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Accelerants: Twelve Strategies to Sell Faster, Close Deals Faster, and Grow Your Business Faster

Sep 11, 2021

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Page 1: Accelerants: Twelve Strategies to Sell Faster, Close Deals Faster, and Grow Your Business Faster
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TableofContents

TitlePageCopyrightPageDedicationAcknowledgementsForewordINTRODUCTION

SectionOne:TheConstraints-THEIMPEDIMENTSLIMITINGTHESPEEDATWHICHYOU...FIRSTCONSTRAINT-THECLIENTORPROSPECT’SGENERALPERCEPTIONSOFYOURINDUSTRYSECONDCONSTRAINT-THECLIENTORPROSPECT’SPERCEPTIONOFYOURCORE...THIRDCONSTRAINT-YOURTEAM’SPERCEPTIONOFYOURBUSINESS,PRODUCTS,ANDSERVICESFOURTHCONSTRAINT-THECLIENTORPROSPECT’SPREFERREDEDUCATIONALPROCESS—AND...FIFTHCONSTRAINT-THECLIENTORPROSPECT’SEXECUTIVE-LEVELDECISION-MAKINGPROCESSSIXTHCONSTRAINT-YOURMARKETINGORGANIZATION’SARTICULATIONOFTHEMESSAGE...SEVENTHCONSTRAINT-YOURLEVELOFENTRYANDENGAGEMENTWITHINCLIENTAND...EIGHTHCONSTRAINT-THEINABILITYTOARTICULATEYOURVALUEPROPOSITIONSTOTHE...NINTHCONSTRAINT-YOURFEAROFSUFFICIENTLYPREQUALIFYINGTHECLIENTOR...TENTHCONSTRAINT-YOURFEAROFLEADINGTHEDANCEWITHCLIENTSANDPROSPECTSELEVENTHCONSTRAINT-THECONTENT,FORMAT,ANDDELIVERY

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OFYOURPOWERPOINT...TWELFTHCONSTRAINT-YOURINABILITYTOCOMMUNICATETOCLIENTSANDPROSPECTS—THE...

SectionTwo:TheAccelerantPrinciples-TWELVEPROVENPRINCIPLESTOOVERCOME,...FIRSTACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-ASSESSYOURSTATUSSECONDACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-DESIGNYOURFUTURETHIRDACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-CHARTERYOURCOURSEFOURTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-METRICTHEMESSAGEFIFTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-ACCESSTHECASTLESIXTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-DELIVERTHEULTIMATEPRESENTATIONSEVENTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-PAINTTHEFINANCIALPICTUREEIGHTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-HOLDYOURGROUNDNINTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-CONDUCTTHECONCERTTENTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-HARMONIZEFORGOLDELEVENTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-CALIBRATEFORSUCCESSTWELFTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE-COMPLETETHECIRCLEOFINTEGRATION

SectionThree-THREEMOREACCELERANTSUCCESSSTORIES

SectionFour-MOVINGFORWARDCUSTOMIZINGTHEPROCESSTOYOURBUSINESSAPPLICATIONSTRANSFERRINGTHEKNOWLEDGEANDSKILLSETSTOYOURPEOPLEREAL-WORLDAPPLICATION,IMPLEMENTATION,ANDEXECUTION

SectionFive-WHERETOTURNFORASSISTANCETHEVALUEOFTHECONSTRAINTSASSESSMENTANDHOWTOGETITDONEFORYOURBUSINESS

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ABOUTACCELERANTINTERNATIONALPRODUCTANDSERVICEOFFERINGS—CLIENTSSERVEDEXECUTIVEOVERVIEWCONVERSATIONSWITHTHEAUTHORKEYNOTESPEAKINGFORYOURNEXTMEETINGORCOMPANYEVENT

THEACCELERANTPRINCIPLES

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PORTFOLIOPublishedbythePenguinGroup

PenguinGroup(USA)Inc.,375HudsonStreet,NewYork,NewYork10014,U.S.A.

PenguinGroup(Canada),90EglintonAvenueEast,Suite700,Toronto,Ontario,CanadaM4P2Y3

(adivisionofPearsonPenguinCanadaInc.)PenguinBooksLtd,80Strand,LondonWC2R0RL,EnglandPenguinIreland,25StStephen’sGreen,Dublin2,Ireland

(adivisionofPenguinBooksLtd)PenguinBooksAustraliaLtd,250CamberwellRoad,Camberwell,

Victoria3124,Australia(adivisionofPearsonAustraliaGroupPtyLtd)

PenguinBooksIndiaPvtLtd,11CommunityCentre,PanchsheelPark,NewDelhi-110017,India

PenguinGroup(NZ),CnrAirborneandRosedaleRoads,Albany,Auckland1310,NewZealand

(adivisionofPearsonNewZealandLtd)PenguinBooks(SouthAfrica)(Pty)Ltd,24SturdeeAvenue,

Rosebank,Johannesburg2196,SouthAfricaPenguinBooksLtd,RegisteredOffices:80Strand,LondonWC2R0RL,EnglandFirstpublishedin2007byPortfolio,

amemberofPenguinGroup(USA)Inc.Copyright©MichaelA.Boylan,2007

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AllrightsreservedeISBN:978-1-436-27832-4

Withoutlimitingtherightsundercopyrightreservedabove,nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,storedinorintroducedintoaretrievalsystem,ortransmitted,inanyform,orbyanymeans(electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recordingorotherwise),withoutthepriorwrittenpermissionofboththe

copyrightownerandtheabovepublisherofthisbook.Thescanning,uploading,anddistributionofthisbookviatheInternetorviaanyothermeanswithoutthepermissionofthepublisherisillegalandpunishablebylaw.Pleasepurchaseonlyauthorizedelectronic

editionsanddonotparticipateinorencourageelectronicpiracyofcopyrightablematerials.Yoursupportoftheauthor’srightsisappreciated.

http://us.penguingroup.com

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Thisbook isdedicated to thosepeoplewhomodelpersistence inall its forms.Thosewho see the need to improve and have the foresight and confidence inthemselvesand the idea, such that theywon’t takeno forananswer—pushingforward until they see their ideas in action.This iswhat I did in creating thismaterialandprocess.Ithadtobeoutthereintheworldforalltouse,becauseofitspowerandability togenuinelybenefit thosewhouse it toachievemoreoftheir dreams. Learn this process, use it respectfully, be a steward of theACCELERANTS,andpractice,practice,practice!

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE FOR THEIRGUIDANCEandfeedbackduringthepreparationandwritingofthisbook.First,my thanks toAdrianZackheimofPortfolio forhis intuitionandbelief inhowthismaterialcouldbenefitthousandsofpeopleandtheorganizationstheyworkwith.ForhistrustandconfidenceIamgrateful. Ialsowishtothankhisveryprofessionalteam:AdrienneSchultz,myeditor;WillWeisser,associatepublisher;andShannonGarrison,mypublicist,fortheirtalent,dedication,andinsightinmakingthisagreatbook. To my agent, Margret McBride, and her professional team who helpedchannelmyenergiesduringthewritingofthisbook. To our clients who have trusted this material enough to bring it into theirorganizations,shapeittotheirapplications,andembraceitinthefieldaspartofthewaytheygotomarket,drivingmorerevenueperformanceandefficienciestotheirorganizations. To someofmyadvisers andcoacheswhohavehelpedguidemeduring theyears in this business:KenBlanchard, LarryWilson, andHarry Paul. ToBobThele, former CEO of Covey Leadership; Mike Meyer, chairman of i360TechnologiesandformerCEOofCapGeminifortheAmericas;JimWoodward,formerheadofTransformationalOutsourcingforCGE&YfortheAmericas;toJohnMurray,chairmanofAdvancePathandformerCEOofPLATOLearning;MattShocklee,seniorpartneratPriceWaterhouseCoopers;AlainThiry,presidentand CEO of EMSI and former president of The Carlson Marketing Group,Europe; Gary Gindele, former group vice president for Keane; and the manyotherswhohaveadvisedmeovertheyears. Tomyfamilyandfriendsfortheirsupportandencouragementalongtheway.And to Nancy Andzulis, Christine Krason, Mykael Sprague, Winnie Shows,MeganFrench,VanceWoolwine, JohnBull, and JerryBegly for all their helpandexpertiseduringtheprocess.Alltogether,agreatteamofprofessionalsandtrustedadvisersforwhichIamgrateful.

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FOREWORD

THECOREBENEFITSOFTHISBOOKTHIS BOOK WILL GIVE YOU AND YOUR PEOPLE BEST PRACTICE,FIELD-PROVENtoolsthatcanhelpeveryonewhoimpactsorgeneratesrevenuetodrivemorerevenuetoyourbusiness,moreefficiently,andinlesstime. I’ll describe in detail twelve constraints that impede and sometimes blockorganizationsfromgainingmorerevenue,regardlessoftheirsize,allowingyouto quickly diagnose which constraints are the biggest impediments to yourcompanies’revenuegrowth,andtakeimmediateactiontominimizethem. Thematerialgoesevenfurtherbydescribingtwelvefield-proventoolscalledAccelerants.Thesetoolscanhelpminimizeyourconstraints,helpingyouscope,sell,andclosemoreand largerdeals in less time, reducingyour time-to-a-dealandcostofsalesbyasmuchas25percent.Morespecifically,theseAccelerantswillteachyouhowto:•Targetnewrevenueopportunitiesmoreefficientlyandeffectively • Compress and make more efficient your existing sales process •Craft stronger,more persuasive value propositions that create urgency to act •Identifyandgainaccesstotherealdecisionmakersfasterandmoreeffectively•Condense and improve the power and delivery of your standard boilerplatepresentations, delivering them in half the time you request •More accuratelyassessandscopethelikelihoodofeachopportunity’sprobabilitytocloseearlierinyourcourtingprocess• Increase thesizeofopportunitieswhileweedingoutthosejustkickingthetires•Compressyourclosingcyclesbyupto25percent•Reduceyourcostofsalesbyupto25percent•Energizeyour field forcewithtools they’ll actually use because theywork• Foster empowerment, cohesion,andclarityofpurposewithinyourorganization. That’swhatthismaterialcoulddoforyou,yourpeople,andyourbusiness!Atallorder?Youwillbethejudgeofthat.ButbasedonthecompaniesthathavebeenusingkeyAccelerantsintheirbusinessforseveralyears,someofwhichyou’llreadaboutshortly,youwillsoonseewhythesetoolscouldalsodeliverforyou. ThetwelveConstraintsandthetwelveAccelerantsarelistedontwochartsforyourreviewonpages6and7,soyoucangainanimmediatehigh-leveloverviewofwhat they are.Thiswill help you see quicklywhy thematerial is relevant,

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timely,andwhyitcandirectlyimpactyourcompany’srevenueperformanceandsuccessgoingforward.

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INTRODUCTION

TWENTYYEARSOFSCULPTING

THIS BOOK IS ABOUT IMPROVING YOUR ORGANIZATION’S TOP-LINErevenueperformanceandbottom-lineprofitbysignificantlyshorteningthesalesandclosingcycle(s)ofyourbusiness.TheAccelerantscanmakeyouandyourpeople much more efficient and effective at targeting future businessopportunities and shaping value propositions (at an enterprisewide or businessunitlevel)thatwillresonateandcauseurgencytoactwiththedecisionmakersyou want or need more access to. You can also gain access faster and moreefficiently, with a presentation that will delight, essentially compressing your“time-to-a-deal.” Thisisnewmaterial,proveneffectiveduringthelasteightyearswithseveralthousand professionals who have used it and experienced measurableproductivity gains. The material has helped organizations increase their salesfrom both existing clients and prospects and even retrieve deals that weresupposedly lost—drivinggreatermarketpenetrationandgivingcompanies realcompetitiveadvantageinthemarketplace. These twelve field-tested tools and best practices are called Accelerantsbecausetheycanacceleratesalesofmoreofyourproducts,services,solutions,orconceptsinlesstime,withlessexpenseandeffort.EachAccelerantprincipleis,ineffect,askillsetandamind-set—aplug-and-playsolutionrepresentinganew, smarter,more aggressive, yet commonsense style of thinking about howandwhythisapproachcanhelptakeyourcompanytonewheights.All twelveAccelerants offer companies either individual point solutions that can addressspecific areas of pain, and/or serve as a cohesive business developmentframework, improving the front end of your business hunting and gatheringprocess. Board members, CEOs and presidents, all levels of senior management,business owners aswell asmidlevelmanagement, strategic growth and client-facingaccountmanagers,field-levelmarketing,salesandbusinessdevelopmentprofessionalswillfindrealvalueinthismaterial. Youmayfindithardtobelievethatthere’sanythingnewtosayorlearnabout

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the sales process. But the truth is that the sales, business development, andmarketingmethodsofthepasttwentyyearssimplyhavenotkeptpacewiththeeven greater complexities of doing business in a global economy. It’s notbecauseyourcurrentprocessdoesn’twork.It’sthatallthemovingpartsontheother sideofyourprocess,which are constantly inmotion and ever changing,have gradually been eroding the effectiveness of your existing process. Theseincludelittlethingslike:

• PROCUREMENT and PURCHASING procedures inside midsized andlargecompanies thatareradicallychanging thewayyourclientsandprospectslearnaboutyourofferings.Thischangesthewayyoumustapproachandselltothesecompanies.

• The massive consolidation of DECISION-MAKING POWER andAUTHORITY into fewer people’s hands, removing much of the decision-makingautonomyfromtheindividualsyoutypicallyworkwithand/orcourtonaday-to-daybasis.

•TheINCREASEDLEVELOFCOMPETITIONinyourspecificindustry,which is puttingmorepressureonyou to reduceyourprices, addmorevalue,anddeliverevenbettercustomerservice.

•ThelackofwhatIcallaCOURTEOUSattentionspanonthepartofsomeowners andmany senior executives in large companies, who appear wired inmeetingsandunabletofocus. How do I know this? I have been a self-employed business owner andentrepreneur for twenty years, starting, growing, and eventually selling myownership in twobusinesses, thenbeginningAccelerant International. Ihaveasuccessful track record in targeting,getting in tomeetwith,presenting to,andclosing the senior executive management of Fortune 1000 organizations andmidsizedentitiesintheUnitedStates,Canada,andabroad.Someofourclientsinclude ADP, Microsoft’s Certified Solution Providers, Research In Motion(makeroftheBlackBerry),NCR,NECTechnologies,Ceridian,MitelNetworks,Logica/CMG,CapGeminiErnst&Young,PLATOLearning,Administaff,andothersinthefinancialandprofessionalservicesanddifferentindustrysectors. Thesalesprocessisnotrocketscience,sowhat’sthebigdeal?youmayask.Whyventureoutandconsidersomethingdifferent,better,ormoreeffective?Isitbecause your current process isn’t working?Maybe. Is it because you’re justtiredofyourprocessandwantsomethingnew?Probablynot.SowhyconsiderimplementingcertainAccelerantsthatcouldassistyourcurrentprocess,orevenreplaceyourentireprocesswith theAccelerantProcess forBusiness?Because

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these concepts can elevate your game and give you that unfair competitiveadvantage. The Accelerant Process for Business helps the parent organization andrespective business units align, refine, tighten, and metric their existingmessages and value propositions to specific opportunities, targeted industryverticals, and audiences they serve. This process also assists the sales,marketing, business development, and strategic-planning organizations inbecomingmoreproactive, efficient, and effective indrivingmore revenue andimproving the margin on the business realized. Over time, the AccelerantProcess could become as financially beneficial to your firm in the area ofbecoming more proficient and effective in growing your business as the SixSigma process has, and continues to be for companies, in terms of helpingimproveseveralquality-relatedinitiativesandprocesses. Today, there are twelve common constraints that can and often do have aserious negative impact on most businesses. Some constraints are marketingrelated,somesalesrelated.Othershavetodowiththemarketplaceandindustryperceptionsclientsandprospectsholdofyour industry, theproviders in it,andtheir views on your core offerings. Likewise, other constraints emanate fromyour own people’s views and perceptions of the industry in which they dobusiness, andof theofferings they represent toclientsandprospects.The firstsection of this book describes these constraints in detail, explaining how andwhy they apply consistent downward pressure on your company,making youless efficient, effective, and profitable. These constraints can and do slow thegrowthofyourbusiness.Noteverybusiness facesall twelve,butmost faceatleast four or five, and many face several. Typically, these constraints impacteveryonein theorganization, fromthehighest levelsofseniormanagement, tothe marketing and customer service department, to the people in the fieldcharged with bringing in and keeping business. After reading about theconstraints, youwill have amuchbetter idea of those that are getting in yourway. Then IwillpresenteachAccelerantprinciple in theorder inwhich theyaredesigned to be used, providing the highest benefit for the user. Putting theAccelerant principles to work for you can help eliminate or overcome theseconstraintsbyblasting through themordissolving them.Youwill learnwhat’sbehindeachone,itsspecificvaluetoyourbusiness,andhowyoucanusethemtogarnermoresuccess. Off-rampsthroughoutthematerialwillleadyoutoadditionalinformationon

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certainAccelerantswheretrainingandback-endconsultingwillhelptailorthemtoyourspecificapplications,takingyourbusinesstothatnextlevelofsustainedsuccess. HereisanoverviewofthetwelveconstraintsandthetwelveAccelerants:THECONSTRAINTCONTINUUM

THETWELVEACCELERANT™PRINCIPLES

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Using theAccelerants Process you and your business developers can get infaster to the right people and conductmore powerfulmeetings and calls onceyouarein.Themeetingscanalsotakelesstimethanusual,tothedelightofthepeopleyouaremeetingwith—andproduceabetterresult. Nobodycanhideanymore.Growthsystemsneedtobeassessedinthismorecomplex business environment in which all of us are playing to win. Yoursystems need to be assessed for whether they are capable of giving yourcompany the tool sets to help you drive to new heights. You need tools andprinciples thatwill endure for thenext twentyyears.Accelerants canbe those

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tools. Your existing business hunting and gathering process may not need anoverhaul. Or you may feel that just a few components are broken or needadjustingandthatpluggingafewAccelerants intoyourexistingprocessmightdothetrick.Orafterseeinghowtheseprinciplescomplementoneanother,youmaydecidetheentireAccelerantProcess(customizedtoyourbusiness)mightbethealternativeyou’vebeenseeking.Usewhatyouneedanddiscardtherest.Yougettobethejudgeanddecide. At the core of each Accelerant is a philosophy designed to garner a morerespectful, courteous, productive, and efficient interaction between yourcompanyandallthosewithwhomyouchoosetoengage—sothatallpartiestreateachotherwithadeeperlevelofgraceandregardasbusinessistransacted.

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HOWTHEACCELERANTSANDTHEACCELERANTPROCESSFORBUSINESSCAMEINTOBEING:TWENTY

YEARSOFSCULPTING

Iamanentrepreneur.ApartnerandIspentsevenyears(1986-1992)buildingourfirst business—a North American distributorship for predictive dialing/callprocessingsolutions.Wesold thesecomplexsystems (hardware, software, andback-end support services) toFortune1000corporations in thebanking, creditcard services, collections, andoutbound telemarketing industries. Someof ourcompetitorswere sophisticatedandwell-fundedgiants like IBM-Rolm,AT&T,and Rockwell—great news for a couple of guys in their twenties with not awholelotofexperience. Becauseweweresellingtolarge,mostlypubliclyheldcorporationsthatwereinnohurrywhatsoevertobuyandimplementoursmashinglyfabulous,leading-edgetechnology,wehadlongsellingcycles.Twelvetoeighteenmonthsseemedtobethenorm,andsometimesittooktwoyears.Becausewestartedthebusinesswithasmall loan, itwashardly“cush-city.”Wewerenervousaboutwherethenext deal would come from andwhen. And because this was our first run atbeingentrepreneurs,itwasabitlike“theblindleadingtheblind.”Theaveragepurchasepriceforourofferingswasabout$79,000perfive-stationsystem,withsome clients purchasing ten, twenty, and in a few cases, one hundred-plusstations.Wehadbigdreams,ashortrope,andweneededtoeat.Iwastheonechargedwith“gettinginthedoorfast”withtheselargecorporationstosomeonewho,wehoped,hadtheauthoritytomakethedecision. Toshortenourclosingcycleswetried toget intoanorganizationashighaspossiblefortheinitialmeeting.Iwasfocusedonpresentingourwarestoseniorexecutives, not themid-and lower-levelmanagerswhowould say nice things,recommendanothermeeting,andgladlyacceptourtypicalfollow-upintheformofanexpensivemeal.Wedidn’thavethefundingtowaitaroundforever,attendanothermeetingor two,or twelve,beforedetermining ifwehada liveoneornot.Becausewedidn’thavethestayingpowerofourcompetitors,Ihadtofigureout how to close business opportunities smarter and faster than they did.Thismeant creating access at a relatively high level (not necessarily in the ITdepartment), sometimes to multiple senior executives all at once, as fast ashumanlypossible,sowecouldtellourstoryandassessthelandscape.Then,if

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there was real interest, we could drive things from the top down, versus theclassicbottomup. TheresultwasamethodologyIdevelopedthroughyearsofexperimentationanduse,nowcalledtheCircleofLeverageSystemorCOL—aprocessthatnowpossessesseveralU.S.trademarksandisoneofthereasonsforoursuccess.TheCOL System resulted in signed contracts with Fingerhut, HouseholdInternational,Citigroup in theUnitedStates andEurope,PaycoAmerican (thelargest third-party collection agency in the nation at that time), I.C. System,HarrisBank,Time-Life,andmanyothercorporationsofthissizeandscope—tothesurpriseandirritationofourhugecompetitors. TheCOLSystem (see the fifthAccelerant)was very effective at increasingour hit rate for first meetings at a high level within large and midsizedorganizationsthathadnourgencytobuy,werenotevenlookingforasolution,andcouldbemostdifficulttogainentryinto,letaloneatthehighestlevels. Securing one or two senior-level executives in these “firstmeetings” insidelarge corporationswas a pleasing and frequent result of theCOLSystem.Butthistypeofaudienceinfirstmeetingsandinsubsequentmeetingsforcedusintoa very different kind of conversation—and a different kind of presentation.These high-level executives had far less time on their hands,were sometimeslesscordial,andhadmorepressuretodealwith.Theyweren’tatallinterestedinthechat,havingarobustconversation,orhavingtheconsultativeapproachusedonthem.Manydidn’tseemtocareforourartfullycoifedquestions,designedtoget them to open up about the business challenges and pains they needed toaddress.Thesewerebrilliantquestionslike,“TellmeSteve...whatkeepsyouupatnight?”Thisapproachactually seemed tobother them,even though thiswashowIwastrainedasasalesperson.Thiswassupposedtobetheappropriateway to approach all potential business opportunities. In fact, many sales andmanagementtrainingcompaniesthroughoutthecountrystillteachthisapproachtoday. Theseexecutives,however,wanted(andexpected)metogettothepoint—thefinancialpoint,theteeth,astheywouldbark—asquicklyaspossible.Withinthefirstfewminutesofthemeeting,aswewereabouttofireupthethirty-plusslidedeckofourbeautifulandwell-thought-outPowerPointpresentationtotellthemwhowewere,whatwedid,whowe’vehelped(whichwasbasicallynobodyintheearlyyears),theywouldbarkoutthingslike: “You know what, Michael, before we begin here, how can you help us? I

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mean,attheendoftheday,what’sthe‘net-net’here?Giveussomemeat.GiveussomeTEETH.Howcanyoupeoplereallyhelpus?” Iwasn’tprepared.Iwasfastonmyfeet,buttobefrank,Ididn’tknowhowtoanswer to theirsatisfactionorwithany levelofspecificityorclarity. I thoughtmyjobwastolearnwheretheirbusinesschallengesandpainswerecomingfromby asking the right consultative questions, but this approach caused many ofthesemeetingstohitabrickwall.TheycametoanendfasterthanIcouldblink,withoutunderstandingwhathadjusthappened.Afterallthatgreatworktogetinsohighwiththesecompanies,welosttheopportunitybecausewedidn’tdeliverourmessagethewaytheexecutiveswantedtohearit. This level of pain and failure causedme to eventually figure out, and thencreate,anotherprocess...anothertoolset.Idevelopedamethodologytogrinddown themessages and value propositions (which providers usually think arefine and totally clear already). I also figured out how to articulate in the firstcoupleminutesofanymeeting,conferencecall,orweb-xdemo—the financialTEETH—the“net-net,”asthesehigh-leveltypeslikedtosay—thatourofferingscould deliver.This change in our approach has become the fourthAccelerant,METRIc THEMESSAGE,which youwill learn about shortly. I began usingboth these methodologies in our businesses with great results. But there waseven more these high-level executives and owners expected in the earlymeetingstohelpthemseparatethewheatfromthechaff.Theywerenotwillingto sit through, or even look at, our gorgeous PowerPoint presentation. TheyexpectedmetosharetheTEETHofoursolution—lowside,highside—inthesefirstmeetingsandtocompressmyentirepitchbyatleasthalf.Theywanted“themeat,”astheywouldcallit,rightaway,literallywithinthefirstfiveminutesofthemeetingorcall—notthetypicalway,buriedsomewheretowardtheend. I eventually learned they’d use this information to determine if they wereimpressedenoughtostayinthemeeting.Ifnot,thekeypersonorpeopleintheroomwouldbasicallyleave,sayingsomethinglike: “Michael,I’mgladyou’vecometoustodaywithyoursolution.Clearly,therecouldbe someapplicationhere forourorganization,and I’ll leave that to thecapablepeoplewhoareinthisroomwithyounow.Ihavetheutmosttrustandconfidence in them, and therefore, I will leave it to them to tell me how weshouldproceedfromhere,andwhetheritwouldbeprudentatthistimetoreallydiginandtakeahardlookatwhatyouhavebydoingsometypeofRFP(requestfor proposal). I apologize, but I need to step out and attend to some othermatters.Butplease,keepgoingwithyourpresentation,andwewillbeintouch,

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OK?” They said this in the softest,most persuasive of tones, likewarmbutter onlobster,withthatpuppy-doglookofuttergenuinenessontheirfaces.Iofcourse,thought, “Great.We have his or her buy-in so far, so let’s keep going.”Howstupid I was—becausewhat I eventually came to learnwas, themeetingwasover.Notjust,maybewehadachancedowntheroad—themeetingwasdone.Ihad lost my window with the top person or people who were the primarydecisionmaker(s)inlargecorporations,wherenobodymakesanybigdecisionswithoutseveralkeypeoplesigningoff. Iwas angry, irritated, and determined to overcome this recurring frustrationwithlargeandmidsizedcorporations.Eventually,Ilearnedthatownersofsmallbusinessesprocess informationandwant itdelivered to themin thesameway.Theywantthebottomline,andtheywantitupfront.Idramaticallymodifiedourpresentation style to do exactly that, developing another process—now a bestpracticecalledthe1/3rd...2/3rdsCondensedPresentationFormat,andpartofthesixthAccelerant,DELIVERTHEULTIMATEPRESENTATION. Soover the courseof several yearsof experimentation anddevelopmentonlargeandmidsizedorganizations,Ihadbecomehighlyproficientat:

1.Getting in as high as possible, as fast as possible, to one ormore realdecisionmakers.

2. Articulating a crisper, more financially oriented value proposition tosenior-levelpeople.

3. Presenting in a greatly compressed time span, where “the meat” waspresented right away and the entire presentationwas finished in one-third thetimeIhadrequested,tothesurpriseanddelightofthoseinthemeetings.These three methodologies were a radical departure from the way our largecompetitorswere selling.Those companies had billions in revenues, plenty ofcash,andexpenseaccountsdedicatedtoallowingtheirsalespeopletobuildthatrelationship by using the classically accepted consultative approach to selling.Meaningtheyhadthetimeandtheluxuryofabigcompanyimagebehindthem,toask thekindsofquestionssuchas“Whatkeepsyouupatnight?”or“Whatareasofyourbusinessareyouexperiencingthegreatestchallengeswith?”,etc.Don’t getmewrong. The consultative approachworks. I use it too, and it iscertainlyoneeffectivewayofgoingaboutsellingwhateveritisyouhavetosell.However,itisonlyoneway.

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The large companieswewere competing against had staying power—whilewedidnot.Ineededtoknowasfastashumanlypossiblefromeverycompanywemetwith:Areyouguysreallyinterestedornot?Andifso,whoshouldbeinmeetingstwoandthreesothatwecanmovetheballforward? Irefinedthesethreemethodologiesduringtheearlyyearsthroughconsistentuseondifferent-sizecompanies,tailoringthemaroundavarietyofscenariosandapplicationsweencountered.Theyworkedwithclientsweweretryingtogrowaswellaswithprospects,newverticalindustrysectors,andopportunitieswehadrecentlylosttoacompetitor.Infact,you’llreadaboutascenariowithHouseholdInternational where that was the case. These tools were also helpful whencompanies we had been meeting with suddenly stopped returning our phonecalls.Asanentrepreneur,thiswoulddrivemenuts,soItailoredwaystousetheprinciplesinthesesituationsaswell.Iwasconstantlytweakingthemtohelpusinthemyriadsituationsoneencountersinalifeofsalesandinfluencingothers.Becomingoneoftheindustry’smajorplayerswasproofformethatthesebattle-tested methodologies were producing good results—we had the revenues toproveit. Iused these tools to launchasecondcompanywithmypartnerandanotherfriend.Verifications,Inc., isaproviderofbackgroundcredentialverificationtothe human resource departments of Fortune 1000 corporations. Iwas about tosee if these tools worked in another industry where I had no experience, nocredentials,notrackrecord,noreferralsorwaystogetinthedoor—justasIhadentered the technology industry. I am pleased that Verifications, Inc., remainsoneofthepreeminentprovidersoftheseservicesthroughouttheMidwest. Feelingconfidentontheheelsoftwosuccessesandarmedwiththreestrategicweapons thatprovedeffectiveover severalyearsofuseon largeandmidsizedorganizations,fastforwardtotheperiod1992through1994,whenItookaflyer.Sellingmyownershipinthefirsttwocompanies,Iturnedtothemusicindustrywith the intent of getting a recording contract as a singerwith amajor recordlabel—adreamsincemyteenageyears. Thingsgotinterestingwhen,afterspendingseveralhundredthousanddollarsin the recording studio, my three field-tested methodologies landed meconferencecallsandin-personmeetingswithCEOsandSVPsofA&R(thetoppersoninchargeoftalentacquisition)ofthelargestrecordlabels,manyofwhomweremultibillion-dollarmusicandentertainmentconglomerates. None of the executives felt the music I had recorded was worthy of a

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recordingcontract,yettheywerepepperingmewithquestionsabouthowIwasgetting meetings and conference calls with such high-level people in thebusinesswithoutanyreferrals,credentials,orexperienceintheindustryIwantedtobecomeapartof. These music executives would interrupt my pitch within minutes withquestionslike: “Michael, hold on for a minute. Is it correct that you’ve also had somemeetingorcallaweekortwoagowithmypeeroveratRCA?Andyou’vealsospokenwiththeSVPofAandRatAristaRecords?Isthiscorrect?” AssoonasI’dacknowledgethatitwastrue,they’djumpinwith: “Son,howareyoudoingthis?Itappearsyouareusingsometypeofpatternonallofus,aren’tyou?” “Yes,sir,Iam,”Iwouldsay. “Andwhatisit thatyouaredoing?Doyouknowwhatyouaredoingtogetthesemeetingswithpeople likeme? Imean, do you knowwhat it is that I dohere? I run this label basically. How is it that you are able to get us to payattentiontoyou,withoutanyexperienceinthisbusiness?Don’tyouthinkit’sjustatadunusualforyoutobetalkingwiththoseofuswhorunthesemultibillion-dollarorganizations?Ithinkit’samazing.Iamnotinterestedinyourmusic,tobeveryfrank.ButwhatImightbeinterestedinlearningmoreaboutishowyoumighthelpoursalesorganizationdowhateveritisyouaredoingonthepeoplethatwewanttoapproach.” ThiswasnotwhatIwantedtohear,butthissameresponsefromseveralbiglabelsledtosomethingelse.Mymusiccareerhadofficiallycomeandgone,butI now had the impetus for Accelerant, and the creation and build-out ofadditionalAccelerantprinciples intoonecohesiveandpowerfulframeworkforthefrontendofacompany’sbusinessdevelopmentefforts.

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WHYTHEACCELERANTSANDTHEACCELERANTPROCESSFORBUSINESSWILLBECOMEYOURNEWBESTFRIENDS

Whatyouwilllearnhasbeenbattletestedinthefieldbymeandbythousandsofothers.Youmust takeaclose lookat theprocessyouareusing to target,hunt,qualify,andclosebusiness.Identifythoseareasthatcouldbelackingandweak,sotheycanbeimprovedandenhanced.Youwantyourbusinesstoremainstrongandevenprosperinthewakeofconstantmarketturbulence,whichisbecomingthe norm. The Accelerants and the Accelerant Process for Business can doexactlythat.Thisisasetofrepeatablefield-provenprinciplesandaprocessthatcandeliveramazingresults,whileallowingyoutoflextheprocesssoitcanbetailoredtonumerousselling,marketing,andgrowth-orientedsituations. Inrecentyears,largeandmidsizedcompanieshavenotinvestedmuchintheirpeople in terms of sales, business development, and management training. Infact,seniormanagementhasoftenignoredthisareabecauseit’saneasytargettojustify cutting. The result has been companies that have become rusty,complacent, and out of touch with how inefficient their standard sales andmarketingapproacheshavebecome. Many sales processes don’t work anymore—period. But companies don’tknowexactlywhat’snotworking,orwhy,orwhatneedsfixing.What’sworse,many companies are in denial that their processes are broken and will notsupportwhat they need to do going forward.TheAccelerants can address theimpedimentstogrowthgoingonwithinthousandsofcompanies,betweenbuyersandsellers,andthemarketplaceforces,whichareconstantlychanging. Takeheartintheadviceandfeedbackscoresofclientshaveprovidedtohelpme create a set ofAccelerants that can serve as your new cohesive front-endbusinessframeworkfor targeting,hunting,andgatheringmorebusinessfor thenexttwentyyears.Beingastudentofthismaterial,asIhavebeenasitscreator,Iknowyouwilllearnhowthetoolsworkandhowtheycanservethehighestandbestusewithinyourorganizationforalongtimetocome.

