that way forever. It was clear that for Claudia and her team to move past this, a decision needed to be made. “Finally, after enough sales, the patent owners came to us to work something out,” says Claudia. “They were gracious in the end and gave us a fair and expedient license. They are actually our partners now.” It was a weight off the shoulders of Lumencor, and it meant they could push forward with new products and exciting ventures. Winning that battle helped this young, up-and-coming business break into the market. As Lumencor continued to grow, it was apparent to Claudia that the speed of the leader is the speed of the pack. “I had to groom myself to be a better manager,” she admits. “I wasn’t getting the information I needed. Asking a question once wasn’t sufficient. Transparency was a problem.” Claudia’s solution? Sandler Training. When your team lacks a unified approach to how your company does business, it’s impossible to be consistent. You can’t track anything. You can’t measure success. Achievements become a random occurrence rather than predictable. SANDLER STEPS UP TO THE PLATE
“We had a big team when we started [with Sandler Training], all with very different backgrounds. We had different vocab for how to talk about sales. All different approaches of how to talk to customers. I was concerned the face of the company was different based on whoever was representing us,” Claudia says. For a business, this situation would be like having one client interact with Jack Sparrow, another customer converse with Edward Scissorhands, and a different prospect talk with Willy Wonka. They’re all engaging with Johnny Depp, but very different versions of him. Sandler helped her solve this issue. “Manager training was hugely helpful for me … the way you take someone through a sale, defining that, and helping people work consistently,” Claudia says. But not everyone immediately jumps on board with new solutions. Resistance to change is another significant hurdle for a growing business to overcome. People naturally want to operate in their comfort zones, and that can lead to difficult decisions.
how much each salesperson needs to make to justify their employment.” Pulling the trigger on a difficult choice is never easy. But when you’re looking to separate employees from your company, the subsequent emotions can be even more challenging for some leaders. “It was difficult. It is anytime you have to let people go.” Knowing you’ve made the right decision will help you maintain perspective and allow you to see how your decision impacts the big picture. “I got to the point where it was better for them and better for the company to let them go,” Claudia says. When you let someone go, it’s not just a high-five before moving on. There’s a mess that has to be cleaned up. “Every time I let someone go, I went through the exercise [with Sandler] of how to manage what they had been doing. Who picks up the slack? Who covers?” Claudia says. But rather than scrambling to put the pieces back together, Claudia eventually had a revelation. “What we uncovered is that they weren’t doing [their work] anyway, so letting them go wasn’t going to be a big change.” But for the changes that did need to be made, Claudia’s calculated and logical approach to business enabled her to tackle them head-on.
TRIM THE FAT
“It became very obvious people weren’t doing what they
needed to as far as carrying their weight as salespeople,” says Claudia. “We were looking at the ROI for the company and
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