In my experience as a sales manager, I have found that often the best sales people are the ones that make me crazy as a sales manager.  They are always pushing the limits and causing the organization to think twice about how we go to market.  They challenge the product mix, the solutions we offer and the go to market strategies.  They are high maintenance and it makes me crazy!

The temptation is to give them a bad name and let them go.  The thing is, though, they are often pushing the limits and opening new opportunities that would just have gone unnoticed to most others.  And if I am very honest, I want the sales people that make me crazy and push the limits, because they will get it done and make the sales.

Let's be clear.  There are some high maintenance sales people that are just high maintenance.  All talk and no action.  That is not a good thing.  But it is pretty easy to differentiate between the two groups because one group has the results to back up their talk and the other only talks about the results that could be.

Partners, I think may be the same. Some of the best partners are high maintenance.  If the vendor doesn't do things right or needs to modify their products and services to meet the market demand, they will complain about it.  Product developers don't want to hear the complaints at times, but the partner is out selling it and talking to the customer.   The partner may have the right information!

My advice, don't dismiss a partner because the partner makes you crazy.  In fact, it may be that the partners that make you the most crazy are the best partners that you have!

William Vanderbilt

+1 630 343 6261

WVanderbilt@InnovativeLearningChannels.com