How Accurate Are Your Sales Targets?

During a recent talk to a CEO Forum we dove into discussing a question around building better sales targets. Here is the scenario presented by one of the CEOs:

• Sales people set their targets and then discount targets “just in case.”
• Sales managers in turn consolidate targets and then discount, “just in case.”
• The Vice President of sales then reviews and discounts targets, “just to be sure.”

Obviously the good news here is that in the scenario described above, sales results are often considerably higher than expected. The bad news however is that targets which are consistently lower than actual sales are almost as bad as having sales that miss targets.

Do you struggle with achieving sales targets that are accurate?

What I suggested during the conversation is that the best way to overcome inaccurate sales targets is to create the targets in a collaborative setting. Bring sales teams, sales managers and the Vice President together to review and set targets together.

Why?

Because targets set in this fashion are less likely to be discounted (ego’s are likely to take over and ensure more realistic targets), and any discounting becomes clear to everyone involved, reducing the tendency for multiple discounting.

It’s through collaboration that better targets and better outcomes can be achieved.

If you are seeking other ideas on how to incorporate collaboration to build a more powerful and profitable business, my forthcoming book from McGraw Hill “Operational Empowerment: Collaborate, Innovate and Engage to Beat the Competition” is available for pre-order on Amazon.

Just click here to view.

Question: How are you using collaboration to improve the validity of targets and objectives in your team or business?

© Shawn Casemore 2015. All rights reserved.