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SectionOne:TheConstraintsTHEIMPEDIMENTSLIMITINGTHESPEEDATWHICHYOUCAN

GROWYOURBUSINESS

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FIRSTCONSTRAINT

THECLIENTORPROSPECT’SGENERALPERCEPTIONSOF

YOURINDUSTRYTHEFIRSTCONSTRAINT IS A SUBTLEONE. CLIENTS ANDPROSPECTSwill rarely talk about it because it telegraphs their negotiating strategy and,understandably, they don’t want to lose any leverage when it comes time tonegotiateforthebestprice,service,andsupport. Thewayaclientorprospectperceivescompaniesinyoursectorcantellyouagreat deal aboutwhat theywill expect fromyour company andhow theywillbehaveasanorganizationduringthecourtingprocess,uptothepointofasignedagreementandbeyond.Theirperspectivealsoinfluenceshowtheywilltreatyouasavendor/providerduringyourbusinessrelationship.Notknowinghowtheyperceivecompaniesinyourgeneralindustrycanleaveyouwithablindfoldon,merely guessing as to how they will respond at every step of the courtingprocess. I was pursuing a services firm that provided a comprehensive suite ofofferingstolargeandmidsizedorganizationsacrossnumerousindustryverticals.The firm, a division of a multibillion-dollar conglomerate, was taking a hardlookatourcompanyandafewothers.Theywantedtohelpseveralhundredseniorproducersengageatahigherlevel,withatighter,financiallyorientedvaluepropositionandpresentationforuseinthefirstfewsenior-levelmeetings.Theirgoalwastodrivemorecloseddealsinacompressedtimehorizon.Theopportunityrepresentedanicesliceofbusinessfor us, so we were diligent in courting their vice president of businessdevelopment. Hescheduledseveralconferencecallsandthenmissedthem,routinelydidnotreturn our calls, and dragged his decision out several months longer than heindicatedhe could.Heverbally awardedus thebusiness, askedus to send thecontractforreviewandsignature,butneverreturnedcallsoncehehadit.Allthewhile, he hid behind his executive assistant, who by thenwas beside herself,

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apologizingforhisbehavior.Totopitoff,heneversignedourdeal,neverwentwithanyoneelse,andnevertoldustherealreasonwhy.Itwasclearthroughhiscavalier attitude and unprofessional actions that he viewed us, our serviceofferings,andtheothershewasconsideringaspeonswhowerereadytojumpata moment’s notice when he said “Jump.” This sort of treatment is hardlyenjoyable; in fact, itcanmakeyoufeelcrankyanddownrightpowerlesswhenyou’reinthethrowsofitall. Whenpotential buyers perceive all providers in an industry as basically thesame, theycansometimesbehavethisway.Regardlessofyourcompany’ssizeandmarket dominance, you are not immune to this perception, and you can’tcontrolit.Potentialbuyerswilleitherhaveitortheywon’t. Perceptions are extremely powerful, not to mention hard to change. If theprospect’sviewattheoutsetis“Thetopfivecompaniesareallprettyclose—ifone company has certain traits, the others probably do too,” this would bebeneficial toknowas early aspossible inyour courtingprocess.For example,when a large firm is considering outsourcing its IT operations and wants toengage with some of the largest providers who offer these types of services,they’dprobablycontactIBM,EDS,CSC,Keane,Accenture,andotheroffshorefirms suchasWipro,Tata,etc.Often, senior executives are theoneswhowillmakethedecision,andsometimeswillviewtheofferingsofalltheseprovidersas vanilla—each company essentially interchangeable with all of theircompetitors. This is what can foster the attitude of indifference or arrogance.Next, they schedule (through procurement) a bakeoff among the top vendors,because they feel it is so difficult to decipher any real difference among theavailableoptions. The prospect or client’s specific perceptions can be a constraint that willimpedethepaceatwhichyoubringinbusiness,andatwhatmargin.Theylinktwocrucialelements:theircurrentperceptionsofyourindustryandtheprovidersinit,andthebehaviortheythinktheycangetbywithwhennegotiatingthedeal.If competition is quite fierce among the top vendor/providers in a market,educated organizations may take advantage of the situation. If they believe aparticular industry or product is not that complex, or that they can source theproductorservicewithoutmuchextrahassle—becareful,becausetheymaytry. Oneofmypeersownsasuccessfulwomen’shandbagmanufacturer.Oneoftheir largest customers is the second largest retailer in their segment in thenation.Itisamazingtomethathecontinuestoworkwiththatlevelofpressurefrom this retailer’s central purchasing and procurement department. They told

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himhecouldhavethebusinessforanother“x”years—butmorethanlikely,afterthat period, hewould have to bid against thembecause theywould become acompetitor. In point of fact, he had been such a good business partner byteachingthemtheinsandoutsofhisbusiness,theretailerdecidedtoenterthatindustrythemselvesbyprivatelabelingtheirownwomen’shandbags.Ineffect,everythinghehaddone tofoster therelationshipover theyearswouldbeusedagainst him.My guess is that,within a period of time, hewill either lose thebusiness or decide it is no longer worth the time and angst. You can see asituationlikethiscoming,andoneofthekeyreasonsistheclient’sgeneralviewofyourindustry. In my friend’s case, by being so helpful to his client, he has inadvertentlyhelpedtheretailerlearnsomuchabouthisbusinessthatitvalidatedtheretailer’sperceptionsofhisindustry,andprovedtheirtheorythattheydidn’tneedhim.Intheend,hemaylosehislargestclientbybeingsohelpfulandcooperativeasavendor-supplier. So much for their comments regarding wanting a long-term, strategicrelationshipwiththeirvendors.TheremaybenoloveinMuddsvilleiftheyfeelthey can get into your business that easily. Understandably, because of theuncertainty that can exist over the course of a relationship,most buyerswantmaximumlong-termleverageandcontrolovertheduration,nature,andqualityof their relationshipswith vendor-providers. Their knowledge and deep-seatedbeliefs and perceptions about your industry can cause serious hiccups to yourcashflow.Andthiswillimpedeyourgrowth. Your efforts toovercome theirperceptionswith added focuson finding thatcompetitive advantage or most compelling key differentiators become all themorecritical.TheexampleIchuckleaboutiswhenorganizationsimploretheirsales,marketing, and business development executives to focus on “the valueadd”theybringtotheparty.However,theorganizationsyoudealwithcanandsometimesdoseerightthroughthisdogandponyshow.Inmyexperience,whentheyhavegivenvendor-providersthebenefitofthedoubtandallowedthemtosubstantiatetheirclaimsofvalueadd,manyhaven’tbeenabletodosowithanylevel of believability. And this reinforces the prospect’s initial perceptions,whicharenowonthewaytobecomingcement. There’s an amazing dynamic that takes place when one company beginscourtinganother—especiallywhenthecompanydoingthecourtingisoneofthetop players in their particular industry. The level of trust shown toward theproviderwill vary according to the levelof executive in theprospector client

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organizationbeingcourted. IhavedevelopedavaluabletoolcalledtheTrustContinuumthathelpspredicthow your clients and prospects will perceive your industry, as well as yourofferings.Youcanthenanticipatehowtheymaybehave.TheTrustContinuumdescribes how different individuals may respond and feel about the top-tiercompanies in aparticular industry that are courting their business. Itwill helpyoubetterunderstandfromtheirvantagepointhowpotentialbuyersarelikelytoperceive and react to vendors as a function of the specific levels of power,authority,andtitlestheyholdwithintheirownfirm. The big secret is this: The most significant influences impacting how theymay behave with providers are the title and level of power and authority theprospector clientholdswithin their firm.Generally speaking, themorepowerand authority a person has, the less favorably they perceive the top playerscourtingtheirbusiness.Howdoesthishelpyou?Foronething,itcansaveyourcompany time, hassle, and above all valuable resources.This information alsohelps you and your people be smarter about tailoring your approach to thecompaniesyouwanttotarget. YearsagowhenIbeganmysalescareer,ourclientsoftenusedtheexpression“Nobody ever got fired for goingwith IBM.” I used to think about that a lot,feelingitwasprobablytruetoalargeextent,eventhoughitwouldbeimpossibleto prove.But it just seemed true, because IBMwas, and still is, so large andpowerful.Therealpremisebehindthatstatementisthatrarelydoesanyoneeverget fired for selecting a top provider. As a result, companies throughout theworldstrivetoownatopspotinthemindsofclientsandprospectsbybecomingoneofthepremierthreetofiveleadingprovidersintheirparticularindustry. I’ve discovered that people inmiddle and lower levels ofmanagement andbelow frequently tend to place more reverence, trust, respect, and overallcomfort in the top three to five providers in any particular industry. Why?Because,truthbetold,selectinga“topprovider”actsasasafetynetorsecurityblanket in holding on to their jobs. It helps justify their decisions. However,beginningwithvicepresidentsandabove,thereversebeginstobetrue.Inmanycases,thehigherthetitle,levelofpower,andauthoritytospendmoney,thelesstrustandreverencetheyhaveforthetopproviders. Why is this? It is because top executiveson thebuying sideunderstand theconceptsbehindrawleverageandhowtouseit.It’snotasecrettothem.Theyarehiptohowlargeproviderswillusetheirmuscleandmarket-leadingleverage

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togentlypersuadebuyers,drivingthesize,scope,anddurationofthedeals.Andtheyknowwhowithin theirownorganizationaremostpersuadedby the largeproviders. Higher-level execs know all too well that engaging with one of the topproviders is sometimes like dancing with the devil. Once you enter into therelationship,itcanbedifficulttounwindbecauseofthesheersizeandpowerofthe provider. As a result, senior execs believe that one of the attributes of asuccessfulvendor/clientrelationshipismaintainingsomeelementofcontrolandleverageovertheprovider.Maintainingsomelevelofcommandandcontroloveratopproviderinanyindustryniche—especiallycompaniesthesizeandscopeofan IBM—can be tricky. In the event that something goes wrong in therelationship, senior executives know how challenging it can be to get thevendor’sattentiontorectifytheproblem.Theybelievethat,attheendoftheday,“It’sallaboutleverage.Theyeitherneedusortheydon’t.”Andinbusinessit’sgoodtobeneeded,becauseifyou’renot,goodluckgettinganybody’sattention. This ingrainedbeliefplays itselfout inhow theywill shopyou for thebestdealandnegotiatewithyou—all tomakesure theydotheirbest toensure,viathetermsandconditionsofthecontract,thattheywillbetakencareof.Andifnot, there are clear remedies they can take to put sufficient leverage on theprovider to get things resolved.At the endof the day, it’s all about trust.TheTrust Continuum depicts this dynamic to help you shape your strategy forapproachingpeopleinprospectandclientorganizations. In addition to using the Trust Continuum, I have developed the followingquestions that allow you to go to the source to better understand this firstconstraint. You can learn your clients’ and prospects’ perceptions of yourindustrybydrawingthemintoadialoguewithsomecarefullywordedquestionssuchasthese:Q1.What are your perceptions of the companies that offer products, services,andsolutionsinthisindustry?Q2.Couldyourcurrentperceptionofprovidersinthissectorchange?Ifso,whatwouldthesecompaniesneedtodotochangeit?Q3. Is there anything that irritates you that companies in this industry do?

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Anythingtheywouldneedtochangeforyourperceptiontochange?Q4.Whatelementswithinyourcurrentprovider’sbusinessdevelopment, sales,orbusiness-gatheringprocessshouldimprove?Howshouldtheybeimproved?Q5.Howmanyothercompaniesareyouawareofthatcouldsupplyasimilarsetof products, services, or solutions at a price comparable to your currentprovider?Pleaseprovidethenamesoftheseorganizations.

THETRUSTCONTINUUM

Thehigherthetitle,thelessreverence,trust,andregard

executivescanhavewhendealingwithanindustryleader,resultinginmoreemphasisonthetermsandconditions

ofthecontract.

Titlesbelowthevice-presidentlevelfrequentlyplacemorereverence,trust,andregardincourting

vendor-providerswhoareindustryleaders.Theyfeelitcanhelpthemmakesaferdecisions,helpjustifytheir

decisions,andholdontotheirjobs.Q6. Are there any significant benefits your current vendor provides that youbelieveyoucouldnotattainfromanother?Ifso,whatarethosebenefits?Remember, the answers to these questions can differ based on the title of thepersongiving theiropinions.Therefore,youmightwant toask thesequestionsnumeroustimesofvariouslevelsofpeoplewithintheorganizationtohelpgainadeeper perspective of how levels of executives up and down the targetorganizationsviewyourindustry.

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Hereisasecondversionofthesequestions,whichyoushouldaskthepeoplein your own organization. Their answerswill help provide a valuable path ofinformation specific to internal impediments to getting more business. PosetheseConstraintAssessment questions to your employees, agents, distributors,andindependentcontractors:Q1. How do you feel clients and prospects view our company and otherprovidersinourgeneralindustry?Pleasebespecific.Q2. Why do you feel they view our organization and perhaps others in ourindustryinthisway?Q3.Istheperceptionyouhavedescribedchangeable?Ifnot,why?Q4. If youwere running our company,what elements and/or processeswouldyouchangethatmightpositivelyenhancethewayclientsandprospectsviewourcompany?Q5.Whichelements,situations,oreventsarenegatively impactinghowclientsandprospectsviewourcompany?Q6.Whichaspectsaboutourcompanyareyoufairlycertainexistingclientsandprospectsdon’tlike?Q7.Whatwouldneedtohappenfortheseperceptionstochange?If you ask these questions in the right environment and remain open to thefeedback,thisexercisecanhelppaintapictureastowhetherthisfirstconstraintisanimpedimenttothegrowthofyourbusiness.Thesequestionsarepartofalargerassessmenttoolthatyoucanfindatwww.accelerantinternational.com.

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SECONDCONSTRAINT

THECLIENTORPROSPECT’SPERCEPTIONOFYOURCOREOFFERINGS—ORTHEIRCURRENTPROVIDER’SSOLUTIONTHINKABOUTIT,IFYOUAREALREADYINARELATIONSHIPWITHTHEclient, they have seen you naked. They have negotiatedwith you before (andperhaps simultaneously with your key competitors—to keep you in check, ofcourse). They have met with you several times and now have some level ofexperience with your people and the products, services, or solutions they arecurrently buying. They know whether you’ve performed against initialperceptionsandexpectations—boththeirsandtheircorporation’s. Theyhaveexperiencedyouandyourcompanyatyourbestandperhapsevenat yourworst. They have noticed if you arrive atmeetings less prepared thanbeforeyourrelationshipwasinplace,andtheyhaveexperiencedyourproductsorservicesinaliveenvironment.Theymayhavebeendelightedtodiscoverthatwhattheyarepurchasinghasperformedabovetheirlevelofexpectation.Inanycase,theyhaveanevendeepersetoffirsthandevidencetoreinforceorrevamptheirinitialperceptions. This constraint emerges at the front end of your new business-gatheringprocess. Now that the customer has already purchased, implemented, andexperienced your products, services, and solutions, they have a basis—aplatform—onwhichtojudgethem.Ifinitialperformanceisnotatleastatparintheireyes,thisconstraintcanbecomeanobstacleincontractnegotiationsdowntheroad,becausetheywillhaveevenmoreleverage. Asacaseinpoint,lookatthepressuretheadvertisingindustryworldwidehasbeen under, as evidenced by megamergers and giant acquisitions by megaagenciessuchasOmnicom,WPP,Interpublic,PublicisGroupeWorldwide,andDentsu.Oneoftheprimarydriversfuelingthislevelofmergermaniais—guesswhat—the lack of satisfaction clients are feeling about the results they aregettingfor theirmoney.Thisisnot theansweryou’llgetfromtheagencies,ofcourse.Theirspinisthattheyaredoingthistoprovidebettereconomiesofscale

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fortheirclients,allowingtheirdollarstogoevenfurther.I’msurethereisalsosometruthinthat.Buttheindustryacknowledgesthatthemarketpressuresandthedynamicsofthebusinessmakeitharderandhardertodriveanddeliverthekindsofresponsestocampaignsthatclientsdemand. Everyonceinawhile,youcanreadintheWallStreetJournalaboutcertainlargecorporationsthathaveputtheiradvertisingbusiness“upforreview.”Thislingoisadspeakfor“Wearequestioningtheresultswe’vebeengettingtodateandaregoingtolookatotheroptionstomakesurewearegettingthebestresultspossibleforthedollarswe’reputtingout.” If the prospect is purchasing a competitive product, service, or solution buthas yet to engage with your company, their set of experiences with thecompetitive offering will most definitely affect your courting and negotiationprocess in some form or fashion. So will the perceptions they have alreadycreatedfromseeingyourcompetitionnaked. To assesswhether this second constraint is impeding your growth, here aresome pointed questions from the Constraints Assessment to ask clients,prospects,andyourownpeople. Askyourclientsandprospects:Q1.Inyouropinion,whatmakesourproducts,services,orsolutionsspecialorunique?Dotheyprovidespecificcompetitiveadvantages?Ifso,whatarethey?Q2.Howwouldchangingvendors/providersaffectyourbusiness?Would therebeanymeasurableimpact?Ifso,pleasedescribe.Iftherewouldbelittleornoimpact,pleaseexplainwhy.Q3. Do you recall what made your company choose our company as yourcurrent provider/supplier? If so, what were those key elements, factors, orcapabilities?Q4.Howwouldyourateourcompanyonascaleofonetoten,withonebeingpoor,fiveaverage,andtenexceptional?Herearekeyassessmentquestionsyoucanaskyourpeople,independentagents,distributors, and other entities that assist you inmarketing your products andservices.Their feedbackwill helpdetermine if this second constraint couldbenegativelyimpactingyourgrowth.

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Q1. How do you think current clients and prospects view our core offerings,products, and services in relation to other potential providers? Please bespecific.Q2.Whydoyouthinktheyhavethisperception?Q3.Couldanythingaffectorchangethisperception?Ifso,whatwouldthatbe?Q4. What do you think has been the biggest roadblock to our businessdevelopment and acquisition process, related to how clients and prospectsperceiveourproducts,services,andcoreofferings?Q5.Cantheseelementsorimpedimentsbechanged?Ifso,how?

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THIRDCONSTRAINT

YOURTEAM’SPERCEPTIONOFYOURBUSINESS,

PRODUCTS,ANDSERVICESHAVEYOUEVERHEADONEOFYOURPEERSSMAKEADEROGATORYCOMMENT about your company’s products or services?Maybe itwas just aminor“slam,”indicatingtheirdiscontentorlackofbeliefinthem.Icanassureyou, as onewho has dealtwith and trained thousands of seasoned, high-levelsales producers, client account managers, marketing executives, and seniormanagement,Ihearitagoodbit—atsalesmeetings,annualconventions,andinthehallsduringbreaks.Letmeposeaquestion:Whatpercentageofyoursales,businessdevelopmentandmarketing force, client-facingcustomer service, andaccount relationshipmanagersactuallybelieve in thevalue thatyourproducts,services,and/orsolutionsdeliverforyourclients? It’sahardquestiontoanswer,isn’tit?Wouldyousayit’s100percent?Ibetnot.Maybe95percent?Lessthan90percent?Thosewhoarenotfullyonboardwitharock-solidbeliefinthebenefitsofyourofferingshaveanegativeimpactonachievinggrowthandrevenuetargetsfor thecompany.Theymaybeactinglikea slow-growingcancerwithinyour firm,constrainingyourefforts and thecompany’srevenuetargets. I amnotoverdramatizing the situation. In fact, let’s just run thenumbers tosee what type of impact a fair-weather business developer can have on yourbusiness. Think of the producerswe call “fence-sitters”—individualswho canjustaseasilybashormakefunofyourcompany’sofferingsassaygoodthingsaboutthem.Thequestionreallyshouldbe“Howgooddoyouthinkthesepeopleare at acting?” They may believe they are faking out your clients, but morelikely,clientsarepickinguponyourpeople’srealbeliefsabouttheproductsandservicestheyrepresent. Let’sdoanexercisetoseewhattypeoffinancialimpactthislackofapositiveperception can potentially have on the organization. For the sake of thisexample,let’sassume10percentofyourbusinessdevelopersarenotconvinced

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about the value of the offerings they represent.And let’s say your nationwidesales force is ahundred individuals strong. In this case, that leaves tenpeoplewhoarenot100percentonboardandprobablynotpushingashardastheotherninetyproducers—tenfence-sitters. Let’s also assume that everyone has an annual sales quota of one milliondollars in closed business, and that it’s imperative the company achieve onehundredmillion in revenues—which, by the way, the CEO has committed toWallStreetbytellingtwohigh-profileanalystswhocoveryourcompany’sstockperformance.SoWallStreetandtheinvestmentcommunityarewatching. Ninety individuals nail their number, giving you ninetymillion in revenue.Butyouneedonehundredmillion,becausethat’swhatwascommittedtoWallStreet. So let’s look atwhat the fair-weather fence-sitters have produced—theones you heard make a couple of not-so-casual slams on your company’sofferings at the last sales conference. Not surprisingly, they each came in ataround50percentofquotaatbest,withalistofexcusesamilelongastowhytheymissedit:Thequotawasjusttoohigh;thepricingoftheproductorserviceis out of kilter with the rest of the market competitors; there was a hugesnowstorm on theEastCoast that shut down all the airports, preventing themfromgetting face to facewith thecustomer to ink thedeal;or theirmotherorfather fell illandneeded their timeandattention.Heardanyof thisbefore?Infact, these individuals are so convincing aboutwhy theymissed their number,youonlywishthey’dusedthatsamelevelofenergytoclosemorebusiness. Nowyouarefivemillionshortfortheyear...ninety-fivemillionversusthehundred million you committed to Wall Street. No problem, you think toyourself.That’snot thatbad . . . you’reonly5percentoff the target.SoWallStreet is going to ding your stock accordingly by 5 percent, right?Wrong—totally wrong. How about five times that number? The company will losemillions in market value, and you, all the employees who own stock in thecompany,andyourshareholdersarenowgoingtobetherecipientsofa20to30percentdropinthevalueinyourholdings. Andwhydidthishappen,youaskyourself,withanexpressionthatlooksasthoughyoucouldspitnails?Well,itwasprimarilytheresultoftenfence-sitterswho thoughtnothingofmakinga fewsubtle, degradingcomments aboutyourofferings.Youperhapslaugheditoffatthetimeasnobigdeal.Butnowyou’renotlaughing.Instead,youfeellikeshowingthesepeoplethedoor.Theirattitudejust costyoubig time.This situationdoeshappen in companies, butoften thedamagehasalreadybeendone,andallthatcanbedoneistomakesureitdoesn’t

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happeninthefuture. Asyoucansee,thisthirdconstraintcanbedangeroustoyourcompanyifyoudon’tnipitinthebud,andquickly.Soifyou’dlikeyourcompanytobefreeofcancerous attitudes, understandwhat everyonewho contributes revenue to thebusiness perceives and believes about the value your products, services, andsolutionsdeliverforclients. Therehasbeenagreatdealwritten aboutbelief systemsand their power toaffect outcomes. But not everyone openly shares their beliefs and perceptionsabout your company and its offerings. Now add to the mix these key globalbusinesstrends:

•massiveconsolidation•pricepressure•marginerosion•increasedcorporatefraudandlitigation•agreaterattitudeofentitlementinsomeseniormanagement•farlesscamaraderieandloyaltyamong“thedoers”andmanagement

Several of these patterns are due to consolidation across industries, and all oftheseaffectmultipleindustrysectors.Thesetrendsarenotgoingawayanytimesoon, and they may become more widespread. As a result, more and moreemployees throughout the world—even in management—have become morenervousaboutjobsecurity.Sotheykeepmanyoftheirdeep-seatedperceptionsabouttheircompanyanditsproductandserviceofferingstothemselves,lestanunpopularcommentcomebacktohauntthem. At theendof theday,however, theperceptionsofyouremployeescanbeasignificant constraint that directly impacts your company’s financialperformance. Every single producer has observations and opinions about yourcompanyanditsproducts,services,solutions,andcauses,whichcanandoftendoaffectyourcompany’srevenueline. The perspective of your front line—the sales and business development,marketing,customerservice,andcustomer-facingconsultants,managers,clientexecutives, independent agents, and distributors—are especially crucial. Theirperceptionsof the intrinsicvalueyourofferingsbring toanothercompanyandtheircustomersabsolutelyaffectseveralfactors—minorthingsliketheiroverallattitudetowardclientsandcoworkers,theirlevelofeffort,anddesiretoperform.Thisaffectsallperformancelevels—howfrequentlytheyutilizetheirhealth-care

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benefits,theirwillingnesstobeontime,etc. As a preventivemeasure against a suddendecline in your revenue line, askyour front line some questions in a safe, nonthreatening environment. This isoftentheonlywayofgettingcandidresponsestoemployees’deeplyheldbeliefsabout the organization and its offerings. This valuable data can telegraphproblemareasbeforetheybecomemajorissues—allowingyoutimetodealwiththemheadon. Wesuggestaskingthefollowingquestionsofanyoneandeveryoneinvolvedin a customer-facing role inside your company to see if this third constraintcouldbeimpedingyourgrowthandstrategicplanningefforts.HereareafewoftheConstraintAssessmentquestionsweusewithclients—whoasktheirpeoplethefollowingquestions:Q1.Howwouldyourateorrankourcoreofferingsinrelationtootherdirectlycompetitiveofferings?Q2.Doyoufeelourcurrentofferingsprovideanycompellingbenefitsthathelpyou legitimately differentiate, posture, or close business opportunities whenpositioned against substantial competitors?Please list them in the order frommosttoleastcompelling.Q3. In your opinion, are your perceptions of our company’s core offeringsaccurate?Havetheybeenvalidated?Ifso,how?

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FOURTHCONSTRAINT

THECLIENTORPROSPECT’SPREFERREDEDUCATIONALPROCESS—ANDSTRICTPROCUREMENTPROCEDURES

IFYOUWANTTODOBUSINESSWITHOURORGANIZATION,HEREAREOURrulesandprocedures forwhatyourcompanyneeds todo tosubmityourproduct, service, or solution for consideration. In fact, these steps are postedrightonourWebsite,whichIencourageyou tovisitatwww.follow-our-rules-they-are-here-for-a-reason.com.” If you have approached a larger company and been hit with this warmresponse to your courting efforts, get used to it. This is the way increasingnumbers of large and midsized multinationals go about acquiring goods andservices today. The fourth constraint, while it’s always been an issue, is fastbecoming a significant impediment to themargins of thousands of businessesthroughouttheworld. Employees of midsized and large corporations feel immense pressure tofollowtheircompanies’rulesandguidelinesforacquiringproductsandservices.Oneortwomisstepscanleadtoareprimandbyamanagerorevenjobloss.Thisisnothing tomesswith.Understandably, individualsyouareattempting tocallon take these rules and procedures very seriously.And they do not appreciate“somesmallbusinessentrepreneur,”salesperson,oranyoneelsewhoattemptstocircumvent theirprocurementprocedures.The interesting thing is that thoseofus who make our living in the selling profession often attempt to get by oraround these rules and procedures because of the pressure on us to produce anumber.Sowe’reallinthistogether. Thisconstantconstraintwillnotgoawayinourbusiness lifetime.Indeed, itwill become a bigger impediment over time, given how companies arestreamliningtheirprocurementprocedures. As theproducts, services, andsolutionsofcertain industryverticalsbecomeperceived as commodity purchases, acquirers will build ever more elaborate

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procedures,rules,andmazesthatpotentialsuitorsmustfollowandabidebyasthey attempt to gain business. This applies across industries as diverse ashotel/hospitality, information technology, accounting and audit services, officeequipment,cellphones/PDAs/handheldwirelessdevices,insuranceandfinancialservices,healthcare,homeentertainmentelectronics,andmanyotherproductsandservices. Consider a one-hundred-million-dollarmultiyear contract that awell-knownmultinational did not win. This involved copiers, document managementsolutions, and support services for one of the larger financial concerns in thecountry.Oneof theprimaryreasons theydidn’twin thisaccount(according totheprovider)hadnothingtodowiththevalueoftheirofferings.Asoneofthepremier providers, they didn’t get the business, as best they could tell afterinvesting twelve to eighteenmonths in courting expenses, time, and attention,hadtodowithoneguyintheprocurementdepartmentwhoessentiallyscaredthepantsoff them, saying that if theywent “aroundhim”and spoke to anyone inmanagement,he’dmakesuretheydidn’tgetthebusiness. Think this isbaloney?Well, thinkagain.Someprocurementandpurchasingdepartments of large corporations are wreaking havoc on providers trying tocourttheirbusiness.Thisdynamiccausesdealstodragon,increasessellingandmarketingexpenses,andreducesprofitmarginsonthedealsthatdofinallycloseafter procurement is done hammering for the absolute best price, service, andsupport. Youasthevendor-provideroftenhavetoplaybytherulessetbyprocurement.Otherwise,youriskbeingexcommunicatedbythepurchasingandprocurementteams,whoseemto takegreatdelight inbeing theRulesPolice—apower tripforsomeindividualsinlargeorganizations.Imaginewhatit’s liketryingtogetintoWal-Mart,Target,orBestBuy.Thesecompaniesknowhowyouviewthem.Theyknowyou’rethinking“Ifwecanjustgetintherewithoneortwoitems,wecangetafoothold,andthenwe’reset.” Thegreater theprocurementdepartment’s perception that yourofferings arecommodities,thetougher,moreelaborate,moretimeintensiveandexpensivethecourting and closing process can be for you and your company—and did Imentionmuchlessfun? I have been through my fair share of these fire drills with large entities.Withoutquestion,itcanbeamajorgrindonthevendor-provider’stime,efforts,resources, and spirit.And the larger the fishyouare trying to catch, themore

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militaristic therulesandprocurementprocedurescanbecome.Suffice it tosaythis fourth constraint is real and grows more complex every year, directlyimpacting your bottom-line profitability. There is hope, however. TheAccelerantsare tools thatcanhelpyouattackthisconstraint inamultiprongedmanner,givingyoumore leverageover the situation, enablingyou tonavigatemoreefficientlyintoughwaters.Standby.

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FIFTHCONSTRAINT

THECLIENTORPROSPECT’SEXECUTIVE-LEVEL

DECISION-MAKINGPROCESSTHISFIFTHCONSTRAINTTOYOURBUSINESS’SGROWTHISCOUPLEDtightlywiththefourth.Together, theycancreatealargecrevassethatenvelopsprovidersalreadyworkingeffectivelywiththeircontactsinsideanorganization.They’vebeenfightingthegoodfight,tryingtorespectfullymovethetaskforceof midlevel management’s recommenders forward to the executive level. Butsenior executives and owners often have their own pattern and process forcoming to a decision, signing off, and moving forward. Sometimes the twodecision-making processes (lower to midmanagement versus executive levelmanagement)arealigned.Sometimestheyarenot.Itisverydifficulttoknowforcertain. WhatImeanis,theprocurementprocessisusuallyquitedefinedafterthetaskforceorcommitteehasissuedtheRFIorRFP(requestforinformation/proposal),met with and vetted the potential vendors, and selected two finalists forprocurementtogo“beatup”andworkoutthedetails.Oncethesetwo“finalists”arepresentedup thechainofcommand toexecutivemanagement for the finaldecision, this iswhenthevendor-providers learn that insomecases, theseniormanagement may or may not have a formal decision process in place. Andhereincanlietheproblemforthosecourtingthebusiness. Thisdanceof twoormoredistinct levelsofmanagement,with twoormoreprocedures (definedor undefined) formakingdecisions, could be viewed as agrindersolelydesignedtosqueezeandexhaustthepoorvendor-providersastheyattempt tofindtheirwayto thefinish line.Andsomenevermakeit.Theyfallintothecrevassebecausethecompaniestheyarehuntinghappentobesosharp,andsomethodical,theyusethesetwodecision-makingprocedurestodoexactlythat:grindouttheabsolutebestdeal. This fifthconstraint confusesbusinessdeveloperswhohavehad theirheadsdown,working diligently formonthswithmidmanagement people and below.

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They have spent time earning the prospect’s trust, establishing rapport,presenting their wares, explaining how they can solve or address a statedbusiness need, and benchmarking their offerings with live beta-test pilots,allowing the client to “test” their solution in a live environment whenappropriate.Theyhavealsoworkedwiththeteam(taskedbyseniormanagementtofind,analyze,benchmark,andrecommendtwofinalists)tobuildthebusinesscasethatjustifiestheexpenditureandexpectedreturnoninvestment(ROI).Andthen—everythingcomestoahalt. It’s likebringingahorse to theedgeof thewaterandnever letting itdrink.This entire process drives managers and vice presidents of your companyabsolutelycrazyaswell,becauseformonths,they’veseenthecall-detailreportsdocumentingtheresultsandactionstepsagreedtoateachandeverymeeting. Asthemidlevelmanagementofthecompanyyou’recourtingfinallydecides,“It’stimetobringthisthingforwardtoseniormanagement,”theclockbeginstotick.Themanagementwithinyourorganizationnowgetsthecuethattheprocessseemstobemovingforward,andit’sasifsomebodypullsoutaneggtimerandeveryonestandsaroundit,acutelyawareifthingsbegintodrag.Anddragtheycan—bigtime—atthispoint.That’sbecausethetwodecisionprocessesarenotaligned inmanycases—eitherby accidentorbydesign,youwill neverknow.Whatyouwillknowis that thedecisionprocesseswillslowyourgrowth.Youwillfeelit. As an example of howdifferent and dysfunctional themidmanagement andexecutive-levelmanagementdecision-makingprocessescanbe,andhowcostlythis can be to your company, considerwhat commonly happenswhen a largefirm issues an RFP. A formal request for proposal for a particular product,service, or solution would seem to indicate they are interested in purchasingsometimeinthenot-too-distantfuture.NoticethatIsaid“seem.”Itisnotalwaysthe case that the company buys anything after putting the vendors throughmonthsofdancingontheheadofapin.Theresponsefromprimaryprovidersisto take the RFP seriously. In fact, often there’s a buzz as the top-tier playersbegintoswarmthecompanythat’sissuedanRFPofsignificantsize. AstherecipientofmyshareofRFPsfromlargecorporations,theyareusuallyvery detailed.The rules of engagement are usually spelled out, dictatingwhatproviderscanandcannotdo,whotheycanspeakwith,thedatetheproposalisdue,whoitshouldbesentto,andwhen(approximately)adecisionwillbemade.But time and again, they don’t answer all the questions vendors have, whichcausesthevendorstocontactthetask-forceleadtogainadditionalclarification.

