Individual attention
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Early in a representative's career, the district manager lays the groundwork for success. District managers help build basic
skills, such as organizing the representative's car and building disease state knowledge. District managers also teach corporate
values and the importance of professionalism and integrity. Most importantly, they show representatives that they value individual
contributions — helping to establish territory ownership while motivating representatives to succeed. Most tenured representatives, on the other hand, already have basic selling skills and product knowledge, so district managers
can adopt four key strategies to continue to deliver value to their more seasoned individuals:
Challenge representatives to continue to grow and develop. Specifically, you can challenge your tenured reps by:
- Setting and clearly communicating high performance expectations for the team and individuals.
- Supporting new approaches to the business.
- Expanding representatives' skill sets through challenging assignments.
- Encouraging representatives to do things that take them out of their "comfort zone."
Recognize unique contributions. A few good ways to recognize your tenured reps are to:
- Quickly share representatives' successes.
- Recognize representatives in front of regional managers and peers.
- Contact representatives when good numbers come out.
Adopt a consultative approach as tenure increases. This starts with respecting representatives' experience and giving them opportunities to share this experience with others
through mentoring. You can also:
- Treat tenured representatives as active participants in setting developmental goals and objectives.
- Provide indirect versus direct coaching.
Share company perspectives. To provide representatives with a context for their day-to-day objectives, you can:
- Link daily activities to broader company objectives.
- Share company business and industry insights.
Motivators for tenured reps
Keeping tenured representatives motivated can be a challenge. To engage these professionals and inspire peak performance,
effective DMs seek to understand what motivates each representative and tailor their approach accordingly, often using a combination of tactics.
Competition. Comparing sales performance with that of their peers motivates competitive representatives. Effective DMs recognize these
representatives for their strong sales performance through voice mail and e-mail.
Compensation. Company reward programs work best for representatives who are motivated by compensation. Effective DMs use all possible incentives,
including reward trips, bonuses and district contests.
Peer recognition. An active role in the district is best for tenured representatives who are motivated by peer recognition. Effective DMs encourage
peak performers to mentor other representatives and include tenured reps in new-hire training. Effective DMs also share peak
performers' successes with other representatives and senior sales management.
Tenured rep motivators
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Career advancement. Career development is essential to many tenured representatives. Effective DMs understand this and provide tenured representatives
with opportunities to further their career. They create visibility for these representatives among senior sales management
and organize ride-alongs with representatives in other positions.
Personalized feedback. A personal approach to motivating tenured representatives is key. Effective DMs are engaged in their representatives' careers
and regularly let them know they are valued. They personalize their praise, using words such as "I" and "we."
Effectively managing tenured representatives can be challenging. The most effective DMs motivate and engage tenured representatives
by tailoring their management approaches. This, in turn, lays the groundwork for these representatives to have successful
careers within the organization.
