Doing More With Less

This is a bottom-line environment.

Decreasing the downtime of revenue producing employees is a major concern. Efficiency, effectiveness, productivity gains, lowering expenses and increasing ROI are words we are all hearing more of these days. Yet "Sales and Marketing Management" magazine says that less than half of today's sales forces have ever sold during the type of economic market we are currently facing.

Investment

Aside from the obvious investment in training, sales professionals are provided with tools to help them become and remain competitive in their sales efforts. These include technology tools such as cell phones, beepers, laptops and now wireless PDAs. All at an additional investment.

But technology is simply an accelerator. Understanding and applying organizing principles is what helps propel staff into increased productivity.

Understanding organizing principles and processes

Learning key organizing principles is one of the most important elements to success. It involves understanding the big picture while executing the small detail. It's synergistic. Yet all too often my clients think that getting or giving staff just one more tool is the key. The magic pill.

Principle-based organizing teaches the big picture and how it works to your advantage. Once this is understood, applying the process' becomes more meaningful and easier. The tools, in turn, accelerate the process. Does staff know the basis of all time management programs? Do they know their paper management style? If the answers to these questions are understood and the principles applied, then tools can be used to speed things along.

Learning the formula

'Organizing 101' isn't a course most of us have taken. From the time a child starts school to the day they become a contributing adult in a working environment, they struggle first to understand how to get organized and then how to remain that way. They clearly see the benefits, but chances are they have never had the training, knowledge or role models to help them.

S2P2M2 is a formula I share with clients in order to help them remember the big picture. Set up a System. Practice the Processes. Manage and Maintain. Is your sales force using a similar equation for success?

Copyright 2002. Cynthia Kyriazis. All rights reserved.

Cynthia Kyriazis is an organizing and time management consultant, trainer, speaker, coach and author with over 20 years management experience in multi-unit corporations. Organize it, a division of Productivity Partners, Inc. is an organizational training firm she founded in 1995 and has been serving Fortune 500 clients ever since. Cynthia works with business and their employees to help improve performance and realize productivity gains.

Cynthia has appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Kansas City Star and the Legal Intelligencer. She currently serves as Secretary on the Board of Directors for the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO), member of the National Speakers Association (NSA), member of the Kansas City of the International Society for Performance Improvement ? (ISPI-KC) and consultant to the American Coaching Association.

---

Goodwill is an Intangible Asset

'Goodwill' is regarded as an intangible asset in a business.... Read More

Workplace Security Plan: Does Your Company Have One?

Consultant's Perspective...The threat of violence whether it emanates from a... Read More

A Renewed View of the Modern Business Culture

Life can sometimes be unexciting if not refreshed by the... Read More

Preparing For ISO 9001 2000 Registration

The steps need to be taken to prepare an organization... Read More

On The Job Training is Something You Canâ??t Afford to Skip

Trained employees are more productive employees; thereâ??s no doubt about... Read More

Focus On the Prize

People talk to me about making personal and professional changes... Read More

A Fast and Simple Way to Update Your Business

You open your computer, the flashing button says, "We have... Read More

Poly Bags and Pallet Shrouds - Just Get it Right

For many companies, procuring the right packaging, such as Poly... Read More

An Honest Look at Your Business

There is a difference between being comfortable and being in... Read More

Top Ten Things About Creating a Business Vision

To visualise where you are going, is deeper and more... Read More

Four Ways To Make the Case For Outsourcing

How do you convert outsourcing leads into clients? You may... Read More

The ?Better Product? fallacy

Another fallacy ingrained in the minds of most marketing managers... Read More

How to Manage Your Most Valuable Assets - People?

People management and leadership has become a major topic of... Read More

Making Meetings Work

We have all attended meetings that were boring, mindless and... Read More

ISO 9001 Compliant Program: Steps to Build

Implementing an ISO 9001 system represents a major effort. However,... Read More

What to do When You receive a Bad Check

As a small business operator, personal checks may be one... Read More

Saying One Thing, Doing Another...

This week I was asked to speak at an internal... Read More

What Every Manager Should Know About How to Overcome Boredom

Do you find yourself easily becoming bored or tired at... Read More

Are Your Marketing Pieces Up to Date?

The other day someone asked me for one of my... Read More

How To Use W Edwards Deming

Human beings and the way they interact are extraordinarily Complex.... Read More

Think Before You Talk

What you say to other people can make or break... Read More

Help Your Employees Prepare for a Performance Appraisal

PREPARING EMPLOYEES FOR THE PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL INTERVIEWS: Remind employees to... Read More

Why Training Fails

Sometimes when I conduct my workshop on Effective Meetings, one... Read More

What Your Employees Want You to Know (But You Might Be Afraid to Ask)

This is a challenge for every company owner and manager.... Read More

Knowledge Management - Leadership Behaviours Which Encourage Knowledge-Sharing

The concept of knowledge management or knowledge sharing makes intellectual... Read More

Lessons From Innovative Companies

What do the companies 3M, Polaroid, and Walt Disney have... Read More

Making Assumptions - A Critical Communication Mistake In Business And In Your Personal Life!

We draw conclusions about people through observation, their behavior, past... Read More

7 Tips for Growing Your Business You Do Not Want to Ignore: Business Strategies To Easily Implement

Growing companies must always be ready for the next challenge.... Read More

Knowledge Management - Creating a Sustainable Yellow Pages System

How can I "know who knows" None of us can... Read More

Making a Decision to Outsource: Driving Factors

Most executives view offshore outsourcing most of all as a... Read More

Innovation Management ? some ideas are better than others

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More

Management Apathy

I recently received a most interesting phone call.When I answered... Read More

Directed Introspection

One of the greatest obstacles to progress can often be... Read More