A wise old man once said that 'people don't buy bits of wire, wool, damask and wood, they buy what the product will do for them', in this case he was referring to a bed. Many of us would suggest that people buy a bed to sleep in and of course that would be a correct answer. Others might include: to get a good nights sleep (replace a creaking bed), to ease a back pain (orthopaedic bed), to have guests over (futon or guest bed).

 

Just the other day my daughter wanted a new pair of shoes and so we made a trip into St David's 2, Cardiff shopping mall. Having spent some time searching for the perfect pair of shoes we had arrived at a choice of two pairs but my daughter who would have the final decision and unbeknown to us, had decided on the pair of shoes for her. Our friendly sales person then decided to pass judgment on the pair of shoes that looked best on my daughter and the pair he thought she should purchase.

 

Setting targets for sales teams can be controversial at times for many reasons. These may include year on year performance records, comparison with other departments, branches or industries and may be affected by seasonal trends such as holidays, Christmas, Bank Holidays or even the weather (who wants to be shopping for a fur coat when the sun is shining!).

 

Involving your team in a discussion for projected daily sales is one way to focus our minds on the task ahead and to gain commitment for a plan of action with names and how much each team member will be achieving.

Research paper on intrapreneurship available through Emerald.

 

Leading an entrepreneurial workforce: development or decline?

 

Paul Clargo, (IDF Business Consultants, Caerphilly, UK),Richard Tunstall, (Division of Enterprise and Economic Development, University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd, UK)

 

Paul Clargo, Richard Tunstall, (2011) "Leading an entrepreneurial workforce: development or decline?", Education + Training, Vol. 53 Iss: 8/9, pp.762 - 783

 

Employees,Entrepreneurial motivation