How can poor communication and collaboration between C-level and sales leadership be avoided?

Communication is the foundation of any successful team, but it is often at the root of many problems within sales teams and wider organisations. As Jack Welsh said, "I spend 50% of my time dealing with people problems."

To illustrate the importance of effective communication, a Harvard Business Review study found that 57% of projects fail because of communication problems. Another study by The Economist Intelligence Unit found that 44% of team performance failures are due to poor communication.

One effective strategy that Curiosity employs in its sales transformation programmes with executive teams is to use DISC profiles (some details

) to align the communication styles of the CEO and the Sales Director or VP of Sales. Let's explore this in more detail.

DISC Profile Matching: A Practical Example

Here's an example of how DISC profile matching can provide insights with the two profiles 'paired

1. Similar personalities: The overlapping coloured areas on the 'diamond' indicate similar traits, suggesting fluid interactions. These two leaders get on well humanly, that's for sure. However...

2. Critical Gaps: Blank spaces reveal missing traits, such as Dominance (D) or Conscientiousness (C). This indicates potential pitfalls in insufficiently data-driven decision-making and a tendency to avoid difficult decisions. These leaders may favour personal interaction over hard data and results.

   

A detailed analysis of their natural skills supports this overview. Their typical communication styles-validated in workshops and over the long term-are :

1. Not Fact Oriented Enough: This is possible for these two leaders, but it requires energy (-2 on the scale below). This can be problematic when communicating with the sales team and the board of directors.

2. Lack of Objectivity and Directiveness: This is visible on "Direct Goal focused communication" (-4 and -2 on the scale below). How does this materialise? For example, are meetings guided by dashboards or are they more emotional?

These points can be critical to the performance of the team and the organisation. If communication is not based on clear facts and objectives, it can lead to costly mistakes and reduced performance. Recognising and closing these gaps is crucial to effective decision-making and clear direction.

Adopt Communication Based on Facts and Objectives

To avoid these pitfalls, it is essential to :

1. Know your natural communication and decision-making styles: DISC is a good, simple tool for this exercise, but the key lies in following through on the actions you take.

2. Use Data to Make Decisions: Make sure that your decisions are guided by facts and not by emotions (Be careful if your profile is highly I).

3. Set clear, measurable objectives: Clear objectives help to guide actions and measure progress objectively.

4. Encourage Direct and Transparent Communication: Encourage open and honest communication to avoid misunderstandings and resolve problems quickly.