Colleen’s Blog

Don't forget to first catch up on part one of this two part series! Nurturing and retaining new talent. Back at Boston Beer, the focus is on retention. “The big challenge for us is holding onto our sales people past the two-year mark,” says Geist. Promotions at Boston Beer often require relocation, which young people agree to, yet resist when the time comes to make a move.  Start solving the millennial challenge now, says Francis. “Building the best team possible is a crucial step for businesses that are serious about accelerating their sales,” explains Colleen Francis, founder of Engage Selling Solutions. “Solving the millennial challenge needs to be your top task in that bigger job.” As a sales strategist, Francis works with companies to develop field-tested, winning methods of attracting and retaining top talent. While that search cuts across generational lines, her work with top-ranked sales organizations has helped her formulate specific advice on how best to reach this millennial generation—the sales force and sales leaders of tomorrow.

A few decades ago, a career in sales was a much sought-after career by young graduates entering the workforce. College seniors would clamor to get on the interview list of on-campus recruiters representing blue-chip companies like IBM and Xerox who were hungry for top sales talent. Today, it’s much harder to sell young people on a career in sales. And yet it’s vital for successful organizations both large and small to overcome this barrier if they want to grow their sales force and their profits—not to mention their market appeal to this giant demographic group. In this two-part article, Talent Maximizer® Roberta Matuson of Matuson Consulting looks at why sales gets a bad rap from millennials, and sales strategist Colleen Francis of Engage Selling Solutions explores what you can do to reverse that trend.

Say that three times fast. Pipeline management does not have to be avoided like a confusing tongue twister. In fact, managing and reviewing your pipeline are among your most important tasks as a salesperson. They help you prioritize what activities to complete each month, as well as give you an accurate indication of how healthy your sales pipeline truly is. Here are a few steps that can make your reviews and management more effective: