The value of training programs of sales people, especially in sales of High value items like cars and high priced luxury items is the subject of this discussion.
This is one of the most difficult lines of work. My personal observation is that most sales people are from a very different environment (economically, socially & often educationally) to that of the buyer. This results in a vast chasm between what the buyer expects and the seller is able to respond to.
Of course training programs have their value and they do theoretically prepare the sales people to understand what they are getting into and what is expected of them. Raw recruits do need this training. But the basic problems of all training programs is in the fact that certain character traits are already embedded and indelibly marked in most people by the time they enter life’s stream. Even after many years of training and experience many people never learn to control certain habits and/or behavior responses of theirs. For instance traits like, shyness or brashness, impatience, over-eagerness, arrogance, cleverness, argumentativeness and such; although there are many traits that help like sympathy and empathy, good manners, good elocution etc. This is why most raining programs do not take you very far. They make the person conscious of certain points alright but most are not able to incorporate these factors into their persona. At the actual moment of need, people always behave, act or/and react in a predictable manner which is their basic personality.
It is not easy for the sales people to visualize or understand the needs of the buyer or the way the buyer thinks. Most often they miss the cues to what will trigger interest and decision to finalize a purchase in the buyer. Let us say the buyer is a millionaire and likes his little luxuries which he can afford but the sales guy would never have had the opportunity to experience. For example the texture and shape of the seat may be of more importance to the buyer than the salesperson can really ever imagine as he would not have had the luxury of that kind of a life; then it can be presumed that the sales person would totally miss his shots while trying to impress the buyer.
The salesman may be very talented and informed about cars and would easily able to reply all the questions of the buyer but may miss the point that the buyer is a snob and would not take kindly to be hustled or crowded around. Technicalities may not even bother the buyer. To him certain comforts and amenities and discounts may be more important. A buyer of a car rarely comes in without some pre-thinking and can be expected to be informed so his mind maybe already half made up. I have seen buyers being put-off by the aggressiveness and insensitivity of sales persons.
In most management programs that are outlined I notice, we give great advice which is actually meaningless in practice. This is because it is easier said than done. Most people are creatures of habit and their behavior patterns are not that easily transformed by a few words thrown at them.
The words of Francis Bacon that say something like this are important: We think according to fancy, talk according to education but behave by habit.
That is why I have been an enthusiastic proponent of apprenticeship. After basic training always place the new sales guy under a senior. The job of the senior to be specifically to train the junior and not just use him as an assistant; a junior picks far much more over the years by seeing a senior at work than short training stints can ever inculcate.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Stealing credit.
Recently I became aware that some of my write-ups are being posted in the groups I post my articles. I am sharing here my views and some of others who responded to my mention of this malaise.
The paste and copy provided by the Internet technology is a good thing but it cannot be taken as a license to take credit for material written by others. I have seen two instances of my write-ups being submitted by others; Sad state of affairs. What harm is there in appreciating my effort and letting be a little proud for my efforts?
I would say either give credit for using posted material to the original writer or write up your own if you have something to say.Taking undue credit and making profit by cutting corners amounts to plain cheating which is reprehensible, And this the one flaw in our character which has kept us back from becoming world class or world leaders. It is high time that we started showing our intelligence rather than our cunning and cleverness.
Somebody copying us is flattery all right. But are we looking for flattery? Stealing, spying, cheating is a way of life. Not being paid for work done is also a fairly prevalent phenomenon. There will always be someone who will take advantage. What is reprehensible is that we do not care anymore for the ethics involved.
How low have we allowed ourselves to go?
There is a legal side to it. Suppose I get my work published and half a dozen people stand up claiming as theirs? Once you get embroiled in the legal system life becomes hell.
And don't think people won’t do it. Wives are using the laws to get even. The moment you buy a plot of land, there is another claimant who files a suit. Frivolous things are part of the human make up alright.
But downright copying and posting it on the same channel from where you have picked it up seems to me going too far in stupidity. The least I would suppose is that someone would use the points raised and do some re-write of his own.
