Management's number one job priority is to coach and train subordinates, yet most sales managers don't really function in that capacity at all. The vast majority are nothing more than super salespeople with their own house accounts, their own territories and an overwhelming concern for solving their customers' problems rather than addressing the needs of their salespeople. If no one challenges the sales manager in this posture, a real problem exists..

Take a look at what happens on a typical accompanied sales call. When a sales manager and a sales representative enter the prospect's office, the prospect behind the desk instinctively directs conversation to the manager. "You know, your salesman has been trying to sell me these widgets for months," he says, "and I'm not really convinced that if I did buy them, they'd do the job."

What do most sales managers do? They mentally roll up their sleeves and start making a presentation. The salesperson fades into the background as his boss extols the company's widgets. After a while the prospect counters with, "Well, that may be true, but the price is too high." The manager comes back with glib expertise that wins the sale for keeps.

But watch what happens as the sales manager and his salesperson return to the car. Exhausted, the manager asks, "Is there anything else you want to know about that call?" The representative responds, "No, I thought we handled it well."

Pow! The manager can't believe his ears. "What about the quality objection?" he asks sternly. "What about the price?"

The salesperson, feeling maligned, responds, "Hey, if you think that buyer was tough, wait until we call on Smith!" The result is predictable: when managers persist in functioning like representatives, their salespeople never evolve to the point where they feel they need to be trained.

How might the call have been handled differently? In this case, when the buyer raises doubts about the products, the sales manager simply says, "You know, Mr. Jones, if it were just the product and not our unique system, I'd be as concerned as you are." Looking over at the representative, the manager says, "Joe, you probably want to tell him about the system."

"Huh?" The salesperson is in a state of shock. It is evident that he is onstage and required to communicate. Finally, he begins to talk about the system. No matter how good he is, however, the prospect will turn to the manager and say, "Well, that may be true, but frankly, your prices are too high."

The manager then looks at the customer and responds, "Mr. Jones, shouldn't we really be talking about value rather than price?" Turning to the salesperson, he says, "Joe, will you please detail for Mr. Jones the value in this system?"

After a manager refers questions to his sales representative three times, the client starts talking to the sales representative directly. At that point, the manager has positioned himself so he can fulfill his most important function, to coach and train. He knows that while it is the representative's job to uncover the customer's needs; it is his own responsibility as sales manager to discover the salesperson's needs and coach accordingly.

As the representative and the manager return to the car this time, the manager again may ask, "Joe, is there anything else you want to know about that call?"

The salesperson exclaims angrily, 'You're darn right. You heard the quality objection. You heard the price objection. What are we going to do?"

Having observed the entire selling process, the manager can say calmly, "Yes, I heard the objections. There was a price concern, but you might have discussed four key benefits in the system that are pertinent to that customer's needs. I'll list them again for you. This time, however, make some notes, because, Joe, when we go into the next account, you will be carrying the ball!"