When Politics and Sales Converge

During a recent call I was asked by a colleague (who had checked out my LinkedIn profile) if I had really worked at the Reagan-Gorbachev summit in Moscow in 1988. Indeed I did.

As a twenty-one-year-old studying in Moscow I managed to find myself a job (let’s call it a language enhancement / class replacement activity) acting as a translator, interpreter and office boy for the UK breakfast TV company – TV-am.

Essentially when things needed done in Russian e.g. dinner bookings, interviews being set up with Soviet politicians and “on location” interpreting for reporters - it was down to me.

I recall being driven from interview to interview around Moscow in a Zil limousine accompanied by a young Adam Boulton (and his ghetto blaster) before he attained the dizzy heights of becoming Sky News’ Political Editor. On another occasion I found myself standing backstage at a peace concert in Gorky Park chatting with 80's legend Howard Jones. My press pass precipitated many fantastic experiences and stories which will remain firmly locked away till I get round to writing my memoirs one day.

Reflecting on the years leading up to the dissolution of the Soviet Union I ask myself if there is anything from those days which correlates with what I do today – namely assisting organisations to improve their commercial performance. The answer is yes !

During that period in 1988 and not solely in the context of the INF treaty talks, there were four words which were omnipresent – two used by Gorbachev – Glasnost (openness) and Perestroika (restructuring) and two by Reagan – Trust and Verify.

It strikes me that in an organisational context these terms have significant relevance, especially for businesses thinking about sales transformation. Before embarking on significant change, it is important to be open and transparent where your business is now and your plans for the future, so you can ensure your team are with you. This is a critical step prior to initiating change and restructuring. When the changes have been effected, you must trust your team to execute against the plan, however verification is required to ensure things remain on track.

Little did I think that I would find relevance in these terms some thirty-five years on, however the wise words of Mikhail Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan continue to provide sound guidance on how to target transformation and achieve meaningful and sustainable change be that in politics, business or life.