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Eventhoughthisisallwellandgood,thisformof“shopping”themarketplacecreatesagooddealofparanoiaamongproviders.TheygenerallyknoworfigureouttheotherproviderswhoreceivedthesameRFP.Often,thistouchesoffsubtlelittle attempts I’ll call “friendship calls” from the seniormanagement of eachvendorwho received theRFP.Thesecalls are typicallyplaced fromVP levelswithinthevendortoVPlevelsorhigherwithinthecompanythatissuedtheRFP.And guess what? Sometimes, you get stonewalled, because they won’t talk.They’ll say something to the effect of,“Hey, I appreciate your call, but tobeverycandidwithyou, the task force is inchargeof thiswhole thing.TheyarerunningtheRFP.Somyadviceistocontactthem.” This dead end drives providers crazy, because they actually do have a fewquestions,but theywerealso looking for thescoop—the inside angle onwhatthecompanyisreallylookingfor.Forwhateverreason,basedonthebehaviorofcourtingvendors, it seemsnobody trustsorwants toworkwith the task force,eventhoughtheyknowtheyhaveto.Thisiswhyproviderswillattempttogetsome executive-level buy-in, or sponsorship, even though they know they aretreadingondangerousground. Sotheygettheirhandsslappedonceinawhile,andeventuallyfigureouttheyshouldknockitofforriskbeingdisqualifiedfromthebiddingprocess.Soherewego:months andmonthsofwork responding, going tomeetings, asking formoreclarification,respondingagain,etc.,etc.Andwhenthedecisioncomesoutandit’sagainstyou,it’snotuncommonforyourcompanytoattempttoblastinthe door at an executive level to salvage the deal. Often in this scenario, thesenior executives will not engage (evenwhen it’s your CEOwho puts in thecall),butinstead,willoftenhidebehindtheirtaskforce. I have experienced this myself because I used to do exactly that when welearned we weren’t going to be awarded the business. I found it amazinglyfrustrating that there seemed to be such awell-coordinated effort between thelowerpartoftheorganizationandseniormanagementthatittrulyworeusout.Maybethatwastheplan.Itworked. Becognizantofthiscrevasse.Itissubtlebutdeep,andwhenyoufallin,it’sdifficulttorecover.Thatiswhythisconstraintcanimpedeyourabilitytoclose.ThiswasanotherareaofpainthatcausedmetodeveloptheAccelerants,whichare designed to jump over, or at the very least, minimize this constraint, byreorienting the very manner in which you initially engage with clients andprospects.Whenyoulearnhowtodothat,thisgapwillbelessofaconstrainton

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yourcompany’sbusinessdevelopmentefforts.

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SIXTHCONSTRAINT

YOURMARKETINGORGANIZATION’SARTICULATIONOF

THEMESSAGEANDVALUEPROPOSITIONSFORYOURCOREOFFERINGS—ANDTHEINCONSISTENCYWITHWHICHTHEYARECOMMUNICATEDTOCLIENTSAND

PROSPECTSTHIS ONE IS A HUGE CONSTRAINT THAT PUTS AGREAT DEAL OFDOWNWARDpressureon the ability to closebusiness—and it is prevalent inorganizationsofallsizes. If you do some soul-searching within your enterprise, you may find thatfactorssquarelywithinyourcontrol—whichyouareeitherunawareoforarenotacting on—are impeding your company’s growth. Are your current valuepropositions full of nebulous but beautifully crafted words that articulate thebenefitsofyourofferingswithoutgetting“granular”astothefinancialimpactoroutcomes they could deliver for clients? And are you aware that yoursalespeople are using messages that may not have anything in common withthosecraftedbymarketing?Theseproblemsarewithinyourcontrol,andyetarerarely dealt with in a cohesive manner inside companies. This is why thisconstraintcanwreakhavocongettingmorerevenueinthedoor! For whatever reasons, in both large and small firms, marketing and salescamps rarelywork together. Themarketing people are tasked to describe andarticulatethemessage,netbenefits,andvaluepropositionsoftheofferings.Theythenhandtheseover tosalesandbusinessdevelopment,whichwillsometimesreviewthemandsaythingslike“Clearly—theyjustdon’tgetit,dothey?WhatamIsupposedtodowiththis?Idon’tthinkI’mevengoingtousethisstuff.” AfterworkingwithFortune1000organizationsformorethantenyears,Icantellyouthatgenerallyspeaking,thelargerthecorporation,thebiggerthegapofdisconnectednessbetweenthesalesandmarketingorganization,andthebiggerthisconstraint.There’sanunspokenairthatsomemarketingorganizationstake

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on,appearingshieldedandoutoftouchwiththebattlebeingfoughtonthestreetby their sales organization. This vibe radiates from some big marketingdepartments toward their salespeople and often feels to them like a lack ofrespect. Ifyou’reawareof this“attitude”withinyourown firm,youmightbeabletominimizethisconstraint’sdamageonyourtop-linerevenues. The topic of compensation also adds fuel to this constraint,making it eventoughertoreinin.Yousee,inmostcases,themarketingfolksreceiveastraightsalary,whichhelpsinsulatethem,makingthemimmunetothenormalhiccups,hills and valleys of a typical sales cycle. Their incomes are constant—nointerruptions,nospikes,nodroughts.Thiscanhelpfosterafeelingandmentalitywithin themarketing department that their jobs are safe and secure—a “glasshouse”attitude. I also think that, in somecases, the salariedmarketingpeopleresent thehighsalariessuccessfulsalespeopleareable tocommand.Theymayalsoenvythetravel,expenseaccounts,andthefactthatproducersarenotsotiedtotheirdesks. As you’ve probably guessed by now, the salespeople have their ownperceptionsof thevalue themarketingdepartmentplays in thecompany’s life.Often, they feel themarketing department is highly overrated. These negativeattitudes between the sales andmarketing camps cause exactly that—separatecamps.Silosformandfeedintothisself-perpetuatingviewofeachother’sworth(or lack thereof ) to theorganization.Thisspiralingconstraintgoesundetectedwithinmanycompaniesuntil thenumbersareconsecutivelymissedbya largemargin.But then it’s too late.TheCEO,SVPofmarketing, andSVPof saleshavealreadybeenshownthedoor. If thereare twoorganizations thathadbettergetalongwitheachother, it isthese.Theymustdevelopadeeperappreciationforhoweachdepartmentmakestheother’s jobbetterandeasier, in the spiritofmoving thecompany forward.Thealternativeisnotaprettypicture. If you are part of a smaller entity that doesn’t have a marketing or salesdepartmentperse,andyouare theonechargedwithdeveloping themessages,this constraint still applies, because someone within your company willeventually approve or sign off on how you’ve articulated your company’sofferings. Thequestionnowbecomes,Whosefaultisitthatthetwocampsrarelyworktogether? I don’t know, but laying blame never benefits anyone. However,because the sales andbusinessdevelopment executives areon the streetgoing

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toetotoewithclientsandprospects,they—whenasked—canshedvaluablelightonthevaluepropositionsandhelpshapewhattheyarehearingonthestreetintomessagesthatmightbemoresalientandcrediblewiththepurchasingaudiences. Yes, it ischallenging—especially inmidsizedand largercompanies—topulltogethersomeclientexecutivesandmanagersfromthefieldwiththemarketingpeople,butthebenefitsareworththeeffort.Ifyouraimistominimizethesixthconstraintwithinyouroperation,thentrythisideaonforsize. Bringinsomeofthekeypeoplefromyourmarketingandsalesorganization(thesecondAccelerantonpage100,providesalistofthepeoplewesuggesttoinvolve), task them with working together, and watch how your valuepropositionstakeonnewlifeandimpact. Remember,clientsalsoenjoyhelpingoutinthisareabecauseitmakesthemfeelimportantandspecial.Theycanprovidevaluablefeedback,givingyoucluesas to what makes them more interested in and attracted to your messages.Considerinvolvingafewofthem.Andifyouareasmallerentrepreneurialfirmthat can bring your people together with less effort, there is no excuse forneglectingthisimportantexercise. Letmeshareanexampleofthesynergyandhealingthatcanhappenwhenacompanybringstogethertheseniormarketingpeoplewiththeseniorsales,clientaccountandregionalmanagers,andafewtopproducersfromthestreet.Severalyears back, a large multinational retained us to assess the value propositions(which had already been created by the marketing department) specific to anofferingabouttobelaunchedintheUnitedStates.Theywantedtodetermineifthepropositionscouldbeimprovedortightenedtobeaseffectiveaspossibleforthesalespeopleinthefield. Thevicepresidentofsalesforthedivisionhostedthemeeting.IncametheVPof marketing and a few people from his department, ready to discuss (anddefend) the value propositions they had already nailed, in their opinion. Thesalespeoplehadnotyetseenthem.Theworkshopbeganwiththeunderstandingthatwewerealltheretoassesswhathadalreadybeendoneandtodetermineifthey’d“play”inthefield. If you’ve ever facilitated a group of high-level, advanced thinkerswho arequitevocalwiththeiropinionsrelevanttowhatwill—andwillnot—work,thenyouunderstandthatwithinaboutanhour,thespiritof“let’splaynice”quicklydisintegrated. I found myself playing traffic manager, designating who couldspeakandwhen.Everyonefromthesalessideofthehousehadanopinionabout

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what had already been crafted. Some comments had merit, and some weredownrightharsh. If you’ve ever been in a situationwhere you’ve done your level best on aproject, then submitted it to others for review, then you understand how themarketing executive and his folks felt—attacked, underappreciated, anddefensive.Theybegantothink(Icouldjustseeitcoming)thatthesalespeoplesimply did not get it. Period. The sales staff thought the sameway about themarketingpeople.Neitherteamwaslisteningtotheother. Thenthesalespeoplebegantoexplainandteachthemarketingpeoplewhythecurrent value propositions wouldn’t pull with the audiences they weredesperatelytryingtoengage—andwhy,ifthesuggestedtweaksandadjustmentswere made, the value propositions could work even better. We helped themarticulatewhy thecurrentversionwould fallondeafears,createzerourgencywithbuyers,andhurteveryoneintheorganizationduetolackofsales. Whenthemarketingdepartmentsawtheconnectiontotheirpaychecks, theybecame less defensive, and the door opened to constructive teamwork aroundwhatneededtobetweakedandwhy.Whatcameoutofthisclient’ssessionwasadeeperunderstandingaboutwhatthesalesorganizationisupagainst,andwhythey needed help frommarketing in puttingmore teeth into the various valuepropositions and messages. I will talk more about this process in Accelerantprinciplenumberfour,METRICTHEMESSAGE. Attheendofthemeetingeachpersonfelttheyhadcontributedtoimprovingthecurrentstateofthecompany’smessages,understoodwhytherevampingwasnecessary,andwhythemessageswouldprobablyworkmuchbetterinthefield.A general sense of pride and accomplishment was easy to see on everyone’sface. Andguesswhat—whentheserevisedmessageswerelaunched,theyworked.Thebottom line ismanyorganizations’messagesandvaluepropositionsdon’tsayanything,accordingtoclientsandprospects.Themessageshavenoteeth—no numbers, ranges, or percentages—high side, low side—to back up theirclaims. Because of this serious void in most organizations’ messages, andbecausethereistypicallylittleconsistencywithwhichtheyarecommunicatedtoclients and prospects between marketing collateral, brochures, white papers,Web site information, and what the sales organization is out therecommunicating, thisconstraint ishazardoustoyourrevenueline.Ifundetectedand left alone, it can infect your company, slowingdown everything, and you

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won’tknowwhattheheckisgoingon.

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SEVENTHCONSTRAINT

YOURLEVELOFENTRYANDENGAGEMENTWITHIN

CLIENTANDPROSPECTORGANIZATIONSWHO DECIDES THE APPROPRIATE OR CORRECT LEVELS OFINDIVIDUALStocallonwhenapproachingaprospect?Is it theprospect?Ordoyou,thepersonattemptingtosellsomething,setthegroundrules(especiallysinceyoumaybe footing thesalesexpensesof thebusinessdevelopers)?Andhow do the rules change when you are calling on an existing client? Whodeterminestheproperlevelsofpeopletocontactinthisscenario? After training senior executives and the sales and business developers ofFortune1000organizationsforten-plusyears,whatIseemostfrequentlyisthatmostcompaniesleaveituptothesalespeopletodeterminewhotocallon.Theirattitude is“This iswhatwepayyoupeople todo, so figure itout—and if youmiss your numbers, we’ll deal with it at that point.” The senior managementhasn’t really gotten involved with analyzing the levels of people their sales,business development, and marketing people are calling on. They’ve beenrelativelyhands-offinthisarea,notwantingtomicromanagetheirsalespeople.Letme explainwhy youmightwant to become a littlemore hands-on in thisspecific area if you wish to collapse your closing cycles and minimize oreliminatethisconstraintinyourcompany. The seventh constraint is a hotly debated area involving several parties’stronglyheldbeliefsandopinionsabouthoworganizationsshouldwork—whichisnotthesameashowtheyactuallydowork.Thereisneverjustoneanswertothe question of the most appropriate person to call on initially—or who thedecisionmakersare.Therealansweristhatitdepends.Whoyoutargetdependsontheproducts,services,andsolutionsyourepresenttothemarketplace,alongwithwhatyoubelieve is theappropriateway toapproachaprospectorclient.Peoplehavedeep-seatedbeliefs in thisarea,whichdirectly impact little thingslikethelengthofyoursalesandclosingcycle,thecostofthesellingeffort,andthemarginyoucancommand.Iwillsayitagain,becauseitissoimportant:The

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level of people you are targetinghas a direct correlation to the lengthof yourclosing cycles and the speed at which you can bring in business. It directlyimpactsyourtimetoadeal. For the past decade, senior executives in Fortune 1000 client organizationshave complained bitterly to me about the levels of their client and prospectrelationships.Basically, theyrant that theyarenothighenoughinsideprospectopportunities—evenwithcurrentclients. Duringthego-gonineties,gettinganappointmentwiththerightpersonwasn’treallyanissuebecausethingsweregoingwellandmoneywasflowing.Today,things are so different. Successful people realize this and are changing theirapproachstrategiesaccordingly.ButtheunhappylamentIcontinuetohearfrommost seniorexecutives is“Why is it taking so long forourpeople tocloseanopportunity nowadays?Can someone please tellme? It’s not like they haven’theardofusbefore.Andwhyareourclosingcyclesstretching?” I have an answer and an opinion. It is because the business developers andentrepreneurs are entering too low in the organization from the outset. Evenwhen they have the choice to go in at any level, they typically enter theorganizationtoolow. Forexample,manytechnologyclientshavethemind-setthatbecausetheyareselling various technology solutions, the most appropriate place to enter apotentialclientisinsidethetechnologydepartmentsomewhereandtothenfindasponsor or champion interested enough in the solution to lead the process ofseeingifthereissufficientinteresttomakesomethinghappen.AndeveniftheyattempttoenteratthetopoftheITorganization,throughthechiefinformationofficer/technologyofficer(CIO/CTO),thisisnotoftenwheretheyland.Instead,they endup in somemidlevel areawithin IT,which iswhere theybegin theirsaleseffort.Hence, thereare typicallya seriesofmeetings (ata relatively lowlevelinsidetheITorganization)beforetheyknowifthereisanyrealpossibilityofdoinganybusiness. However,clientshaveanotherchoice,whichistocraftandtailortheirvaluepropositionsinawaythatcommunicatesthefinancialoutcomestheirsolutionsdrive for clients, and then enter in the finance organization instead of the ITorganization.Wehavedoneworklikethiswithsomeofourtechnologyclients,shapingtheteethinsidetheirvaluepropositionstobeattractiveandcompellingtothefinancialofficersinsidetheirtargetedfirms,hencegettingtheminhigherandfasterinmanycases,sotheycanhavethetypeofconversationstheywantto

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havewithprospectiveclients. Muchof the reasoning for thesedecisions to enter at a low level is tangledaround three issues: individuals’ belief about where they should start, theirpersonalconfidencelevel,andtheirbeliefintheircompany’sofferings. Believe it or not, salespeople and account managers sometimes wonderwhethertheirproductsandservicesactuallydoproducepositivenetbenefitsforthecustomer.Canyouseehowthisconstraint is linkedwithothers,especiallythe third constraint? Your team’s perceptions and general confidence in theirown solutions (the third constraint) directly impact where, and at what levelswithin aprospective client, theywill target to enter.This impacts the speedatwhich you can close additional business, and at what margin. These twoconstraintsareattachedatthehip. Thisseventhconstraintisinaleagueallbyitself.Itisalsoveryhardtodetect.Why would your salespeople ever admit that they might need some helpconnectingwith key decisionmakers a little higher in the companies they aretargeting, when the assumption is they’re supposed to know how to do that.That’swhatthey’repaidtodo,right?Thefact is,manysalespeoplearehavingtrouble raising their level of conversations with senior-level people. Let meillustratehowthisconstraintrearsitsuglyhead—andhowitcausesseriousgriefwhen forecastingquarterly revenues foryour company,your shareholders, andWallStreetifyou’reapubliccompany.Bythetimeyouexperiencetheresultingpain andnegative impact, it’s usually too late todo anything, other than learnhow to use the fifth Accelerant, ACCESS THE CASTLE, so you’re notcontinuallycaughtoffguardwhenitcomestoforecastingyourrevenues. Ifyouareanexecutiveorbusinessowner,thinkbackoverthelastsixmonthstothetimesyou’vedoneyour“pipeline”oraccountreviewswitheachofyoursalespeople. This is the painstaking process of methodically reviewingopportunitiesandhavingyourpeopleexplainthestatusofeachdealasbesttheycan.Inparticular,youmakesureyouhearthedetailsofthoseopportunitiesthatare80to90percentinthecan,accordingtoyoursalespeople—thedealsthatareasgoodasgold,withatimelinetoclosewithinthenextsixtytoninetydays. After finishing the pipeline/account review, you pay close attention to theprogressupdatesofthedealsyouweretoldwere“80to90percentinthecan”becauseyou’recountingonthemtoclose.Infact,youmayhavealreadytoldthebankor your investors theywere coming in.Thirty days later, you receive anurgente-mailfromyoursalespersonontheWestCoast,sayinghedoesn’tknow

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whathappened,buthelost“thatlargedeal”thatwasbasically“inthecan.”Youfireane-mailbacksayingyou’lldowhateverittakestoassistinsalvagingthedealafteryougetbriefedonthespecifics. You task your salesperson to e-mail you immediately with the contactinformationon thehighest-level contact they’vebeenworkingwithduring thelast six to ninemonths so you canmake contact—from a seniormanagementlevel.Incomesthee-mail.Thehighest-levelcontactisthedirectorofcustomerrelationship management (CRM) inside this multinational corporation. Yourheartsinksbecauseyouknowyourabilitytoaffectanychangeatthispointwiththislevelofpersonisnexttozilch. Kiss the deal good-bye. The odds are against your mixing it up with thiscontact to salvage the opportunity. How could you possibly impact the dealwhenyourcompanyisstillsolowintheorganization?Andfurthermore,ifyougoblastingintothetopnow,thislateinthegame,guesswholookslikeapoorloser? With20/20hindsight,you finallyunderstandwhyyouwereabit edgyaftergoing througheachofyoursalespeople’spipelinereviews.Your instinctsweretellingyoutheremightbeaproblem,butyoucouldn’tputyourfingeronit.Nowyou know what the problem is. Your level of entry into client and prospectorganizations is too low. You can imagine the grim downward spiral if thiscontinues to happen. It will negatively affect your forecasting accuracy, yourcashflow,andthelevelofyourcreditlineswiththebanktocoverthedealsyouthoughtwerenailed,butaren’tcomingin. There is plenty here to sort through and figure out. The ConstraintsAssessment helps you see how you and your people feel about this area ofselling.AttheendofconstraintsonethroughthreeIhaveprovidedasamplingof the questions that we usewith clients. The entire assessment addresses alltwelve constraints. Producers, their managers, and senior management oftendisagree about the appropriate person to engagewith first because there is noone correct answer. So it’s best to get the differences of opinion out onto thetable in order to analyze everyone’s views,whichwill help lead you to someanswersthatwillminimizethisconstraintinyourcompany.Ourclientsusetheassessment tool to measure the level of pain around each of the constraints,whichhelpsthemuncoverpotentialsolutionsthatwillworkwithintheircultureand collapse their closing cycles. For more information, you can visitwww.accelerantinternational.comandclickontheConstraintsAssessment.

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EIGHTHCONSTRAINT

THEINABILITYTOARTICULATEYOURVALUE

PROPOSITIONSTOTHEREALDECISIONMAKERSIFYOUBELIEVETHATMOSTFIELDSALESFORCES(EVENAPARTYOFone) spend the better part of their day calling on and working with decisionmakers,Isuggestyoutaketwoaspirinandliedownonthenearestcouchbeforeyou read this next section, because it’s probably not the case. Some buyersrepresentthemselvesas“thedecisionmakers,”whentheyarenothingmorethana recommender with no direct control over purchasing your offerings. Thisconstraintistightlylinkedtotheseventh(YourLevelofEntryandEngagement).However,inthosesituationswhenyoudo“getin”atahighlevel,clientsoftenblow it by falling back onto “safe” territory, meaning they revert to goingthrough their PowerPoint presentation, which does nothing to answer the keyquestionstherealdecisionmakershave.Messagesthathelpdecisionmakerscutto “the financial net-net” that your offerings could provide.Therefore, even ifsalespeople are in front of the correct audience, they fail to articulate the realguts, the realoutcomes their coreofferings coulddeliver.Hence, realdecisionmakersbecomefrustratedandthedownwardspiralcontinues. One of themega rages of the eighties, championed by themost popular ofmanagement consulting and change management firms, was Total QualityManagement(TQM).IntegraltotheTQMprogramwastheconceptofpushingthe authority and decision-making capabilities down into the fingers of theorganizationtofosteramoreempowered,efficient,andcohesiveentity.Drivingthemorebasicdecisions(andbudgetauthorityforthosedecisions)downintotheorganizationwouldlessenthebottleneckatthetopwhileincreasingemployees’feelingsofbelonging,ownership,pride,andcommitmenttotheenterprise—thiswasthethinkingatleast,anditworkedforawhile. However,thisisnothowmanyorganizationsoperatetoday!Asuccessionofglobal events has completely revamped the way people and companies dobusiness.These include thedot-combubbleandbust, severalnaturaldisasters,

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themassiverunupinthestockmarketandsubsequentcrash,theterroristattacksonSeptember11,2001,and the implosionof thousandsofbusinessesbetween2000and2004.Sweepingcutbacksandcostcontrolsrapidlybecametheorderoftheday.Thescaleofcorporatefraudandcorrespondinglitigationresultingfromsomeoftheseeventshasalsoaddedtothemix.Asaresult,thisloveaffairwithempoweringthepeopleseemstohaveallbutdisappeared. Within thousands of companies large and small a power shift has occurred,strippingdecision-makingauthorityandtheability tospendmoneyfromlowerandmidrangemanagers,andconsolidateditwitharelativefewatthetop.Mostproducers,however,arenotplayingatthetopofthecompaniestheyareworkingwith.Theyaresomewhereinthemiddleatbest. Howcanyouexpecttoreduceyourclosingcyclesandclosebusinessfasterifyou and your people are working primarily with recommenders? Few peoplewilltellyoutheydon’thavethepowertomakeadecision,whichispartoftheproblem.You invest timeworkingwith thosewhosay theyhave theability tomakethecall—onlytofindoutlater(afterspendingseveralthousandincourtingexpenses)thattheyonlyhavetheabilitytorecommend. Manyorganizationshaveexpressedtheirfrustrationwiththisveryrealissueattheirownmanagementplanningretreats,salesconferences,andthe like. Ithasbecome so extreme in some organizations, it seems difficult to get a box ofKleenex signedoff.Maybeavicepresident coulddo it,unless it’sovera fewthousanddollars,andinthatcaseitneedstogohigherforapprovalandsignoff.I’mbeingatadsarcastic,butyougetthepoint. Becauseof thisconstraints impactonyourability toattractmore revenue, Iwillstateitagain.Theinabilitytoarticulateyourvaluepropositionstotherealdecisionmakers.NowstaywithmeasIdrawaparallel.Often thesalespeopledon’t like the message/ value propositions produced by the marketingdepartment (the sixth constraint) because they’re not compelling enough. Thesalesforcemaynotevenbelieveintheircompany’sclaims.Couplethiswiththefactthattheyaretoolowintheorganizationstheyarecourting—bangingaroundwith people who no longer have the power to make decisions, because theauthority has been driven back up to the top—and you have a royal andexpensivemess.Thisisabigissueforcompanies,directlyimpactingtheircostsrelatedtogatheringbusiness.Howdoesyourcompanyfareinthisarea? Here are someobservationsof this constraint’s ability to suppressyour top-linegrowth.Theycomefromseveralyearsofworkingwithsalesandmarketing,

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business development, client account teams, and strategic growth executivesinsideFortune1000andmidsizedorganizations:FearofRejection:Thesales,businessdevelopment,andmarketingenginesofmanyorganizationshavebeen lulled to sleep.They’vebecomeafraidofbeingperceived as too aggressive, too excited, and too confident about how theirproductsorservicescandrivemorevaluefortheclient. Thisissad,butisn’tittheprimaryjobofthebusinessdevelopertobringmorebusinessyourway?Ifyou’regoingtolearnhowtogetinfrontofmorequalifieddecision makers faster and more frequently than you are now (Accelerantprinciplefive,AccesstheCastle),whywouldn’tyoutakefulladvantageoftheopportunity by coming across as confident, decisive, and articulate about howmuchyourofferingswillbenefittheclient?Thesebuyerswantyoutotellthem—theyarebeggingfor it,because it issohardfor themtodeterminehowoneoptionisbetterthananother. Instead,manysalespeoplecopanexpressionthatlooksasiftheyjustateabadmeal,don’tfeelwell,andareabouttoexplode.Youknowthelook:puppy-eyedconcern.Toillustratethissubtletrancethat’scomeoversomesalesorganizationsinthelasttenyears,here’saquickstory. Iwas traininganational salesorganization (severalhundredproducers)ofamultinationalproviderofpayrollprocessingservicesandotherrelatedofferings.As we discussed ideas about how to add more power and TEETH to theirexistingvaluepropositionstheyresponded,“Wecan’tsaythat.” “Why?” I asked. “You’vebeendelivering leading-edge results to clients formorethantwentyyearsnow.”Towhichtheysaid,“Well,yeah,wehave.Imean,I think we have. I’m sure we have, but to be sure, we really should ask ourclients, because we don’t track the results that closely. And many times, theclientswon’ttelluswhatthey’reactuallygetting.” Canyoufeelthelackofenergyandaccompanyinglackofsales?Myadvicetothosewhowanttobemorearticulatewheninfrontofpeoplewhocanactuallysay yes is, “You better start tracking the results your products and servicesdeliverifyouexpecttobearticulatewithdecisionmakers.Nooneelsewilldoitforyou,that’sforcertain.”FearofBeingWrong:Here’saquestionforyou:IfseniorexecutivesandWallStreet analysts are wrong once in a while, and still operate just fine, why do

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salespeoplehavetoberightallthetime? Who is putting all this pressure on the producers? Maybe it’s your legalcounselwho’sscaringthesalesforcebymakingsurenobodyismakingclaimsthatcannotbesubstantiated.Butlet’snotforgetthatbuyersarebeggingforthis.Sotoavoidanytrap,andkeepyourlawyershappy,payattentiontowhatIwillteach inAccelerantprinciplefour,METRICTHEMESSAGE.Itwillgiveyousomeconcreteideasandsolutionstothisconstraintsothatyounolongerhavetofearbeingwrongorbeing rejectedandyouwill be able topresentyourvaluepropositionstopeoplewhocanactuallysayyesmorefrequently. Remember, potential buyers are dying for someone—anyone—to be strongandaggressivewiththem.Theywantsomeonesoexcitedabouttheircompany’sofferings,theirpassioncomesacrossontheirface.Someonewhohasthegutstostandupandsay,“Yes.Wecanhelpyoudothisorthat,andhere’showorwhy.”TheAccelerantswillgiveyouthetoolstohelpyoudoexactlythat.

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NINTHCONSTRAINT

YOURFEAROFSUFFICIENTLYPREQUALIFYINGTHE

CLIENTORPROSPECTTOJUSTIFYADDITIONALMEETINGSDOWNSTREAM

UNLESSYOU’VEBEEN INVOLVED INAHOT INDUSTRY,MANYPEOPLEfeelthatbusinesshasbecometougheroverthelastseveralyears:moreofaslowgrind,assomewoulddescribeit.Closingbasic transactionssuchaspresentingstraightforward,low-endproductsorservicesthatarenotveryexpensiveseemsto take longer, costmore, and has becomemore complex than necessary. Thepressure seems to be up on everyone.Wall Street appears intent to pound onpubliclyheldcompanies,pushingformoretop-linegrowthbecauseCEOshaveprimarily focused on slashing costs, departments, and people during the early2000s. Organizational processes and procedures, leaders, and outside influencershavealsobeenunder themicroscope in thequest to identify inefficiencies thatcan be resolved.And, generally speaking, an increased level of fear has creptintomanypeople’sdecision-makingprocesses,whethertheywillacknowledgeitornot.Manyofusarenotconsciouslyawareofhowourdecisions,or lackofthem,havebecomeinterwovenwithadoseofuncertaintyanddoubt. Fear can help drive change, for better or worse. But in a tough businessclimate where fear is up it is no surprise that people trying to grow theirbusinesses and closemore deals have becomemore gun-shy. Perhaps a betterword is paranoid. Paranoid of pushing too hard for the deal and irritatingprospectsintheprocess.Paranoidofbeingtooaggressivewithclientsformorebusinessinthequestforthatideal,strategicrelationship. Clearly, over the last few years, clients have gained even more leverage,power of choice, and purchasing assistance (if they have a procurementdepartment) than smaller companies that do not have the manpower orprocedures in place to “shop” the vendor options available in a methodical

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manner. But because of global competition, buyers have several good optionsavailable to them, and in many cases, they often come to believe that anyselection among the top three to five providers would serve them well. Thisenables them to study their options, take their time, and run the search-and-selectionprocessinamannertheydeemappropriate.Contrastthiscurrentrealityto the 1980s and go-go 1990swhen, if youwere selling any type of product,service, or solution, it was simply smart business to make sure the client orprospectwassufficientlyprequalified,sometimesevenbeforeagreeingtoafirstmeeting, a second, or certainly a third. It was important to draw out thisinformation from the prospect before investing in additional downstreammeetingstoappeasetheboss. Today, however, the dynamic is altogether different. It has become tougheracrossmany industrysectors tobring inbusiness.Putaprospect throughyourprequalification rigor nowadays, prior to having a second, third, or fourthmeeting, andwatch somego invisible.Theywill neglect to returnyourphonecalls or give you one of several popular reasons why they’ve elected not tocontinueforward,atleastwithyourfirm. They knowverywell that, in themajority of cases, they are in the driver’sseat,and they call thenext stepswithvendor-providers.Basedon the last fewyearsoftrends,ifaprospectsensesanyresistanceorpushbackfromthevendor,youcankissmeetingnumbertwoorthreegood-bye.Thisistheninthconstraintintheraw:notbeingabletoproperlyprequalifyyourclientorprospectatatimethat makes good business sense to you, for fear that the client may halt theprocessaltogether. Thebuyer’sincreasedlevelofpowerandleverageandthevendor’sincreasedtrepidationaboutprequalifying tooaggressivelyandscaringaway theprospectleaveagap.Thisgapcanimpedeyourgrowthbecauseclientsandprospectscanexploit it. Closing cycles get longer, courting costs increase, andmargins getthinner. In the years ahead, as this trend becomes more pronounced, thisconstraintwillbecomeanevenbiggerissue.Accelerantprinciplesseven,eight,andninewillgiveyoutoolsthatwillshowyouhowtoprequalifytheprospectorclient in the first couple ofmeetings by getting them to give you the relevantdataorinformationyouneed.Thenyoucancomebackinmeetingstwoorthreeand present a minibusiness case showing at a high level how your products,services,or solutionscanhelp them—financially.This approachwill alsohelpyousmokeoutprospectsthatarewastingyourtimeandenergy.

