Unpacking My Recent “Business Sentiment Whiplash” and Having to Tell Procurement to "Pound Sand”

In the episode Mike talks about two recent experiences with great relevance for sales leaders.

First, he shares his reaction to what he is calling “business sentiment whiplash.” In just a period of a few weeks it feels like business momentum and sentiment has shifted from boom to bust. Mike expresses his bewilderment that we so quickly pivoted from go, go, go, hire, hire, hire, spend, spend, spend to a posture of pessimism as job offers are being rescinded, conferences being postponed, and companies talking about cutting back. There are enormous sales management implications as we work through this whiplash. The strong reaction to this post prompted Mike to unpack his thoughts further in this episode.

Next, Mike reveals a recent painful experience with a large company’s procurement department that would be humorous if it wasn’t true. The reaction to this LinkedIn post inspired him to share more of the story in this episode. 

Hear Mike’s reaction to receiving a 36-page guide to help his team navigate this company’s procurement portal. That’s right. A 36-page guide on how to get set up as a “vendor.”  If you’re familiar with Sales Truth, you can imagine that this did not end well. Quoting Chapter 13, he offers a strong reminder on why we need to own our rules of engagement, and that it’s imperative to maintain a full pipeline of opportunities so we can sell from an abundance mentality.

“…we decided a few years ago that 100 percent of my effort goes into creating value for clients; I promised myself and my clients that all of our energy will be focused solely on creating and delivering the best speaking/workshop/coaching/consulting engagement possible. Due to that commitment to my clients, I refuse to put even one ounce of energy jumping through procurement hoops…”

Books mentioned in Episode 33:

• Let’s Get Real or Let’s Not Play by Mahan Khalsa
• Baseline Selling by Dave Kurlan

Finally, Mike wraps the episode with an announcement about a new offering, The Sales Leadership Coaching Cohort. You can hear the “why” and the “what” behind this coaching cohort in this short video.

 

Upcoming Opportunities for Sales Leaders:

September 14th, London, UK  – Mike is co-hosting SALES EXECUTION SIMPLIFIED, a special one-day event for sales execs, leaders and managers. More info here:  https://event.growthmattersintl.com/ses22/

 

October 11th, Atlanta, GA – Supercharge Your Sales Leadership, one-day intensive at The Porsche Experience Center. Just 6 spots (of 50) are still available. More info here: https://mikeweinberg.com/atlanta2022/