Are layoffs keeping you up at night? As a manager, you naturally will dread having to issue the news to your reps that they no longer have a job. But if you become too wrapped up in the crisis of layoffs and downsizing, you risk "surrendering your leadership focus," warns Joseph Grenny, a speaker, business communication expert, and co-author of Crucial Conversations. "The result," he continues, "is shattered trust and battered morale among leftover employees."
Grenny offers these tips to help managers lead through layoffs and emerge with a strong, trusting team of reps:
Finally, Grenny urges senior sales executives to spend "enormous amounts of time" with first line sales managers. In a time of layoffs, trust begins at the top. When executives consult with their front line managers about tough decisions, when they share "every scrap of information" they can, when they discuss the complexity of the problems they’re trying to solve and help managers understand the motives behind the decisions, and when they delegate some difficult decisions to those managers, managers can better understand and sympathize with the pressing issues of the company. In turn, that understanding and clarity will rub off on the rest of the sales organization, resulting in a stronger, more trusting team going forward.
For more information, visit www.josephgrenny.com.
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