Part II - practical approaches for optimised action in sales

I want to share with you some thoughts, which I published in German in my upcoming book chapter (to be published by Springer Gabler: https://lnkd.in/e8vpSdyd). Today is the second part about leadership and Sales.

While process-related aspects such as resources, organization, and strategy continue to be important for a company's success, the human aspects are gaining increasing significance in achieving a competitive advantage. Traditional companies with the line-and-staff system should now make use of this time of crisis to reconsider their own offer and strategy for market expansion. While processes and strategies are interchangeable and replicable, copying human aspects is much more challenging. Thus, three factors that can bring a competitive advantage are worth mentioning: values in relationships, trust (culture), and an optimized structure (employee collaboration).

1. Values and Value Creation

Human Aspects as Success Factors Shared values are crucial as the foundation for any positioning and as starting and anchor points for any change. While operational procedures, markets, and products are constantly subjected to challenges and changes, values provide a secure platform on which to build.

• Common guidelines: What are the core values of our company? What values are shared, and which are only regionally important or present? Which concepts and processes are fixed, and what can be adapted to local circumstances? What has been successful for us in the past, and what has been hindering us? From the author's experience, apart from the "red lines" dictated by laws and regulations, there should be minimal constraints on thought. However, the organization should not allow minor "side demands" that play a role in individual submarkets to obstruct the entire organization. It must always be weighed which best practices led to success in a local market and which of these actions constitute real change (and thus long-term, not just situational gains) for the entire company.
• Different viewpoints are seen as the basis for discussion, not as a threat. Questions are welcomed and do not imply accusation or threat, neither for the employee nor for the manager.

2. Building Trust, Living Trust

Informal matrix structures presuppose mutual trust. Only when all employees are convinced that other organizational participants want the best for them and the organization as a whole can they perceive change positively and embrace it.

• The risks in global business are not diminishing but increasing. Therefore, companies are wise to see them as part of the business and proactively address threats. The role of employees and mutual trust are central elements in this regard. By first developing shared values as well as desired outcomes and approaches, a solid foundation for future collaboration is established. Mutual dependencies and uncertainties must be openly addressed. Especially employees in hierarchically oriented countries might hesitate to openly address weaknesses and potential drawbacks of change, as no one wants to lose face (Hofstede, Hofstede, & Minkov, 2010, refer to this as "power distance"). Managers must create structural and communicative spaces (e.g. through local workgroups and idea competitions) to involve everyone. For this, leaders must first give trust to employees before demanding trust from them.
• A leader must recognize, discuss, and work on employees' fears and concerns together with them, for example, through coaching/mentoring processes. These fears could include elements such as (Popovic, 2020, cited in Leiter & Krings, 2020):

a) Fear of the new, the unknown

b) Low self-confidence, fear of new challenges and taking on more responsibility

c) Negative attitude, negative past experiences, and frustration

• Clear agreements and communication channels must be established with all parties involved. Knowledge is power, and information can be intentionally or unintentionally withheld, supplemented, shortened, or distorted. In any case, information power becomes more evenly distributed within the company. This means a gain for some leaders and a loss for others (Hofstede et al., 2010). This dynamics of information exchange, extending beyond the boundaries of cultural origin, education, nationality, and company affiliation, must be openly communicated from the outset for the benefit of the overall company. It holds both the greatest opportunities for change and the largest potential stumbling blocks.