Kami knows how it feels to be unsure and to have a little assertiveness go the wrong way. Her advice: “Just try to prioritize listening more and get your ego out of the way.”
Customer Journey Series: Kami
This article is part of a customer journey series following “Kami,” a sales leader in pharma managing competitive changes and new leadership.
Her journey explores building leadership confidence, managing up, navigating organizational change, and positioning herself for the next level.
Each post explores a real coaching conversation or leadership challenge from that journey.
This is the sixth post in the series.
Not long after Kami sat in on the leadership call, one of the ideas she had been advocating for finally received approval. She was given the green light to hire two supporting people for her team to help decision makers choose their product.
“The two support people will have incentive compensation. Their goal is the goal of the whole team, so if the team succeeds, they are rewarded. I think it’s the right set up to help them focus holistically on sales. Everyone knows what to expect.”
She and her counterpart worked through candidates and hired two new people. One fit right in and started being productive right away. The other one, Elisa, was having trouble with her field directors.
“The problems all come down t finding a way to build trust on a team” Kami said. “One of the field directors is very territorial, so she was going to challenge anyone. The other field directors are taking their cues from her.”
She noted that in addition, Elisa had a soft personality. When she hired her, Kami thought she could handle it and stand up when needed, but now she was seeing unnecessary delays.
“Her first outreach to customers should have taken one week, not three weeks,” Kami noted.
She realized that Elisa likes to talk and comes off as overbearing. She seemed to be dismissing other people’s concerns and was having a hard time reading the room. She was trying to assert her authority and ended up rubbing people the wrong way.
Kami spoke to Elisa. She wanted to give her feedback, but first she listened.
Elisa admitted that she was feeling unsure of herself. She said she really wanted this job but now she wasn’t sure if she was good enough. She came from a medical background, not pharmaceutical, so she was feeling a little out of her comfort zone.
She also wasn’t sure about coming into such a close-knit team. She was trying to find a way in, but she realized that she had been a little too assertive.
Kami recognized and validated all these problems and empathized with her. “It’s a process. I know how it feels to be unsure and to have a little assertiveness go the wrong way. Just try to prioritize listening more and get your ego out of the way. Try to help serve their needs and stop thinking about your needs.”
She advised Elisa: “Just think about the other person and where they are coming from. It will smooth out.”
Kami also talked to the team. She started seeing a high school dynamic, a whole group against one person, and she cautioned them against that.
“Trust takes both sides,” she said. “She has to trust you if you are going to be able to trust her.” She advised them to listen and collaborate more.
Then she called a team meeting where she asked everyone to think through their biases and get a vision for the future. The other team had embraced their support person and they were doing really well. That helped this team get over their fears and start working together more.
Kami’s suggestion was that everyone had to listen more and prioritize how other people felt. That seemed to land and the team started to lower their defenses and embrace Elisa as a helpful supporter.
Continue the Journey
← Previous Post | Next Post →
Keep Learning
Return to Customer Journeys Hub
Explore the Leadership Framework
