Over the last 20 years of helping companies increase productivity, we found that implementing a quality training program is the number one way to improve productivity, increase retention and morale in a company. The better your people know software and cloud services, the more productive they can be. 

In our own company, we 've moved from face-to-face training to cloud-based video training. We add lots of new software each year and want to learn without the added expense and time of traveling to training classes. We're amazed at how wonderful the training classes have been to watch and use to improve our skill sets. The instructors have been excellent. They know their stuff and do a great job in making the subjects interesting.

One of the most time consuming and toughest jobs in Sales Management is to update your sales reports. Depending on your executive leadership, you typically have to publish them each day, week, month, quarter and year.

I came across this fun youtube video that explains how sales reporting typically works in most companies and how it can be greatly improved with cloud-based Analytics and Business Reporting.

So how many times have you watched a Product Demo in a Webinar, Trade Show or in a face-to-face meeting and all you see is a Rep walking you through each feature and function on the webpage?

Then the Rep clicks on another page, shows you another feature (or the application settings) and does it all again. At the end of a 10 to 45-minute demo, they ask you if you have any questions.  Sound familiar?

Unfortunately, when you see this type of demo, you are watching a typical demo done by 80% of Sales Reps and Business Development Reps. Yesterday, I sat through another demo just like this.

There is a better way!

The concept of the paperless office has been around for decades.  Unfortunately, the available technology was never quite good enough or cost effective enough to give most businesses a good return on investment (ROI)... until Now!

"When you take the time to focus on your employees' personal needs and goals (in addition to your business goals), you gain loyalty and increased productivity.  Everyone wants their boss to care about them.  It's not just the Millennials.... everyone feels that way."

Over the years, I've had the benefit of being managed and taught by some really great executives. The following are a few of the best practices for developing people that I learned and implemented in my own organizations. 

Did you know that in 2015, Millennials (20-35 year-olds) surpassed Baby Boomers as the largest segment of workers in business?  Did you also know that by 2025, these tech-savvy Millennials will represent 70 percent of your workforce? 

As a result, you need to make sure that your sales team has the infrastructure for Millennials to be productive and successful.  If not, you'll be dealing with the following three issues: