Comments on: Grounded qualification: an emergent approach to assessing sales positioning

By: Caddell Insight Group » Blog Archive » Grounded qualification corollary #1 - don’t companies know why they win or lose?

Thu, 15 Jan 2009 21:55:50 +0000

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By: Dave Stein

Dave Stein — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 13:41:16 +0000

John,

Please let me know the outcome.

By: Administrator

Administrator — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 20:40:40 +0000

Dave, I think the environment might be ripe for sales leaders to do things differently. This post was inspired by a conversation with the head of sales of a midsized company. She said, “I don’t need theory. I need to deliver results. I can’t increase investment–I need to better use the resources and investment I already have.”

Her only option is to work in a different mode–i.e., with better targeting and better planning, by focusing her resources on killing the best opportunities they come up with, and not participating in those that are losers.

I am proposing to her some work based on the grounded qualification approach, including detailed win and loss reviews from recent pursuits. We’ll see if they go for it and, if so, what results they find.

regards, John

By: Dave Stein

Dave Stein — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 16:19:16 +0000

John,

Great post. Here’s why: We have found that 80% of B2B deals are lost for one of two reasons: inadequate (or no) qualification or inadequate (or no) planning. It’s hard to believe, with formal sales training around more than 110 years, that qualification is such a misunderstood and underutilized process.

Another reason the post is so strong is because you recommend detailed loss (and win) reviews. The number of companies that have significant sales problems and DON’T do these is staggering. Again, hard to believe.

Finally, you wrote, “Midsized companies need to “rifle shoot” opportunities and put sufficient resources into the very best opportunities in order to be successful.” That’s one of the timeless truths about sales. Bingo.

So help me with one thing, John? How are we ever going to get sales leaders to understand, appreciate and act on these (and other) proven approaches for improving the performance of their teams when they are focused on seeking out silver bullets, quick tips and shortcuts?

By: Administrator

Administrator — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 14:21:32 +0000

Jonathan, thanks for the comment. I will read the article (Hopefully it doesn’t say that grounded theory is not what I talk about here!)

regards, John

By: Jonathan Carter

Jonathan Carter — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 14:16:39 +0000

Jim – have you read an article by Suddaby titled something like “what grounded theory is not” i think it is from 2006? A very worthwhile read