You're used to the loud ones. The sellers and others in your org who complain - about systems, sales goals, products - are the least of your worries as a manager. Because they are up in your grill about every little thing, you'll have plenty of chances to engage: they won't surprise you. Likewise, the seller who's working hard but missing goals and suffering financially - you'll step in and connect seeing her financial plight.
No, the ones who should keep you up at night are the ones who don't keep you up at night. The quiet performers, the stalwarts. He's the efficient performer who always seems to be quota-adjacent and doesn't make much noise. He might be in a far-flung regional or home-office, or he might be right under your nose at headquarters.
And out of the blue, he's just told you he's leaving you.
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What to do now? Nothing. It's too late, and countering the offer he's gotten is bad strategy. But reflecting on the situation so it doesn't happen again (and again!) is a very good idea. So here goes.
People join companies, but they quit managers. And not always because the manager was awful. Often its because the manager never fostered a culture that the employee could belong to. Even as she performed well, she continued to be a well-liked outsider. What was lacking was engagement.
Understand and manage engagement. Gallup has done years of research on employee engagement, and it's not what you think. The majority of employees are actually not engaged with their companies or their teams - including the quiet performer who's just handed you his laptop and company ID. Engaged employees talk about their team using the word we, and talk about their work at the company in future tense. Engagement is not something you hire; it's something you - the manager - creates.
Back to college. That sales meeting or team training you considered only seems like a luxury. In terms of employee retention, it's a bargain. Managers who regularly bring their teams together in learning and sharing environments enjoy better retention. The team gathering is when there becomes an us. But don't use these occasions to just talk at your people and drown them in facts.
Give them a voice. Engaging managers don't dispense facts; they manage with questions. "How should we approach this?" and "What do you think we should do?" forces your team members to think, share and engage.
Give them something to own. You foster engagement by surrendering control. Letting team members lead initiatives, develop category and technical specialties, run programs and teach others isn't just about feel-good inclusiveness. It's what binds your best people.
If your quiet performer was engaged, she wouldn't have been open to the job she's leaving you for. Sometimes the best hiring strategy is not needing to hire at all.
A customized, collaborative sales strategy workshop for your team is easier and more cost-effective than you might think. And it may be the key to not only performance, but retention of your best people. Visit www.upstreamgroup.com/workshops or reach out directly to learn more.
