Sales Talent Churn challenges posed by Defectors, Misfits and Remnants

Of all the sales management metrics that tell us about economic growth, the ones that we in selling know ( and often to our cost)  is talent churn.

 In London according to  recent issue of the London Evening Standard, it is predicted that 

40% of employees plan to move within next year.

Managers ( including sales managers) turn from corporate game keepers who guard and develop their company's  talent to one now of  poachers who may feel the need entice talent away from competitors.

More than half those leaving jobs in London then try to entice their colleagues to follow them and many choose to take them up on their offer.

40+ %  when asked when anyone had left their place of work and tried to ‘poach them’ to go and work in a new company  “Yes and I took them up!”

25% replied that they had been approached but declined

33% said they had never been approached

DEFECTORS

Research from Adecco reveals the reason for defections.

That the most common  reason for wanting to move is bad management.

 30% wanted to move because of poor management nearly twice as high as those saying they would leave primarily because of low pay.

Ironically the worst bosses are to be found in HR with nearly 40% saying that bad management was the strongest reason for moving jobs followed by arts and culture at 37%.

Poachers are most likely to work in:-

• Professional services
• HR
• Sales
• and Media

MISFITS

Not only is poor management the main cause of defections their exacerbate the problem by then replacing them with the wrong people.

70% of those polled say their firm made hires that were ‘clearly  a wrong fit for the organisation’

Legal professionals are far more likely to poach successfully. 40% in London have done so successfully. But 80% of legal professionals say that their firm has made bad hires. ( the average is 73% across London.

REMNANTS

If defectors and poor replacement hires were not enough of challenge to sales management , the task of sustaining team morale when key staff leave ( and possibly try to take colleagues with them) 24% of staff feeling ‘de-motivated’ when someone leaves.

40% say they are ‘disappointed’ when someone leaves

20% say they are ‘frustrated’ when someone leaves

And only one in seven admitted to being ‘happy’ to see certain people leave.

Half of Londoners in the Adecco study are also concerned about the increased workload with 25% saying they are worried that more people  will then leave ( and many of these will be poached)

54% of  Londoners believe their firms have a problem with retention   38% believe better management training is the number 1 solution

Ironically HR who you would think would be best at managing staff- has the  worst management   with 50% saying that there is a lack of management training for staff compared with 35% across the board.