If you’ve recently joined a new organisation or are taking charge of a sales team, you know that the first 90 days are the most important.
Getting it right in those first 90 days is crucial. It sets up the success – or failure – for the rest of your time in the role. Your legacy at the organisation will be defined by what you do in this critical period.
Unfortunately, many sales leaders don’t take advantage of the first 90 days.
Having worked with thousands of sales leaders, we know how important it is to their immediate success and their career to get this right. There is no second chance.
Of course, every organisation is different, but there are common themes and actions that contribute to the success – or lack thereof – following the 90 day period.
In this article, I’ll explain what actions you can take right away during this period to define your legacy.
To begin with, splitting your 90-day plan into 30-day segments is a good way to start.
The First 30 Days – Listen and Learn
While the temptation may be to jump straight in to make an immediate impact, doing this without understanding the business would be foolhardy. You could also, very quickly, lose credibility, which would be disastrous.
In the first 30 days, your focus should be on researching, listening and learning.
Take this time to understand the working practices, what’s working and what’s not working. Take this narrow opportunity to really get to know your sales managers and sellers.
Use non-judgemental questioning to really understand how people think, how they do things, what they value and what they believe in, without them feeling you are preempting answer. Your mission is to discover what they believe is important.
Take your time to understand the product or service. Focus on getting answers to these questions:
- Why do customers choose this company?
- What are the stand-out USPs?
- Why do your customers buy?
- How is data being used? How well is it being used?
- What is the sales process and pipeline management?
- Is there a tracking process for leads?
- How are leads qualified, distributed and managed?
I know it seems obvious, but it’s important not to criticise or disrespect legacy systems or people.
You are observing and taking care to note your observations to base your future plans on facts and evidence.
The Second 30 Days – Understand The Customers/Clients
The second 30 days is about going deep into the sales process and operations.
Like the first 30 days, the goal through this period is to remain objective and unbiased.
Get out and meet customers, listen to what they say and the questions they ask. Understand the go-to-market strategy. Study recent win/loss reviews. Put yourself in the shoes of your clients and see the sales experience from their point of view.
Ask yourself these questions:
- Is the sales offering on point and meeting the client’s highest level needs? Or has it lost its way?
- Would you be impressed if you were a client?
- What is the experience for your prospects? Is it helping or hindering the sales process?
As you get deeper into the trenches, you adopt the player-coach role, spending time out on the field to gain first-hand knowledge so you can speak with credibility.
This experience will later prove invaluable when you look to affect change in the organisation.
The Final 30 Days – Making Your Mark
The final 30-days of your 90-day plan is where you get to make your mark.
Through your research and insight, you can clearly lay out the strengths and weaknesses of the team. You can then identify where the immediate upside opportunities are and where you can make longer-term strategic plays.
The critical aspect is that you base your plan on the data you gathered from the first 60 days. Use this evidence to articulate what you want to do.
Remember, not all changes are going to be welcomed with open arms. You should expect some push-back. Be prepared for this.
It is critical to have the conviction of your beliefs and to articulate and test your story and pitch in advance. Know your facts and have explanations and reasoning ready about why you are taking your chosen approach.
Try to look at your pitch from others’ perspectives. We are emotional creatures as well as rational and we need to hear both acknowledged.
Better still, take some time to get aligned with your peer group and make sure they are on side with your plan.
Take these steps in order, and it will help you develop a 90-day plan that leaves a legacy.
Use this to create an aspirational sales culture where people want to stay and where others want to join. Most importantly, build a legacy of winning. Salespeople love success and want to be around a winning culture.