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TENTHCONSTRAINT

YOURFEAROFLEADINGTHEDANCEWITHCLIENTSAND

PROSPECTSTHIS CONSTRAINT IS TIGHTLYCOUPLEDWITH THENINTH (FEAROFsufficiently prequalifying the client or prospect to justify additional meetingsdownstream)andlinkedwiththatgoodoldemotioncalledfear. Itisimpossibletoleadthedancewhenyouarenotwillingtocommunicatethefinancialoutcomesthatyourcoreofferingscoulddelivertheclient,whichthenallowsyoutomorethoroughlyprequalifytheopportunitybygainingthespecificdatayouneedfromthemtojustifyadditionalmeetingsdownstream.ThisiswhatImeanby“LeadingtheDance.” Mostpopularconsultative sales trainingprogramsandprocessmodels teachthattheprofessional,appropriate,andeffectivewaytoengageapotentialbuyeris to ask themquestions about themselves, their business, areas of concern orpain, and their overall goals and objectives. As a result, the entire courtingparadigm lets the client or prospect drive the process. They—not you—areleadingthedanceateveryturn. Thisisthewaymostofushavebeentrainedandconditionedtosell.Sohowcould this approach, which is so commonly used, actually be a constraint?Considerthistypicalscenario: DerekStone is a strappingly fit, six-foot-three, elegantly dressed, articulate,fifty-year-old,IvyLeague-educatedvicepresidentofsales.He’soneofsixVPsof saleswithinNorthAmerica.A custom-suitman,with crisp,white, custom-madeFrench-cuffedshirtsthatcouldgiveyouapapercutifyougottooclose,heis the picture of “sharp.” He has just put in a seven-year stint with a largetechnologyprovider.Derekhasmanagedonehundredsalespeopleinhisregion,createdhisownsalesprocess(borrowedfromdifferenttrainingvendorsduringhis seven-year stint), and put in a stunning performance this past year,collectivelyproducinga20percentdeclineinannualtoplinesales—goingfrom

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$250milliontothisyear’s$200million. Justintimetoavoidthefallout,Derek’sbeenrecruitedawayfromthisgiantto become senior vice president of global sales for a thirty-million-dollarprivatelyheldtechnologyfirmwithfourteensalespeople.Thefirmhasaneyeonapublicofferingiftheycangettofiftymillioninsalesrelativelyquickly. The founder-owner andCEO of this profitable tech firm calledRock SolidTechnologiesisfallingalloverhimselftoputinplacethetotalpackagetoenticeDerek away from his fancy position with the giant firm. With health-carecoverage forhis family,a respectablebasesalary,bonus,andstockoptionsallnailed down, Derek accepts and moves his family from the East Coast toMinneapolis,wherehisroleandopportunitytoimpactchangeisgreater,hetellshimself,hisfriends,andwifeoftwentyyears. Derek’sbringinghisbig-companyexperienceandtrustyseven-pointstep-by-stepsalesprocess—theonethatservedhishugeemployerespeciallywellduringthe past year bymissing his number by fifty million dollars. He was able tominimizethisunfortunateeventwiththenewCEO,whowassoenamoredtheyweregettingabig-companyman,nothingelsemattered. SowelcomeDerek intohisnew role asSVPofglobal sales forRockSolidTechnologies.Upongettinghisteamoffourteenproducerstogetherattheirfirstsalesmeeting,heintroduceshistrustysalesprocess.Bright-eyedandimpressed,everyone eagerly jumps on board, committing to use and follow the process,whichappearstobecommonsense:

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Since ithasbeenbattle-testedbyamajorcorporation, thefourteensalespeopleand CEO sign off on the process, and everyone goes about their business oftargetingtheirwhale-sizeopportunities. FastforwardninemonthsintoDerek’snewrole,andfindtheownerofRockSolid utterly frustrated. For some reason, which Derek cannot explain to theCEO’s satisfaction, 60 percent of the deals in the pipeline are taking twice aslong toclose.Theprospectandclientadvocatesarenotevenatvice-presidentlevels,andthesalespeoplearegettingmiredinStepThree(BuildtheTeam).Infact, theowneris lividaboutthemassivespikeinsellingexpenses,findinghispeopleflyingalloverGod’screation,takingmultiplepeopletoeachmeeting.Totopthingsoff,theCEOlearnsthere’sapatternemergingwherethesalespeoplearehavingtwo,three,sometimesfour“meetingnumberthrees”withmanyoftheopportunities—some never advancing into Step Four of the seven-step salesprocess. Insteadofseeingthecompanygrowandprosper,they’regoingbackwardataprettygoodclip.“Howcould thisbehappening?” theCEOsays tohimself. “Ibroughtinatop-notchguytotakethiscompanytothenextlevel.Instead,weareworse off than we were before Derek got here.What in the heck is going onhere?”Perhapsyouknowtheanswer ifyou’vewitnessedsomethingsimilar inyourcareer.Truthbetold,it’shappeninginallindustrysectors,withcompaniesbothpublicandprivate.

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Beforewedissectthisseven-stepsalesprocess,canyouguesswheretheholesareandhowthisrelates to thequestionofwhois leading thedance?Let’sseewhatwecomeupwith,sincehindsightis20/20. DoesStepOnedefinethelevelortitleoftheperson/peopletheymustengagewithintheirfirstmeetingswithaclientorprospect?Andiftheycan’tengageatthatlevel,doesitprovide“rules”astowhattodointhissituation(e.g.,stopalltogether, call for reinforcements)?No, it does not.DoesStepOne instruct thesalespeople to go into meeting number one with an articulate, financiallyoriented value proposition that communicates the basics of how Rock Solidcouldhelptheprospectorclient,withinageneralrange?No,itdoesnot. Instead,itallowsthesalespeopletogoinatanylevel,searchingforthepainorgeneralbusinessproblem,anddetermineiftheprospectorclienthasenoughurgency todoanythingabout it. Ifyour experience is anything likemine,youhaveprobablybeeninsituationswheretheprospectdoesnotevenknowiftheyare in pain or not.And in these situations, guesswho gets to pay the price—meeting,aftermeeting,aftermeeting,aftermeeting—tohelpthemfigureoutifthere’sanypainornot?Youandyourcompany. Wehaven’tevengottentoStepTwo.Doyouseewhy,inthisapproach,thereisnowaythesalespeoplewilleverbeabletocontroloraffectthecostofsales,theamountoftimeittakestobringadealin,thepaceatwhichtheprospectorclient moves forward—or the number of meetings that will take place? Theanswerisbecausetheyarenotincontrolofanything;consequently,theyarenotleadingthedance! CanyouseewhyDerek’sattitudeis,“Itwilltakeaslongasittakes”?Thatiswhat he’s been used to. But the CEO of Rock Solid has other ideas. Somechanges are forthcoming. Derek’s honeymoon with small company U.S.A. isover. Whodoes this seven-stepprocess impact?Basically everyone in this thirty-million-dollar firm, wouldn’t you say? Except Derek, of course. Sensing theCEO’s frustration, he contacted the recruiter inmonth eight of his tenure andlinedupanotherpositionwithahugefirm,withpeoplewhoappreciatehimandwhathebringstotheparty.Derek’sviewisthatit’stheCEOofRockSolidwhojust doesn’t understand what it takes to grow an organization—or that he isunwillingtodowhatittakestogetintothebigleagues. It’samazinghowfrequentlythisscenarioisplayingitselfoutincompaniesof

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allsizesinNorthAmericaandabroad—allbecausevendorsareafraidtoleadthedance. Inanutshell, it isverydifficulttoleadthedance(layingoutaspecificstep-by-stepcourseofaction in termsofdownstreammeetingsandactionsteps foreachmeeting)whenyoudonotpresent theprospect or client in thevery firstmeeting with some level of clarity around how you could benefit themfinancially.Andwhenyoudon’t,itisvirtuallyimpossibletocontrolthelength,duration,andurgency(orlackthereof)oftheirmeetingsandcallswithyou.TheAccelerantswillprovideyouwithmultiplesolutionstothiscommonconstraintsothatitdoesnothappenasfrequentlytoyouandyourfirm. It’sdifficulttotakebacksomeofthiscontrolinmeetingsbecauseclientsandprospects are used to leading, calling out next steps with vendor-providers—assumingtheinitialdancewithyourcompanywasagoodexperience.Butmorecontrolhelpsclosebusinessfaster. Areyoubeginningtoseewhyitmightbeagoodideatolearnhowtoleadifyouwanttocontrolyoursalesandmarketingcostsandshortenclosingcycles?You cannot lead the dance if the value propositions you leadwith don’t havecompelling financial business benefits enticing the client’s attention—meaningtheyhavenoTEETH.Andhowcanyoudrivetheprocessifyouenteratalevelwhere the people you’re dealingwith don’t even care if themessage has anyTEETH(seventhconstraint)? Onelasttime:Itisdifficulttoleadaclientorprospectdownaspecificpathorcourseofactionunderareasonabletimehorizoniftherearenoclear,compellingfinancialbusinessbenefitsasthemainthemeorfocusofyourmeetings.Whereistheurgencyyouarecreating?Itisn’tthere.Andifitisnotpresent,howcanyourealisticallyexpecttocompressyourcompany’sclosingcycles? The Constraints Assessment can help reveal how your business developersviewtheinitialdancewiththeclientorprospect—veryimportantbecauseitwillalso help you understand if you’ve got the right people on board. In yourpeople’s responses may lie the keys that you can combine with certainAccelerantstocompressyourcompany’sclosingcyclesandoverallcostofsales.

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ELEVENTHCONSTRAINT

THECONTENT,FORMAT,ANDDELIVERYOFYOURPOWERPOINTPRESENTATIONISLACKLUSTER——TOO

LONGANDNOTTIGHTLYFOCUSEDFOR MANY COMPANIES THEIR BOILERPLATE POWERPOINTPRESENTATIONisasacredcow.It’stheirstory,missionstatement,descriptionofproductsandservices,clients served,andsuccessescarved.Abeautifulandcohesive footprint of the company—right?Youwould think so, basedonhowdefensivesomebecomewhenyoustartsuggestingchangestotheirpresentation. Theyreactasifyouaremakingmeancommentsabouttheirchildren.Thisisastrange response because when asked how they actually like their ownboilerplate,theytypicallyreply:“It’sallright,but toolong. . . It’sboring. . .Myprospectstuneoutinthemiddle...There’stomuchinformationintherethattheydon’tseemtocareabout...It’snotveryexciting...It’sourstandardpitch,andwe’renotauthorizedtochangeanythinginit.” If thepeoplegivingthepresentationarenotproudorimpressedwithit, is itfairtoexpectthattherecipientsshouldbe?Tobringitevenclosertohome,askyour people to be candid with their opinions about your company’spresentations. This conversation may help you understand why so manycompanies are finding (once they commit the time to look into it), that thisparticular element of their sales process actually interferes with closing morebusiness. In fact,manycompanies’ standardizedboilerplates are substantial blockadesto future growth. Their deck contains too many slides, takes too long to getthrough, is not tailored to the level of executives it’s beinggiven to, andveryoftenthemeatisstuffedtowardtheendofthepresentation,whichirritatesseniorexecutives.Thepresentationalsotypicallycontainstoomuchunnecessarydetail.Lookintoyourpresentationtoassessifthere’sextraneousdata. The resultsmay be speaking for themselves in terms of client and prospect

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reactions and your closing percentages. However, the good news is eachcomponentofyourpresentationcanbealteredorchanged,becauseyouhavethepowertochangetheelementsthatdon’tserveyourpurpose. TheConstraintsAssessmentquestionscanprovideagutcheckonwhatyourpeoplethinkofyourpresentations—andwheretheythinkthematerialcouldbeenhanced. This is valuable data that can provide ameasurableROI if you actuponthesesuggestions. To work on eliminating this constraint in your company flip to DELIVERTHEULTIMATEPRESENTATIONonpage133—Accelerantprinciplesix.Itisafield-provenformatandmethodologyfor improvinguponthecurrentversionofyour standardizedboilerplate. Itwill showyoua specificmethodology, andideasonhowtoreorderandshortenthecontentwhileaddingpizzazzandpowertoyourdelivery.Fifteenyearsofconsistentfeedbackfromclientsandprospectsleave littledoubt that thisprovenformat isawinner. In fact, seniorexecutivesparticularlyloveit.

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TWELFTHCONSTRAINT

YOURINABILITYTOCOMMUNICATETOCLIENTSANDPROSPECTS—THEFINANCIALBENEFITSOFWORKING

TOGETHERWHICH IS SMARTER: HELPING PROSPECTS AND CLIENTSUNDERSTAND early on in your courting process the possible financialdeliverables, outcomes, or net-nets of your products, services, or offerings orallowingthemtofigureitoutwhentheysaytheyarereadyto?Strangely,mostpeopledoitthesecondway. If youdrill down to its very essence, this constraint negatively impacts andeffectively blocks many organizations’ revenue growth plans for two primaryreasons:

1.Thepeopleyouaresellingtoarebeingpressuredbytheirorganizationsto deliver results through every product, service, or solution they considerpurchasing.

2. The inability of providers to articulate how their products or servicescreateordeliverfinancialbenefit,impact,orbusinessvaluefortheprospectandclient.The twelfth constraint is the result of a sales process that lets the prospect orclientleadthedanceforthreereasons:

1. The provider lacks confidence in their offerings’ ability to produce afinancialbenefit.

2.Theproviderdoesn’tfeeltheyneedorshouldcommittofinancialclaimsup front because they believe it’s the prospect’s or client’s responsibility tofigure it out. In some cases, the provider’s legal counsel is telling them theycannot—inany formor fashion—putoutnumbersorcommit tospecifics.Thekey word here is commit. (I will address this in Accelerant principle four,METRICTHEMESSAGE,sincethereisasolutiontotheproblem.)

3. The provider is having difficulty determining the financial benefits oftheir products and services and then believing in them enough to make a

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compellingpresentation. Thisisarealissueformanycompanies.Thelargerquestionis:Whyshouldyoutakeaclose lookat this inyourorganization?Theanswer issimple. Ifyoudobusiness in a very competitive industry where clients havemultiple attractivealternatives toyourproductsandservices, theymayviewyouprettymuch thesameastheyviewothertopproviders.Ifthereisanychanceofthishappening,they will cop the attitude that the top vendor-providers’ features and benefitslookprettydarnclose—almostvanilla, intheirassessment.Atthatpoint intheprocess,theproviderislikelytohearsomethinglikethis: “LookMichael,attheendoftheday,clearlyyourstuffisverygood.Welikehowourrelationshiphasprogressed;there’sbeenagoodhistoryhere,etc.Butwehaveafewalternativeswehavetolookataswell.Whatwereallyneedfromyouistohelpusunderstandthefinancialbusinessbenefitsofyourproductsandservices.That,morethananything,willhelpusassessthedirectioninwhichweshouldgo.” Nowlet’srewindtothebeginningofthischapter.Thepeopleyouaresellingto are under immense pressure to show results for what they are buying, orconsidering buying. Because the features and benefits of each option arebecoming more and more blurred among top vendor choices, clients andprospects are having trouble seeing any substantial differences. Therefore, theeasiest,fastest,andsafestwayforthemtojustifyapurchaseisbyunderstandingthefinancialbusinessbenefitsofyourofferings. Thefasterandearlierintheprocesstheycanunderstandthis,thebetter.Ifyouaren’twillingtodothisworkforthemorhelpthemfigureitout intermstheyunderstandandaccept,thisconstraintisabsolutelyimpactingyourgrowth.Thisisimportantenoughtodiscusswithyourcolleaguestogettheirperspective. Accelerant principle four,METRIC THEMESSAGE, will provide tools tohelp you better articulate how your offerings can financially impact prospectsandclientssothatyoucanminimizethisconstraint. Youhavenowbeenexposedtothetwelveconstraints,andthewaytheyslowdownorblockyourfirmfromachievingmoretoplinegrowthinareducedtimehorizon. Understanding these twelve road blocks and dealing with those thatapplytoyouandyourorganizationwillassistyouinhittingthetargetsyousetforyourselfandyourcompany.Theyalldirectlyimpactyourabilitytobringinrevenue,and thespeedatwhichyouareable toget it in thedoor—something

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WallStreetisalwayskeenlyinterestedin,asyoualreadyknow. You may already have an inkling as to which constraints are the biggestimpediments in your company. These constraints continue to hold up forwardprogressinthousandsofcompaniesofallsizes.Thekeyisdeterminingwhichonesmightbenegativelyimpactingyourgrowth.Thefasteryoufigureoutwhichonesarethebiggestissuesforyourbusiness,thequickeryoucanaddressthem. It is now time to take a look at the Accelerants—the principles that canaddress and minimize your constraints and take your business developmenteffortstothenextlevel.

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SectionTwo:TheAccelerantPrinciplesTWELVEPROVENPRINCIPLESTOOVERCOME,MINIMIZE,ORDISSOLVETHECONSTRAINTSTOYOURBUSINESS’SGROWTHBECAUSETHERE’SSOMUCHNOISEINOURLIVES,WEALLNEEDTOBEremindedofwhyweareinvestingourprecioustimeinthisorthatsowecanstaythecourseandlearnwhateveritisweareattemptingtolearn. We’venowexaminedeachofthetwelveconstraints,discussinghowandwhythey wreak major havoc on the speed at which you are able to pull in morebusiness and increase your cash flow. Before I share each of the Acceleranttools, I want to give you a another taste of how effective and necessary thisprocess is if youwantyourmessages tobeheard faster,by the right levelsofdecisionmakers,togetadecisioninlesstime.That’swhatAccelerantsisreallyallabout. So before I take you through each individual tool—each Accelerant—explainingeachone’svalueandthebenefiteachonecandeliverbyitselforinconcertwithothersasacohesiveprocess,hereisastoryabouttheapplicationoftheprocessonanopportunityofsignificancethatmaderealmoney. Accelerants helped my partner and me close a seven-figure deal withHousehold Finance International—after they had already selected one of ourcompetitorsattheconclusionofanexhaustiveRFPprocess(whichwewerenotpartof).Backwhenwecourtedthem,theywereapproximatelysevenoreightbillion in annual revenues. Now they are even bigger, calledHFC-Beneficial,andpartofanevenlargerconcern,HSBCFinance.Thisstorywillshowyouthepowerbehindthesetoolsandhowtheycanworkveryeffectivelyathelpingyoubringhomemorebacon.ACCELERANTSUCCESSSTORY:IT’SNEVERTOOLATE“Somehowwemissedit.HowdidwemissanRFPsubmissionfromHouseholdFinance?” I couldn’t believe it.Why didn’twe know about this opportunity?

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Why weren’t we sent their RFP? Upon securing a copy of the request forproposal, we learned that HFC had already selected one of our toughestcompetitors, installed two systems in their collections center in theWest, andwere continuing the rollout to other centerswithin theirU.S. operations. Thisopportunitywasover, dead, sewnup.The task forcehaddisbanded, and fromwhatwecouldfindout,theinstallationandintegrationrolloutwasonschedule,movingforwardwithoutahitch—atotallymissedopportunity. WewentthroughtheRFP,tryingtofindaclueastowhythiscompetitorwasselected,andcameacrosssomethingstrange.Manytimeswithinthedocument,HFCstatedtheywantedanIBM-basedpredictive-dialingplatformbecausetheywerealargeIBMshop.Theonlythingstrangewasthetaskforcehadselectedanon-IBM-BASED platform vendor.Wewere the only IBM-based platform inthismarketatthattime.Eventhoughwewerenotprivytothedetails,somethingdidn’tseemright. Whatcouldwedo?Fromwhatwecouldgleanthroughthegrapevine,they’dalreadymade their decision and were well on their way, with an installation,integrationandmigrationschedulerunningsmoothlytoboot. DidwedaredoanAccelerantBlitzonthisorganization?Andifwedid,whowouldwe target, since the task forcehaddisbandedandwasprobablyback tobusinessasusual?Plus,ifwedidgetinwithsomeonewithenoughpowerandauthority who would listen and take action, what would our excuse be—ourreasonforstirringupthewaters?Coulditbethatthetaskforcemadeanerrorintheir selection process?Why didn’t they select an IBM-based platform if thatwasakeyrequirement?Thisbecameourcrackinthedoor,ourjustificationforapproachingthemwitha“Didyouknow?”-typemessagetothehighestlevelsofthisorganization—levelswellabovewherethetaskforcerested. Risky?Ididn’tknow.Whatwouldbewrongwithawell-writtenCOLSystemapproachletter(youwilllearnabouttheCircleofLeverageSystemapproachinAccelerantfive)addressedtomultipleseniorexecutiveswho,weguessed,wouldwant to know this?Wewould openwith an introduction of our organization,followedby:

1.AnapologyforbeingunawareoftheirRFP2.New information, telling themwe had read theRFP,were aware they

weresearchingforIBM-basedpredictive-dialingtechnology,andthataccordingto our understanding, they had selected a non-IBM-based technology as theirvendorofchoiceandhadbeguninstallation

3. A gridlike feature and benefit comparison of our systems against the

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vendorthey’dselected—stressingthatweweretheonlyonesofferinganIBM-basedplatform

4.Ouroffer—round-tripairfare,hotel,andmealsforuptofivepeoplefromtheirorganizationtojoinusinAtlanta,wheretheywouldseetwocustomersitesofourIBM-basedinstallationsinfinancialinstitutionsWe spent time buildingmetrics into themessage, combinedwith the obviousbenefitofofferinganIBM-basedplatform. ASSESSINGOURSTATUS regarding this opportunity showed thatwehadno status. Ifwe chose to approach,we needed a darn good, compelling valuepropositionarticulatinghowtheycouldstillgainbycomingovertooursolution.DESIGNINGOURFUTUREforcedustoanalyzeandfocusonwhowehadtobeinfrontof tocauseactionaroundourmessage.Thisalsohelpedusidentifywhoweneededtokeepawayfrom—thosewefeltwouldkillourchancesfasterthanwecouldblink. Weanalyzedthemanagementstructureandcorporateresearchtosolidifythepoints of entry inside this castle we would appeal to.We had CHARTEREDOURCOURSE.TimetoMETRICTHEMESSAGE. TheRFPprovidedenoughofanoverviewoftheoperationthatwewereableto craft a financial picture for our Circle of Leverage letter, which we hopedwould garner the right executives’ attention.The calibration ofTEETH in thevaluepropositionwastimewellspent.It’sneveragoodideatoblastinthedooratahighlevel—oranylevel—ifyouhavenothingofcompellingsignificancetooffer. Thefinancialpicturewepaintedwascomparabletothatofthevendoralreadyselected. But because we provided the only verifiable IBM-based predictive-dialingplatformat that time, therecouldbeadditional ITbenefits, creatinganevenbetterfinancialbusinesscaseformovingtooursystemsolution. ACCESSINGTHECASTLEwas going to be an artful strategy and dance,since this was a multibillion-dollar organization. We targeted the EVP ofworldwide operations, who appeared through numerous direct reports to haveultimateresponsibilityforthebusinessunitthatwoulduseoursystem.Wealsotargeted senior financial executives and the SVP of credit and collections—stayingclearofthetechnologyorganizationuponinitialentranceintothecastle.AppealingtotheITorganization(whichappearedtoholdhalftheplaceholderson the task force) would only put us in quicksand. Typically, large IT

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organizations are stretched thin, with numerous projects that need to be done“yesterday”andlittletimetofocusonprospectivenewvendorsorsuppliers. Thefive-to-six-pageCOLSystemletterslandedsimultaneouslyonthedesksof the targeted executives. Our request for initial access was a fifteen-minuteconference call with the EVP of worldwide operations or one of the seniorfinancialorcollectionsexecutives—someonewiththepower,fortitude,andgutstoreopenthetaskforceanalysisifitprovedaprudentundertaking. The letterwas our bestHailMary into thismultinational. Even though ourvaluepropositionpassedmusterandwasfullofteeth,wehadmissedtheparty,whichwasourownfault.Persuadingagroupofdisbandedtaskforcemembersto come back together and review decisions they had already put to bedwasdefinitelyaHailMaryapproach. Withconvictionsolidandexpectationsincheck,wewaitedtwoorthreedaysas theCOL letters percolated among the targeted executives like coffee in themorning. With the COL, you always follow up from the top down. When IfollowedupwiththeexecutiveassistanttotheEVPofworldwideoperations,Ilearned he had seen the letter, discussed it with someone, andwaswilling tospeak to us in about one week. Once the conference call was scheduled, westoppedallfollow-upswiththeothers,sincewehadbeengrantedaccesstooneofthehighestexecutiveswehadappealedto. Thephonecallwasbriefandto thepoint.Hisoverarchingquestionwas“Isthislettertrue?Howcanthisletterbetrue?Whatdoyoumeanthatyouaretheonly IBM-based predictive-dialing platform?” As we said yes to his firstquestion,Irecallhimbarkingoutsomethingtotheeffectthat“thenhowcouldourpeoplehavepossiblymissedthat?Ican’tbelievethis.Gentlemen,IamgoingtotakeyouuponyourofferofflyingfiveofourpeopletomeetyouinAtlantatotakeasitetourofyourIBM-basedinstallations.SittightandmyofficewillgetbackwithyouonthenamesandtitlesofthoseIwantgoingonthislittlejunket,andiftheyverifythatwhatyouaresayingiscorrect,wewilldetermineatthatpointwhatdirectiontotake.Areweclear?” Aswe hung up, I thoughtwemight actually have an opportunity.Within acoupleofweeks,wehadthenamesoffivepeopleandtheirrespectivetitles.Wequickly made flight arrangements and site visits with our two Atlanta-basedclients. OnthedaywegreetedthematourmanufacturinglocationinAtlanta,itwasapparenttheywerenotpleasedtobethere.Clearly,thiswasacaseofbeingtold

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by higher-ups to learn about a solution they had not considered for whateverreason. Now they had to investigate it and report back with their findings,thoughtheyhadalreadymadetheirdecisionmonthsearlier. The day was an exercise in rapport building.We apologized for not beingaware of their RFP as they made cracks about what a hassle it would be toreopentheassessment.Weremainedhumbleandfirm,stressingtheIBM-basedarchitecturebehindoursolution.WeemphasizedthatbecausetheywerealargeIBMshop,theycouldgainfurthereconomiesofscaleandperformance. Thecustomervisitwentsmoothlybutasweputthembackontheplane,wehadabsolutelynofeelingaboutwhetherwehadbudgedthemoneinch.Nowwewaitedforfurtherdirection. It came from the EVP’s office. We were to call the SVP of credit andcollections for their Canadian operation.Wewere to fly up there andmake apresentation explaining why they should work with us versus the selectedvendor,sincetheyweremonthsfromhavingtheirsystemsinstalledinMontreal,Toronto,andVancouver. WequicklyfoundourselvesinCanadadoingexactlyasweweretold.SeveralIT-orientedmeetingsfollowedwiththeirCanadianoperation,andloandbehold,wewereawardedtheirCanadiancollectioncenters. We couldn’t build the systems fast enough. As they were installed andintegrated, performing as promised, guess where we were referred? To theircreditandcollectionsoperationintheUnitedKingdom,alsoalargeIBMshop.Sufficeittosay,wewereawardedthatbusinessaswell,circlingbacktotheU.S.operationtosecureatoeholdthere.Thisprovedastruggle,sincetheywerewelldown the roadwith the original vendor. The important question is: Couldwehave gotten any of HFC’s business had we not ASSESSED OUR STATUS,DESIGNED OUR FUTURE, METRICED THEMESSAGE so the offer wascrystal clear, and then ACCESSED THE CASTLE by approaching their ITorganization? No way would we have gotten five people to Atlanta had weapproached their ITorganization—not a chance.Butbasedonhowandwherewedidenterthecastle,coupledwiththetoneandhonestyofourapproachletter,themessagefounditsaudiencequicklywithanexecutivewhohadthepowertoact. DELIVERING THE ULTIMATE PRESENTATION, PAINTING THEFINANCIAL PICTURE, and HOLDING OUR GROUND (you’ll becomefamiliar with these ACCELERANTS shortly) were some of the additional

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reasonswewereawardedportionsoftheirbusiness.Intheend,wenevergottheU.S.business,butwedidwintheirCanadianandUnitedKingdombusiness—averysatisfyingresultbasedonthesizeofthecontracts. Was it too late for us to approach in this situation? Is it ever too late toapproach?Our results spoke for themselves. Itwasn’t too late, even though afewfeatherswereruffled.Mostimportant,HFCbenefitedinthefinalanalysis—Accelerantstotherescue. Which opportunities on your plate might warrant some form of Accelerantinitiative? This is something to discuss with your peers. You may salvageopportunitiesyouthoughtwerealreadygone. Now it’s time to tell you about eachAccelerant and how they can be usedindividuallyortogetheronopportunitiesofsignificancetogrowyourbusiness.

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FIRSTACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

ASSESSYOURSTATUS

WHEN YOU DON’T FEEL WELL AND THINK SOMETHING MIGHT BEwrong,youtypicallygotothedoctorandtellthemaboutyoursymptoms.Theytake the informationandaskdetailedquestions, create adiagnosis, andadviseyouoftreatmentoptions.Youweightheoptions,askclarifyingquestionsifyouwant more insight, then select the treatment option that best suits yourobjectives.Your decision takes into account howmuchdiscomfort you are in,howfastyouwant it togoaway,and theamountofmoneyyouarewilling tospend to resolve the pain and the problem. This process is clean, fairlystraightforward, full of common sense, and typically works well most of thetime. Sowhywouldyounot follow the samepattern foryourbusinesswhenyouthinksomethingiswrong?We’retalkingaboutyourbusiness—thevehiclethatprovides the income that fundsyourmedical care andwell-being.And just asyoumakedecisionsaboutyourhealth,youshouldapplycommonsensehereaswell. Nowthatyou’vehadatasteoftheconstraintsandhowtheycansignificantlyimpedeyourcompany’sabilitytocreatemorerevenue

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inamoreefficientmanner,doesn’t itmakesense todoabasicassessment—aclean, straightforward process that will gather feedback frommultiple parties(likeyouandyourkeypeople)andaskadditionalquestionsforclarification?Aprocessthatwillthenconsolidatethedataandpresentitbackwithananalysisof“what’sgoingon”withthefrontendofyourbusinessrelativetotheconstraintsthat are causing your business themost pain? Thiswould allow you tomakesomedecisionsaboutwhichonesyou’lltacklefirst. Implementingstrategiesyoubelievewillgrowyourbusinessbeforeassessingyour status isn’t the wisest thing you can do—wouldn’t you agree? Theassessmenthelpsyouunderstandwhat’sbelowthewaterline—factorsyoumight

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notseeforthereasonsIhavesharedinthedescriptionofeachconstraint.Thenyou’ll become aware of the constraints impacting your growth, so you canaddress them with treatment options that fit your objectives, time lines, andbudget. Though there’s never a convenient time for an assessment, procrastinationisn’t an option anymore. Top-line growth is the mantra—the new focus forcompanies large and small for the foreseeable future. CEOs and owners havetrimmedtheexcess.There’snothingmoretotrim.Nobody’sallowedtohideandthe front end is the focus now. Thismeans increasing business from existingclientsandwinningmorebusinessfromprospectsandverticalsectorsyouhaveyettopenetrate.Thisiswhatwilltakecenterstagefromnowon. Youmayhaveheardthesaying“Thedefinitionofinsanityisdoingthesamething over and over again but expecting a different result.” If growing yourbusiness is a top priority, thenDr. StephenR.Covey’s principle, First ThingsFirst, fromhisbookThe7HabitsofHighlyEffectivePeople, is relevanthere.ASSESS YOUR STATUS. Learn which constraints are slowing down yourgrowth,assess theirseverity,andselect the treatmentoptions thatsupportyourdesiredoutcomes. The questions following the first three constraints chapters are from theConstraintsAssessment. Information on the complete version can be found atwww.accelerantinternational.com. This will help you start the crucialconversationinsideyourcompanytofindoutwhatyouandyourpeoplebelieveabout each constraint’s negative impact on your business. Therefore, youmaywant to go back and review the questions we use in the assessments forconstraintsone,two,andthree. For the sake of your business, you need to know how existing clients andprospectswillanswerthesequestions.Sobedirectandaskthem.Theiranswerswillgoalongwaytoassistyouinbuildingstrategiestoenhanceandlengthenyour business relationships. And remember, their answers will be different,basedontheirrelativepowerandauthoritywithintheorganization.Soitmightbeagood idea togroup theexecutivesandmid-and lower-levelmanagers intosimilar“authoritybuckets”asyouaskthequestions. The Constraints Assessment includes questions that address all twelveconstraints. The sample questions for the first three constraints will help youbegin the conversations within your company. My advice, if you want to dothings right to minimize any surprises down the road, is to complete the

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assessmentofalltwelveconstraintssoyouhaveadiagnosisofhoweachoneisimpactingyourgrowth.Thenyoucanaddress thosecausing themostpainanddiscomforttothebusinessbeforeapplyingtheappropriateAccelerants.

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SECONDACCELERANTPRINCIPLE DESIGNYOURFUTURENOW THAT YOU HAVE ASSESSED YOUR STATUS, KNOW WHICHCONstraints are impactingyourgrowth, anddeterminedhowyouwill addressthem, it’s time to decide how you want your new business-gathering processmodeltolookandworkgoingforward.Thebestwayistoputthespotlightonthe way you’ve been doing it the past several years—contrasting the currentmodelwithhowyouwantyourrevisedprocesstofunction. Onewaytodo this thatworkswell is tocometogetherbybusinessunit. (Ifyou’reasmaller firmwitha fewproductsandservices,gather thewhole teamtogether.)Owners;executivesresponsibleforsales,marketing,andnewbusinessgeneration; key field sales managers; and a few key producers should cometogethertodiscussinternallyfocusedquestionssuchas:

1.Howcanweshortenourcurrentsellingcyclewithclientsandprospectswewishtotarget,collapsingourtimetoadeal?

2.Who(bytitle)arewecallingoninourinitialmeetingsandwhy?

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3.Aretheseindividualstherightpeopletoapproachtogarnertractionwiththeopportunity?

4. What exactly happens in each of our meetings with clients andprospects?Whatarethetypicaloutcomesfromeachmeetingalongtheway?Doweliketheprocesswe’vebeenfollowing?Isitservingourneeds?

5. Is there a pattern to our hunting, courting, and closing process frommeetingonetomeetingnumber______?

6.Isthereastandardnumberofmeetings,conferencecalls,sitevisits,andweb-x demonstrations/presentations before we see real traction with theopportunity?

