"We Are a Medium Manufacture: How Do I Keep From Losing My Employees to the Big Guys?" - 12/19&26/18 Edition
Stephen Says Column

  Dear Stephen:

 I own a medium-sized furniture manufacturing company. We have a combination of our own regional VPs in some major city showrooms with direct salespeople and independent reps across the rest of the country. We work on a calendar year, so all of the direct sales team we have will get their end- of-year bonuses in January. Salespeople pretty much know what kind of monies they made for the year by now. Our direct salespeople tend to be younger. 
 
 This time of year through January and through the first quarter is when we always start to lose people. Once salespeople get their commissions or bonuses, I start to get anxious about losing people. I noticed this happens for mostly two reasons – career growth and income. In a smaller organization like ours, we have limited management opportunities. Some sales- people love selling, yet they want more growth into management we just do not have here. So, larger manu- facturers can poach these people after we have spent three to four years training them on the industry and after we help them build a client base and dealer con- tacts. And then there are some people who always think they can make more money somewhere else, which I doubt because we pay very well. Many of the smaller and medium-size furniture manufacturers have these same problems.
 
 Is there a way to avoid people jumping ship at the end of the year? We want to retain these employees. Often, I rearrange a terri- tory to increase revenue, or increase a bonus or perk to keep someone but I cannot compete with a Fortune 500 type of company that has more resources and more job growth. What's the an- swer?
 
 Signed,
 Ms January Blues!
 

 Certain age candidates have been downsized or rightsized or often just tossed aside and have had it with that part of their career but still have the fire in the belly to sell.

 Dear Ms. Blues:

 It sounds like you have recognized why good salespeople are leaving, and you are trying stopgap measures to keep them at your company. Looking at the long term, part of the answer is to begin with hiring the right salespeople for the size of your organization. What does that mean? It means be honest with yourself (which it sounds like you already are) about the size of your company and what the career path there is like. So be honest with candidates that this is a sales job with limited career growth but plenty of income growth, and make sure if they are overperformers they truly can make an exceptional income.
 
 The obvious part you are missing is to hire more mature salespeople who have already worked at the Herman Millers, Haworths, HONs, Steelcases and any of the larger companies attracting your salespeople. Candidates of a certain age have been downsized, rightsized or often just tossed aside and have had it with that part of their career but still have the fire in the belly to sell. Or maybe it is a younger person who wants income and does not aspire to be the CEO tomorrow. It is not always about the age but about taking the time to listen and learn about a candidate’s career goals in the interview, not just talking about your company. Ask the right questions when interviewing, then listen to the candidate’s answers.
 
 In any case, identifying and hiring the best salespeople for your company is a mix of instinct, luck and timing combined with the analytical — using outside testing services, checking with prior employers and workmates and having the candidate interview with other senior managers in the company. Bottom line is use your head, and consider that established professional sellers may be the right choice, along with newer salespeople who are income driven.
 
 Happy New Year!
 
 Stephen
 

 You can send your workplace questions to Stephen at: StephenSays@bellow.press
 
 Questions selected to be answered, will appear in this column. Please use the Subject: Stephen Says for all emails. Stephen Viscusi is a bestselling author, television personality, and CEO of The Viscusi Group, global executive recruiters located in New York. Follow Stephen on Twitter @stephenviscusi. Like Stephen on Facebook and follow him on LinkedIn.