Monday Mornings with Madison - Part 54Monday Mornings with Madison | Sales Tips

March 16, 2015

Is Less More When It Comes to Office Space?

Issue #370

Part 2 – Work Space, Creativity and Innovation

There has been a growing trend of businesses cutting back on the amount of work space allocated per person. Sharing offices has become more common. Cubicles are getting tinier. And open shared space with a number of desks or work stations in one open area – once considered so cutting-edge — has become ubiquitous. Employees are being packed into ever-smaller spaces. There have been a few tech firms in the San Francisco Bay Area that have gotten to worker densities of up to seven workers per 1,000 square feet of space or 142 SF per employee. The average just a decade ago was four workers per 1,000 square feet. As the Russian adage says, they are packed so tight that there is no room for an apple to fall. Continue reading →

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March 9, 2015

Is Less More When It Comes to Office Space?

Issue #369

Part 1 – Work Space and Productivity

Office design has been evolving over the last few years. Once upon a time, all managers and executives had offices with walls, doors, desks and furniture. Space was abundant and a deluxe office was a standard perk of working at most any successful company. Clerical, secretarial and support staff also had individual work areas such as cubicles or were separated from other desks by partitions, cabinets and space. Continue reading →

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March 2, 2015

Do We Still Need To Dress For Success?

Issue #367

Past studies have repeatedly shown that people judge companies, in part, by the outward appearance of its employees. Likewise, employers evaluate employees, in part, on their ‘professionalism’ which includes appearance. Over the years, research has validated that there is a bias in favor of well-dressed, well-groomed, good-looking people. Indeed, for decades if not centuries, it has been widely understood that the visual aesthetic presented to others through appearance and apparel matters. Continue reading →

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February 23, 2015

Avoiding Email Blunders

Issue #367

Email is a key tool that allows business professionals to communicate very quickly in writing in great detail. It has replaced traditional phone calls and long-winded memos. Emails have also greatly reduced the need for group meetings just to share information. Emails also serve as written proof or validation of past requests, instructions and discussions. Practically no business today operates without email. Continue reading →

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February 16, 2015

Benefits Employees Want Most – Part 2

Issue #366

Although the most headline-grabbing economic issue in the U.S. during the last decade was the ballooning unemployment rate, this particular woe has been decidedly declining in direct proportion to the rise in jobs. With the Department of Labor Statistic reporting unemployment holding at about 5.6% – 5.7% since October 2014, job gains are still being reported in retail trade, construction, health care, financial activities, and manufacturing in January 2015. Ironically, though, a decline in unemployment is now accentuating a different concern for U.S. businesses; namely, the need for more highly-skilled employees. U.S. companies report wanting to only hire people who are “job ready.” But such skilled workers are increasingly harder to find. Continue reading →

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February 9, 2015

Benefits Employees Want Most – Part 1

Issue #365

Salary is not the only variable that employees factor when considering a company to work for or job to keep or leave. While pay is obviously a primary concern – after all, the reason people work is to earn a living – there are a number of other variables employees consider when deciding where to work. An employee’s benefits package is often just as important. However, which benefits are valued most by employees depends on the employees and their particular circumstances. A woman with small children might value flexible work hours and a Flexible Spending Account for child care while a man nearing retirement might value a company’s 401K plan and more vacation time. One might say that the benefit of a benefit is in the eye of the beholder. Continue reading →

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February 2, 2015

To Be A Top Salesperson in 2015, Embrace Rejection!

Issue #364

Being a salesperson can be a challenging – and at times even downright daunting — occupation (which is perhaps why they are usually very well-compensated). Selling involves a number of skills that many people are either weak at or don’t possess at all. The best salespeople are outgoing, friendly and sociable. They are never intimidated and are comfortable talking to anyone. They genuinely like people and people like them. They are skilled communicators, knowing what to say and what not to say to gain a potential customer’s interest. They are able, savvy negotiators, adept at overcoming objections and finding a solution that meets the needs of those involved. But most of all, the best salespeople are tenacious, with tremendous perseverance and a deep capacity to accept rejection and keep going. In fact, being able to handle rejection well is perhaps the most important skill of any professional, full-time salesperson. After all, most salespeople will hear “no” many, many times before getting a “yes.” Continue reading →

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January 26, 2015

The Challenges Ahead for U.S. Businesses in 2015

Issue #363

According to President Obama’s State of the Union Address this week, “After a breakthrough year for America, our economy is growing and creating jobs at the fastest pace since 1999. Our unemployment rate is now lower than it was before the financial crisis. More of our kids are graduating than ever before; more of our people are insured than ever before; we are as free from the grip of foreign oil as we’ve been in almost 30 years.” Indeed, just a few weeks into 2015, the nation’s economy does seem to be in the best shape it’s been since before the Great Recession (which is indeed good news, but certainly does not set the bar very high). U.S. employment increased by nearly three million jobs in 2014. Unemployment decreased a full percentage point between 2013 and 2014, dropping to the current 5.6% — the lowest rate since 2008 and the largest year-over-year decline since 1984. If things continue on this track, the U.S. is predicted to reach 5% unemployment by the end of the year, which is nearing that economic nirvana of “full employment”. Also, declining oil prices have helped bolster consumer purchasing power. The U.S. dollar is also at its highest value in many years. These are all good indicators. Continue reading →

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January 19, 2015

To Change a Behavior, Change the Environment

Issue #362

At the beginning of a year, many people make resolutions to change. They want to break a bad habit or start a good habit. Or they want to improve or reduce how or how much they do something. For some, the change is personal. Lose weight. Eat healthy. Exercise. Stop smoking. For others, the change is professional. Stay organized. Find greater work/life balance. Be on time to work. Have more patience. Be more pleasant to customers. For each person, it is a different resolution. Yet, everyone basically wants to do the same thing: change a difficult-to-change behavior. (After all, if it was easy to change the behavior, there’d be no need for a resolution!) Continue reading →

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January 12, 2015

Handling Competitors

Issue #361

There is no business that exists anywhere in the free-market world that is without competition… at least not for long. The moment a product or service is invented and sold, someone somewhere opens a business that rivals it somehow. The competitor’s delivery method might differ. Or its service and support might be better. Or the competitor’s product might be slightly improved. Competition is inevitable. Continue reading →

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