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These are great questions to begin with. Our experience suggests that whenclients bring together the right people and address these questions, they aresurprised by what they learn from one another. They also hear answers theydon’t like and others they didn’t know. For example, without fail, the seniorexecutives think their sales organization is following the sales process that’sbeenputinplacebythemselvesortheirpredecessors.However,theyoftencometolearnthere’splentymore“grayarea”aroundwhatthesalespeoplearedoingineachmeeting.Therefore,thesequestionsandtherespectiveanswersbringmoreclarity.Thepositiveoutcomeisanopendialoguebeginsamongthosewhohaveastakeintheforwardprogressandtop-linegrowthofthebusiness. Onetoolyoucanusetogaingreaterclarityaroundwhat’sactuallyhappeningwithyourcurrentsellingandcourtingprocess is theBlockandTackleMatrix.Askyourgroupthefollowingquestionsandwhiteboardthecollectiveresponses.Doing this exercise helps companies create a more accurate picture ofproceduresorprocessestheymaywanttochange,reorder,oreliminate.THEBLOCKANDTACKLEMATRIX(Filloutoneforeachcategory)

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We encourage clients to fill in thismatrix at least twice—once around howthingsworknowandoncearoundhowthey’dlikethemtoworkgoingforward.This approach can help DESIGN YOUR FUTURE business hunting andgatheringprocess. If you wish to take the exercise further you can, by completing a currentversusfutureviewaroundeachofthefollowingcategories:

1.Currentclients

2.Industryverticalsyouwishtoapplymorefocusto3.In-progressopportunitiesthathavestalledorgonesilent4.Targetedprospectsthatappeartobeworthhunting

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5.Opportunitieslostduringthelastsixmonths

TheBlock andTackleMatrix is a useful tool, so let the dialoguewithin yourcompanybegin,andstartDESIGNINGYOURFUTURE. This is a primary tool our clients have used successfully to think throughscenarios tocompress their closingcyclesand time toadeal.Theprocesscanfeel challenging at times because the answers to the questions, which appearpretty basic, are actually hard to find or see in some cases. Remain open tochangingyourpersonalparadigmsasyoumovethroughtheexercise.Thiswillhelpyourbusinessevenmore. Here’swhatI’veobservedwhilerunningtrainingandconsultingsessionswithanywhere from ten-to fifty-million-dollar companies to multibillion-dollarmultinationalsthatputkeypeopleinoneroomandtaskthemtocollaborativelyworkthroughtheBlockandTackleMatrix: First, clientswho put the right people in the room for this exercise get themostfromit.I’vealreadysaiditonce,butitisimportantenoughtomentionthislistagain:

1.Theowner,president/CEO,orbusinessunithead2.Theheadofsales/businessdevelopment

3.Theheadofmarketing

4.Two,three,orfourkeyregionalorterritoryvicepresidentsoverthesalesmanagersandproducers/clientaccountmanagers

5.Two,three,orfourofthekeysalesmanagers/clientaccountmanagers6.Two,three,orfourtopsalespeopleforthecompany7.Thechieffinancialofficerforthecompany/businessunit

With sucha formidablegroup in the same room, the strength, experience, andcredibilityofthefacilitatorbecomesimportant.Thefacilitatorshouldbecapableof channeling and policing the conversation as things unfold. There’s usuallyplenty of debate, strong opinions, disagreements, and in some cases, heatedexchanges.Aslongasthefacilitatorkeepseveryonefocusedontheobjectiveoffindingtangibleideasthatallowthecompanytotightenandshortentheirsales

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process,theneveryonewillkeepinmindthatthisworkisforacommoncause. This is supposed to be a fun exercise. Any time you get sharp, successful,opinionated people together in one room and task them to explore with thisexercisehowtheircurrentprocesssupposedlyworksandthentolookforwaystoimproveit,howcouldyounotexpectanythingbutaspiriteddebate? Asthefacilitatorhelpsthegroupcapturetheiranswersonthegridaboutthefirst three prospect or client meetings/calls in their current process, thingstypicallyhita snag. Inmanycases, the salespeopleshare that, aroundmeetingnumberthreeorfour,itisimpossibleforthemtonaildownexactlythenumberof people involved or their titles because, as they say, “It just depends.” Itdependsonsomanyotherfactors,theyinsist.Thisresponseeventuallyirritatesthe management who are present, and they typically respond, “What do youmean,itdepends?Howlonghaveweallbeendoingthis?Jeez.Ithoughtwehadthisstuffallnaileddown.Thisisbasicblock-and-tacklestuff.Let’skeepgoing.Weneedtofleshthisstuffout.” Thistonefrommanagementoftenputsthesalespeopleontheirheelsandintoadefensivestate,becausetheydon’tlikebeing“pinneddown”tospecifics.Andtheydofeelgenuinelyfrustratedwiththeexpectationintheroom,when,intheiropinionandfirsthandexperience,ittrulydoesdepend. Ifyourunintothisspeedbump,here’sasuggestion.FleshoutwhatIcallsideroads.Define eachpossible scenario and fleshout each road to its end, to thesigningofadeal.Ineachsideroad,sticktothegridbydefiningineachstepofyourcurrentprocesshowmanypeoplearetypicallyinvolved,theirtitles,whatishappening,andwho’sdoingwhat. Weoftenbuildthreeorfourdifferentbranchesforclients,emanatingfromthissnag.Thosewhosayyousimplycan’tnail this stuffdownare taking theeasywayout.Ifyouwanttounderstandwhyittakeslongerthanyou’dliketobringinbusiness,thenpayattentiontothesebranches.Theywillgiveyouanswerstoyourquestions. Regardlessofthesnagsyouencounter,keepmovingforwarduntilyoufinishthe matrix for your current sales process. Then take a break and study theresponsesyouputintothegrid.Lookforpatterns.Askquestionsabouthowyoucouldcompressyourownprocess. There’shumorinthisexercise.Onmorethanafewoccasionswhilerunningthisexerciseforclients,seniormanagementhassatback,lookedattheresponses

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onthematrix,andsaidsomethinglike,“Holybuckets. Ihadnoidea.Weneedhelpifwecan’tdobetterthanthis.” Now the group should do the exercise again, but this time with the focusaroundhowyou’dlikeyournewprocesstofunctionfromnowon. WhatIhaveobservedovertheyearsisthatclientsbegintonoticethatasthemeetings and calls progress frommeeting one, then two, then three, etc., thetitles of the people who become involved get fancier and fancier. So onesuggestionistoseeifyoucouldreengineeryournewprocesstocompressitbyatleast20percent.We’vehelpedclientscompresstheirnewprocessbyasmuchas half, saving them hundreds of thousands, sometimesmillions of dollars insellingexpenses.Thisiswhytheexerciseisvaluableandworthyourtimeandattentiontoconduct.Howmuchmoneywouldyousaveifyoucouldfindaway,whicheveryonebuysoffon,toshorten/compressyoursalesprocess? Berigorouswiththisexerciseandkeepanopenmind.Thismatrixhasopenedtheeyesofmorethanafewcompanies,helpingthemcleanouttheirpipesandcompresstheirtimetoadeal.InthewordsofaNikecampaign,“Justdoit.”

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THIRDACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

CHARTERYOURCOURSE

YOU HAVE ASSESSED YOUR STATUS, SO YOU KNOW WHICHCONSTRAINTSareslowingyourgrowth.You’reeitherfixingthemyourselforgetting the help you need to minimize or eliminate them. And you’veDESIGNEDYOURFUTUREbusinesshuntingprocessbydoingtheBlockandTackleMatrix exercise at least twicewith your key people, so you all have aclearerfocusonwhatneedstobeaccomplishedateachstepofyournewprocessin order to drive the additional revenue growth desired. This exercise willminimizethenumberofsurprisesinthesalesfunnel. NowyouarereadytoCHARTERYOURCOURSEtowardopportunitiesyouwish tohuntbyreviewingyourexistingclientbase todeterminewhichclientswarrantadditionalfocusandresources.Thesameappliesforkeyprospectsthatappearlucrative.Ialsorecommendreviewingyourverticalindustryattackplanstocreateaggressivenew,outside-the-boxwaysofshakingthetreesinverticalswhereperhapsyouhaven’tgivenityourall. ThisAccelerantwillalsohelpyoumakecoursecorrectionsforopportunitiesalreadyinthefunnelthataredraggingorhavegone

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silent. A fresh approach might drive them to the finish line—or out of thefunneltoconservevaluableresources. For example, we had a client, a multibillion-dollar technology firm whosecentralregionintheUnitedStateshadinvestedaboutfourteenmonthswithoneof the larger cable companies in the country but was essentially nowhere intermsof tractionatanexecutive level.Theyneededa freshapproach tocreatesomeurgencywiththeprospect,sincethisdealrepresentedamultimillion-dollarorderfortheteam.Everytimethesalesteamhadaskedtheirday-to-daycontacts(at the director level) for an executive-level audience, they were effectivelydenied.Ourclient’s seniormanagementwasgettingperturbedwith the lackof

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tractionandthecostoftheeffort.Theywantedthedealeitherclosedorpushedoutofthefunnel. SowewerecalledinlikeaSWATteamtoapplythisAccelerantandotherstothis opportunity andhelp thembring thedeal to fruition.Byhaving the clientteamreviewthedetailsofwhathadtakenplaceduringthespanofmorethanayear,wecharteredafreshnewapproach,whichgavethemamuchtightervalueproposition that spoke to the top five senior executives.We then taught themhow to use the fifth principle to ACCESS THE CASTLE of this large cableconcern. Lo and behold,my client got their day in the sunwith a few of theEVPs in one room, for about thirty to forty-five minutes—long enough toexpand upon themessagementioned in their approach letter. TheAccelerantscan help you think outside the box to create fresh approaches to deals fallingsilent,orstalled,asthisonewas. If you are still reeling from opportunities you didn’t win, doesn’t it makesense to CHARTER YOUR COURSE for the ones lost during the last sixmonths,onceyoulearnhowalltheAccelerantsworktogether?Wouldn’tclosingoneofthoseopportunitiesbeworththeeffort? CHARTERING YOUR COURSE around the five categories listed inAccelerantprincipletwo,DESIGNYOURFUTURE,isaseasyasgoingtothenearestwhiteboard,notansweringthephoneforadayorso,andcharteringyourstrategytogainmorebusinessineachofthesefiveareassuchaswithexistingclients,newprospects,etc. Itdoesn’tneedtobea long,drawn-outexercise. Infact, thinking through where to apply additional focus and resources to gainadditionalbusinessisinvigorating. Some liken this Accelerant to their strategic account planning and reviewprocedure, and in one sense, it can be thought of in this vein.After you readaboutAccelerantsfourandfive,youmaywanttoemulatewhatweoftendowithclients—bringthembacktothisthirdAccelerant,showingthemhowto“group”certaincompetingcompanies theywant tohunt(basedonrevenues) ineachofthefivecategories intoAccelerantCampaigns,suchthatcertaincompaniesareapproached simultaneously—something called an Accelerant Blitz. In SectionThree,thelasttwoSuccessStorieswillgiveyoureal-lifeexamplesofthepowerandadditionalimpactclientsgainwhenusingtheAccelerantBlitztoolset.Thisis oneway tomaximize the power, efficiencies, and “punch” the Accelerantspack, creating even more urgency for the prospect or client to act on youroffer/message.

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CHARTERYOURCOURSEbyidentifyingthecompaniesyouwanttofocusyourtimeandenergyon.Thiswillhelpyourcompanyfeelmoreorganized,andeveryoneinvolvedinyourbusiness-gatheringeffortswillknowwhere tofocustheirenergy.

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FOURTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

METRICTHEMESSAGE

BELOWARESEVENSETSOFVALUEPROPOSITIONS.IUSEDTHEFIRSTone inmy technology business, primarily on large andmidsized corporations.The secondwas part of a value proposition used by a client—a five-hundred-million-dollar-plus technology services firm that competes with EDS, IBM,CSC, Accenture, and other multibillion-dollar multinationals. Research InMotionusedthethirdmessageyearsagoasapartoftheirvaluepropositioninmarketing their amazingly successful BlackBerry handheld device. Theremainingvaluepropositionsgiveyouadditionalexamplesofwhatmessagesinotherindustriescouldsoundlikeifyouhappentobeinthosebusinesses.Eachset represents a different product or service offering. Read each set anddeterminewhichstatements (AorB)doabetter jobofdrawingyourattentionandpiquingyourinterest.SetOneA:“Ourpredictive-dialingsolutioncan improvetheproductivity(talk timeperhour) of your collections department because the collectors can reach moredebtorsduringthesameshift.”

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B:“Ourpredictive-dialingsolutioncan improve the talk timeperhourofeachcollectorinyourcollectionsdepartment.Weestimateitcurrentlyiseighteentotwenty-fourminutesperhour,andoursolutioncould increase it toasmuchasforty-five minutes each hour. This could nearly double your collectors’productivity—either increasing the dollars collected without increasing yourlabor expense ormaintaining your current level of collections while reducingyourlaborandhealth-careexpensesintherangeof35to45percent.Thechoiceisyours.”

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SetTwoA:“OurorganizationhasbeenabletohelpclientsreducetheamounttheyspendannuallytomaintaintheirexistinglegacyITapplications.”B:“Ourorganizationhasbeenabletohelpcertainclientsreducetheamounttheyspend annually to maintain their existing legacy IT applications by 5 to 15percent.”SetThreeA: “Our wireless, mobile, handheld device can help increase the productivitylevels of your field sales and customer support professionals each and everyday.”B: “Ourwireless,mobile, handhelddevice could ‘find’ an extra thirty to sixtyminutes of additional time every day for each one of your field sales andcustomersupportprofessionals.Webelieve thisextra timecouldenhance theiroverallproductivitylevelsintherangeof5to10percent.”SetFourA:“Clientswhohaveimplementedourrecognitionandrewardsprogramshaveseen an increase in the sales performance of their sales and businessdevelopmentorganization.”B:“Clientswhohaveimplementedourrecognitionandrewardsprogramshaveseena2to5percentincreaseintheannualsalesperformanceoftheirsalesandbusinessdevelopmentorganization.Whatwouldthatlevelofincreasemeanforyourcompany?”SetFiveA: “Our line of granola cereals has, on average, less sugar than other leadinggranolabrands,providingyourcustomerswithamuchhealthierchoice.”B:“Ourlineofgranolacerealshas,onaverage,25percentlesssugarthananyother leading granola brand on the market, providing your customers with amuchhealthierchoice.”

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SetSixA:“Duringmy thirtyyearsasaCertifiedFinancialPlanner, Ihavehelpedmyclientsattaintheiruniquefinancialandretirementgoals.”B: “Duringmy thirtyyears as aCertifiedFinancialPlanner, Ihavehelpedmyclientsattaintheiruniquefinancialandretirementgoalsonetothreeyearsearlierthantheyhadoriginallyplanned.”SetSevenA:“AsasuccessfulresidentialRealtorwithmorethantenyearsinthebusiness,Ispecializeinassistingbuyersandsellersinmaximizingtheirobjectiveswhenitcomestolake-homelivinginthewesternsuburbsofMinneapolis.”B:“AsasuccessfulresidentialRealtorwithmorethantenyearsinthebusiness,Ispecializeinassistingbuyersandsellersinmaximizingtheirobjectiveswhenitcomes to lake-home living in thewesternsuburbsofMinneapolis.Tobemorespecific,incalendar2005,ofallRealtorswhospecializeintheLakeMinnetonkaandsurroundingarea,Iwasrankednumberthreeinsellingpropertiesformorethan$1,000,000.”METRICTHEMESSAGE. I think you seewhere thisAccelerant is heading.Who is asking you to metric your message? Global competitive trends,prospects,andyourclients.ThisshouldbereasonenoughtotakethisAccelerantprincipleseriously. Ifyouwanttolead,youmustMETRICTHEMESSAGE,regardlessofyourbusiness, the position you hold, the industry sectors you serve, whether yourcompany is a market leader, or whatever you market—a product, service,solution,orconcept.Today,everyorganizationshouldhaveawell-defined,clear,crisp value proposition containing some form of metric (if possible) for eachproduct,service,solution,orcausetheyrepresent. Because of the perceived commoditization of many companies’ offerings,prospects and clients often believe they can get about the same thing from atleasttwootherprovidersastheycanfromyou.Regardlessofwhetheritistrue,theyperceive it to be the case.And in thisway they exert leverageover yourfirm. Sometimes this shows itself in their belief that they don’t need to seeanyonefromyourcompanyinitially, ifever.Instead, theyprefer to learnabout

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yourcompany’sofferingsthroughyourWebsite, theInternet,oranycollateralyoucanforwardtothem. Thinkabouttimesinthelastmonthwhenyou’vepushedaclientorprospectprettyaggressivelyforameeting,andthey’vesaidsomethinglike,“That’sOK.Iappreciateyour interest inmeeting,andatsomepointweprobablyneed todothat.Butatthistime,Ithinkit’spremature.Whydon’tyousendtheinformationyou’dlikeustoreview,followupwithmeintwoorthreeweeks,andwe’lltakeitfromthere,allright?” Clientsandprospectsmayviewyourcompany’sofferingsasinterchangeablewith your competition’s. This ought to motivate you to revisit the valuepropositionsofyourofferingstoensuretheyarecondensed,compelling,easilyunderstood, and contain some form of financial metric that describes theapproximatevalueoroutcomeyourofferingscouldproduce.Thatway,youwillbeabletopresentyourofferingsasfrequentlyasneededtoachieveyourrevenueobjectives. Based on what I’ve experienced from years of delivering these trainingprograms and consulting sessions, many organizations are in denial aboutneeding to improve theirvaluepropositionsbyputting financialmetrics insidetheirmessages.Theirattitudehasbeen,“Let’sgetinthedoorfirstanddrawtheclientorprospectout,thenthey’lltelluswhatthey’relookingtodo.SoIdon’tsee the need to sharpen our messages, when they’re going to tell us what’simportanttothemanyway.” Given the nature of how competitive things have become in almost everyindustry,thislineofthinkingisaterriblemistake.It isalazyattitudethatwillnegativelyimpactyourclosingcyclesandcostofsalesbylengtheningyourtimetoadeal.Withoutclearlydefiningthemetricbenefitsoroutcomesyourofferingscoulddrive,youwon’tbeabletoaccessthepeoplewhohavethepowertomakethingshappenasfastasyouwant.Elegant-soundingvaluepropositionswithoutanymetrics are one of the primary reasonswhy youmight not be getting the“poweraudiences”youwantandneedtoclosemorebusinessinashortertimeframe. As their choices increase, it becomesmuchmore difficult for prospects andclients to discern any real differences between available providers.When thishappens, they begin looking for substance among all provider claims. SeniorexecutivesandownerscallittheTEETH,orfinancialmetrics. Because clients are having an increasingly difficult time deciphering the

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benefitsofonealternativeoveranother,theywilloftenselecttheoptiontheycanmost easily justify to “the powers that be”within their company. ThatmeanstheywilllookfirstfortheTEETH.Ifthesearenotpresentinthemessage,theywill not ask why. Instead, they will bypass your option and move to thosecompanies that offer some type of metric. They want to be able to compareavailable options more easily, drilling down if necessary so they can make adecision. Thepeopleyouwanttoapproachonanongoingbasisareputtingmorestockandcredibilityinproviderswhotakethetimetofigureoutandthenexplaininacohesiveandarticulatefashionthemetricsoftheirsolution.ManyorganizationsstruggleinthisareabecauseitcanbeachallengetogainagreementwithintheorganizationastowhattheTEETHareforeachoftheirofferings. Metrics in your value propositions become even more critical for gainingexecutive-level access or exposure to an existing client or prospect. That’sbecausemoneyisforemostontheirmindsintheexecutivesuite.Theywanttounderstandquicklyiforhowyourofferingcouldpositivelyimpactstockprice,debt levels, client satisfaction ratings, government standards, market share,margin and profit ratios, quality standards, client retention levels, agility orstreamlining,andreductionoflegalexposure.Thelistcouldgoonandon.Thekeyistoarticulatehowmuchyouroffercouldimpactanyofthesefactors,andifso,bywhatrange?Sincevendor-providerstypicallywon’tleadwiththistypeofvalueproposition(becausetheyfeeltheydon’tneedto),thosewhodooftenfindthemselvesfirsttobeinvitedtopresenttheirofferings—anotherreasonwhyyoushoulddiscusstheimportanceofthisAccelerantwithcolleagues. Overyearsofrunningvalueproposition-trainingandmanagement-consultingsessions with senior management, we’ve developed a methodology that hashelped small, midsized, and multinational clients develop enterprisewidemessages at the parent organization level for companies that have multiplebusinessunits.Thesemessagesarticulatethefinancialbenefitsofdoingbusinesswith them at an enterprisewide level. This has been extremely beneficial inhelpingclientsdolarger,multiyeardealsthatincludeproductsandservicesfromseveral or all of their business units. This style of selling “big deals” alsodelights the procurement departments of your clients, because they can enjoyeven greater economies of scale. In addition, you, the provider, have an evenbetterchanceofpullingintheverytoppeople,simplybecausethedealswarrantthatmuchmoreattentionfromthetop. Thesamemethodologyforcondensingandarticulatingthemetricsthatshould

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goinsideyourretunedvaluepropositionsalsoappliesatthebusiness-unitlevel.Thisprovenprocesscanimprove,tighten,andarticulatethemessagesaroundthecoreofferingsforeachofyourbusinessunits. Here is an example of an enterprisewide-level value proposition that wehelped create for one of our technology clients—a firm with more than fivehundredmilliondollarsinannualrevenuesandarespectedplayerformorethantwenty years. They used this message very effectively. Notice it’s wordy anddoesn’t speak directly to any specific product, service, or solution. Instead, itencapsulates (in high-level, “layman” terms, which top officers understand)severaloftheirofferings,cascadingthismessagetothehighestlevelsoftargetedcompanies, helping drive larger deals in a shorter time horizon. Here’s theirvalueproposition: Ifyouengageinabusinessrelationshipwithourorganization,wecan,throughour capabilities, skill sets, experience, andmore than forty different offerings,helpyou: 1.Stripbetween5to15percentoutoftheamountofmoneycurrentlybeingspentannuallyonmaintainingyourexistinglegacyITapplications.

2.Improvethequalityofexistinglegacyapplicationsservicelevelsby10percentperyear.

3. Take this newfound “chunk” of capital we have just “freed up,” andredeploy it, by helping you create, implement, and manage your own e-commerceroadmap,givingyoue-commercesolutionsandcustomer-facingITprocessesthatwillhelpyourbusinessbecomeleaner,faster,moreflexible,andmoreprofitable.SaidinplainEnglish,“WithoutanotherdimespentonyourtotalITbudget,wewill find—within your existing IT annual budget—between X and Y milliondollarsandhelpyoureinvest thesedollars intoe-commercesolutions thatwillgiveyoumorecontrol,so thatyoucandriveyourbusiness tobe leaner, faster,moreflexible,andmoreprofitable.” Imaginebeingtherecipientof thismessage.Youcouldgrabyourcalculator,makesomeestimatesastothefinancialimpactthismessagecouldhaveforyourcompany—low-side, high-side—and make a relatively quick decision as towhetheryou’dliketovisitwiththem.Andthisisexactlywhatcanhappenwhentopofficers receive thiskindof enterprisewide-levelvalueproposition. Itdoes

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pullmoreattentioninmanyinstances.Thehardpartistonaildownthemessagefirst. This iswhat you need to focus on if you expect to do larger deals in ashorter time horizon. Your work on the front end will pay off if your valuepropositionsturnouttohavesomerealTEETHthatyoucanbackup. This type of message causes more discussion among the senior ranks ofprospectsandclientsbecauseat theendoftheday,it isallaboutthemoney—somethingtheyallhaveincommon.Therecipientsmaynotnecessarilybelieveyourmessage,but inonesense, that’snot thepoint; ithelpsgetyourmessagediscussed and debated with the people you elect to target. Notice that themessagesaren’t about the featuresandbenefitsofyourofferings,which is thewaywe’veallbeentaughttosell. This type of enterprisewide message can be generated regardless of thebusinessyouarein:hospitality,travel,meetingsandincentives,manufacturing,financial services, medical devices, technology, management services,accounting and internal audit, etc.We have helped companies in the staffing,technology, telecommunications, financial services, and other sectors createmessagesthatgeneratemoreurgencywithkeyexecutivesintargetedcompanies. There is another big trend that will become even more pronounced in theyears ahead. I’ve alluded to it already: The large companies you serve aredemanding that providers streamline their sales operations and reduce theamount of sales divisions/people that call on them. They are voicing theirdiscontentwithbeing“pummeled”byeachdivision’ssalesteamsandwantthatnumberreduced. Basically,theyareaskingthatprovidersdoabetterjobofsellingmoreoralloftheirofferingswithfewersalespeople.Theywantthosewhodocallonthemtobeable tospeakintelligentlyaboutall that thecompanyhas tooffer.Guesswhat?Thisisaverystrongsignalfromyourclientsthattheywantyousellingtothem in an enterprisewide manner. This is why financially crafted valuepropositionsarebecomingmoreandmorenecessaryforyoursustainedrevenuegrowthandsuccess. METRICTHEMESSAGE.Helpprospectsandclientsunderstandeasilyandquickly why your offerings are a better choice than the alternatives bycommunicatingthefinancialoutcomesyourofferingscoulddeliver. We offer assistance in this area through executive workshops, trainingprograms,andconsultingguidance.Formoreinformation,pleaseseethebackofthebook.

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FIFTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

ACCESSTHECASTLE

YOU HAVE ASSESSED YOUR STATUS, DESIGNED YOUR FUTURE,CHARTEREDYOURCOURSE,andMETRICEDYOURMESSAGE(S)atanenterprisewide level and for each business unit’s core offerings. Clients whoimplement these Accelerants experience a general excitement within theirorganizationsbecausetheirlevelofpreparednessishigherthannormal.Theyarereadyforthenextstepandbelievetheycan“takeanycastle!”ThisAcceleranthelpsyourcompanymoreeffectivelyapproachprospectandclientopportunitieson thecourseyouhavecharteredforyourbusiness—collapsingyour time toadeal. The fifth Accelerant is 100 percent about access. It’s about using a direct,honestandethical,field-proven,psychologicallysoundmethodologyforgettingameeting,conferencecall,videoconference,e-mailconversation,oranyotherkindofaccesswith thedecisionmakers. It isabestpractice toolset that takestheworkyou’vedoneinthefirstfourAccelerantsandgivesyouaroadmaptomoreefficientlygetwiththosedecisionmakerswhocanpullthetriggeronyourofferingsiftheylikeyourvaluepropositions.Thisstep-by-stepsystemcangiveyoufaster,moreeffectiveaccesstothepeopleyouwantandneedexposureto,soyou have the opportunity to domore business.You can’t hit a single, double,triple,orahomerun, ifyoucan’tgetup tobat.ThisAccelerantwillgiveyoumoreatbatswiththeaudienceofdecisionmakersyoudesire. Given thebusinessclimate inmost industry sectors,most clients report thatgetting access to the right decisionmakers has gradually become tougher andtakeslongerthaniteverhas.Andwithdealsthey’velost,clientsoftenbelieveitwasbecausetheydidn’thave“theirarmsaround”thekeydecisionmakers. It’susuallynotthatdifficult,ifyou’retheCEOorothertopexecutive,togetaccessat thelevelsyoudesire.Youhavethepower, title,andauthoritytopickupthephoneandmakeithappen.Butthatisnotthewayitisforyourpeople.

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Notatall.Theydon’tcarrythesametitleorlevelofcommandandcontrol.Sounless you plan on making all the introductions for all of your businessdevelopers,pleaseheedthisAccelerantbecauseitworks. Manyofourclients spenda lotof timewithpeoplewhoclaim theyare thedecisionmakers, only to learn later in the game that at best, these people areglorified recommenders. The real decision makers are usually higher in thecompany, behind numerous executive assistants, handlers, and blockers. ThisAcceleranthashelpedourclients,andhundredsofothercompanies,tomakethatdirectconnectionfaster. Nomatterwhatbusinessyouarein,there’snodoubtyouwantyourbestshotatbeingheardandconsideredbytheappropriatepowersthatbe.Infact,everyclientthatgoesthroughourtrainingprogramsonthisAccelerantholdsthebelief“Ifwecouldjustgetinhigher,tothepeopleweprefertobeinfrontof,earlieroninourprocess,wecouldassessandclosebusinessfasterandsavemoneyonourcostofsalesatthesametime.” One problem that impedes revenue growth, slowing a company’s time to adeal, isentering too lowin targetcompanies theywish togarner tractionwith.Thereasontheyaretoolowisbecausetheindividualswiththepower,authority,andbudgetcontrolhaverelocatedtoadifferentpartofthecompany—typicallyhigher.Butyoursalesforcehasyettomaketheadjustment. If you review the Block and Tackle Matrix for how you’d like your newapproach process to work, where are your decision makers located? Exactlywhereinthecastlearetheyhiding?Doesitmakegoodbusinesssensetocallonthese individuals last?What if you nevermake it to that point?What type ofaudiencedoyouneedtobeinfrontoftoincreasetheprobabilitiesofclosinginlesstime? Review your debate on the seventh and eighth constraints (Your Level ofEngagement,andTheInabilitytoArticulateYourValuePropositiontotheRealDecisionMakers)withothersinyourcompany.Yourdecisionsaboutwhereyouelecttoenteratargetorganization—andwithwhatmessage—arecriticaltoyourability to reduce your time to a deal. These decisions must be well thoughtthrough. It boils down to the speed at which you wish to attempt to closeopportunities.ThisiswhytheBlockandTackleMatrixissousefulwithhelpingyouanalyzewhichexecutivesyoushouldbetargetinginyourefforttocompressyourclosingcycle(s). It’snotappropriatetogorighttothetopallthetimebecauseitdependsonthe

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stageofthecourtingprocess.However,thereisevidencesuggestingthatifyouwanttogetsomethingdonefaster—gotothetop. Nowrelax.ACCESSINGTHECASTLEisnottheappropriatesolutiontoallapproach needs. Clearly, the referral approach is a tried-and-true method forgetting in to see people, even though it doesn’twork all the time, either. Thereferral approach can also take a long time and be somewhat expensive.Andthoughareferralgetsyouanaudienceinmanycases,isittherightaudience?Isit the audience that will help you navigate inside the maze of people anddivisions, properly representing yourmessage, or could your referral lead youdownadeadend?According towhatwehear fromclients, thishappensmorefrequentlythanthey’dliketoadmit. Successfulcompanies identifymultiplepaths theycan takeandarepreparedformultiple scenarios.ThinkofACCESSINGTHECASTLEasonepowerfulmethod—anothertooltousewhentheneedpresentsitselfandyouwantaction.Remember, if it’sactionyouwant,gowheretheactionusuallyis—typicallyatleasthalfwayupthecastle,ifnotnearoratthetop. ACCESSINGTHECASTLEreferstoafield-provenprocesscalledtheCircleof Leverage System—or COL. This best-practice methodology helps to morequickly and effectively gain access to the individual or group you desire anaudiencewith.Ithasyieldedamazingresultsfororganizationsthathaveusedit,often becoming their preferred standard for gaining access to prospects andclients.Weprovidetrainingprogramsonthissystem,becausetheprocessshouldbe designed and calibrated properly to the target audience(s), based on theprovider’sproduct,service,orsolution,andtheenterprisewideorbusiness-unitvaluepropositionstheywishtoputforth. HerearetheunderlyingpremisesbehindtheCircleofLeverageSystem:

1. On any given day, prospects and clients are not interested in grantingaccess(anappointment,conferencecall,web-x,orvideoconference)sotheycanlearn more about how your product, service, or solution offering might helpthemandtheirorganization.

2. In today’sbusinessworld, approachingone individual at a timewithinanycompanyhasbecomemuchlesseffectiveandoftenawasteoftimefortheprospector. This is because decisions are often not made by one individual,regardless of what is represented. Decisions are made via groups, teams,committees, or task forces. This has become the new norm. Therefore,approaching a few carefully selected individuals at one time has proven to bemore effective, productive, cost efficient (for both sides)—and consistentwith

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thecommonlyaccepteddecision-makingprocessesofmostorganizations,largeandsmall.

3.Thenetbenefitsof theproduct, service,or solution (regardlessofhowlegitimatetheymaybe)rarelyprovideenoughurgencyorincentiveanymoreforprospects and clients to grant access so they can listen to your presentation.Theirpowerofchoiceistoogreatandtheirleveloftrustusuallyquietlow.

4. Finding and gaining access to more than one internal champion,executivesponsor,orcoachearlieroninthecourtingprocessactuallyhelpstheprospectorclientmakedecisionswithahigherlevelofcomfort—increasingtheprobabilityofclosingmorebusinessandreducingyourclosingcyclesandcostofsales.

5. Doing homework or background research on the entity you wish toapproach(ifonlyfifteenminutes’worth),insteadofgettingtheappointmentandexpecting the prospect to educate you about their business, helps targetopportunitiesmoreeffectively. It is alsoamore respectful approach,garneringmorecredibilityandrapportwithprospectsandclients.

6. A strong level of confidence in your product or service offering isrequired.Youmust feelyourofferings areworthyof the right audience’s timeandattention. Insummary,theCOLSystemisaplannedapproachforsimultaneouslyputtingyour value proposition(s) in front of themultiple individuals you’ve selected.You do this via a letter, voice mail, or e-mail, “broadcasting” the valuepropositionsofyourproductorservice—askingfortheirguidanceandassistanceingrantinganaudiencewiththem—orbeingdirectedtotheperson(s)theyfeelarethe“appropriate”individualstohearyourpitch. Often, the individuals you appeal to have their own agendas on top of thecompany’sagenda,thoughtheyallworkforthesamecompany.Therefore,eachpersonmay responddifferently to thevaluepropositionsyoudescribe.Hence,theyoftencan’tdecideasagroupwhothemostappropriatepersonorpeoplearetohandletherequestforanappointment. This internal discussion and debate isdesigned to take place and is part ofhowtheCOLSystemworks.Ifyouthinkaboutit,whataretheydiscussinganddebating? The value propositions you have put before them. This process notonly helps you gain access faster, but it can increase the number of people inyourmeetings,whichisagoodthing,sincemostorganizationsmakedecisionsingroupsorteams.

