Managers who want to ensure their people reach levels of peak performance must learn exactly where the comfort zone occurs. In addition, they must understand that such stimulation or motivation (or lack of it), will also vary with each individual. As with situational lead- ership, the level of competence and commitment of each individual will differ. Being aware of these differ- ences will enable managers to help


people hit high achievement levels. Some motivation should be ap- plied on a department or unit level. However, the best motivation should be interwoven with an individual’s own one-minute goals. This type of motivation is individualized. It relates to the specific job a person is performing and is linked with measurable outcomes. Appropriate, well-managed stimulation is the stuff that makes winners. 


A Taste for Winning A


ccording to many sales managers, sales teams become increasingly less motivated by money as an incentive to perform better. But one thing seems to work no matter what the team sells – competition. Enter the sales contest.


Here’s a little anecdote from a sales manager: “One time my old boss, who was as tight fisted as they come, told me I could have $200 to spend on a prize. Big deal. I gave a lot of thought to what prize to offer, and, when I didn’t come up with anything that rang my bell, I sent out a memo to all my salespeople asking them to write down a prize they’d like to have. “When I tabulated their answers, the one that came out on top was a racing bicycle. So I bought one, put it in the sales room, and announced the contest. I then witnessed one of the most amazing phenomena I have ever seen. After a while, the contest was down to just a few people. They were working more hours, coming in earlier, staying later, messing around less. Some were making far more money than they ever had before, and any one of them could certainly have bought the blasted bicycle with their increased earn- ings. As we rolled into the last week, it was a slug fest. Some people were working 12 to 14 hours a day to win the bike. “Certainly, part of the magic of contests is the prize, but the other part seems to be the possibility of winning. To make certain I got as many players as possible, I handicapped my top performers by mak- ing everyone compete against his or her own previ- ous best effort. This gave the new kids on the block a chance to make a run at the old kids. And it was a new kid who took the prize!”


Many managers say that experience has proven travel to be the best incentive. The longer and more


‘‘


The only thing that comes to a sleeping man is dreams. TUPAC SHAKUR


extravagant the trip, naturally, the better. One man- ager plans several trips a year for his entire unit. Since they are located in Minnesota, a winter weekend ski trip doesn’t involve too much travel expense. Although an upcoming Florida trip for winners and their spouses will be costly, he’s sure the contest will be paid for ten- fold by the revenue generated by it. It is a group effort – and everyone is already giving 100 percent. Friday afternoons were the least productive for a southern company’s inside sales team until their manager made Friday a contest day. After buying inexpensive prizes (the largest cost only $6), she brought in a dart board – and anyone who met the objective for a set period of time was included in the dart game for prizes. The next week she bought more prizes and a golf putting game. And Fridays picked up tremendously. When she saw her lower producers trying really


hard – yet always getting beat out by the unit’s “stars” – she was determined to find a way to let everyone win. She broke the contest on Friday into 60- or 90-minute periods. The reps who made the most sales within that time frame could play in the afternoon. It worked. More people had a chance and actually did win. When reps ask, “Why bother playing? Sue and


Tom always win,” offer prizes for the top five or six performers. The more people you let win, the better. A good idea is a sweepstakes in which, every time a certain objective is reached, a chance is awarded to be in the final drawing. Of course, your heavy hitters will probably earn a lot more chances to enter, but everyone can be in it. And you could also add a prize for most improved sales over a given time frame – say, one week or month. The more ingenious you are in your contests, the


more excitement you will create. Motivation is a study in creativity.


LEE R. VAN VECHTEN


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