How to Make Better Hires and Increase Your Profits

Good morning,

Reg Gupton here.

This information will accelerate your bottom line

Are you the person who makes the hiring decisions for your firm? If so, keep reading. If not, why would you forward this vital information on to your sales manager/owner?

Answer:

Surrounding yourself with more successful loan officers will make you more successful, too. Do yourself and your business a favor: forward this message to your owner/sales manager now!

The most successful organizations in the world already know that hiring the right people creates the most powerful "secret weapon" in their arsenal of competitive strategies.

Hiring the right sales people can be as simple as following a recipe based on recent findings from a groundbreaking study conducted by Bill Bonnstetter of Target Training International, Ltd. in Scottsdale, Arizona: “Two of our most significant assumptions were confirmed by the study. (1) Top performing salespeople are similar and, (2) Attitudes or values are more important than behavior in sales performance.”

True-life Story

The other day, an owner named Forrest, mentioned to me that things were going better for him and his company. However, he dreaded the thought of hiring more loan officers since his success in the past had been dismal.

He said, "High turnover is part and parcel of my industry. It has always been that way and will be that way into the future. I have no organized/proven system for hiring. I am pretty scattered when it comes to hiring."

I mentioned that I helped some major and not so major companies create a process for hiring that proved successful. In one case, turnover was reduced from 54 percent to 12 percent saving the company hundreds of thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses. Not to mention the opportunity cost of loans not closed. These loans would have added many tens of thousands of dollars to the bottom line.

I said, "Follow these steps and you will make better hires, reduce turnover, reduce expenses, reduce manager stress and increase profit.

Prospering your bottom line with eight actions

While we engage 10 additional aspects of this hiring regimen, you may be interested in appreciating these seven points for successful hiring. We can cover the rest at a later date.

I. Find candidates

II. Review Resumes and cover letters

III. Interview the subset who passed the resume screen using a standard set of Interview Questions

IV. Eliminate for job fit

V. Run Behavioral and Motivational assessments on the remaining candidates

VI. Re-interview with the assessments

It is relatively easy to mis-state the truth during an interview. For example: a candidate tells you they are motivated by money (when they are not) and they can follow procedures (when they can’t or won’t).

If you are hiring a commission-only sales person, it would be best if your new hires were motivated by money. The PIAV will let you know if they are and how intensely.

Likewise, the DISC assessment will tell you if they are really hard chargers or would prefer to sit behind a desk and work on files rather than going out and interacting with the public.

These assessments are valid and reliable. They measure what they are supposed to measure and they do it time after time.

VII. Make a written job offer

VIII. Send reject letters as necessary

What you should do next

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a demonstration could be worth a thousand pictures. We can show you how we can quickly help you improve your company's profitability and efficiency with a risk free demonstration.

Email me or comment on this post with “I want to reduce turnover and increase profits” in the subject line. I will send you the web site and link you need to do the complimentary assessments. Each will take you less than 12 minutes.

We will compile two personalized, computerized reports packed with relevant information regarding your communication style and how to make the most of it. You will also learn what motivates you and how you chose what you are going to do every day.

These computerized reports will give you detailed information regarding your specific communication traits, more efficient ways to work, either by yourself and/or with others. We sell these individual reports for $100.00, but are free for you, without any further obligation.

After you have evaluated your personal reports, we believe you will quickly understand how this information is powerful and immediately useful. We would like to show you how having this information for all your employees can make your organization more efficient, productive and profitable.

We have done it for other businesses. I would like to do it for you. But be warned many companies make us a permanent part of the team. Call me and I will personally show you how to make the most out of these insights and increase the productivity and profitability of your entire team, company, or work group.

We have done it for others. Let us do it for you. Knowledge is power, and profit. Call for an appointment to discuss your situation.

Reg Gupton, MBA
Coach, consultant, trainer

P.S. Follow me at www.twitter.com/reggupton

P.P.S Find me on Facebook

P.P.P.S find me at www.linkedin.com/in/reggupton

Take a look at my Blog everyday for proven success tips. It is located at http://regs-successtips.blogspot.com/

www.growthseminars.com
800.418.0401 toll free
303.544.0340 office
303.544.0358 fax

Using a set of diagnostic and assessment tools, we help organizations make better decisions that increase profit, productivity and reduce turnover.

How to prospect like a rock star

The following videos contain compelling information which will help you when you are prospecting.

Get your pen and pad out to take some great notes. You will be glad you did.

Sales Techniques: Prospect Your Prospects

Interview with Keith Rosen, AllBusiness.com's Sales Advisor See more videos and how-to business information at allbusiness.com

Note: The following video is about cold calls. He points also work very, very well for warm calls. Pay attention to the "so what" question.

Sales Techniques: How to Capture a Prospect's Attention

Interview with Keith Rosen, AllBusiness.com's Sales Advisor See more videos and how-to business information at allbusiness.com

Note: Asking questions is a great way to encourage your prospects to talk with you and open up as they begin to know, like and trust you more. We generally don't make major purchases from strangers. Commodities like gas, gum and a soda. You bet. Take out a loan, buy a house, take out a mortgage, not so much.