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Here’s an example of a client who used the COL System to not onlysimultaneouslygetaccesstoseveralmultibillion-dollaroilcompaniesbutalsotoelevate their level of conversations to the executive suite—five to six levelsabovewheretheytypically“land”insidemultinationalprospects. Theclientwas a small, privatelyhelddocument-processing firmwithundertenmillioninrevenue.Theirniche:scanning,imaging,andstoringtheelectronicdocumentsatissueforcompaniesinvolvedinlarge-scalelitigation.Thismeanttheytypicallytargetedlargecorporationswithseverallayersofdecisionmakersandrecommenders. When I was hired, they were getting about one dollar per page for theirservices,sotargetingacompanywithtenmilliondocumentsatissuewasaten-million-dollaropportunity. Intense competition in the industry fostered a commodity perception by thebigbuyersoftheseservices.Theirattitudewasthatthesevendorswere“adimeadozen.”As a result, this firmwas typically relegated to dealingwith a low-levelassistanttoanassistant,totheassistantvicepresidentandassociategeneralcounsel, or with that person’s equivalent with the prospect’s outside counsel.Theywereusedtogettingkickedaroundinsideclientandprospectcompanies. A portion of the COL System letter template you will read shortly wasdesigned and calibrated to “land” our client in the general counsel’s office ofthese huge petroleum conglomerates, creating enough interest and urgency tosecureathirty-minuteface-to-facemeetingwiththatperson.Thiswouldenablethemtopresenttheirofferingandhopefullyearntherighttobidonacurrentorfutureproject. ThefollowingisaportionoftheirCOLlettertemplate.Noticehowdifferentitisfromthestandardbusinessletterwehaveallbeentaughttowrite.Thisletterwassent(viaregularU.S.first-classmail)tofiveseniorexecutivesinsideeachtargetedU.S.multibillion-dollaroilcompany:theCEO/president, theCFO,theVPoffinance, thegeneralcounsel,andtheassociategeneralcounsel inchargeoflitigation. In some cases, our client was targeting up to five oil companiessimultaneouslywith thissystemaspartofanAccelerantCampaignBlitz.Thisapproach helped create evenmore urgency to respond. Here are the first twosectionsoftheletter,whichwassenttothefollowingpeople,whosenamesarefictitious:

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TheCEOandpresident—BobJonesTheCFO—MaryThompson-LeeTheVPoffinance—KathleenVanPattenThegeneralcounsel—MichaelStevensTheassociategeneralcounsel/litigation—DeborahRothDearMr.Jones,You do not knowme, nor dowe have any credibilitywith you or any currentbusiness relationship with your organization, even though we are currentlyproviding our services to organizations of your size, such as ______, ______,and______.Nowadays,becausemost importantdecisionswithincorporationsare typicallyanalyzed and made in groups, I am writing to you, Mary Thompson-Lee,KathleenVanPatten,MichaelStevens,andDeborahRothtolearnfromthefiveofyouwhoyouthinkarethemostappropriateseniorpeopleweshoulddealwithin regard to scheduling a thirty-minute, in-person presentationwithin the nexttwotothreeweekstosharehowourorganizationcouldhelpyoudothreethings: 1.Reduceyourtotalcostofscanning,imaging,andstoringalldocumentsatissueincurrentlyactiveorupcominglitigation-relatedmattersfor10percentlessthanyoucurrentlyspend;

2. Maintain the same speed, quality, document integrity, and on-sitecapabilitiesyoucurrentlyenjoy;and

3.Providea secure, central repository for thedocuments forall in-houseandout-of-housecounselneedingaccesstothedocumentpopulation. Thiswastheopeningsectionoftheletter,whicharticulatedtheTEETHwithinthe firm’s value proposition right away. The five senior people receiving theletterdon’tknowwhoyou’dliketomeetwith,becauseyoudidn’tsay.Instead,itasks themwho they think ismostappropriate tohandle thispotentialmeeting.First, this type of request causes discussion among them, because they can’talwaysagreeonwhoshouldhandleit.Secondly,theyarediscussingyourvalueproposition and whether they feel they need it, or have any interest at all.Therefore, this approach creates more discussion, debate, and sometimesdisagreementamongthoseyou’vetargeted.Thisisagoodthing,becauseasyourletterisbouncingaround,eachrecipientisdebatingwhetherornotameetingis

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necessaryordesired,andifso,whoshouldbetaskedtohandleit. Now, a word of caution. The COL System is a psychologically steepedprocessinvolvingaspecificfollow-upcomponent,whichiswhyclientsgetthetraining—so they can customize the process around their core offerings andtargetedclientsandprospects. Sufficeittosay,theCOLSystemdeliveredseveralmeetings(a50percenthitrate) with the general counsel’s officewithin huge oil companies—executiveswhotypicallydonotmeetwithdocument-processingvendorsbecausetheyviewit asnot reallyworthyof their time.Someonemuch lower in theorganizationtypicallyhandlesit.However,becausethemessageintheletterofferedconcretefinancialvalue,ourclientwasabletoclosesomenicebusinessfairlyrapidly,incomparisontotheirstandardapproachprocess,pre-COL.Thiswasbecausetheprimarydecisionmaker—thepersonwiththepower,authority,andcontroloverbudgettomakeithappen—waspresent. PleaserememberthatthisisasmallportionofwhatacompleteCOLlettercanlook like. There are numerous versions that can be used depending on theclient’sobjectives.Therefore,mycoaching isnot toget aheadofyourself andthink this Accelerant is some neat little letter-writing “trick.” The reason wehave a three-day training program around this Accelerant—and the reasonseveral Fortune 500 companies have invested real dollars in sending theirproducerstolearntheprocess—isbecauseitisanadvancedbest-practicetoolsetthatcarriesadeep,psychologicallysoundphilosophyaboutwhatdrivespeopletowant toseeyou.Weteachtheprocessandshowclientshowtousethetool,basedonthecompaniesandthelevelsofexecutivestheywantmoreaccessandexposureto.ThefactthatthisproventoolsethasgivenmeaccesstoBillGatesand other CEOs of Fortune 1000 organizations should indicate the precisionpowerthisAccelerantpacks. There arenumerousvariations and levelsof strength aroundusing theCOLSystem as an effective approach strategy for the myriad prospects, currentclients,andin-progressscenarios.Thisispreciselywhyweofferthreelevelsoftrainingon this approachprocess for those serious aboutwanting to compresstheir closing cycles. You will learn about various versions of COL matrixesdesigned to accomplish different challenges related to gaining access andexposuretothedesiredaudiences.Eachmatrixcanbedialedandcustomizedtotheobjectivesoftheuser,basedonthesituationathand.Thiswillincreasetheprobabilityofbeingheardbytherightindividuals.Verticalindustrycampaignsand COL blitzes on targeted opportunities where a handful of companies are

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approached simultaneously are examples of different scenarios in which theCOL System can be very effective. Each application has a COL matrix—essentially, a specific pattern in which the methodology can be tailored formaximumimpact. ThousandsofindividualsalsousetheCOLSystemtofindanewordifferentjob.Itisasuperbtoolbyitselforinconcertwithanonlineorexecutivesearchfirmoption.Itisalsousefulinaccessingdifficult-to-reachpeople,suchaswell-knowndoctors,mediapeople,politicians,boardmembers,etc. Formore informationon the trainingprogramsaround thisAccelerant, visitwww.accelerantinternational.com.

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ACCELERANTSUCCESSSTORY:ROCK-SOLIDREFERRALSDON’TALWAYSROCK—ORROLL

Duringtheearlyyearsofourtrainingandconsultingcompany,Iwashungryforsome business in the insurance industry, especially the big life, property, andcasualty insurers.Never having prospected that industry, Iwent to one ofmymentors, the chairman of North American Life, one of the large insurancecompaniesintheTwinCitiesatthattime,nowpartofAllianz. I presented my story and asked if he would be willing (since he was anadvocate for theCOLSystem) to introducemeorgivemea referralor two tosomeof his peerswho run other insurance companies throughout the country.(Hisfirmwasnotaprospectbecauseofhowtheysoldtheirlinesofinsurance.) Because of the relationshipwe had developed overmany years, he said hewould referme to the chairman ofTheEquitableLife InsuranceCompany ofAmerica (now AXA Equitable), headquartered in New York. He said theyrespectedeachother,andthathe’dwritealetterurginghimtoconsiderlookingintohowIcouldprovideour“access trainingprogram” to their five thousand-plusfieldsalespeoplenationwide. Fantastic!Iofcourseaccepted.MymentorwrotethelettertothechairmanofTheEquitable,urginghimtotakemycalltodiscusshowwecouldprovidehisorganizationvaluebyshrinking their time toadealbyhelping theirproducersgetwiththekeydecisionmakerstheyweretargetingfaster,andmoreeffectively. So out went the letter. His executive assistant called to inform me that itshouldlandinNewYorkon“x”date,andthatIshouldfollowupwithinaweekorso.Perfect,Ithought.NoneedformyowntoolstogetinthedoorwithTheEquitable.IamgoingtobespeakingwiththechairmanandCEOofoneofthelargestlifeprovidersinthenation.So,Iputmy“tools”inmypocketanddidn’tbother with my own methodology—my own proven system to get access,becauseIbasicallydidn’tneedit,right?Imean,whatfor?Iwasgoingtouseoneoftheoldest,mosteffective,andmostacceptedformsofgettinganintroductionthatthereisontheplanet—thegoodold,trustworthyreferral.Andthiswasnoordinaryreferral,butonebetweentwopeerswhocompeteinthesameindustrybutrespecteachotheraswell.

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I thought this was bulletproof. I’d have my opportunity to persuade thechairman,evenifforabrieffewminutes,andifhewasintrigued,maybeI’dbepasseddowntooneofhiskeypeoplesothatIcouldhavetheopportunitytoatleast present my offerings in person at a later date, and get a relatively fastansweronwhethertheywereopentoaninitialprogramortwoasatestpilot. Perfect—Perfect—Perfect.Ifolloweduptheletterasdirected,butwasquickly“routed”downbyoneofhisexecutiveassistants toavery low-levelperson inEquitableUniversity—thetrainingandeducationalunitofthecompany,runinadifferent city. I asked theassistant if thechairmanhad seen the letter,which Ireferencedforher,andwouldhebeopentospeakingforafewminutes—orifhewasnotin,woulditbepossibletosetupafive-minuteconferencecallwithhimto discuss the letter received from the chairman of North American Life inMinneapolis?Ididn’treallygetastraightanswer.IsuspecttheCEOneversawthe letter, but somehow itwas internally routed by theCEO’s assistant to theappropriatepersonshefeltshouldhandleitorreviewmyofferings. Whatabummer.Ineverspoketothechairman,didn’treallylearnifhesawthe letter because I didn’t want to press the executive assistant—and all of asudden, I’dbeen routed toanothercity, toa low-level“somebody,”being toldeffectivelythatthechairmanwasnotthecorrectplacetostart.Inmostcases,Iwould certainly agree. But thiswas not your typical case. I had had a direct,personalreferral.Iwasnotexpectingthebrush-off. IdidwhatIwas told,followingupwith the individual itwasroutedto,andwasbasicallyshutdownandblownoff.EvenwithareferralfromonechairmanoftheboardtoanotherIwasbasicallyblocked—intentionallyornot,Iwillneverknow—byhisexecutiveassistants.Hasthiseverhappenedtoyou? Aconfusing,andsometimes irritatingoccurrence, isn’t it?Rightorwrong,Itold my mentor about not getting through and being routed down to an areawhereIdidn’twanttogo,seeingifhe’dpickupthephoneandcallJoe.Butnosuchluck.Hefelt,“Ifthat’swheretheywantyoutostart,thenthat’swhereyouneedtostart.” Nowwhat?Idecidedtowaitaboutsixmonthsandgiveitagoagain.Butthistime,I’dusemyownCOLSystemtoseeifIcouldgetanytractionatthetopofoneofthelargestandmostrespectedinsurancecompaniesinthecountry. I crafted my COL letter to five senior executives at The Equitable: thechairman, the CFO, the EVP, SVP, and VP of sales/agency operationsworldwide,informingthemthataboutsixmonthsearlierIhadbeenreferredby

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the chairman of North American Life inMinneapolis, to the chairman of theEquitable, because he thought our offerings were worthy of a look-see topotentiallybenefittheirsizeablefieldforceinproducingevenmorebusiness. Inclassicpattern-specificform,uponfollow-upwiththechairman’soffice,Iwas toldhehadseen the letter, that ithadbeen routed tohisdirect report, theEVPandchiefagencyofficer,tohandle,andthatIshouldfollowupwithhim,perthechairman’sdirection.Ididso,butnotbeforeIfirstfollowedupwiththeexecutiveassistanttotheCFOtolearnifhehadseenhisletterandwhetherhewas interested in schedulinga five-minuteconferencecall.Fromhisexecutiveassistant,IlearnedhehadalsoroutedhisletterovertotheEVPandchiefagencyofficer—whonowhad three of the letters: the chairman’s, theCFO’s, and theoneIsenthimdirectly. Uponfollow-upwiththeEVP’sexecutiveassistant,Ilearnedhewasawareoftheletter,hadreadit,androutedittobehandledbyoneofhisdirectreports,theVPandchiefagencyofficer—whonowhadtwoletters:theEVP’sandtheonethat was sent him directly. (A lot of work in follow-up? Not for the result itproduced,forthecostofwritingonelettertailoredtofiveexecutives,allsentoutatthesametime,viafive,thirty-nine-centpostagestamps.) I followed up with the executive assistant to the VP and was told that hewanted to book an in-person appointment for me to come to New York andpresentmycapabilitiesforaninitialdeterminationastowhetherIshouldbesenttotheheadofEquitableUniversity’sseniormanagementforfurtherreview. Within thirtydays, Iwas inNewYorkat theheadquartersofEquitableLifeInsurancepresentingmyofferings tobasically thesecondguy inchargeof theentire field force.Not abad result for theCOL.Unfortunately, Ididnot closeany business there, because ultimately they thought my services were notneeded. Thekeypointisthis:WhethertheyneededourservicesornotIhadaccessataveryhighlevel.Andwiththat,Icouldnavigatemywaytoaclosemuchfasterthan any of my competitors who were talking to a mid-to low-level contactinsideEquitableUniversity.Atthatrateitwouldtaketwelvetoeighteenmonthsin courting expense, time, and effort to get to the level atwhich I hadbegun.Instead, I stepped it up a notch byusing theCOLSystemandACCESSTHECASTLE in a professional, respectful manner. Even though I didn’t get theorder,IwasshownagainthepowerandeffectivenessofthisAccelerant.

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SIXTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE DELIVERTHEULTIMATEPRESENTATIONYOU’VEWORKEDHARDTOGET INFRONTOFTHERIGHTAUDIENCEOFdecisionmakers—peoplewithshortattentionspansandenormouspressureto deal with. Don’t risk blowing the entire meeting by asking one of thosefabulouslybrilliantquestionswe’veallbeentrainedtoask,like“Whatkeepsyouupatnight,Bob?”Whatifthey’renotinthemoodtoopenuptoyou?Andisitsmart to go through the twenty, thirty, or forty-plus slides in your boilerplatePowerPoint presentation, expecting them tobe intrigued?ThisAccelerantwillteach you about a field-proven tool called the 1/3rd . . . 2/3rds CondensedPresentationFormat.Thiswayofpresentingwill impressandknock the socksoffeveryoneinyouraudiencebecausethey’llenjoyyourpresentationmore(andso will you). Perhaps more important, it will give you added control andleverage.Thisformatplaysperfectly to thehighlevelsofdecisionmakersyouwillnowhaveinfrontofyoumorefrequently,thankstoAccelerantsonethroughfive. TounderstandthepowerandsimplicityofthisAccelerant,it’sbesttolookatthisskillsetthroughtheeyesoftheclientorprospect

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first. By putting yourself in their world and visualizing what it’s like to sitthrough one of your standard dog and pony shows, you may get some fastanswersaboutwhatcouldbechangedorreorderedtoenhancetheirexperience.Solet’sdoit—let’swalkintheirshoes. You’ve just received an e-mail fromyour boss asking you and two of yourpeers to attend a thirty-minute presentation on Friday at 2 P.M.You’ve neverheardofthecompanythat’sgivingthepresentation,sotheymustbetryingtogetyourbusiness.Youcheckyourcalendar,hopingyouhaveaconflictsoyoucangracefullybackout,butloandbeholdyouhavenoconflicts. Friday arrives andyou’ve alreadybeenon the job since7A.M.Theday is

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crazy and you are stressed. Things have gotten all jumbled up and nothing isflowingsmoothly—thenthere’sthatpresentationat2P.M.Yousendane-mailtoyourcolleaguestoseeiftheyarestillplanningtoattend,hopingtheycancoverforyouorsuggestyoureallydon’tneedtobethere.Butitwasyourbosswhoaskedyoutoattend,soyoudecideagainstpullinganythinglikethat.Youhitthecompany’sWeb site hoping maybe you’ve already seen this pitch, but no, itdoesn’tappearyouhave. It’s 1:45 P.M. You receive an e-mail from your boss saying that due to aschedulingmix-upthepresentationwillbemovedtoconferenceroomC(theonewithoutwindows,adingypaintjob,andanair-conditioningsystemsoloudit’shardtohear).Yourespondtoyourbosswith“I’llbethere—lookingforwardtoit.” At 2 P.M. you’re sitting around the table in conference room C afterintroducingyourselftothetwopeoplefromthevendorcompanywhoappearsoexcited to be there, they’ve had eitherway toomuch caffeine or just returnedfromahigh-schoolpepfest. Andherewego.Athirty-minutepresentation,baloney.Thiswillgoforty-fiveminutes for sure, ifnot longer.The roomdarkensabit, soyou slouch inyourchair,can’tseethescreenallthatwell,butit’snotimportant,becauseyouknowthe first twentyminutesarenot that critical, since themeat (pricing, specifics,timeframes,andnextsteps)areallprobablytowardtheendanyway.Youdecideyou’llbepleasant,sittingtherewithgreatinterestwhileyoudialoutforthenextfifteen to twentyminutes. Just then, younotice you forgot something towritewith.Theday isnotgoingwell. “Andwhyam Ihere?Do I reallyneed tobehere?”youaskyourself. Ofcoursethisisonlyacharacterization.Thepointisthatyouneedtograbtheattentionofprospectsandclientswhomaybe tired,bored,distracted,oralloftheabove.Plus,theyalreadyhaveaperceptionaboutwhattheyareabouttosee,and that thefirstportionof thepresentation isnot that importantanyway.AndhereyoucomewithaboilerplatePowerPointpresentationthatmaybeevenyoudislike (remember theeleventhconstraint).Soyoucanunderstandwhy there’soften a lack of enthusiasm on the part of recipients about even attending, letalonepayingattentiontoyourpresentation. You can learn how to DELIVER THE ULTIMATE PRESENTATION byusing this best practice called the 1/3rd . . . 2/3rds Condensed PresentationFormat.Aprocessofpresentingyourstoryinone-thirdtheamountoftimeyou

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requestforyourmeeting.Thiswillprovideideasthatwilladdvalueiftheywereincludedinyourstandardpresentation. There is no doubt a general order to the content of a typical presentation.Perhapsthestructurelookslikethis:

1.GeneralIntroductions;ThankYoufortheOpportunity2.BriefBackgroundonOurCompany,WhoWeAre,HowWeHelp,etc.3.BriefBackgroundonOurProducts,Services,Solutions,etc.4.TheNetBenefitsofOurOfferings5.PartialListofClientsWeServe

6.AFewClientTestimonialsandCaseHistories

7.HowCouldWeHelpYourCompany?NeedsAssessment,Etc.

8.MutualDeterminationofNextSteps

In terms of the style of delivery, it’s perhaps delivered via laptop computer,whichmaybeprojectedontoawallsurfaceorscreen,dependingonthenumberofpeople inattendance.Thepresentersmightspendaportionof theirdeliverysittingdown,watchingtheslidesonthescreenastheymovethroughthecontent.Theymaynotwalkaroundtheroommuchastheypresent,ifatall.Intermsofintonation of their voice, it’s probably professional and “even,” since nobodywantstobetooexcited,lesttheycomeacrosslikeacircusact. Thisiswhatwehaveheardfromclientsofallsizes.Wealsohearcommentsregardinghowthey’dlikethepresentationorderedifitweregiventothem.Hereissomeoftheirfeedback: “Itshouldbestructuredliketheeveningnewswhere,inthefirstsixtyseconds,wereceiveaquickoverviewofjustthehighpoints,soweknowwhat’sgoingtobecoveredandcandetermineifwewanttokeepwatching.” “WhydoIneedtowaituntiltheendtofindouthowmuch,howfast,thetimelines,theROI,theterms,andnextsteps?Asanexecutive,I’dliketoknowthesethingsrightaway,becausethat is the‘meat’of thepresentation.This iswhatIwanttoknow,theearlierthebetter,iftheyexpectmetopayattention.Evenifit’smy own people presenting tome, this iswhat Iwant to know right out of the

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box.” “Makeitshorterandsnappier.Removeallthe‘nice-to-know’stuffbecauseit’softenirrelevanttomydecisionprocess.” “Give me someone who actually believes what they’re presenting. A littleenthusiasmwouldbenicetoseenowandagain.” “Ihaveahardertimeseeingthingsonalaptop.Iliketomixitupalittle,liketheoldchalktalkongameday.Whydon’tpresentersusemywhiteboardortheflipchartsinourconferenceroomsmorefrequently?Sowhatifit’snotthathigh-tech.Whocares?Iwanttounderstandthepitch,andifIcanvisualizeitbetter,Icancomprehenditfaster.” The 1/3rd . . . 2/3rdsCondensedPresentationFormat takes into account allthis feedback.Thenet-net of the format is this:Divide the total timeyouwillhaveforyourpresentationintothirds.Inthefirstthirdofthattime,yourgoalisto cover just the high points—the salient aspects of each of the key points inyour entire presentation. This means if there were eight different sections orcomponents to thepresentation, thenyouwouldcover the top thirdofeachoftheseareas.Oncethisiscomplete,youshouldhave“burned”aboutonethirdofyourallottedmeetingtime,andtwothirdsofthetimeshouldremain. Youarenowdone—forthemoment.Youhavecoveredthefirstthirdofeachoneofyourkeypointsinthefirstthirdoftheallottedtime,soyouareessentiallydoneuntilyouturnoverpseudocontroltotherecipients,askingiftheyhaveanyquestionsyoucananswerbeforediscussingnextsteps. Remember, there is two thirds of your allotted time left. This is what youshould strive for.At this point, recipients are typically silent and in shock, aseverythingthatneededtobecoveredhasbasicallybeencoveredinathirdofthetimetheywereexpecting.Clientsandprospectsmaygiveyoualookasthoughtheyareinlovewithyou.Theyarepleasantlysurprisedandimpressedwiththeleveloforganizationandtimemanagement. Questionswillusuallybegintocomeatthispoint,soletthemaskaway.Theywill bounce all over themap, jumping around amongyour key points.And ifyoustopandthink,“Whoisincontroloftheroomandthepresentationatthispoint,therecipient(s)orthepresenter(s)?”Itwillbethepresenterifyou’vedonea good job in the first third.Why?Because as questions come forth, you stillhave two-thirds more information you can cover on each key point if therecipientsrequestit—sorecipientsfeeltheyareincontrolofthemeeting.They

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aregettingtheirquestionsansweredintheexactordertheywant. Thecarefulorderingofcontentiswhatmakesthisformateffective(andseniorexecutives invite you to lunch). This will take some deliberation. It will becrucialinyouropeningstatement(before“pointone”ofthecontent)toprovidethe net-net of the messages you wish to drive home with the audience. Thisbecomesthefrostingofthepresentationandwhatownersandseniorexecutiveslove tohear rightaway—the teeth.This typeoforganization requires thought,butitisworththeendresult. Hereisanexampleofafrostingstatement:“Thebasicgistofwhatwe’dliketoconveytodayishow—withaninvestmentofapproximately‘x’to‘y,’wecan,throughourcapabilities,products,andsolutions,reduceyourcurrent______,inthe rangeof ‘x’ to ‘y’percent,over thecourseof______months/years.Thiswebelieve should provide a payback in the range of______months/years, and anROIof‘x’.” And those charged with decision-making power appreciate the level ofbrevity,confidence,andprecision.Asyoudevelopyourfrostingstatement,focusanddrilldownonyourmessage.The1/3rd. . .2/3rdsCondensedPresentationFormatisanamazinglyeffectivebestpracticethatwillhelpyouDELIVERTHEULTIMATEPRESENTATION. On page 140 is a visual example of the format with the assumption thepresentationcontainseightkeysections. Wehaveyet to discuss style of delivery.Delivery is key to increasingyourpower,confidence,andpresence. One suggestion regarding delivery that can have great impact is called theImmersionTechniqueofthe1/3rd...2/3rdsFormat.ItisVISUAL EXAMPLE THE 1/3RD ... 2/3RDS CONDENSED

PRESENTATIONFORMAT

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notconsideredhigh-tech,eventhoughitcanbestructuredthatway.(Itwasformy main platform keynote addresses at Microsoft’s World Fusion AnnualConventionswithseveralthousandpeopleinattendance.) The net-net of the Immersion Technique is this:When recipients enter theroomwherethepresentationwillbegiven,whattheyshouldseeonthewallsareflip charts hanging around the room that have been folded up to the top, soattendeescan’tseewhatisoneachchart.Theflipchartsshouldbehangingonthewallsaroundtheroominhorseshoefashion.Aspeopletaketheirseatsandthepresentationbegins,thepresenterstandsupandbeginsbyunveilingeachflipchart—one by one. As they move through the content, the presenter movesaround the room, which is why this is called the Immersion Technique. Thepresenter ison their feetandmuchmoreenergizedas thecontent ispresented.Themovementrequiredbytheparticipants(so theycanseeeachchart) isalso

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partoftheplannedmagic.Theattendeeshavetomovetheirbodiesabitaseachchartisbeingunveiled.Bytheendofthefirstthirdofthepresentation,allflipchartsshouldbedownandpresented.Oncethishappens,recipientscanseetheentire presentation before them much more easily than on PowerPoint. Thisallowsthemtorememberwhat’sbeencovered.Thequestionscomefaster,andthetoneislivelier.Someofourclientssayit’smoreexcitingtobeapartofthistype of presentation.We provide training on this technique if you are seriousabouthavingyourpeoplebecomemoredynamicpresenters. Withoutadoubt, thisAccelerantprinciplehasmany layersandapplications.As you might imagine, there are numerous versions of the 1/3rd . . . 2/3rdsCondensedPresentationFormat,dependingonthevariousstagesof thesellingand courting process. You will have different iterations for prospect and newbusiness presentations, final presentations to win an opportunity, concept-orientedpresentationsaroundbigideas,opportunitiesrecentlylost,etc. ManyAccelerants are content rich—easily filling several three-ringbinders.This is another of the Accelerants that can be amplified with training andapplication customization to reformat your company’s standard boilerplatepresentations—soyoubegintoDELIVERTHEULTIMATEPRESENTATION.

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SEVENTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

PAINTTHEFINANCIALPICTURE

THIS ACCELERANT IS ABOUT USING THE FINANCIALLY METRICEDVALUE propositions you’ve created in the fourth principle, which you’vepackaged into your 1/3rd . . . 2/3rds Condensed Presentation to paint thefinancial picture of what your new value propositions could deliver, setting abaselineforclientsandprospectsinyourmeetingsandcalls. Whycanittakelongerthanyou’dlikeforanopportunitytoclose?Onekeyreasonisthepresentingcompanycreatesnosenseofurgencytobuy.Theydoanicejobofdescribingwhotheyareasanorganization,theclientstheyserve,andanoverviewoftheirproductsandservices.However,theystopshortoftyingitalltogetherinacohesivepackage.Instead,theyexpecttheprospectivebuyertodo that by building the business case and financial cost justification for thepurchase on their own. There is a better way to sell in these times of globalcompetition. If your industry is typical, prospective buyers don’t begin building thebusinesscase foruppermanagementuntil they’ve reviewedallvendoroptionsfirst,benchmarkingafew,andnarrowingtheir

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selection to a handful of finalists. Only then will they turn their attention tocreatingthebusinesscaseandfinancialpicturefortheirinternalpresentationtothe“higher-ups.”(Remember,it’sthemetricstheyseekifallotherfeaturesandbenefits lookvanilla to them.)Maybe itdoesn’tworkexactly thisway inyourbusiness,butitisacommonpurchasingpatterninmanyindustrysectors. Could you shorten your closing cycle(s) if you changed a few of yourcompany’sstandardoperatingprocedures?This isanotheraspectof thesellingcycle that would benefit from such a move. Typically, it’s the business casecontainingthefinancialpicturethatisnotonlynecessaryforadecision,buttheglue that ties everything together, creating the interest and urgency to move

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forward. Many companies blow it at this juncture, electing to present their“same-old-same-old”withoutprovidinganyfinancialpictureasto“Whyusandwhyoursolution/product/service?”Thisisatragedybecauseitcreatesworkforthebuyer.Butyou’vealreadydonetheworkforthisAccelerant. UsingpreviousAccelerantprinciples,you’vecreatedamorecompellingvaluepropositioncontainingoneortwometricsinsomeform.Youshouldhaveoneortwo decision makers in front of you more frequently, because you’vesuccessfully ACCESSED THE CASTLE and are armed with a tighter, morepowerful presentation that will knock their socks off. The question nowbecomes,Whatareyougoingtopresent? The answer should be the frosting—the icing on the cake—the financialpicture ormetrics that answer the question “Why us?”You referred to this inyourletter.Therefore,thisisexactlywhatyoushouldopenwithatthebeginningofyournew1/3rd...2/3rdspresentationbecausethisiswhatsetsthehookandbeginstogenerateurgencyintheprospectivebuyer’smind. Hereisanexample.AsI’vementioned,earlierinmycareerIsoldpredictive-dialingnetworkstolargeandmidsizedorganizationsthroughoutNorthAmericaandEurope.Partofthefinancialpicturewepaintedwasthatwecouldmorethanlikely double the talk timeof each collector in their department.Thiswas thehook in the firstmeeting.Allwewantedprospects to dowas ask, “How?” Infact,truthbetold,theyreallydidn’tcarehowthetechnologyworked,especiallythe senior executives, but they did want to know howwe could double theircollectors’talktime.Somewouldbark,“Ifyoucandothis,I’mlistening.Whatdoyouneed toknowfromus?Whatdatadoyouneed fromourpeoplesoyoucancomebackhereandshowushowyoucandothat?”Perfect.Thehookwasset.Infact,thiswasexactlywhatweusedaspartofourstrategytoquickenthecloseatFingerhut,Citigroup,HarrisBank,HFC,I.C.System,andseveralothercompanies. Aswe’ve already discussed, you and your teamwill have to decipherwhatyourmetricswillbewithinthefinancialpictureyouwishtopaint—animportantexerciseforyourcompany.Addthisfrostingtoyourvalueproposition,paintingthe financial picture as to “Why us and our firm.”Thiswill set the hook andcreate more urgency than usual, because often there is none. When theprospectivebuyeraskshowyoucanverifyyourfrostingstatements,youhaveagoldenopportunitytocollapseyourclosingcyclebysellingthemontheneedtodoaminibusinesscase.

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You should propose a condensed financial analysis at the front end of theirshopping process instead of the “normal”way this is done, toward the end oftheir search and selection process. To do this, you should create a ValuePropositionValidationInstrument—asnapshotofthebefore-and-afterscenarioswithyourproduct,service,orsolution.Wecanhelpyoubuildthis. Whenyousetthehookwithyourfrostingstatementandthefinancialpictureyoupaint feelscompelling to them, theywillnaturallywant toknowhowyoucanprove it.So thequestions inyourValuePropositionValidation Instrumentwillneedtoextractthekeyinformationanddatapointsyouneedthatwillenableyoutocomebackandpresentthefinancialvalidationofyourvalueproposition. Anotherbenefitofproposingsomeformofminicondensedfinancial“beforeand after” overview earlier in the sales cycle is that it helps smoke outprospectivebuyers’levelofinterest. Clientswhousethisapproachlovethefactthatbygettingoutontothetableearlyon in theirpresentation, the financialnet-netofhowtheycanbenefit theprospect or client helps them gauge whether the opportunity is worth furthertime,attention,andresources.Theyfeelit’slikealaserbeamthathelpscutrighttothechase.Thisisarefreshinglyopen,direct,andhonestwaytopresentyourofferings in a manner that the sophisticated buyer actually respects andappreciates. Oncethey’veseenthefinancialsnapshot,ithelpsyoueitherfurthergalvanizetheirinterestorweedoutthosewhoarejustbrowsing. This approach also assists you in staying connected to the top of theorganizationbecause,attheendoftheday(asseniorexecutiveslovetosay),it’sthefinancial,quantitative,ormetricpicturethatusuallycreatestheurgencyandcostjustificationtomoveforward. Paint the Financial Picture as much as humanly possible in your quest toshorten the closing cycles of your business and your time to a deal. It’s anapproachthathasyieldedgoodresultsformany.Ifyouwantsomehelpinthisarea,contactus.Youmightbesurprisedathowminimaltheinvestmentforthereturnitcandeliver.

