“I’m a manager, not a salesperson.”

Seriously? You have never attempted to persuade someone to your point-of-view? To make a change? To go in a different direction?

“Well of course I have, but that’s not sales. I’m not asking people for money.” [Add the appropriate look of disgust.]

I’ve had this dialogue more than a few times, typically in the context of leading change or communicating a vision for an organization. As a manager, you may not believe you are in “sales” because you don’t ask for money, but this rather limited view of management will probably limit your success as a manager.

“Selling” is simply the process of leading someone to a decision – a yes, or a no, or in many cases, a “not now.” This is something managers are often required to do, and, like it or not, it requires persuasion skills.

In my mind, if you don’t understand the role of persuasion (selling) in management, I’m not sure you fully understand the scope of your responsibilities as a manager. Why? Because management involves leading your employees, and leadership is based on influence – a critical component of persuasion. Clearly, if one lacks the ability to influence someone, he or she likely lacks the ability to “sell” that individual on a new idea, or a change in course, or a different process. Each of these items require an employee to make a commitment – perhaps not to spend money, but certainly to invest in a different outcome.

Perhaps the most common workplace scenario in which we have to “sell” our employees is when we sell them on the need to implement some kind of change. The truth is, people often prefer things just the way they are. Change can be difficult; it can be a lot of work; and, it can be uncomfortable. As a manager, you can demand change (good luck), or you can engage the hearts of minds of the employees you need to make the change. That’s what we call selling.

In a business transaction, when an buyer’s heart (motivation) and mind (logic) are engaged, that individual is more likely to willingly part with his or her money. In a personal interaction, when an individual’s heart and mind are both engaged, he or she is more likely to embrace change.

If there is a “secret” to success in selling – in any context – it is to understand that buying decisions are almost never based solely on logic. Buyers, for example, will often refuse a better product or service simply because the hassle of changing (for them) is not worth the benefits of the purchase. Or, the purchase might call their judgment into question. Or, the purchase might positively or negatively impact others’ perception of them. Or, many times, the purchase just makes someone feel good (think he bought that Harley Davidson for better gas mileage??). All of these items reflect personal motivations – not logic.

This same “secret” can be a very useful insight in selling your employees.

Harold S. Geneen once said, “It is an immutable law in business that words are words, explanations are explanations, promises are promises but only performance is reality.” Immutable law? You bet. You’ve probably heard it this way: “Talk is cheap.” “Don’t tell me, show me.” “Money talks and baloney (or something similar) walks.”  Get the idea?

Immutable means “not subject to change.” What Geneen is saying is that performance is what counts in business. Not promises of performance. Not excuses for a lack of performance. It’s about performance. Period. Well….in a vacuum. After all, the best performers lose all of their value in an organization if they are a distraction, a problem, a drama queen, a poison pill, or a narcissist. Football fans will recognize these types of performers immediately – Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, like that.

The subject at hand, however, is performance. Results. What people do. And the primary challenge with performance is how to get the best of each of your employees AND create a team of people whose collective results exceeds their individual contributions. With that idea in mind, consider what former Avis CEO Robert Townsend said:

“One of the most important tasks of a manager is to eliminate his people’s excuses for failure.”

I don’t think Townsend was thinking that people always make excuses (which may, in fact, be a reality); rather, I think he was suggesting that managers bear substantial responsibilities in assuring high performance from employees. How? By eliminating the opportunity to fall back on common excuses as reasons for performance failures. Eliminate the source of the excuse and you eliminate the ability to use the excuse. Simple enough.

The Two Most Common Excuses

The good news is that there are two major excuses that can completely be eliminated from an employee’s vocabulary if a manager does his or her job well. If you think about it, the most common excuses are these: “I didn’t know.” “I didn’t know how.” Both of these are avoidable – completely avoidable – if you do your job well.

I didn’t know.
I didn’t know when it was due.
I didn’t know you wanted that.
I didn’t know how many.
I didn’t know who to ask.
I didn’t know that was more important.
I didn’t know the next step.

I didn’t know how.
I didn’t know how to proceed.
I didn’t know how to operate the equipment.
I didn’t know how to input the data.
I didn’t know how to complete the form.
I didn’t know how things work.

These are communication or training issues – items that are completely within your control. If the employee doesn’t know, whose fault is that? If he or she doesn’t know how, whose fault is that? In fact, throughout the day as a manager, you should add two simple ideas to your thought process: Do my people know? Do they know how?

The key is not to assume they know or know how. Make absolutely sure. How? First, communicate consistently and clearly. Once is never enough. Create clarity for each issue. Reinforce in-person and by email. Second, train and test. A good manager never assumes that an employee knows how. He or she trains the employee and then tests for competency. This is not insulting to employees – this is good management. Once you are sure they know how, you can rest assured they can do their jobs – without your direct and constant oversight (which is what you hired them for, I’m fairly certain). The alternative – to assume they know how – is to invite disaster.

Eliminating these excuses will dramatically improve employee performance. Now you know that, and now you know how to address it.