MALVERN, Pa., May 9, 2012 — To remain competitive, organizations invest millions annually to train their sales force — to develop their selling capabilities, to sharpen the saw and to continually challenge them to exceed their goals. Training events are usually the first step towards improvement, but recent studies have shown that as many as 80% of the sales representatives who attend training events do not even attempt to implement the learnings. How to avoid the premature death of training is the subject of the just-released Delta Point white paper, "The 7 Critical Elements of a Follow-Through Plan: Leading to Skill Acquisition and Instinctive Sales Behavior."
In many organizations the learnings are often not effectively implemented because the training is approached as if it were a one-time event meant to change behavior. After that training session has ended, there is all too often no well-developed plan or strategy to reinforce or practice the enhanced skills afterwards. The reality is that truly effective training is best approached as a process — and requires a comprehensive follow-through plan that addresses those critical elements with persistence and over a defined period of time that humans need for the learnings to stick.
"We've learned that many organizations have not developed a comprehensive follow-through plan on how to implement the main learnings over time after the training session has concluded," explains Jerry Acuff, Delta Point's founder, CEO and author of the white paper. "If it is worth spending the time and resources on developing and conducting the training, it is certainly worth the investment in pull-through to keep it alive and ensure it delivers the intended results."
The solution to avoiding a premature death of the training can likely be resolved by implementing the seven critical factors of a strategic follow-through plan. Developing internal expertise and a cadre of experts within the organization is one critical element that is frequently overlooked. The subject matter experts become change agents who help to ensure that the training concepts and their proper application become an internal capability over time.
The Delta Point white paper documents the seven critical factors that are required for the successful implementation of the training. It takes a comprehensive look at the training process and describes how the success of training is not relegated to the training department but involves key stakeholders throughout the organization, including senior leadership and first-line managers. "The 7 Critical Elements of a Follow-Through Plan: Leading to Skill Acquisition and Instinctive Sales Behavior" is available for download for free on the Delta Point website: .
About Delta Point, Inc.
Headquartered in Scottsdale, AZ, with a regional office in Malvern, PA, Delta Point, Inc. specializes in the life sciences industry (pharmaceutical, biotech, and device companies) by partnering with clients to maximize brand sales performance. Their focus is on improving outcomes by analyzing the needs of their customers before developing customized recommendations that align cross-functional departments: Sales, Marketing, Sales Training and Commercial Operations to develop strategic sales and marketing plans, improve sales messaging, or to provide a copyrighted process of building, sustaining and growing substantive business relationships. Delta Point consultants are experts in developing follow-through that ensures successful implementation of their training.
Contact:
Jerry Acuff
CEO
Delta Point, Inc.
Scottsdale, AZ
480-296-9972 (cell)
480-342-7113 (office)
Follow Jerry Acuff on twitter @jerryacuff
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