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EIGHTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

HOLDYOURGROUND

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN FOOLED, BIG TIME, AFTER COMING AWAYFROM a meeting you thought went supremely well? A meeting where theprimary decision maker(s) were present, told you they were impressed, andwanted tomove forwardwith thenext stepofyourprocess?Ameetingwhereyouwere soexcitedyoucouldn’t containyourself, soyouquicklycalledyourbossandtoldhimorher,“Thisone’sgoingtogoforward.”Ameetingwhereyouheard,withyourownears,thedecisionmakerssay,“Weneedtodothis.Thisisoutstanding.” The eighth Accelerant principle is about the dance of power and how tohandle situations when the executives who are expressing their interest inmovingforwardwithyouactuallymightnothaveanyinterestindoinganythingandareafraidoftellingyouso,asoddasthismaysound. Egoissomethingeveryonedealswithinbusiness.Insomecases, thehigheryouare inanorganization, themore likelyyou’ll interfacewithsomeonewithego—perhapsalotofit.Don’tmisunderstandme.Egoisagoodthingbecauseitprovidesapersonwithconfidence.Butitcanalsogetintheway. Owners and senior executives like people who have strong egos anddemonstrateconfidence,flair,andguts.It’salmostasiftheyhaveanattractiontothesetraits—maybeitremindsthemofthemselves. Now,imagineyouandyourcompanyappearingonthescene(ACCESSINGTHECASTLE)withTEETHinyourmessage.You’refeelingpowerfulbecauseyou’reabouttounleashyour1/3rd...2/3rdsPresentation,whichhassomuchfrostinginthevaluepropositions,youpredictthey’llbeeatingrightoutofyourhand.At thispoint,you’reprettyself-confidentwithswagger inyourstepandnewfoundenthusiasminyourpresentation. Hereiswhereyouneedtobeawareofalittletrickprospectivebuyersplayas

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you approachwith your financial pictures. Some prospectswill do exactly asyouwant,agreeingtoprovidetheinformationyouneedtocreatetheanalysissoyou can return and present the mini financial picture of before versus after.Others,however,maysaysomethinglikethis: “Youknowwhat? Iam impressedwithyourmessageandwhatyousayyoucando—mostimpressed.Ihadnoideayoupeopleandyourproductscouldhavethetypeofimpactonourbusinessyouaresayingyoucouldhave—andforourclientsaswell.Sohere’swhatI’dliketodonext.I’dlikeyoutopresentthistoourpersonin______,and if theyareasenthusedabout thismessageasIam,thenthisissomethingwereallyneedtolookat,allright?” Uponhearingthis,thetonguesofmanyvendorshangout,pantinglikedogs’because they interpret the statementasagreen light, abuyingsignal.Not thatI’manolddog,butIhavebeensellingfortwenty-plusyearsandwon’ttellyouthenumberof times Ihave fallen for thisbone. Iwill tell you that I havenotclosedonelickofbusinesswhenI’vefallenforit. Youhavealreadyinvestedtimeandenergydevelopingmetricsinyourvaluepropositions, which are tight and compelling. You have also developed arelatively short, painless process that allows you to glean information fromprospectivebuyerssoyoucanreturnandpresentthebeforeandafterinmeetingtwo.Ifthepeopleintheinitialmeetingaren’tseriousenoughtobepresentinthesecondmeetingtoheartheresultsoftheminianalysis,donotallowthemtosendyoudownintothebasementoftheirorganizationonawildgoosechase,hopingtogarnerinterest.Donot takethisbone.Thereisnobusinessinthebasement.Holdyour ground.This is a classic trick thatmany senior executiveswill usejust togetyououtof theirofficewhentheydon’thavethegutstotellyouthetruth.Instead,they’llgetvendorsallrevvedup,sayinghowimpressedtheyare,thensendthemtothebasement,wheresomeoneelsewillstoptheirprogress. The reasonI’msoempatheticabout this isbecause it’shappened tomeandmyclientsmore than I care to admit.Oneof our smaller clientsmetwith theCEOofoneofthelargestfirmsonWallStreetwhoseemedquiteimpressedwiththeirofferings,andsaidso.TheCEOthenwalkedmyclientdownthehall,overtohisheadofprivateclientservices.Thiswastheguywhobasicallyunwoundtheopportunitysofastmyclientdidn’tevenknowwhatwashappening. Whenyou sense this happening, draw themout andnegotiate, gaining theircommitmenttobepresentinthesecondmeeting.Iftheywon’tcommittoattend,thendon’tagreetodotheminianalysis.Yousee,becauseyouhavesetthehook

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theywant to see this before and after. This is not a hard-core approach; it issmartbusinessthatreinforcesyourbeliefinyourmessage.Iftheyaren’twillingtoinvestthetimetounderstandwhatthefinancialbenefitsormetricswouldbe,thenitdoesn’tmakesensetoinvestthetimeandenergytodotheexercise.Thisis the leverage you negotiate with. Sometimes it works, and other times itdoesn’t.Buttheapproachiswortheverypenny. Remember,buyerscanbeliars.Ifprospectsareimpressedwiththefrostingonyour cake, then hold your ground until they’ve had a real taste. Thisdemonstrates business acumen, prudence, and confidence—all things a sharpprospectivebuyer likesandrespects.Theywillunderstandwhatyouaredoingandwhyandappreciatethelevelofprofessionalism.Holdyourground.Youwillbepleasedyoudid. Here’s another example of how a small client (fewer than ten employees)callingonahugecorporation (more than thirtybilliondollars in revenuesandoneofthelargesttechnologycorporationsintheworld)usedthisAcceleranttosavethousandsofdollarsinsellingexpenses. They implemented the Accelerants and went right to the top with theirmessageandrequestforameeting.Thetopofficersactuallysawtheletters,andseveralwererouteddownward,onelandingabouttwelvelevelsbelowwheretheclientwantedameeting. Thisgentleman,oneof several in thecurriculumdesigngroupwithinNorthAmericansalesandservices,wantedtotakeameetingwithourclient.Ourclientprobedabitanddiscoveredthateventhoughoneofthetopofficershadwrittenon his copy of the letter that the offer sounded interesting and was worthcheckinginto, therewouldbeat leastanothereight to tenmeetingsbeforeanydecision was made. Our client decided it was not worth the selling cost topursue, so they walked away. They never took the first meeting because thisaccountwouldbetooexpensiveandtimeconsumingtoland. Hold your ground. You’ll assess and smoke out opportunities faster andredirectyourresourcestowardthosethatwillgrowyourbusinessfaster.

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NINTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

CONDUCTTHECONCERT

YOUHAVEDETERMINEDTHATTHEOPPORTUNITYATHANDISWORTHpursuing. The prospect has agreed that you can create a condensed financialanalysis to validate the financial claims you’ve made in your initial meeting.Nowit’stimetoCONDUCTTHECONCERT.ThisAccelerantisthebatonthatwill helppersuade theblockers to “standdown”whileyouextract thevariousdatapoints and informationyouneed from thevariousdepartmentswithin theprospectorganization,tovalidateyourvalueproposition(s). Remember the Value Proposition Validation Instrument from the seventhAccelerant? This is a snapshot of the before-and-after scenarios with yourproduct or service,whichwill help validate the potential financial benefits ofyour core offerings. Again, these are the specific questions that you havepreparedtogivetheprospectivebuyer,sothat theycancollect theanswersforyou,suchthatyoucanthenplugintothisinformation,howyourofferingswouldimprovetheprospect’scurrentsituation—allowingthemtoseethe“before-your-offerings-versus-after-your-offerings”scenario. Youneedatoollikethisbecauseeventhoughthepowersthatbe

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havegiventheirokayandareofteneagerlywaitingforyoutoreturnandshowthem the results of yourmini high-levelROI analysis, youwill faceobstacleswhenitcomestogettingthedatafromtheirorganization. Becausemostcompaniesmakedecisionsingroupsorteams(evenwhenyouaretoldthereisoneprimarydecisionmaker),thereareoftenseveralpeoplewhohave some level of influence onwhether or not youwin business. Some callthem meddlers. Others call them recommenders, influencers, handlers, turfprotectors,blockers,etc.Theyare thegroupofpeopleyouneed toorchestrateandconductlikeamaestroonthewaytotheclosingconcert. Icannotoverstatehowimportantitistokeepallofthesepeopleonthesame

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sheetofmusic.Overtheyears,wehavenoticedthatoneofthebestwaystodothis is to keep the financial frosting (the metrics) in your value propositionforemoston theirminds.Thatway,youcaneffectivelyconduct theconcertofextracting the data points you need from the prospective buyer.Because therearesomanydifferentagendaswithincompanies,oneofthemosteffectivewaystohelpprospectivebuyersstayfocusedonyourmessageistoconstantlyremindthemof thebusinessvalue—thefinancialvalueyourofferingscoulddeliver totheirenterprise. No twovalidation instruments look the samebecause theyarea functionofthequestionsyouwillneed toask,and theiranswerswillhelpyoumakeyourcase.Withoutthistool,itiseasierforthehandlersandmeddlerslurkingbehindeveryotherdoor to slowdownorblockyou fromgetting the informationyouneedtojustifytheirmakinganexpenditureonyourproductsandservices. Makesure thatsomewhere toward the topofyourprintedValuePropositionValidation Instrument you remind anyonewhomight see the document of thefinancialclaimsyou’vemade inyour initialvaluepropositions.Youmustalsostatethatthepurposeofthisexerciseistogetthespecificinformationthatwillvalidatejusthowcloseyoucouldactuallycometotheinitialteethinyourvalueproposition(s). Inourfirstcompany,Iusedthistoolallthetimenotonlytojustifyourworthtoseniormanagement,butalsotostayawayfromtheITorganization—atleastuntilwehadageneralagreement that the financialoutcomeswecoulddeliverwereexcitingenoughtotheseniorexecutivesthatweknewwehadalegitimatechance of winning the business. The Value Proposition Validation Instrumentacted as an effective leveler with various people who attempted to insertthemselves into the process. It prevented them frommaking it harder than itneededtobeforustogetthenecessarydatafromfinance,creditandcollections,operations,andIT. We have assisted clients in building these instruments from a content anddesignstandpoint,sotheyappearbasicandeasytofollowfortheseniorofficersyou’llgobackto. This one-note song of focus reminds them why you need the informationbecause theywill ask.And tomuddle themusicevenmoreat any time in thecourtingprocess,variouspeoplewillattempttosidetrackyouoryourofferings.Thisisnothingnew.Therearecertainfolkswhojustplaindon’tcareorarelazyturfprotectors.Andthere’sneverashortageofpeoplewhowillsay,“There’sno

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budget for that,” or “We don’t needwhat you offer becausewe already havesomethingsimilar.”Thistoolenablesyoutoconducttheconcertofgainingtheinformationyouneedfromprospectiveclientssoyoucanreturnandjustifyyourvalue,helpingyouclose,or in thewordsofAccelerantnumberten,harmonizeforgold.

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TENTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

HARMONIZEFORGOLD

THISACCELERANTISSHORTANDSWEET,YOU’VEALREADYDONEmostofit ifyou’vemetricedyourmessageinAccelerantfour.EOneofthegoalsofthis process is to be efficient by reusing the work of certain Accelerants toincreasethepowerandeffectivenessoftheentiretoolset.Thisway,theprocessisseamlessandeasytouse.ThisiswhatyouaredoingwhenyouHARMONIZEFORGOLD. AssumingyouhaveMETRICEDYOURMESSAGE,yourvaluepropositionismorearticulateregardingthefinancialoutcomes/deliverablesyourproducts,services,orsolutionscoulddrive for theprospectorclient.Thismeansyou’reprobablymoreenthusiasticaboutyourmessageandmoreexcitedaboutgettingouttheretopresentit—anotheroutcomeofmetricsinyourvalueproposition.Sothere’snoneedtorecreatethewheel.Let’susewhatyou’vealreadydone.Youcandothisbycarryingthesamefinancialmessageyou’vealreadycreatedandpresented all the way through your meetings, right up to the close andHarmonize for Gold. Simply stated, you are harmonizing for gold when youremindtheprospective

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buyer (in eachmeeting or call) of the financial net-net of how your offeringscouldimpacttheirbusiness. This involves no tricks or gimmicks. Just a common, financially calibratedvaluepropositionthatyourprospectsawinyourfirstletterore-mailtothem,allthewaythroughyourmeetings,conferencecalls,Webconferences,e-mails,betatests, etc. Now, you close themwith the same or similarmessage (once yourvalidation instrument helps tweak your original value proposition). See thisprincipleinactioninthesuccessstoryonpage175. Itiscomfortingtoprospectivebuyerswhenyourmessageremainsconsistent

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throughout the entire process. This builds trust and confidence, helping youclosefaster. Byandlarge,theindividualsyouwanttodobusinesswith—ormorebusinesswith—wantmore safety and security in the decisions theymake, because theenvironmentaroundthemcontinuestobelessandlesssecure.Misstepscancostcareers.Peoplearenotonlyawareof that,butbecomeincreasinglynervousastheydrawclosertoanyimportantdecisiontheyareinvolvedinmaking. Therefore,vendorsandproviderswhocanrolluptheirsleevesandgetintothemud,helpingprospectsbuild thefinancialpictureandminibusinesscase,oftenwinthebusiness.Thesesameprovidersarealsodifficulttosupplantorreplaceonce they’ve secured the business, because of a feeling of comfort and safetythat’s been established between the client and provider. The client feels theprovidergets it. Inotherwords, theyunderstandhowtohelp linkandpackagethedata theyhavegleanedfor thevaluepropositionvalidation intoacohesivefinancial picture. They have clearly connected the teeth—the quantifiablebenefitsoftheirproductorservice—tothegoalsandobjectivesofthecompany,soadecisioncanbemadeinlesstimeandwithmorecomfortandsecurity. This is the providerwho understands how toHarmonize forGold andwillcontinue to be a formidable competitor. They have implemented the previousAccelerants, from ASSESSING THEIR STATUS TO CONDUCTING THECONCERT, to close larger opportunities in a reduced time horizon, to thedismayoftheirdirectcompetitors.

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ELEVENTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

CALIBRATEFORSUCCESS

HAVE YOU EVER SHOT A PERFECT ROUND OF GOLF? DO THEPROFESSIONALStypicallyshootperfectroundsallthetime?Ifyou’reatennisplayer,isitnormalforyoutoserveacesineverygame?Isitnormaltoperformany sport at peak levels all of the time?Of coursenot, and the samegoes foryourbusiness. As you integrate the Accelerants into your daily culture for hunting andgatheringmorebusiness,berealistic.Knowtherewillbesomefalsestartsandspeed bumps along the way. These principles are field proven and requirethoughtifyouwanttointegrateandimplementthemaroundyourspecificgoalsandobjectives. That is why the Accelerant Process is so beautiful. You can use specificprinciples to further bolster areas where you need immediate help, oroperationalize the entire process for each group of prospects, clients, and in-progressopportunitiesyouwishtotarget. Managingyour levelof expectations is therefore important asyouandyourorganizationbecomecomfortableusingtheminyourbusiness.Likeeverythingelseinlife,sometimesthingsdon’tworkexactlythewayyouthoughttheyweregoingtorightoutofthegate.

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Itisimportanttograntyourselfbothtimeandpatience,makingthecommitmenttoworkwiththetools,shapingthemaroundhowtheycanbestserveyourneedsasabusinesspersonandasanorganization. Tobeprudent,werecommendthatclientsdoapilot—anAccelerantinitiativeinoneortwobusinessunitstobegintheprocess.Thisaccomplishesthreethings:Ithelpsyoutestthewaterswiththisnewprocess,allowsyoutobenchmarkandmonitortheresults,andhelpsyougaugehowthepeopleinvolvedwillrespond.Theinitiativewillalsocreatesomefriendlyinternalcompetitionandexcitementabout“whogetstobenext”tousethetools.

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ClientswhocalibratetheAccelerantProcesstofittheirneedshavefounditauseful,manageable, and rewardingway to allow them time to tweak thewaythey’ve run certain training sessions and executive workshops around keyAccelerants. This helps them further tailor the initiative around each businessunit’s unique offerings, characteristics, and market challenges. A unit-by-unitapproach keeps everythingmoremanageable and helps the organization trackwhere the greatest successes are coming from, so they can replicate thosesuccessesacrosstheorganization.Furthermore,ifyoubelieveinrewardingandrecognizingyourpeopleforachievingcertainbenchmarks,whynotbuildthoserewardbenchmarksintoeachAccelerantsinitiativethroughouttheorganization,essentially creating a little old-fashioned, healthy internal competition? You’llfurther cement the principles into your operating culture, signaling seniormanagement’ssupportandexpectationsofthesetoolsinallbusinessunits.Thiswill result in one common language for targeting, hunting, and closing morebusinessinacompressedtimehorizon. It is common for clients—once they have implementedAccelerants on realopportunities—to make adjustments. They may tweak the metrics in theirmessage, adjust the audiences they are targeting to Access the Castle, andcontinuetorefinetheir1/3rd...2/3rdsCondensedPresentationastheybecomemore proficient in their delivery. For example, some clients initially use theCircleofLeverage toolset togainaccessat thevery top,and then learn,oncethey’rein,thatmaybetheywenttoohigh.Sotheywillselectdifferenttargetsastheygetusedtohowthemethodologyworks. Severalyearsback,amajorplayerinthepayrollservicesindustryhiredmetospeakattheirannualsalesandmanagementkickoff.Withaboutsevenhundredpeopleinattendance,theclientwantedakeynotefocusedaroundthehighpointsof Accelerant five, Access the Castle. Upon concluding the keynote andreceiving a standingovation, Iwas touchedwith thisgroups’genuinedrive toget out there and do it. The management was pleased with their employees’aggressive attitude and desire to try it out. I spoke with the managementafterward,cautioningthemthattheCOLSystemisapowerfultool,andthattheymightwanttospendsometimethinkingthroughwhowouldbeusingit,where,onwhich targets, and onwhich clients and prospects.The response I gotwasbasically, “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Good point.We’ll consider that. Thanks for theheads-up.” Within about sixty to ninety days, I heard that a large part of the salesorganization had been turned loose, using theCOL tool set in the field. They

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lovedit.Butmanagementhadnotputinplaceanycoordinatedrulesamongtheregions as to which companies, titles, etc., should be targeted. So severalhundred salespeople were unleashed nationwide with a tool that could bringthemmorecommissionbecauseitcouldhelpthemgettotherightpeoplefaster.But this was done without much thought from management aroundimplementingacoordinated,strategicapproachinusingtheCOLtoolwiselytogrowtheirtoplinewithkeyaccounts,prospects,keyverticalsectors,anddealsalready in progress. As a result, I heard some of the same companies were“targeted” simultaneously by salespeople in different regions of the samecompany, asking for an appointment to pitch their services. Howwould yourcompanyrespondifitwasapproachedwithinthesamemonthortwobytwoorthreedivisionsofthesamecompany,askingforanappointment? I amnot trying to steeryouaway fromusing the tool.Mypoint is thatyouneedtothinkthroughthevarioustoolsandcalibratethemforsuccess.Onceyourpeople have been trained on the coreAccelerants, have a plan as to how andwhereyouwant themusedsoyouexperiencemaximumimpact.Youdon’tgetintoaracecaruntilyou’vehadcoachingonhowtodriveitandfullcoordinationof your team.The same is true for using these tools, regardless of the size ofyour sales and marketing force. They are advanced tools and require somethoughtaroundhowandwheretheyshouldbeimplementedtoaccomplishyourdesiredoutcomes. Our clients also make modifications to their Value Proposition ValidationInstrumentafterthey’veuseditafewtimes.They’lladdcertainquestionstheyforgot to include,changetheformatof thedocument,etc.This iswhatImeanwhen I say Calibrate for Success. As clients incorporate these principles intotheirbusiness,itisnormaltoexperiencegrowingpainsthatneedattention.Thishelps hone the principles so they serve the highest and best use of theorganization. Sellingisaprocessbecausethemarketisconstantlyinmotion.CalibratingforSuccess helps you continually tweak and fine-tune theAccelerants around thedifferenttypesofbusinessesyoutargetfortheproducts,services,andsolutionsyoubringtothemarketplace,givingyourcompanymaximumbenefit.

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TWELFTHACCELERANTPRINCIPLE

COMPLETETHECIRCLEOFINTEGRATION

WHEN YOUEXPERIENCE SUCCESS INONEPARTOF YOURBUSINESS,don’t you look to replicate that success in other areas? This is somethingwesuggest with Accelerants because of their applicability and value to multipleareaswithinyourbusiness. ThisiswhatthisAccelerantisallabout,completingtheprocesssoyou’vegotone common sales methodology for targeting, hunting, and closing morebusiness throughout your enterprise. It’s about creating a common languageflexibleenoughtobetailoredtotheuniquechallengesofeachbusinessunit,sothat as you experience success in your first Accelerant initiative, you cancompletetheintegrationbycontinuingitsapplicationinotherbusinessunitstoamplifyitseffectivenessthroughoutyourenterprise. Oneoftheaspectsbusinessleaderslikeaboutthisprocessisthatit’scircularandongoing.Businessprofessionalslikeprocesseswithadistinctbeginningandendpoint—circularindesign,stressingcontinualimprovement.CEOscanstandinfrontoftheirorganizationsatsalesmeetingsorbeforeanalystsonWallStreetand share the Accelerant Process, explaining how they analyzed eachconstraint’seffectontheirbusiness.Theycanthenwalktheseaudiencesthrougheach Accelerant tool, explaining its value to their organization, how it willminimize theconstraintsover time,howitwillmaketheorganization’speoplemoreeffective,andhowtheorganizationcantailortheprocesstoeachbusinessunit’suniquechallengestoincreasetop-linerevenueswhilereducingthecostofsales. TheAccelerantProcessisalogicalprocessthatseniormanagement,yourfieldforce, analysts, shareholders, and bankers can understand. It will give themconfidencethatyouhaveaprovenprocessthateveryonecanfollowtohelpdriveyourgrowthforthenexttenyearsandbeyond.

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As you know,most successful businesspeople don’t jump inwith both feetwhenitcomestoanewconceptorprocess.Theywanttobeprudent,testingtheprocedureonparticularopportunitiesorinspecificbusinessunitsthatneedhelpright away or pose the least risk if things don’t go quite right. But once theyexperience success, they like to replicate it in other business units and withopportunitieswheretheydesirethesameboost. Embedding these principles into the DNA of your company’s strategictargeting,hunting,andbusiness-gatheringprocesscanhaveameasurableimpactongrowingyourtopline,compressingyourtimetoadeal,reducingthecostofsecuringbusiness,andenhancingthemarginsonthebusinessgained.ThecasehistoriesinSectionThreeevidencethissuccess. Because you have now done the work, why not extend the value of yourinvestmentbybringingkeyaspectslikeyournewvaluepropositionsintootherareas that impact revenue growth? For example, clients who integrate certainAccelerants like Metric the Message into their marketing communications,collateral,andexecutivewhitepapersshowprospectsandclientsonecohesivemessagethroughoutalltheirmaterials. The same is true if you applied Accelerants to your customer service andcontactcallcenters.Whynothaveeachcustomer-facingaccountrepresentativeknowhowtoarticulateyournewfinanciallymetricedvaluepropositions?Equipthemwiththeabilitytoexplainhowyoucandeliveruponthatmessage.You’dbe surprised how your people will become better at upselling your customerbase,drivingevenmoreincrementalrevenue.Thisisacontinuedpushtoshowprospects and clients one united, cohesive face andmessage. Accelerants canalsohelpboostresultsattradeshows,conventions,andusermeetings.Considerusingtheminyourpublicrelations,advertising,directmail,andInternet-basedpromotions. This way, you will Complete the Circle of Integration bymaximizingthevaluetheseprinciplescangenerateforyourorganization. As mentioned, the Accelerant Process for Business operationalizes theseprinciplesonexistingclients,prospects,vertical industryopportunities,and in-progress situations you have determined are worthy of focus and resources.Whatthismeansis,onceclientshavedonetheworksuggestedaroundeachofthe tools, they then implement theirnewprocessonopportunities theyfeelareworthyofhunting,tobringinmorebusiness. Clientsinitiallymovethrougheachprincipleatamorerelaxedpaceifthisistheirfirst time.TheintensityandcalibrationoftheAccelerantsdependsonthe

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volume of targeted companies in a given time frame. Clients interested insystematizingtheirapproachtokeyverticalindustrysectors,steppingthingsupanotchortwo,oftenmovetoAccelerantCampaigns.Thesearemoreaggressivescenarios in which you approach several directly competing companiessimultaneously, presenting a common value proposition, with the goal ofquickeningtheoverallresponserate. Thishasprovenaprecisestrike-forceapproachtosystematicallyhuntingandgatheringmorebusiness inaparticular regionorvertical. Ithasalsodeliveredresults in national campaigns. Read about the results of this approach in theupcoming success stories. Accelerants are effective tool sets, and an effectivebusinessimprovementprocess,whethertargetingone,two,orseveralcompaniesinagiventimeframe. Numerous clients, from small privately held companies to midsized andmultinationalenterprises,haveexperiencedsuccessbyimplementingthesetools.Some have given themselves a growth spurt. Others have employed specificprinciples, making them a part of their standardized business developmentprocesses. Toprovideaflavoroftestimonialslendingcredencetotheprinciples’validityand usefulness, three additional Success Stories follow, showcasing theprinciplesindifferentscenariosandgivingyouanideaofthediversityinwhichtheycanoperateandprovidevalue. “ClimbingtheMountain”isaboutoneofthecompaniesIfounded—asmall,privately held vendor attempting to sell its predictive-dialing technology to abillion-dollar, direct-mail catalog marketer (Fingerhut Corporation) and goingheadtoheadwithafewlargetechnologycompaniessuchastheoldIBM-Rolm,AT&T,Rockwell,andothers. “Run-Build-Run”dealswithamultinationalmanagementconsulting,systemsintegration,andoutsourcingfirmthatusedanaggressiveAccelerantCampaignon a defined number of companies. Their goal was to sell and close large-volume,multiyearcontracts foraparticular serviceofferingdesigned to jump-starttheirrevenuelineandincreasetheirglobalcompetitivenessinthisspecificarea. “Selling Executive Aircraft” deals with a small, privately held start-uppublishingahigh-endexecutiveaircraftpublication.OneAccelerantCampaignBlitzput theirpublicationon themap—creating strongcash flowanddemandfortheirservices.Therewasnoneedtoraisecapitaltogetofftheground—their

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publicationwasalreadyinflight. Each story is real. To honor client confidentiality, some company namescannotberevealed.Butyouwillhearenoughspecificstopaintaclearpictureofwhathappenedandtheresultsthatfollowed.

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SectionThree

THREE MORE ACCELERANT SUCCESSSTORIES

ACCELERANTSUCCESSSTORY:CLIMBINGTHEMOUNTAINInoursmallstart-up,withlessthantwoyearsunderourbeltandclosingcyclesaroundsixtoeighteenmonths,cashflowwastight.Itwastheblindleadingtheblind,findingourwayasnewentrepreneurssellinghigh-endtechnology,whichwe had never done before. Our products, called call-progressmachines, werebecomingknownaspredictive-dialingsystems.Wewereatthebeginningofnewtechnologyandhadtoexplainwhat themachinesdidandthevaluetheycouldprovideoneveryappointment. Because we were small, it was easy to Assess Our Status.We didn’t havemuch going on, period! Ifwewanted tomake anymoney,we’d need to startchasingsomebigfish.Weknewwhatwewantedourfuturetolooklike,sowebegandoingresearchoncompaniesinourbackyard—largecreditandcollectionoperations.Tomysurprise,oneof the largerpubliccompanies inMinneapolishad a remote collections operation staffed with several hundred collectors,runningtwoshiftsperday,sixdaysaweek.Wehadnocontactsat thisfirm—none—andnoneofmyrelationshipsknewanykeyexecutives,soaccessingthismountainofanorganizationwasgoingtobeachallenge.Wewouldhavetohitthemaggressively,withabold,metricedmessage,justtogettheirattention. Upon furtherdigging, I learned theywerean IBMclient, running two largemainframes that, amongother things,kept trackofone-million-pluscustomersthroughoutthecountry. Afterdeterminingthiswasacompanyworthtargeting,commonsensetolduswehadtwochoices:OnewastoAccesstheCastleatthedirectorofcollectionslevel and try to create enough urgency and enthusiasm for our message andtechnology,hoping theyhadenough juice to takeus to thecorrectpowers that

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be.Theotherwastoapproachwhereeveryoneelseseemedtogoin,whichwasinsidetheITorganization. Sincethiscompany’sITorganizationwassubstantial(severalhundredpeople)andbecausegoingtheITrouteimmediatelyputusatriskofbeingrelegatedtoalonglistentitled“anotherITprojectforreviewsomeday,”Idecidedtostepbackandthinkthroughhowwecouldcollapseoursellingtimebyenteringhigherintheorganizationwithatightermessagethatwasbasicallyallaboutthenumbers—thefinancials—andnotaboutthetechnology. Ifwecouldget to the rightaudience,and theywere impressedenoughwiththefinancialstory,maybethoseexecutivescoulddrivetheopportunityfromthetop down, creating enough urgency within the IT organization to review oursolutionmuchfasterandbenchmarkandblessthetechnologysowecouldclosethebusinessinlesstime. WehadCharteredOurCourseandwerelockedonthismountain,convincingourselveswehadnothingtolose.ToMetrictheMessagenowbecameourfocus.Howcouldwetakeabunchofreallycooltechnology(hardware,software,andservices)andshifttheprospectsattentiontotallyoffthetechnologyandontothefinancial results it delivered?This became ourmessaging strategy—especiallysince several competitors, such as IBM-Rolm,AT&T, andRockwell, were alltalkingabouttheirtechnologyanditsmarvelousfeaturesandbenefits. Weknew fromexperience thatmany top executives—with the exception oftheCIO—reallydidn’tcaremuchabouthowthetechnologyworked,justthatitdid. They were more interested in what it could deliver in financial terms.Therefore,wesetaboutgrindingdownourvalueproposition—puttingasmuchteethintoitaspossible,hopingthatwhenweapproached,itwouldactasaheat-seeking laser, bringing us to the senior people who could drive change, cutthroughbureaucracy,andcausethingstohappen. We agreed that talking about our technology in the initial meetings wouldslowusdownandpotentiallydustusall together, sinceourmultibillion-dollarcompetitors wielded bigger budgets and hundreds of technology clientreferencesversusouroneclient.DidImentionweweresmall? By grinding down our message, it became clear that one of the primarybenefitsofpredictive-dialingtechnologywasitsabilitytoincreasethetalktimeof each collector. We knew most manual collection floors without thistechnologywereactuallytalkingwithdebtorsanaverageofeighteentotwenty-four minutes per hour hour, per collector. The remaining time was burned

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figuringoutwhotocallnext,dialingthenumber,listeningtorings,busysignals,three-tones,etc.Ourprospectwasamanualoperation.Ourautomated systemscould get their talk time up to forty-two to forty-five minutes per hour andbasically double the talk time for each collector. Since they employed severalhundred collectors per shift, two shifts daily, six days a week, the simplemathematicsofour financialpicturewouldbecompelling.This is the frostingstatementwe ledwith inourCOLapproach letter.Here is thegistofwhatwewroteinourvalueproposition: “Wehavetheabilitytonearlydoubletheindividualtalktimeofeachoneofyourcollectors,fromwhatwebelieveitisnow—eighteentotwenty-fourminutesperhour—toaroundforty-twotoforty-fiveminutesoutofeveryhour. “Thisessentiallygivesyourorganizationoneoftwochoices.Eitheryoucanemploy the same number of collectors and perhaps double your collectionsmonthly, or, you could maintain the same level of debtors you are currentlyreaching—butwithhalfasmanycollectors.Thismeansyoucouldreduceyourpayrolland insurancebenefitson these individualsbymillionsofdollars.Thechoicewouldobviouslybeyours. “This is our value proposition to your organization. If you allow us anappointment at the right executive level, we offer a free mini ROI businessanalysis,whichwouldserve tovalidateournumbersandclaims—soyouhavean even clearer picture of what the real financials would look like for yourorganization. Ihopeyouwillacceptouroffer,allowingus tosubstantiatehowwecoulddoubletheproductivitylevelsofyourcollectionsoperationthroughourfreeminiROIbusinessanalysis.” NowthatwehadMetricedtheMessage,ourconfidencelevelwentupanotchor two.Wewere jazzed about taking it to them, so it was time to nail downwhereweshouldenterwithinthecastle.Bydoingtheworkonthemessage, itbecame evident that approaching the IT organization was probably not wise,sincethey’dforceusbackontoaconversationaboutourtechnology,whichwedidn’twantbecauseitwoulddragoutapotentialsalebymonths.Approachingthe director of collections didn’t feel right either—probably too low in theorganization.Whatifthatindividualhadbuiltthecollectionsoperationandwashappywithitssize?Thenwe’dbetoast. ByusingtheCOLapproachfromAccelerantprinciplefive,AccesstheCastle,we targeted several senior officers who we thought might care about ourmessage, if they saw it.We researched the names and titles of the individuals

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over each major division and function of the company and selected thepresident/CEO,CFO,SVPoffinance,SVPofcreditandcollections,andSVPofoperations. WebroadcastourvaluepropositionviatheCOLlettertothesefiveexecutives,asking for assistance and guidance on getting a meeting with the mostappropriateseniorpeople.Weexplainedthatwewantedtopresentourstoryandgain their agreement on doing the mini ROI business analysis (our valuepropositioninstrument).Notknowingwherewewouldlandinsidethecastle,Ifiredoffcustomletterstoeachofthefiveexecutives,regularmail. Almostlikewavingamagicwand,wewerein.Twotopfinancialpeoplewereasking, “How?How can you do this?What do you need to know from us tovalidatethesenumbersanddoyouranalysis?”Itwasoutstanding.AndbecauseIhadaskedforafifteen-minuteappointment,makingsureitwaspainlessforthemtogrant—my1/3presentationwasdoneinaboutfiveminutes.Thesolepurposein being there was to gain their agreement to provide us the data from theircollections operation so we could do our analysis and return to present thefindings.Thatwasit.Theyagreed,sowedidn’tneedtoHoldOurGroundthistime. ItappearedtheITorganizationdidn’tknowaboutthemeeting,butwebracedfor a call from the director of collections. We predicted he would either bedefensiveoncehefoundoutaboutthemeetingortrytoshutusdowncompletelyoutofjealouslyorspite,becausewehadn’tapproachedhimfirst.Thecallnevercame.Instead,withinafewweeks,wereceivedafaxwiththeanswerstomostofourquestions regarding theircollectionsoperation—enoughsowecoulddotheanalysis. Our initial hunches regarding their manual operations were close. We hadunderestimatedthenumberofcollectors,however,sothesizeoftheproductivitylift—orlaborsavings—wasmoresubstantialthanwehadsuggested.Thiswouldallowus toshowthemhowour technologycouldpayfor itselfwithineight toninemonths.After that, itwoulddeliverpuresavingsoran increase indollarscollected—thechoicewastheirs. PAINTINGTHEFINANcIALPICTUREinourCOLapproach letterhadsofarhelpedusavoidconversationsaboutourtechnologyandseemedtokeepthetwofinancialexecutivespatientuntilwepresentedtheROIanalysis.Inmeetingnumber two, the same two financial individuals were present. In less thantwenty-fiveminutes,wehadwalkedthemthroughanImmersionPresentationof

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the 1/3rd . . . 2/3rds Format outlining howwe had performed theirminiROIbusinessanalysisand thecorrespondingconclusionsofhowoursystemscoulddeliverthefinancialstory.NoPowerPoint,nodarkenedroom.Wewereupandmoving about, keeping the energy and interest levels high.This allowedus tovalidateourinitialvaluepropositionintheletter—usingthedatatheysuppliedtowalkthemthroughhowtheirnumberscouldbeimprovedwithoursystems. They received the informationalmost indisbelief,withanattitudeof“Howcouldthisbepossible?Imean,yournumbersareverycompelling.Ijustthoughtourcollectionsoperationwasstateof theart—runningwellabovecomparableoperationsaroundthecountry.” The two financial executives called a sixty-minute thirdmeeting and guesswhoelsewaspresentinadditiontoourtwosponsors?IfyouguessedtheCIO,you’dbecorrect.AlsopresentweretheSVPofcreditandcollections, thevicepresidentofcreditandcollections,andthedirectorofcollectionflooroperations.I’m not sure I’ve remembered the exact number of people and their titlesaccurately, but you get the picture.Wewere instructed to re-present ourminiROIbusinessanalysis,whichwedid for twentyminutes,using flipchartsandtheImmersionTechniqueofthe1/3rd...2/3rdsFormat.Thetoneintheroomwasfriendlyandcordial. Uponfinishingthepresentation,questionsstartedtofly.Youcanguesswhatthe CIO asked, based on the fact he had never heard of us or of predictive-dialingtechnology.Hisquestionswereallaboutthetechnology.ThedirectorofcollectionflooroperationsalsoposednumerousquestionsandappearedtobethepersontaskedtoprovidethecollectionfloordatainorderforustocompletetheminiROIbusinessanalysis. Thedynamicintheroomwasfascinating.Itwasclearthefinancialpicturewepaintedforthetwoseniorexecutiveshadgottentheirattention—somuchsothatwithin a few weeks, the organization formed a formal task force ofapproximately ten people and charged themwith creating the collection floorand technology requirements specifications for a potential predictive-dialingtechnologyacquisition.AnRFI(requestforinformation)wasthensenttomorethantwentydifferentpotentialvendors. We were off to the races. The next twelve months were a long process ofmonthly, sometimes bimonthlymeetingswith the task force as they graduallyparedtheirlistofpotentialvendorstoafewfinalists.Duringthistimethetaskforcechristenedus“theFlip-ChartBoys.”They’dkidusabouthowwe’dunveil