Christine McLeod wrote:
Hi Pradeep,
A very real and a very serious concern is what you have expressed here. Plagiarism is the bane of our society, and we, especially in India, with our 'sab chalta hai' attitude have never learnt of copyright. Right from the way 'cheating' is perceived by children in our schools, to the spillover of attitudes at work...radical awareness is the call of the hour.
gvk mohan wrote:
I agree that copying is not on. But as Trainers or whatever, can we look further? I am not advocating anything or speaking for somebody. My point is, the net is an ocean by itself. It is information everywhere. There are no guarantees. When we post, our right on that post is may be gone forever. Can we think a bit bigger, broader and say "ok, if that guy has copied my post and reposted, hope it gives him some happiness or pride, hope it gives him some knowledge, hope it helps him in some way". I am asking this to Pradeep and others too generally. Tell me, what we write, speak today, is it not out of our lifetime reading or listening? Are we that original and creative and have produced such stuff that we need to get worked up? Are we that big in this universe? Are we saying "Hey, that piece of info or knowledge is mine? If you want to use it, say that is from me. And then I’m ok with you using it.”??? And in fact, if someone has re-posted you, take pride, as your stuff
seems to be so good that someone thought it worthy of copying.
Inez Rufus wrote:
Agreed that there's a wealth of information in cyberspace and in books and that we as trainers can't always be expected to say "Eureka" to every concept we train in. We borrow, we bend, we twist, we collate and we train.
However, when people do not use their creativity to enhance or build on what they have borrowed (either through the information highway or books) and blatantly copy without giving credit to the original, it's unethical to say the least.
Recently I was informed that modules that I had created as Training Head (through collated data) were being used by a Delhi company.
It's a shame that we can be so blatantly unethical and have so such little originality that we stoop to copy - without acknowledgement.
I would be more than happy to share things with others, but not when others assume ownership. I think it's unfair and totally unacceptable.
The paste and copy provided by the Internet technology is a good thing but it cannot be taken as a license to take credit for material written by others. I have seen two instances of my write-ups being submitted by others; Sad state of affairs. What harm is there in appreciating my effort and letting be a little proud for my efforts?
I would say either give credit for using posted material to the original writer or write up your own if you have something to say.Taking undue credit and making profit by cutting corners amounts to plain cheating which is reprehensible, And this the one flaw in our character which has kept us back from becoming world class or world leaders. It is high time that we started showing our intelligence rather than our cunning and cleverness.
Somebody copying us is flattery all right. But are we looking for flattery? Stealing, spying, cheating is a way of life. Not being paid for work done is also a fairly prevalent phenomenon. There will always be someone who will take advantage. What is reprehensible is that we do not care anymore for the ethics involved.
How low have we allowed ourselves to go?
There is a legal side to it. Suppose I get my work published and half a dozen people stand up claiming as theirs? Once you get embroiled in the legal system life becomes hell.
And don't think people won’t do it. Wives are using the laws to get even. The moment you buy a plot of land, there is another claimant who files a suit. Frivolous things are part of the human make up alright.
But downright copying and posting it on the same channel from where you have picked it up seems to me going too far in stupidity. The least I would suppose is that someone would use the points raised and do some re-write of his own.
Christine McLeod wrote:
Hi Pradeep,
A very real and a very serious concern is what you have expressed here. Plagiarism is the bane of our society, and we, especially in India, with our 'sab chalta hai' attitude have never learnt of copyright. Right from the way 'cheating' is perceived by children in our schools, to the spillover of attitudes at work...radical awareness is the call of the hour.
gvk mohan wrote:
I agree that copying is not on. But as Trainers or whatever, can we look further? I am not advocating anything or speaking for somebody. My point is, the net is an ocean by itself. It is information everywhere. There are no guarantees. When we post, our right on that post is may be gone forever. Can we think a bit bigger, broader and say "ok, if that guy has copied my post and reposted, hope it gives him some happiness or pride, hope it gives him some knowledge, hope it helps him in some way". I am asking this to Pradeep and others too generally. Tell me, what we write, speak today, is it not out of our lifetime reading or listening? Are we that original and creative and have produced such stuff that we need to get worked up? Are we that big in this universe? Are we saying "Hey, that piece of info or knowledge is mine? If you want to use it, say that is from me. And then I’m ok with you using it.”??? And in fact, if someone has re-posted you, take pride, as your stuff
seems to be so good that someone thought it worthy of copying.
