#018 Mapping your way to success, with Ian Windle

KAMCast - Key Account Management Strategies for Business Leaders

IN THIS EPISODE:

How successful is your key account management team? What is the definition you have for what success is, for your business? How do you measure the performance of your key account managers?

If you find that the answers are all to do with growth, you’re probably looking at it TOO LATE and you are running a massive risk with your most important accounts.

Success is a destination, one that is different and personal to each business and each team. And for every clear destination there is a path, a route, and a map for how to get there.

Whether you talk about KPI’s, goals, objectives, or metrics – we are looking for

early warning signs and alerts that tell you clearly whether someone is on track for success or way off course.

We could think of them as the ‘flight deck’ of important gauges to give you a clear overview of what is really going on.

These important measures, and the intelligence they give us, will ultimately provide an opportunity to check against benchmarks and fuel coaching conversations with the team.

If growth is the end goal: what are the measurable and intentional stepping stones that we can track and guide the way? Are they…

• frequency of contact
• customer satisfaction responses
• the number of decision makers we are connected to and actively engaging with
• the number of open issues
• is there an active KAMPlan for the account?

These are all quantifiable indicators that would either comfort you that the relationship with your most important customers is all in order or shine a light on the vulnerabilities that present the biggest risks… way ahead of time… ultimately giving you time to sort it out!

In this episode I speak to Ian Windle, an award-winning Leadership and TEDx speaker, Executive Coach and team builder. He is the author of Amazon best seller “The Leadership Map: The gritty guide to strategy that works and people who care.”

He works with leadership teams on their strategy, vision and values, as well as developing their capabilities to perform at their peak.

HIGHLIGHTS TO THIS EPISODE:

In this discussion we dig into:

• What success looks like in business
• How we measure success and performance across all levels of the business
• How to foster transparency and accountability team-wide in your organisation
• Where to start with KPI’s and metrics in a sales team

My hope is that after you have listened to this episode, you will seriously reflect on what the definition of success is for you and your team, and how are you measuring performance today.

Do you have a MAP that you are following to guide you, the team and the business steadily on course for achieving your strategic goals in the next 12 months?

If you haven’t had the conversation around how you are judging success in your business, perhaps that is the best to start.

Are you obsessed with targets, with little focus on the granular steppingstones, the route to success? Focussing too heavily on the target, is like trying to win a game of basketball by staring at the scoreboard!

For me, learning to lead can be a bit like learning to drive: no amount of training can prepare you for contact with the real world.

If you are finding leadership easy then you are probably not doing the right things! What are the KEY things that drive your Economic engine? What are your critical numbers?

Are you tracking and reporting information that is useful not just interesting?

Do you have a balanced selection of key metrics that support you and your account management team to track the journey?

KILLER QUESTION SEGMENT

In each episode we ask you, our listener, a killer question that is designed to get you reflecting on your business, your KAM Culture and where changes in thinking and behaviour could lead to increased customer success.

In this episode we asked Ian to give us his killer question which is:

“What would you have to do…to grow 50 to 100%?”

To put this in context, Ian explains that you will get more energy and creative thinking if you asked what would we have to do to grow 5o to 100% this year” instead of “we need to grow by 15% this year, what are we going to do to achieve that.”

The former question spurs a jarring in the room which will mean you may get a push back when you ask that sort of question, where your team may say: “hang on, in the past year you only asked us to grow 15%. Aiming for 50% - that’s impossible.”

However, Ian’s further advice is to ask the question…then leave the room and ask them to come up with some ideas of what COULD they do to achieve 50% for when you come back in the room.

When you do return to the room, you will have a buzzing, excited and energised team filled with what’s possible. The outcome is – you may not reach 50%, but you will achieve 30 or 40%. That’s considerably more than your dry, year-on-year 15% isn’t it?

I wonder what reflections you have on Ian’s Killer question and whether you are having regular dialogue in the business about what we would have to do to grow 50-100%? Do you foster creative thinking for those larger ambitions that only come into the conversation when you remove the glass ceiling?

I’d love to hear from listeners and know what KPI’s you have found to be most effective in mapping your way to success.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT MY GUEST: IAN WINDLE

Ian is an award-winning Leadership and TEDx speaker, Executive Coach and team builder. He is the author of an Amazon best seller The Leadership Map: The gritty guide to strategy that works and people who care. He works with leadership teams on their strategy, vision and values, as well as developing their capabilities to perform at their peak.

In his first career Ian worked for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in many European capitals and in Asia; this was in a variety of roles from Political Desk Officer, through to Strategic Change Consultant. He then moved into consultancy with Celemi International, where he was Managing Director for 10 years of the UK business and Head of Global Consulting.

You can find out more about him on his website, connect with him on LinkedIn or follow him on Twitter. You can find out about his open programme called The Leadership Map, which is designed to help middle and senior managers grow their skills and raise their game.