Lesson: "You're Hired!", Now What? Part 2 of 2: You Can't START without a STAR

So, you've assessed your team. What's next?

Another valuable lesson I've learned is:

"You can't START without a STAR".

When I became Director for Montblanc, I had a team of 5 Sales Associates who, combined, produced $1.4 million in sales. I did exactly what I suggested in my previous post. I agreed with my boss that I would take 60 days to assess the team, then report back with my findings and a strategy.

For two months, I observed the team. I provided appropriate feedback (both positive and constructive) and routinely spoke openly about my expectations and whether or not those expectations were being met.

I then met with my boss, the VP of Retail Sales. My assessment was very frank, and very brief. We need to get rid of 4 of the 5 Sales Professionals. He was not surprised to hear this. He was VERY surprised to hear what I said next.

Essentially, I told him that the company has been living in the fishbowl of this store and it's history. They did not know what a STAR sales professional could/should achieve, what those successful daily behaviors looked like, and how having a STAR kickstarts a team- especially in terms of getting underperforming team members to self-assess their own performance.

I proceeded to share with my boss my vision. I was going to reduce the number of Sales Professionals we had, while improving the performance of that reduced number. I also boldly told him that I would recruit a SUPERSTAR who would generate $1.4 million in sales, by him/her-self.