Inez Rufus wrote:
Agreed that there's a wealth of information in cyberspace and in books and that we as trainers can't always be expected to say "Eureka" to every concept we train in. We borrow, we bend, we twist, we collate and we train.
However, when people do not use their creativity to enhance or build on what they have borrowed (either through the information highway or books) and blatantly copy without giving credit to the original, it's unethical to say the least.
Recently I was informed that modules that I had created as Training Head (through collated data) were being used by a Delhi company.
It's a shame that we can be so blatantly unethical and have so such little originality that we stoop to copy - without acknowledgement.
I would be more than happy to share things with others, but not when others assume ownership. I think it's unfair and totally unacceptable.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Numerology in Human Resources
Numerology in HR
Using exotic systems to assess potential capabilities of candidates is nothing out of the normal. Astrology has been used in management of business and kingdoms since planning began. Today we have many more simple systems like numerology and graphology to fall back upon. From the pragmatic point of view I would say there is nothing wrong in depending on the data provided by these systems if you tend to trust them and even more so if the interpreter of signs is trustable. There is of course a big IF involved and you may lose a good candidate by aspecting too much on just the numbers and others signs without taking into account mitigating factors and the sterling qualities of the candidate.
I will admit that I have used numerology and graphology with some success in my own life.
The basic facts that these systems provide are enough to guide us on to the correct path or at least give indication which way the wind is blowing. But it is best kept personal. There are too many factors at play. One of them is “Effort” and this should also be taken to mean that one should continuously make the effort to learn about one’s profession and connected subjects as much possible to arrive at mature and correct decisions.
But this essay is more to highlight the dependency shown by aspiring candidates themselves in such esoteric sciences to land jobs or plan their next career move. The focus on “kismet” seems to me inordinately high. A young man once phoned to ask me if he would pass in his exam. My response was that if he studied and prepared well for the coming test, he should certainly succeed. His response is indicative of the attitude of today: he told me if I saw success in his life then he would put in the effort otherwise what was the point of it all?!
I met some people yesterday and thought it would fruitful to put down the experience on paper to share.
A mother along with her daughter paid me a visit to take advantage of my practical knowledge of numerology to know how things would work out with her daughter but she would not let the daughter speak. I stopped her right there and asked her to keep herself in the back ground for awhile so that I could hear the daughter’s version. What had transpired was something like this: The girl was obviously brought up with only one end in view:- marriage. She had been through the entire Indian school program, yet she obviously was not conversant with her basics on any subject. I did not think it wise to ask too much about the school. How these young people manage to get through the exams beats me. And what kind of teaching is going on in our schools would be a good question to pose. The girl spoke only her dialectical version of her mother tongue. She had no English and no practical knowledge of anything at all. To top this combination, life played her a bad trick. The parents in their exalted wisdom married her off at the age of 19. She had a child when 20; a separation at 21 and at the age of 23 a depression.
She has been trying to look for a job since the last 20 months with no success.
What was I to do? Numerology had no role to play here. The daughter’s Q "When will I find a job?" really had no reply as such in my book. So I thought I would be bluntly honest and told her that getting a job is easy when you are trained for one. Jobs are essentially a barter system at work. You give in term of work and you get paid for it. What exactly had she done in that line? Her answer really put my pragmatism on hold. She told she never got the time. With a mother running her life and not only thinking for her but also providing her with all she could want, she had not even learnt to cook a simple omlette. You want to make an omlette; you have to break the egg. Her culinary prowess was limited to phone in a pizzeria. I wonder if parents realize what harm they do to their children by over-cuddling and at the same time over-patronizing them. There is also this over dependency on the education system to instill all the worldly, social, inter-personal and other knowledge required to navigate thru life. Even if they are being raised for marriage, don’t they see that marriage requires inter-personal and household skills of some level of proficiency?
