Revenue Journal®

I have a psychic can opener in my briefcase. I use it every day to figure out what's motivating people - customers, partners, managers, business owners, and employees. I figure out what they need and want; what drives them; what drives them crazy; what they love to do and what they avoid doing whenever they can; what freaks them out and what makes them tick. It's the "people" part of the work I do on systems, processes, and people to increase revenue for my clients.

Every now and then, I run across someone who has an emotional problem that is seriously affecting their work performance. My first step is to make absolutely sure that the emotional problem really exists - because it may not. Someone else may be misjudging the situation, slandering the person, or provoking the person.

If the individual does have a legitimate problem, the second step is to sit the person down and kindly explain how their behavior is counterproductive, then see what happens. If the person takes it well, and is actually willing to work on the problem, progress can be made. If the person goes into denial or gets upset in the "lay it on the table" meeting, I'll still do what I can, but the writing will be on the wall. Sooner or later the person and the company will part.

When someone in business says, "He's a micromanager," it's not a compliment. They say, "He's a control freak," "he doesn't empower people," and "he's obsessed with details." The common wisdom is that micromanagers are not anywhere near as successful as...

Last week we discussed two of the traits of the perfect sales manager: loyalty (first to the customer, then the company, then the sales force), and consistency. This week we will look at the remaining key characteristics. The perfect sales manager is also empathetic and process-oriented.

• Empathetic

  Note that I said empathetic, not sympathetic. When you empathize with someone, you listen carefully and understand their problem, but you retain your ability to make decisions that are not driven by their emotions.

Every CEO and entrepreneur has a need for both graphic and website designers. Too bad there are so few good ones out there.

Sure, there are people who say they are designers. And they do, in fact, churn out work for clients. But I'd estimate that only one out of 200 actually know how to solve design problems, have truly satisfied clients, and consistently turn out good, solid work.

What's the problem? It goes back to something a CEO once said to me, about ten years ago. "No one is teaching kids how to think." He was right. Being a good designer means you follow a well-tested process. You gather all the input you need, you prioritize it and analyze it, and then you come up with solutions that meet the requirements.

There will be tradeoffs; the design process always involves a delicate balance between all of the various goals, resources, form, and function. But the best designers do a masterful job of meeting all the requirements while creating something pleasing and functional.

Instead of learning how to make these tradeoffs, young designers are taught to imitate established designers or to follow their own creative whim. It is easier to teach someone to imitate or to do whatever he/she wants than it is to actually teach the student to think - or be of service.

The result is always something inappropriate for the client. I can't tell you how many entrepreneurs and CEOs are frustrated with the designs that come back to them, after they think they've provided the information the designer needed.

The people you hire can make a big difference to your revenue growth. That's why I help CEOs find and hire the best people for each position. I've been building a marketing and sales team for one of my clients for the past few years. The people we have found are making a difference. The company's revenues are way up. The marketing and selling efforts are bearing fruit.

All of the people we've brought in are contributing. The webmaster/IT guy is technically brilliant, as well as productive and pleasant. The head of marketing loves marketing online, has a great sense of the big picture, and understands how to optimize marketing and tracking efforts. The head of sales has been working with each salesperson to improve their outgoing efforts - and has set up programs to consistently interact with existing customers, at just the right time in their buying process. Sales to new customers has increased along with sales to existing customers.

One of the most satisfying hires is the data-oriented person we brought into marketing.

As part of my work helping CEOs to re-engineer and rejuvenate their revenue-generation efforts, I help them with their employee issues. We always start by trying to bring their current staff up to a new standard or, if needed, we find a new person for a particular job. I help them recruit, screen, train and manage people in marketing, selling, web, and product management positions. I've been doing this a long time.

Here are a few key lessons I've learned about the difference between people who are a drag on revenues and people whose contribution is exceptional.