lehigh University is to strengthen regional manufacturing leaders’ sales management training skills.   Today, there just isn’t good quality and targeted sales and sales management training exclusively tailored to manufacturing and  distribution’s unique market challenges. That’s why PBR is excited to deliver this one-of-a-kind sales and sales leadership training program.

I believe any leadership training should include the best ways to address challenging questions. As a leader in your organization, you’ve probably received challenging questions for which you were not prepared with an answer. Did you improvise your way through an answer you weren’t happy with? Did you walk away stumped, kicking yourself for not immediately knowing how to respond?

Often, these questions are merely intended to put a manager or executive in the hot seat. Next time, dig deeper to find out what’s really behind that question. Don’t be afraid to speak up and tell that person:

Jeff, one of my regular clients, came to me to jump-start his team with more sales management training. “Even when I have time to talk with my team face-to-face, they only give me lip service or blank looks,” he said. “I was hoping you could help me stir the pot so we can finish the year with a bang.”

Jeff was a good manager trapped in a labyrinth of accountability. He wasn’t getting the results from his team because they’d gone down the path of least resistance. I suggested a blended training strategy integrating our Sales Bridge Training Method and our Sales Management Training, suggesting some of the following...

1. Initiate meaningful dialogue with his team, setting up areas of responsibility, creating smart criteria for specific performance standards.
2. Remember that all members of his team are individuals with motivations as different as their work styles.
3. Respect and respond to those differences so his team performs above and beyond expectations.
4. Understand his employees, like he understands his customers.
5. Find out what each member of his team truly values.
6. Create a follow-up system to hold his people accountable.

You’ll lose your best team members if you don’t find ways for them to feel successful and accomplished in their positions. The best way to understand what people value is to engage. Talk with your employees, and really listen to what success means to them.

As a manager, are you at risk of losing some of your most valuable employees? With the ongoing economic recovery and more jobs being created, could your employees be asking themselves — is it time to move on?

According to a recent survey by the Conference Board, only 45 percent of American employees are engaged in their work, the lowest satifaction level recorded in more than 22 years. The poor economy can be partly blamed — making it difficult for many employees to find interesting and rewarding jobs. The Conference Board further points out that employee engagement levels have been on the decline for more than two decades.

Don’t let your dissatisfied employees leave. Schedule a time to have that “big picture” conversation on how they can become more engaged in 2010 and beyond. Start the discussion with, I value you as an employee — I’m as committed to your success as you are. Then follow up with the following questions: