Nov 11 2007
Some Interesting Facts About Inspirational Leadership…..
A much shorter post than usual as I am travelling, but normal service will be resumed tomorrow…
An inspired and motivated workforce is essential for any business that hopes to stay ahead of the competition. In a survey of more than one and a half thousand managers, people were asked what they would most like to see in their leaders. The most popular answer, mentioned by 55% of people, was ‘inspiration’.
When asked if they would describe their current leader as ‘inspiring’, only 11% said yes. The two attributes that people actually mentioned most often when describing their leaders were ‘knowledgeable’ and ‘ambitious’. As well as this thirst for inspiring leadership, there is also evidence to support the idea that companies with inspiring leaders perform better.
The Sunday Times publishes an annual survey of the ‘Best Companies to Work For’, which is compiled from the opinions of the companies’ own employees. One interesting fact is that those ‘Best Companies’ that are publicly quoted consistently outperform the FTSE All-Share Index. Five-year compound returns show a 5.7% negative return for FTSE All-Share companies against a 13.6% gain for the Best Companies. Over three years, the returns were -11.3% and 6.7% respectively while, in the last twelve months, they were 23.1% and 44%.
The ‘Best Companies to Work For’ have also performed impressively on staff turnover, sickness rates, absenteeism and the ability to recruit good quality people.
Today’s News: 
First up, we are 99% certain that the Top Sales Experts site will launch tomorrow (Tuesday). We have some tweaking to do but I am confident that we will be ready and I think you will be impressed. I will give you the link here tomorrow.
I had a very long chat with my good friend Jill Konrath on Friday and it was immediately evident that she was extremely pleased with how her first Sales Shebang turned out: We talked about the speakers we both know - Wendy Weiss, Joanne Black, Kim Duke, Anne Miller etc and Jill said she thought they were all “awesome”.
Clearly, this will not be a one off; as well as follow up events, I think Shebang will turn into a movement for women in sales - there is already a website up and running, where like minded saleswomen can meet and exchange ideas as well as keeping themseves updated with all things “Shebang”
I am delighted for Jill, she has invested so much time, energy and her own money into this project and she deserves all the success that is going to come her way. If you are interested in joining the Sales Shebang community, you can register for free here.
Tomorrow:It is the return of my good friend from “Down Under” Kevin Dwyer of the Change Factory
A quick comment or two about Jill Konrath’s Sales SheBang.
All who were there, speakers and attendees alike, left the event changed for the better. Jill challenged speakers to step up to their rightful positions as leaders and said, “The younger women need for us to do so.” That’s the comment that got me there.
My eyes were opened to the tremendous need for women to hear from other women, “Yes you can experience success in life and in business without buckling under pressures and temptations to cut corners, finagle the figures, steal, lie, and/or offer bribes.”
Integrity in selling was a common theme of the presenters and an important albeit previously unspoken question on the minds of the attendees. Young women are unhappy with, disgusted by, and in angst over what they witness daily in the current business environment. Conversations and teachings that took place during the SheBang gave them tremendous relief as they learned different ways to be a shining, surviving, thriving light in the midst of the darkness - and gained faith and clarity in the contribution that they uniquely have to make.
Jill intentionally slowed the pacing of the meeting. Although our time together was action packed, Jill planned in time for participants to discuss their important take-aways after each session so that learning could be anchored and so that the likelihood of taking positive action to move forward was increased significantly.
Many men and women alike commented that the Sales SheBang was THE BEST sales convention they had ever attended - at its best the SheBang was and will continue to be a reflection of the sterling character of Jill Konrath.
If you are reading this post, “run don’t walk” to the SheBang link and put yourself on the SheBang mailing list so you won’t have to miss the next one. You will thank me for this counsel! (a belief, not a command!)