So I advised her to acquire some basic skills like selling to begin with. She could begin by joining a corporate showroom in the sales dept and acquire experience. Side by side I felt she would do well to learn both Hindi and English properly, more suitable for the world at large. All this with a focus on eventually getting into a more specialized career as needed in call-centers or junior executives in corporate offices.
I now understand the comments being made by management seniors that our young people are not really employable. It is so sad.
Using exotic systems to assess potential capabilities of candidates is nothing out of the normal. Astrology has been used in management of business and kingdoms since planning began. Today we have many more simple systems like numerology and graphology to fall back upon. From the pragmatic point of view I would say there is nothing wrong in depending on the data provided by these systems if you tend to trust them and even more so if the interpreter of signs is trustable. There is of course a big IF involved and you may lose a good candidate by aspecting too much on just the numbers and others signs without taking into account mitigating factors and the sterling qualities of the candidate.
I will admit that I have used numerology and graphology with some success in my own life.
The basic facts that these systems provide are enough to guide us on to the correct path or at least give indication which way the wind is blowing. But it is best kept personal. There are too many factors at play. One of them is “Effort” and this should also be taken to mean that one should continuously make the effort to learn about one’s profession and connected subjects as much possible to arrive at mature and correct decisions.
But this essay is more to highlight the dependency shown by aspiring candidates themselves in such esoteric sciences to land jobs or plan their next career move. The focus on “kismet” seems to me inordinately high. A young man once phoned to ask me if he would pass in his exam. My response was that if he studied and prepared well for the coming test, he should certainly succeed. His response is indicative of the attitude of today: he told me if I saw success in his life then he would put in the effort otherwise what was the point of it all?!
I met some people yesterday and thought it would fruitful to put down the experience on paper to share.
A mother along with her daughter paid me a visit to take advantage of my practical knowledge of numerology to know how things would work out with her daughter but she would not let the daughter speak. I stopped her right there and asked her to keep herself in the back ground for awhile so that I could hear the daughter’s version. What had transpired was something like this: The girl was obviously brought up with only one end in view:- marriage. She had been through the entire Indian school program, yet she obviously was not conversant with her basics on any subject. I did not think it wise to ask too much about the school. How these young people manage to get through the exams beats me. And what kind of teaching is going on in our schools would be a good question to pose. The girl spoke only her dialectical version of her mother tongue. She had no English and no practical knowledge of anything at all. To top this combination, life played her a bad trick. The parents in their exalted wisdom married her off at the age of 19. She had a child when 20; a separation at 21 and at the age of 23 a depression.
She has been trying to look for a job since the last 20 months with no success.
What was I to do? Numerology had no role to play here. The daughter’s Q "When will I find a job?" really had no reply as such in my book. So I thought I would be bluntly honest and told her that getting a job is easy when you are trained for one. Jobs are essentially a barter system at work. You give in term of work and you get paid for it. What exactly had she done in that line? Her answer really put my pragmatism on hold. She told she never got the time. With a mother running her life and not only thinking for her but also providing her with all she could want, she had not even learnt to cook a simple omlette. You want to make an omlette; you have to break the egg. Her culinary prowess was limited to phone in a pizzeria. I wonder if parents realize what harm they do to their children by over-cuddling and at the same time over-patronizing them. There is also this over dependency on the education system to instill all the worldly, social, inter-personal and other knowledge required to navigate thru life. Even if they are being raised for marriage, don’t they see that marriage requires inter-personal and household skills of some level of proficiency?
So I advised her to acquire some basic skills like selling to begin with. She could begin by joining a corporate showroom in the sales dept and acquire experience. Side by side I felt she would do well to learn both Hindi and English properly, more suitable for the world at large. All this with a focus on eventually getting into a more specialized career as needed in call-centers or junior executives in corporate offices.
I now understand the comments being made by management seniors that our young people are not really employable. It is so sad.
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