Every Call is a Sales Call

I reached out to a few good colleagues recently networking for specialty candidates here in SmAlbany.  I called after 6 PM expecting to leave a voicemail and instead reached a live person whom I didn't recognize.

"Hi, is Gladys there?" I asked. (The name is changed due to the SmAlbany factor and to minimize reader distraction.)

"Sure, hang on a second," the deep and friendly voice said.  I listened to some generic on-hold music for about 30 seconds.  The voice returned, no longer friendly.  "Who are you and what do you want?"

Hmmm.  A bit abrupt, which surprised me for a minute.  "I'm Deb Best and I'm following up with Gladys networking for (specialty) candidates," I replied.

"Sorry," said the Deep Voice, not sorry at all.  "I thought you were a sales call.  We're in the middle of a sales meeting and she doesn't have time to talk to you. (Click.)"  He hung up on me.  Charming.  And ironic.

Later that week, coincidentally (and I don't believe in coincidences), I learned that Deep Voice was the CEO of Gladys' company by observing him asserting himself rather stridently in a meeting and watching him subsequently facilitated by the meeting moderator to let other meeting participants contribute equally.  

Deep Voice's company, by the way, relies heavily on its reputation, more than the average company, as part of its business model.

Which is why I continue to maintain to the point of proselytizing that every call is a sales call.

Internally and externally, you can't let current and potential customers see you sweat, literally and figuratively.  Because the downstream reputation impacts on sales are undeniable.

Seemingly unbeknown to Deep Voice, I am a potential customer connected to other potential and current customers.  In a market like SmAlbany, and in an economy that increasingly connects like SmAlbany outside of SmAlbany, why any customer-facing employee at any level would indulge themselves in anything less than Customer Delight to all company contacts internally and externally is beyond my understanding.

Interestingly, I don't need to understand.  I've been heavily trained and inculcated on intent vs. impact:  the intent doesn't matter, the impact means and drives everything. 

Customer Delight is the responsibility of every employee in the organization at every level.  It's vertical integration at its finest:  it's time to break down the organizational silos and desegregate our organizational roles and constructs and come to the joint conclusion that we're all sales and customer service associates regardless of our respective organizational levels and functions, particularly if we are to sustain and grow our respective organizations within our competitive markets.

A small but poignant example from earlier in my career:  I was conducting a phone-screen with a Chemical Engineer candidate, and as was my practice, I described our chemical manufacturing process from end to end.  I then asked the candidate a few questions about his experience with our particular manufacturing process; finally, I asked him if he had any questions.  "No questions," he said, "Just a comment.  I've never seen an HR person talk about the business like you just did.  I expected you to just tell me about the company benefits.  I'm impressed with your organization and your team, whether you decide to hire me or not."

Exactly.

How authentic are you, no matter what your functional role in your organization, in meeting / exceeding your customers' needs during and after customer-facing contacts?  Internally and externally? 

Every call is a sales call.