“What Exactly Do You Do?”

On more than one occasion, I have asked sales people this key question, to understand how they spend their time. “Well, I sell,” is the party line response. OK, fine. Follow-up question, “But what exactly do you do with your time?” No response.

If your people cannot explain how they spend their time, and what exactly they do, it might be worth initiating meaningful change. More often than not, having poorly defined areas of responsibility and no accountability are at the root of the problem. Reign in the free spirits who vile away their time, and hold their feet to the fire.