I started my career in professional services as a lawyer in a large law firm in New York. In those early years, I was a learner trying to figure out how to provide legal services. A partner would magically have a client and push down the execution of that work to junior lawyers like me. After a few years, I left professional services and moved to a company where I led corporate development, strategy and M&A. The company had sales leaders that would create relationships with clients and drive revenue to support the rest of us and deliver value to shareholders. My role was focused on non-sales revenue growth and I rarely met with or understood our clients. In fact, for most of my career sales was something I tried to stay far away from.
Sales leaders are a special breed. They must be experts in their company’s offerings (down to technical details), excellent listeners, avid readers, interesting conversationalists and great speakers. They must make others feel heard and they must be fully committed to solving client problems or helping them to accomplish their objectives. All while asking customers to pay for the relationship to generate maximum ROI for the seller. It’s a special talent that I have always respected and wanted nothing to do with!
I was wrong though. As a corporate development leader, I often identified transactions and initiatives that my employers could pursue; but I lacked the authority to sponsor or approve these transactions. So I found myself selling. Not to external clients but to internal stakeholders and decision makers. Walking the hallways. Going out for lunches and dinners. Anything to persuade stakeholders that what I thought was best for my function and the company was also best for their function and the company. While I never led any serious external client development, I have spent years developing the same skills as sales leaders to sell ideas internally.
Three years ago I launched my own business (this year rebranded with partners, Stage18, Inc.) and realized that all of those skills honed for internal selling were just as valuable for external selling. All business is selling. Even if you are a product leader or engineer or finance leader – the features of a product, the methods of implementation, the accounting treatment, every detail of how you do what you do – if you work in an organization, you’ve needed the powers of empathy, persuasion and selling. Leaders in all functional areas must not shy away from sales – instead, learn from your sales leaders. Their skills will make you more effective in your function too.
And if you need sales support, leadership or strategy – of course, call Stage18. We work with some of the best in the world!