{"id":3017,"date":"2022-08-22T14:44:51","date_gmt":"2022-08-22T18:44:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/distributionstrategy.com\/?p=3017"},"modified":"2026-09-07T16:14:02","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T20:14:02","slug":"your-sales-managers-think-theyre-coaching-but-theyre-probably-not","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/distributionstrategy.com\/2022\/08\/your-sales-managers-think-theyre-coaching-but-theyre-probably-not\/","title":{"rendered":"Your Sales Managers Think They\u2019re Coaching, But They\u2019re Probably Not"},"content":{"rendered":"

As I wrote in <\/span>my first post<\/span><\/a>, one of sales enablement\u2019s key responsibilities is preparing and supporting your sellers to go-to-market as effectively and efficiently as possible. In my second post<\/a>, I shared how sellers need to adapt to modern buying behavior.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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When clients mull on these topics, a question I often hear, is:\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOkay, so how do we actually do that? How do we best prepare and support our sellers to go to market and make the necessary changes to adapt to evolving buyer behavior?\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

(In my head, I\u2019ve often imagined them ending that question with, <\/span>\u201cWell, Mr. Smarty-pants? Hmm?\u201d<\/span><\/i>)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The first part of the answer is training, which is obvious to most. Almost everyone gets that, although the failure of training (or training done poorly) to drive change, foster adoption or improve performance is almost legendary. The second part of the answer is more elusive. The reason this is so puzzling to so many, is that the most powerful and effective solution to guiding change on the frontlines is also one of the most misunderstood and underutilized methods.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Coaching is the single most powerful tool for guiding behavior change and improving employee<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span>performance and company results.<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While it was quite a few years ago, I once read a study comparing training alone to coaching combined with training. Training increased productivity by 22.4% while training plus coaching increased productivity by a walloping 88%. The power of coaching done well is undisputable.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The common response from clients after hearing this: <\/span>\u201cOh! Coaching? Great, we\u2019ve got that covered.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And now, because turnabout is fair play, in my head, I hear myself saying, <\/span>\u201cOh, no, you really don\u2019t.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Coaching Perception Gap<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

There are many research studies that highlight this gap. As one example, in a <\/span>coaching study<\/span><\/a> that I conducted a few years ago in partnership with <\/span>Allego<\/span><\/a>:\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n