Mindshift for higher performance: a journey of sales

Grant Calder, CEO of International Operations for Lange Sales AB


The event’s speaker was Grant Calder, CEO of International Operations for Lange Sales AB. In one hour he managed to deliver a multitude of insights about the profession of sales. His main message was that sales organizations and people have to have a clear development plan so that they can avoid plateau and perform at higher levels. 


Registration.

Using his own personal experiences Grant then highlighted the four critical components of high performance in sales.

1.      Warrior - Lessons From The Arena - Do it Now, Work Hard, Knock on Doors

2.      Conceptual - Mentor’s Magic - Beginner’s Mind, Helping Others, Work To Learn

3.      Methodology - The Matrix - Concepts, Numbers, Ratios, Science, Studies, Systems

4.      Think-Out-Of-The-Box-Big-Idea-Strategy


Continental Airlines' Robin Schoug and Annika Lagervret.

Throughout the speech Grant showed how these different components of high performance related to one another. The warrior component helps organizations deliver quantity. The conceptual component helps organizations deliver quality. However, the two are not mutually exclusive: the best sales organizations and people deliver both quantity and quality. Grant also talked about how methodology…the science of sales…derived from statistics and experience should be applied to all components to achieve best practices. Finally Grant stressed the importance of encouraging a culture of Think-Out-Of-The-Box-Strategy to flourish because sales people have such a valuable perspective. Their good big ideas can result in the largest revenue gains for organizations á la 80-20 rule. 



In closing Grant asked the audience to identify areas of the speech they related to most and to reflect on their own journeys. Grant then asked them to visualize a Think-Out-of-The-Box-Big-Idea Strategy in their own lives, which they could apply, these components to immediately. While they were still in visualization mode Grant concluded by urging that they, “Do it Now! Work Hard! Knock on Doors!”


From the left: Per Lange, Lange Sales, Björn Riese and Adam Green, Mannheimer Swartling.


Photos by Rob Nelson