Ironically, the learning professional's favorite new learning solution is less about learning.  While traditional training methods focus on workers learning new skills, Performance Support is much more about getting the job done by making work easier, less error-prone, more efficient, and of higher quality.  The outcomes of which directly impact not only L&D, but also many other departments in the organization such as business operations, sales, and customer service. 

This begs the question: If performance support benefits so many different areas of the organization…why isn’t every company using it?

If you are an operations manager and you are reading this post, it is a safe bet to assume that the hour is late.  What other time could you possibly find to fit in some 'light' reading? And you are probably feeling guilty too.  After all, you have numbers to crunch and a million things to think about, resolve, plan, prepare, schedule, report.  But please keep reading, because I have some ideas to help you achieve your targets.

Until recently, inside sales was overshadowed and overlooked by the sales organization.  It was usually treated like a second-rate citizen and relegated to generating leads for outside sales or for merely closing smaller accounts. This is no longer the case.  In fact, inside sales is now the fastest growing sales channel.  Consider these eye-opening statistics:

You are a great leader.  You have a powerful sense of mission and purpose. You energize and motivate your sales force to achieve seemingly impossible goals.  You aren't afraid to take risks but you also know to rely on data-driven decisions such as the one you just made to implement a new CRM system. According to Aberdeen Research reports, companies that use a CRM system have 14.8% better customer retention rates, 40% better team attainment of quotas, and 41.7% better individual sales rep attainment of quotas, as well as better insights into the sales pipeline. Sounds amazing! So why does your sales team appear to hate it? And how can you help them get on board? 

As managers we look at KPI (key performance indicators) to measure how well our teams are doing compared to the targets set for them.  Yet rarely is every member of the team performing at, or even better, above expectations.  So how can you help your team to perform better?  We've listed our Top 10 ways below:

"So Steve, after reading the latest data analytics report listing our current data on customer acquisition cost (CAC), annual recurring revenue (ARR) and lifetime value (LTV), can you please tell us what steps the sales team is taking to increase customer value, measure sales performance and achieve growth success, while keeping costs down to a bare minimum?" 

Sound confusing?

Inside sales is "In" and "outside sales is "Out."  Inside sales teams are experiencing explosive growth. According to InsideSales.com, inside sales is growing at a whopping 300 percent faster than field sales.  The ability of inside sales teams to generate revenue more quickly and cost effectively is rapidly making inside sales the best candidate for the job.  Consider these statistics:

At first glance, inside sales reps have never had it so good.  Companies are spending more and more on advanced technology, training and interactive sales tools for their sales teams to meet the growing demand from customers that expect a fast, accurate and personal customer experience. 

As sales leaders, you undoubtedly play a critical role toward the success of your organization.  You are responsible for setting the tone, culture and expectations of the work environment, all the while developing your team's sales productivity and job performance.  This is an increasingly challenging task in a world where every deal matters and where the pace seemingly speeds up by the hour.

Here are 4 tips that can help you enable and empower your sales team to boost sales performance:

If you are looking for new channels to increase revenues, you don't have to look very far.  Your easiest source of new revenue is right under your nose: existing customers.