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our flip charts as we walked around the conference room. (Isn’t there anexpressionthatgoes,“Ifthey’reteasingyouthatmeanstheylikeyou?”)ItismyguesswewereeasiertocomprehendthansomeofourcompetitorswhocameinwithfancyPowerPointslideshowsandothershow-and-telltechniques. Duringtheyearoftaskforcemeetings,weusedtheninthAccelerant,ConducttheConcert,frequently.Itcanbeeasyforanybillion-dollarorganizationtogetcaughtupintheirpowerandsize.Thefinancialpicturewekeptinfrontofthemservedasaneffectivelevelerwith thoseattemptingtoblockorslowdownourefforts.Andmyhunchisweprobablyhadhigherlevelsofaccesstotheseniorexecutivesthanperhapsanyofourcompetitors,basedonwherewehadelectedtoenterabouttwelvemonthsearlier. In the finalpresentation,aftermonthsofdetailedmeetings, the first thirdofthepresentationtookaboutthirtyminutes.Whatwepresentedwasbasicallythesamefinancialpicturewehadsharedabouttwelvemonthsearlier—coupledwithabrief,condensedsynopsisofwhyourtechnology,versusotherfinalists,wasabetter answer to their stated technical needs and requirements.Aweekor twolater, we received the call from the head of the task force that we had beenselectedas theirvendorofchoiceand to return to thecompany’soffices togoover specific terms they wanted in the agreement regarding performancespecifications,paymentterms,etc. I couldn’t help butwonder how two guys in an upstart just beat out IBM-Rolm, AT&T, Rockwell, and several other formidable competitors. Was itbecausewehadbetter technology?Orwas itbecauseof thingsabitharder todefinethatwedidalongtheway?Thingslikeincludingmetricsinourmessage,makingitmucheasiertounderstandwhytheyshouldtalktousinthefirstplaceandinvestigatethistechnologyabitdeeper.Also,howweAccessedtheCastle,whichhelpedusgetsenior-leveltractionaroundourfinancialmessage,creatingthe urgency that caused the task force to be created. Remember, theyweren’tlookingforasolutionfortheircollectionsoperations.Soyoucouldsaythatwiththese tools,wecreatedanopportunityoutofnowhere.WespecificallyPaintedtheFinancialPictureoftheresultstheycouldexpecttoseewithincertainranges,and kept Conducting the Concert by reminding them of this. (This consistentfinancialfocushelpedmitigatesomeof thepettypolitics thatpoppedupalongthewaywiththosepeoplewhoappearineverycompany,whocan’tseemtogetoutoftheirownway.) Bybeingconciseandeasytofollowinall1/3rd...2/3rdsPresentations,didtheycometoenjoyourvisitsmorethananyoneelse’s?TalkaboutDeliveringthe

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Ultimate Presentation!Even thoughwewere frequently kidded about the old-fashionednatureofthe1/3rd.. .2/3rdsFormat,theyappreciateditssimplicityandbrevity—nottomentionitwaseasiertofollow.Theteasingdidn’tbotherus. Without question, the Accelerant Principles were invaluable in landing thismountain of an opportunity, which helped put us on the map. It gave us theconfidence, momentum, and a repeatable platform we could follow for newopportunitiesonourCharteredCourse.ACCELERANTSUCCESSSTORY:RUN—BUILD—RUNIt is time tosharea success froma largerclient—amultinationalmanagementconsulting, technology integration, and outsourcing firm with several practiceareasandthousandsoftalentedprofessionalsemployedworldwide. Perhaps your first question would be:Whywould a successful global firmwithmanysatisfiedclientsuseAccelerants?Icannotsharealldetailsaboutthespecificfirmstheytargetedortheincrementalliftinrevenues,outofrespectforclientconfidentiality.Sufficeittosaytheywerepleasedenoughwithafive-fold-plusreturnontheirinvestmentthat,asbestweareaware,thepeopletrainedonthe tools continue to use them to close larger deals in less time—and to helpassessthepotentialscopeofopportunitiesearlieroninthecourtingprocess. When the dot-com bust cast its spell on the technology industry, spendingdramatically contracted over a period of years. The September 11 terroristattacksonAmericafollowed.Hundredsoftechnologyplayersofallsizesbegantoexperiencefitsandstartsofeveryformandfashion.Constantchangewastheorderoftheday.Thisincludedbankruptcy,ChaptersSevenandEleven,massivedownsizing,quarterlyreorganizations,officeclosings,etc. It was during this time that our firm was retained to assist a large globalconsultancy in one area, which we’ll call Consumer Products-RetailDistribution.Theclienthadcreatedanewserviceofferingtheywantedtomarketaggressively to a targeted group of multibillion-dollar companies nationwide,which they had identified as potential prospects—all in a particular verticalindustry.Theendgamewas toclosemultimillion-dollar,multiyearagreementsaroundthisofferingwewillcallRun-Build-Run. The firm’s thinking appeared sound, and they wanted our assistance in

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reviewingthebusinessstrategy,valueproposition,andaccessplanfortheseniorexecutives theywere targeting to attend the initial capabilitiesmeetings at thefirmstheyhadidentified. Because the offering was technology oriented, the client thought meetingswiththetoptechnologyofficerofthetargetentities—eachbetweentwoandtenbillioninannualrevenue—wastheappropriateplacetostart. After listening to the business objectives, approach strategy, and valuepropositionoftheoffering,itappearedtherewerepotentialgapsandunresolvedquestionsregardinghowtheplanwouldactuallycometogether.Myworkwiththe Accelerant Principles had helped us become fairly accurate at spottingpotentialapproach-and-implementationproblemsbeforetheyhappened. WewenttoworkbyfollowingtheAccelerantProcessforBusiness—applyingeachAccelerant tool set to their stated objectives and time lines.Aswith anylargeconsultancy,heavilymatrixedorganizations suchas thesecan sometimespresentconfusionfortheirclients,andforthoseinsidetheorganizationaswell,intermsofwho’stargetingwho,andwhy. In thiscase, thepracticeareachargedwith finding the revenue for thisnewoffering was expecting leads or referrals from other practice areas within thefirm, but these were not coming. Therefore, the decision wasmade that theywould act as their owndirect sales organization, targeting this initial groupofcompanies, which seemed like good candidates for a multiyear agreementaroundthisparticularoffering. Inonesense,youcouldsaytheyhadalreadyAssessedTheirStatus,DesignedTheirFuture,andCharteredTheirCoursepriortoretainingus.However,aswebeganputtingTeethintotheirmessage—becausetherewerenometricsasfaraswewereconcerned—theclientbecamemoreopenaboutrevisitingtheaudiencetheyactuallywanted in their initialmeetings.Theyknewfromexperience thatthese typesof transactions could take twelveormoremonths to hunt, qualify,andclose,andtheywantedtocompressthetimehorizonifatallpossible. Weconvincedthemthatifthemetrics—theTeeth—werecompellingenough,approachingtheCIOortoptechnologyofficerwasthewrongplacetoenter,andthat the CEO, president, and CFO were better candidates to receive theirmessage,becauseiftheylikedit,thesepeoplecoulddrivethedealsfromthetopdown,andpotentiallyclosethemfaster. Theyacceptedthelogic,sowerecalibratedtheirfuture,andrecharteredtheir

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coursebygroupingcertaincompetitivecompaniestogetherontheirtargetedlistintoanAccelerantCampaign—amoresophisticatedblitzingtechniquedesignedfor situationswhen itmight be necessary or appropriate to approachmultiplecompaniessimultaneouslywithacommonvalueproposition thatcouldbenefitall—andwherefasteractionisdesired. By walking through the fifth Accelerant, Access the Castle, they selectedthreeexecutivestheyreallywantedpresentintheirinitialone-hourmeeting—theCEOand/orpresident,theCOO,andtheCFO.Thiswouldbeadifficultgrouptobringtogetheratthesametime,inthesameroom,inthemiddleofJuly,whenitseemsasifallseniormanagementintheUnitedStatestaketheirvacations. The client became convinced that if they could address this audience, theycoulddramaticallycollapsetheirtimetoadeal.WewrotetheirmultipageCOLapproachletter,whichwascalibratedtothethreeexecutivestheydesiredinthefirstmeeting,Painting theFinancialPictureofacost-reductionplay thatcouldpotentiallydelivermillionsinsavingsoverthecourseofthemultiyearterm. Weexpectedandpreparedourclientforpushbackfromthetechnologyofficeronce he or she became aware of the letters, since it was a technology-relatedoffering, andwe couldn’t prevent the letters from bouncing around inside theorganizationaftertheylanded.Theletterwascarefullyconstructedsoasnottoalienateourclientfromthetechnologyofficer,butinstead,toexplainwhyheorshedidn’tneed tobepresent in the initialmeetingbecause itwas100percentaboutthenumbers. In June and July,we orchestrated anAccelerantCampaignBlitzwhere ourclient simultaneously approached thirty-six companies nationwide. All 108customized COL approach letters arrived with military precision (thirty-sixcompanies, three executives per company). As a result, sixteen organizationsgrantedmeetings,andineachmeetingexceptone,theCEO/president,COO(iftheyemployedone),andtheCFOwereallpresentinthesameroom.Allsixteeninitial meetings were executed in about an eight-week time horizon—choreographedlikeclockwork. Theclientwasamazedatthespeedofaccesstotheseseniorexecutives.Theywere also delighted to be able to enter at the topof the organization from thebeginning and in a different division than theywere typically used to initiallyapproachingwith this type of offering.They felt that thismovehelped garnertractionfasteraroundtheirmessage,whichnowhadmoreTEETH.Totopitoff,none of the meetings was canceled—something they were used to—and the

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officersactuallyshowedupaspromised.Thiswasalmosttoogoodtobetrue. As the client Painted the Financial Picture via their 1/3rd . . . 2/3rdsPresentation, approximately five companies agreed to the fee-based financialassessment,whichthenyieldedafewpiecesofclosedbusinessinfarlesstimethantheclientwasexpecting. TheydidanartfuljobofHoldingTheirGroundandConductingtheConcert,running interference between the technology and finance executives to securethedatatheyneededtoHarmonizeforGoldandclose. The Accelerant Process and custom-calibrated Campaign Blitz delivered amuch higher caliber of initialmeetings, lacedwithmultiple senior executiveswhohad thepowerandauthority tomake thedecision (inamorecomfortableandsafergroupenvironment)once theyunderstood the financialpicturebeingpainted.Thisbecameoneofthereasonstheopportunitiesclosedmorerapidly. Basedonexperience,itismyopinionthatmostlargefirmsrelyontheirsheersizeand/ormarketdominancetogetinthedoor.TheAccelerantProcessshowedthis company new thinking. Truth be told, they really didn’t have a problemgainingaccess,ortheywouldn’tbeamultibillion-dollarmultinational.However,whattheylearnedwasatoolsetthatcouldfurthercompresstheirtimetoadeal—something every company wants to do. They implemented this structuredmethodology and execution strategy for systematically approaching severalcompanies on their radar screen with the goal of closing business in acompressedtimehorizon.Andthatiswhathappenedinthisinitiative.HowcantheAccelerantshelpyoudosomethingsimilar?ACCELERANTSUCCESSSTORY:SELLINGEXECUTIVEAIRCRAFTIn the heart of the south lies a small, privately held publisher of a high-end,executiveaircraftpublication.Thevisionforthisexclusivemagazinewasclearlypictured in themindof itsentrepreneurial founderwhenhecontactedusabouthisconcept.HewonderediftheAccelerantProcessmighthelpgetthemagazinelaunchedsohewouldn’tneedtoapproachthecapitalmarketstofundthestart-upphase.Hedidnotwanttogiveuphalftheequityinthebusinesstogetitofftheground. The founderwas candid about the fact themarketplace didn’t need anotherhigh-end executive aircraft publication to assist established private aircraftdealersinadvertisingandsellingtheirinventory.Heexplainedthatthoughitwas

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a “clubby” community that would be difficult to break into, he felt he couldprovide enough differentiation among the current publications to create andsustainaviablebusiness. ItsoundedasifhehadpartiallyAssessedHisStatus,explainingtheintensityof thecompetitionandthedifficultyofbreakinginto theseestablisheddealers,whohadlong-termrelationshipswithotherpublications.ItalsoappearedhehadDesignedHisFuturebecausehewasawarethat,asthenewkidontheblock,hewould need traction at the very top of the dealers hewas targeting.Meetingswith the directors of advertising or marketing were not going to fly becausedecisionswould take too longandultimatelywould travelup to the executivelevelanyway. As he shared the list of forty companies he thought were worthy targetsbecause he believed they could afford the fees for a full-year agreement, webeganaskingquestions.Wewantedtounderstandthelengthoftheclosingcyclefor this type of advertising sale, the complexity of the sale, and whether anyfirms on his list were in competition with one another. We also wanted tounderstandhiscapacitytohandlethebusinessifthingswentwellandheclosed25percentofthefortycompanies.Ineffect,wewereaskingifhecouldhandlethebusinessifitallcameatonce—orwouldheneedtoturnsomeofitdown? His feedbackhelpedus initiallyCharter theCourse,whichwerefinedwhenwe learnedcash flowwas tightand thatbusinessneeded to landwithinninetydaysorhewouldbeforcedtomakesomeunpleasantdecisions.Weunderstoodand asked for permission to revisit his Chartered Course after we assisted inaddingMetrics to theMessage and determined how he should best go aboutrapidlyAccessingtheCastleofthesefortyindependentlyownedaircraftdealersthroughoutthecountry. Becausetheexistingpublicationswereestablishedandwelldone,theTEETHin theofferneeded tobeexceedinglycompelling.Heneededaone-twopuncharticulating why the prospect should either expand their budget and spendadditional dollars in a new publication or reallocate dollars away from apublication they were already using. This was a gutsy message indeed,especiallyforanunknownstart-up. Thepublishersignedoffonthevaluepropositionwehelpedfashionbecauseweknew fromexperiencewhereweweregoing to advisehim to enterwithinthese forty companies. Clearly, this client needed signed advertisingcommitmentsASAP,so itwouldbe toorisky toAccess theCastleat themore

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traditional level, such as the director of advertising ormarketing. Actionwaswhathewanted.Therefore, we advised that he Access the Castle at the very top—the owner,president,and/orCEO.Duetocashflowneeds,hedidnothesitatetoacceptouradvice. Thepublisheralsoputtogethera1/3rd. . .2/3rdsPresentationthatcouldbedeliveredviaconferencecall to savemoneyon travelexpenses,collapsing thetimehorizonofsigningthebusiness.Thiswasalsoauniquewayofflushingoutthosecompaniesthatwereseriousfromthosejustwindow-shopping. The financial picture painted in the value proposition was strong butnecessary,basedonthebusinessobjectivesourclienthadsetforth.Wearenotatlibertytosharethevalueproposition,butitdidcontainfinancialincentivesforthosewillingtopayupfrontandcommittoonefullyearofadvertising. Inanutshell,theCharteredCourseweadvisedwastoplayallfortycompaniesagainst one another by only offering twelve slots to the first twelve aircraftdealerstosignup—inessence,freezingoutallothersfromtheflagshiplaunchoftheuniquepublicationforoneentireyear. Each of the twelve had to commit to the terms and sign a twelve-monthagreementbyacertaindate.Thetwelvedealersthatagreedtoparticipateinyearoneof thepublicationwouldhavefirstdibsonsigningupforasecondyear—continuingtofreezeoutcompetitorstheymightnotwanttobeadvertisingnexttointhesamepublication.Asmentioned,therewasalsoafinancialincentivefortheinitialtwelveforsigningacommitmenttoadvertisebytherequireddate. We were very involved in writing, rewriting, and calibrating the five-pageCircleofLeverageapproachlettertotheexecutiveaudiencetheclientwantedtoaccessquickly.WeemployedanAccelerantCampaignBlitz inwhichallCOLcustom-writtenapproachletterslandedsimultaneouslywiththeexecutivesofthefortytargetedfirms. Itworked. People oftenwantwhat they can’t have, andwhen something isoffered and then essentially taken away, it sometimes creates the urgencynecessarytocauseaction—ifthevaluepropositionisofinterest.Inthiscase,itwas. At the end of the day, pitting forty companies against one another andboldlycommunicatingthatonlytwelvedealerswouldbeallowedintheflagshipfirst year of the exclusive publication created the initial urgency required tocauseactionaroundtheoffering.

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The client reported that even before he had begun the phone follow-ups tolearniftheexecutiveswereinterestedinaconferencecall,someoftheownerswere calling himwith the basicmessage,“I’m in.Countme in as one of thetwelve.FedExmethecontractformyreview.”Asyoucanimagine,thepublisherwasflyinghigh. HoldingYourGroundandConductingtheConcertdidn’tseemtobeanissueinthisengagement.TheCOLapproachletter,coupledwiththestrategiespace,and the level at which we entered the castle with compelling, time-sensitiveTEETHin thevalueproposition,allowed theclient to immediatelyHarmonizeforGold. With surprising speed, the client closed and signed twelve advertisingcommitmentswithinapproximatelytwomonthsandhadalsocollectedtheinitialdownpayments,avoidingtheneedtoseekstart-upcapital.Hewasmovingdowntherunwayfortakeoff. Withcheerleaderlikeenthusiasm,thepublisherbecameaconverttothepowerand systematic manner in which the Accelerant Process worked. During ourdebriefing he commented that as soon as he had the initial publication underway,hewantedtorepeattheprocess,usingacustomizedAccelerantCampaignonadifferentsegmentof themarketplacetoexpandhisadvertiserbaseforthepublication.HerewasanotherclientconverttothepowertheAccelerantProcesscandeliverwhenthecompanytakesthetimetofollowtheprinciplesintheorderinwhichtheyaredesignedtobeused.Theresultsareworthachieving. There have been numerous client successes where just a few AccelerantPrinciplesdeliveredapleasingresultfortheuser.Thelargerandmoreimportantquestion isWhere can Accelerants provide the highest and best use for yourbusiness?Afteryouandyourpeoplehavefinishedthisbook,thisisanexcellentquestiontodiscusswithyourpeerssoyoucancometoconsensusonwheretobeginwithinyourcompany.

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SectionFour MOVINGFORWARD

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CUSTOMIZINGTHEPROCESSTOYOURBUSINESSAPPLICATIONS

LIKE ANY WELL-ACCEPTED GENERIC SOFTWARE PROGRAM,ACCELERANTS cannot typically perform the myriad applications a companymightneedwithoutsomelevelofcustomization.Mosttoolsinthemarketplacearedesignedtoperformabaselineof tasksbutmustbecustomizedaroundtheobjectives and desired outcomes of the business before delivering maximumvalue.AndsoitiswithAccelerants. The primary purpose of this book has been to share the basic nature of thetwelve constraints so you can determine which ones are impeding yourcompany’s revenue growth and forward progress. Merely describing theconstraintsprovidesvaluebecauseithelpscompaniesshineaspotlightonissuesthatareblockingprogress. TheAccelerantstakethingsonestepfurtherbyshowcasingeachprincipleandthewaytheycanworktogethertoprovideacohesivesolutionforyourbusiness. RemembertheoverwhelminginternationalsuccessofDr.StephenR.Covey’sThe 7Habits ofHighly Effective People, where he laid out and described theSevenHabits?Itwasaverycompellingbookindeed,andthereactiontoitwaspowerful throughout theworldwithmillionsofunits sold. I recall listening tomanyverysmartexecutivesdescribetheirreactionstothebookandtotheSevenHabits. Someexecutivesthought itwasagoodread,providingvaluableinformationthey could immediately apply in their personal and professional liveswithoutneedingtoinvestinthecustomizationoftheSevenHabitsaroundtheirspecificobjectives.They felt further investmentwasnotnecessarybecause thecontentwaswellpresentedandexplained,allowingthemto“takeitfromthere,”tousetheirlingo. Therewereandstillareplentyofotherseniorexecutivesandbusinessownersso inspired by the content that the book became an informational tool. Thesepeople saw the real value of embracing the habits in their personal andprofessionallivesandwerewillingtoinvestfurthertolearnhowtheycouldbeapplied and tailored to their applications, goals, and objectives. These are the

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peoplewhotooktheSevenHabitstoahigherlevel,gainingadditionalbenefit. Covey’s book created a training and management consulting business thatgrew to more than ninety million dollars in annual revenues before beingacquiredbyFranklinQuest.Thisisanindicationofthethousandsofbusinessesandpeoplewhoinvestedfurtherinunderstandinghowthehabitscouldbestbeappliedfortheirownsituations,receivingadditionalvaluewellbeyondwhatthebookdelivered.Infact,Franklin-Coveyclaimstoservemorethanfourhundredof theFortune500companies.Thisvalidates in somemanner thatgreatvaluehasbeen and continues tobedelivered around these timelessprinciples.Whatthismeans is, as you read andperhaps reread this book, youmay seehowaninvestment inhavingyourpeople trainedonkeyAccelerants, thenshaping theprocess around your core offerings and target markets, would warrant anexcellent payback. For themanywho tookCovey’s principles to task in theirownbusiness,manysawsubstantialpayback.AndyoucouldseethesametypeofpaybackandROIasyoushapethesetoolsaroundyourkeyobjectives, thentrainand supportyourpeopleas they learn to implement the tools in the fieldagainstthespecifictargetsyousetforthaspartofyourgrowthobjectives. As the expression goes, “You get what you pay for.”Which path will youchoose?Ihaveattemptedtoprovidegenuinevaluewithinthisbooksothatthedescriptions of the constraints and the Accelerants will benefit your businessgoingforward.SomewillfeelinspiredbythesimplepowerandefficienciesoftheAccelerantsandwishtoshapethemaroundtheirspecificbusinessneedstogain an even higher return. You have the opportunity to engage an ACE: anAccelerantClientExecutivewhocanlistentoyourgoalsandgiveyouguidanceonhowbest toaccomplishyourdesiredoutcomes. Itwouldbeourpleasure tohelpyoucompressyoursalescycle(s)andmoveyourbusinesstothenextlevel.

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TRANSFERRINGTHEKNOWLEDGEANDSKILLSETSTOYOURPEOPLE

ASANEXTENSIONOFTHECONVERSATIONABOUTCUSTOMIZINGTHEAccelerants and the Accelerant Process around your businesses specificapplications, let’s touchon thenextstep—transferring theknowledgeandskillsets to your people. This topic evokes an age-old argument that managementconsulting, training and skills development firms battle on a daily basis withclientsandprospects. Time out of the field, as business owners and senior executives describe it,seemstobethestickingpointinthedebate.Manyexecutivesfeeltimeoutofthefieldisnonrecoverablelostproductivitythatwillnegativelyimpactthenumbers.Myquestion is,Does it really,or is the real issue that some trainingprogramsdon’t directly impact top-line revenue generation, collapse the time it takes tocloseanopportunity,orshrinkthecostofsales?Perhapsthisiswhythedebatehasbecomesostickyforcompaniesconsideringaninvestmentintheirpeople’sskillsandabilities. TheAccelerant Principles and Process are designed to help impact top-linegrowth, collapse the time to a deal, and reduce the cost of securing business.Thatbeingsaid,howcouldyouarguecompellinglythattakingyourpeopleoutof the field forashortperiodof timewouldcreatea loss inproductivity if, infact, the opposite is true?Consider thiswhen investing in a program that canteachyourteamhowtousefield-proventoolsthatcouldleapfrogtheirskillsandabilities in becoming more proficient and productive so they can do morebusiness. Thisappearstobewheretheconversationshouldbecenteredasyouconsiderinvestinginyourpeopletomaximizetheirproficiencieswiththeprinciples. Certain Accelerants have training programs, consulting modules, andworkshopsassociatedwiththemthatfocusonaparticularAccelerant—bothhowandwhytheyworkandhowtomosteffectivelyapplythem.Thereareadvancedlevels of programs as well for those who wish to master the principles.Consultingandongoingcoachingarealsoavailable tosupport thosewhohavecompleted the trainingandworkshopsandare ready to shape the toolsaround

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specificapplications. PerhapsitcomesdowntoyourpersonallevelofconvictionregardinghowtheAccelerants could positively impact your business for years to come. Mysuggestionistokeepthe“timeoutofthefield”argumentinproperperspectivebecause,inthefinalanalysis,yourdecisiontobringyourpeopleuptospeedontheprinciplessotheycanbemosteffectivewillfaroutstripthatargumentonanygivenday.

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REAL-WORLDAPPLICATION,IMPLEMENTATION,ANDEXECUTION

ADVANCING ONE STEP FURTHER, THE REAL-WORLD APPLICATION,implementation,andexecutionoftheprinciplesarewheretherubbermeetstheroad.Inthisvein,Ihaveprovidedsuccessstoriesthroughoutthebookintendedto spur your thinking about how the tools can best provide value for yourbusiness. Therearenowarningsignson thismaterial, suchas“Donotoperateheavymachinerywhile implementing the Accelerants” or “It is important to wear ahardhatandprotectiveeyewearwhenusingAccelerants.” However,commonsenseshouldsuggestthatitmightbeagoodidea(ifyou’renotgoing togo through the trainingonkeyAccelerants) thatyoubeginusingthem on “B”- or “C”-type opportunities initially. Become familiar with theprinciplesbytryingthemoutonopportunitiesthatarenotofdireimportancetothebusiness.Thiswillprovideyouthelatitudetotakerisks,makemistakes,andgetusedtohowtheAccelerantsmightbestworkforyou. Remember,yougetwhatyoupayfor.Considerinvestinginthetrainingor,attheveryleast,somelevelofconsultingonhowtoshapethe toolsaroundyour“A” list opportunities. This would apply no matter what the nature of yourbusinessandthepricepointsofyourproducts,services,solutions,orconcepts.Great value has been delivered in these situations, as described in the successstories. One last word about managing your expectations as you implement theprinciples.Ifyouhaveneverhitagolfball,orifyou’reanaverageplayeronagoodday, is it fair toexpect thatyouwillshootpar?Probablynot—infact,ofcoursenot.Asyoubeginusingtheprinciples,donotexpecttheworldintermsofresults.Itisn’tfairtotheprinciples,norisitfairtoyou.Rarelydopeoplelockontoanewapproachandmasteritinaflash.Setyourexpectationsaccordingly.Allowformistakes.That ishowyou learn the toolsandcan somedaybecomeproficientintheiruse. Many who have gone before you have applied the principles and foundsuccess.Sopractice themuntilyousee the results foryourself andexperience

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thepowerandvalueoftheAccelerants. Thankyouforyourtime.Goodluckandenjoy.

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SectionFive WHERETOTURNFORASSISTANCE

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THEVALUEOFTHECONSTRAINTSASSESSMENTANDHOWTOGETITDONEFORYOURBUSINESS

ASIEXPLAINEDINTHEFIRSTACCELERANT,ASSESSYOURSTATUS,theConstraints Assessment helps you understand and see more clearly thoseconstraints impeding your company’s growth. This information is importantbecauseitwillhelpyounotonlyaddressthem,butalsodeterminetheonesthatneedtobecorrectedrightaway. This process can shed valuable light because the individuals taking theassessmentareyou,themanagementteam,andtheindividualswithinmarketing,sales, business development, customer service, field consultants, and fieldmanagementwhose opinions are valuedwithin the company. This is why thefeedbackisrelevant—itcomesfromyourownpeople.Andonceyouareabletoreviewtheinformation,youcanmakebetterdecisionsabouthowtoDesignYourFutureandCharterYourCourse. You have options in terms of the assessment, based on the size of yourcompanyandthenumberofpeopleyou’dliketoparticipate.Yourchoicesalsoincludeanonsitevisitbyourteamtoconducttheassessmentorperhapsdoingitonline.Tolearnmore,pleasevisitwww.accelerantinternational.comandclickontheConstraintsAssessment.

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ABOUTACCELERANTINTERNATIONALPRODUCTANDSERVICEOFFERINGS—CLIENTSSERVED

WHYMIGHT YOU BE INTERESTED INOUR SERVICES? Clients we serveshareseveralcommonobjectives:•Theydesiremoretop-linerevenueatafasterpace.

•Theymayhaveasalesprocess,eitherhomegrown,oroneofthepopularsalestrainingprograms.Ortheyareconsideringbuildinganewprocess.

•Theydesireshortersalescyclesandareductioninsalesexpense.•Theywant theirproducerscommunicating theirvaluepropositionsmore

clearly,inlesstime,wheninthepresenceofseniorlevelexecutives.• They employ accomplished professionals who have been exposed to

varioussalesmethodologiesthroughouttheircareers.•Theybelievethatiftheirbusinessdevelopersareabletohaveanaudience

with one or two senior-level people in the initialmeeting, they could increasetheirclosingratioanddriveopportunitiestoclosuremorerapidly.

•Theywanttheirpeoplepresentingvaluepropositionstoanaudiencewithmoreauthoritytomakedecisions,providingtheopportunitytoscopeandassessthepotentialearlierinthecourtingcycle.Ifyourorganizationsharessimilarobjectives,wecanprovidegenuinebenefit.

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EXECUTIVEOVERVIEW

ACCELERANT IS A RESPECTED THOUGHT LEADER IN ENTERPRISEREVENUE acceleration, compression of sales and closing cycles, andmarginenhancement. The company works with senior management, sales, businessdevelopment,andmarketingorganizationsofmultinational,midsized,andsmallorganizations—bothpublicandprivate. Asaproviderofbusinessprocessimprovementservicesfocusedonthefrontend of a company’s business development efforts,Accelerant helps successfulcompanies meet and exceed their numbers through strategic consulting,assessment,executiveworkshops,trainingprograms,andmanagedservices. Our practice is focused around teaching, coaching, shaping, and helpingimplement field-proven business processes and repeatable methodologies thatenablecompanies toaccelerate their revenuebase, compressclosingcyclesbyupto25percent,reducecostofsaleslevelsbyupto25percent,andreenergizesenior management and field organizations with principles they enjoy usingbecausetheycanproduceresults. AccelerantoffersorganizationsacohesivesetofAccelerantPrinciples,eachuniquely connected to targeting, accessing, qualifying, and closing businessopportunities in a shorter time horizon. Each principle is a skill set; its own“pointsolution”—allowingclientstheflexibilitytofocusonthoseprinciplesthatbest fit their budget and immediate needs. To view a complete listing ofworkshops, training programs, consulting, and managed services offerings,pleasevisitourwebsiteatwww.accelerantinternational.comandclickonCoreOfferings.

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CONVERSATIONSWITHTHEAUTHOR

YOU CAN JOIN THE WEEKLY, BIMONTHLY, OR MONTHLYCONVERSATIONSwiththeauthor,wherehediscussestheconstraintsingreaterdetail, explaining how they can impede your efforts. He then highlights oneAcceleranteachmonth,discussingvariousapplicationsofhowtheycanbeusedto provide additional value, and taking your questions on how to utilize thesetoolsinthefield.LearnmoreaboutthisopportunitybyvisitingtheWebsite.

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KEYNOTESPEAKINGFORYOURNEXTMEETINGORCOMPANYEVENT

MICHAELA.BOYLANISFOUNDEROFACCELERANT,CREATOROFTHEAccelerant Principles and Accelerant Process for Business, and author ofAccelerants.HehasdeliveredkeynoteaddressesforsomeofthemostrespectedcorporationsintheUnitedStatesandabroad. Boylan is one of the highest-ratedmain platform speakers at theMicrosoftWorldFusionannualconventions.Hehasimpressedlargeassembliesofseveralthousand people as well as small groups of senior executives in retreatlikesettings. His respectful style engages audiences, creating highly interactive,humorous, and thought-provoking addresses and sessions that receiveconsistentlyhighmarksfromtheclientandtheaudienceinattendance. For a partial list of corporations Boylan has addressed, and information onkeynote fees and availability, please visit our Web site atwww.accelerantinternational.comandclickonKeynoteSpeaking. Youarealso invited tocallouroffice inMinneapolisat952-445-7854.Wecan schedule a conference call to learn your particular event’s goals andobjectivessothatwemayoffersuggestionsabouthowtoensureitssuccess. Thankyou.Welookforwardtobeingofvalueinthenearterm.Ourverybest,Accelerant

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THEACCELERANTPRINCIPLES

FIRSTACCELERANT—ASSESSYOURSTATUS™SECONDACCELERANT—DESIGNYOURFUTURE™THIRDACCELERANT—CHARTERYOURCOURSE™FOURTHACCELERANT—METRICTHEMESSAGE™FIFTHACCELERANT—ACCESSTHECASTLE™SIXTHACCELERANT—DELIVERTHEULTIMATEPRESENTATION™SEVENTHACCELERANT—PAINTTHEFINANCIALPICTURE™EIGHTHACCELERANT—HOLDYOURGROUND™NINTHACCELERANT—CONDUCTTHECONCERT™TENTHACCELERANT—HARMONIZEFORGOLD™ELEVENTHACCELERANT—CALIBRATEFORSUCCESS™TWELFTH ACCELERANT—COMPLETE THE CIRCLE OFINTEGRATION™TheACCELERANTPrinciples andTheACCELERANTProcess forBusinessaretrademarks,registeredtrademarks,andservicemarksownedbyTheBoylanGroup, Inc.Copyright©2007byTheBoylanGroup, Inc.All rights reserved.Thecompanyprotectsandenforcesitsrightsinitsmarks.