How to Put a Prospect to Sleep in 3 Easy Steps | Fearless Selling

fearless-selling.ca12/5/11

Getting an appointment with a new prospect has never been more challenging. It takes persistence, dedication and lots of hard work. This means you need to make.

Note: Here is what not to do when making a sales call. And this is what most people do because they think that creating credibility and qualifying is key.

Folks: Listen up. Building rapport is the key. Not the rest of this stuff (a technical sales term) just nonsense.

More on rapport building to follow.

To your continued success,

Reg Gupton

Remember: Success leaves clues for us. Here are a few.

Reg Gupton, here.

There are as many Success Principles as there are writer and thinkers on the subject. Here are several videos which you will find useful.

Video:Traits of Successful People Video with Donald Van de Mark

How do successful people stay motivated,change themselves and constantly improve? Donald Van de Mark interviewed hundreds of great leaders and offers this explanation with video of Jack Welch and Starbucks' Howard Schultz. Book Donald to speak at you...

17 Success Principles - The Common Traits of Successful People

17 Success Principles - The Common Traits of Successful People video by Ahmad Sanusi Husain consultant-speaker-motivator Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia sanusi.my@gmail.com mobile: +6019-234 8786 CEO & Consultant: ahmad-sanusi-husain.com Consulting & Training...

Note: In this second video you hear briefly from Jack Welch and Howard Schultz and how they became successful.

6 Success Traits Worth Mastering | Buon Viaggio

Trying to build a business without entrepreneurial thinking is like trying to build a house with a toothbrush. An employee mindset is not a useful.

Note: I have not vetted this persons offerings. Just thought her message was a sound one.

Successful Traits Of An Entrepreneur | The Successful Entrepreneur

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The traits of an entrepreneur are many, but they can be boiled down to a few key things. You have to be willing to do what it takes to be successful, you have to focus on the prize and not the challenges to get there. You also ...

Note: A short and useful article on success.

How to easily receive all the leads you can handle

Reg Gupton here.

I recently recorded a video which tells you have to earn more than $10 for each dollar you invest in your marketing system.

And increase sales, increase your profit, learn how to prospect and much more.

Watch it here.

It is only 8 minutes long and well worth your time.

Leave your comments either positive or negative below the video. I promise to respond.

Check it out.

Reg Gupton presents: The Science of Hiring

Hi

Reg Gupton here. There is good news on the hiring front. There is a science to hiring.

The other day, a small business owner, let’s call him Kris, mentioned to me that things were going better for him and his company. He said that he was dreading the thought of hiring more employees since his success in the past had been dismal.

Kris told me that high turnover was part and parcel in his industry. It had always been that way and would be that way into the future.

He confessed to me: I have no organized/proven system for hiring. Pretty scattered when it came to hiring he admitted.

I mentioned that I helped some major and not so major companies create a process for hiring that proved successful. In one case, turnover was reduced from 54% to 12% saving the company hundreds of thousands of dollars in out of pocket expenses.

I told him:

Follow these steps and you will make better hires, reduce turnover, reduce expenses, reduce manager stress and increase profit.

1. Determine the problem you want to solve.

Outline the results you want from your new employee. Forget the past. Focus on future expected outcomes and results.

More sales, phones answered by the 3rd ring. Accts payable processed within a day of invoices being rec’d. You fill in the blanks.

2. Write a brief job description focusing on:

Hard skills

Do you need someone; who knows how to create a web page using Dreamweaver? Use MS Office? Use Calyx, Avista Agile™ systems, or Loan Prospector?

Soft skills

There are numerous soft skills that are relevant for many jobs. Here are 10 to consider;

Top 10 Soft Skills

1. Communicate Effectively

To communicate effectively the candidate must possess the ability to express himself clearly, to be a good listener and to show empathy and understanding of others. They also need to be able to use language and grammar correctly.

2. Commitment to the job

The principal qualities employers seek: honesty, dependability and enthusiasm.

3. Learn new tasks willingly

No matter what the job, at times there will be new things to learn and any employer wants someone who will be willing to learn anything required, within reason.

4. Accept responsibility

Many problems in the workplace are caused by people passing the buck, or not taking responsibility for their own actions, or inaction. Employers are on the look out for those who take pride in the quality of their work, evaluate it regularly and use their time wisely.

5. Excellent Interpersonal Skills

These skills show in the ability to work co-operatively with others, maintain a positive attitude and to accept constructive criticism.

6. Make Decisions

Decisions need to be made all jobs. The demonstrated ability to establish priorities and stick to them goes hand in hand with the ability to organize tasks. Also the ability to contribute new ideas is part of this process.

7. Show Flexibility

In this rapidly changing world, the ability and willingness to adapt and be flexible is becoming a core workplace requirement.

8. Leadership Potential

Leadership traits are desirable whether the employee supervisors others or not. These include demonstrated persistence, self motivation and showing an effort to improve personal and group/team performance.

9. Grow in the job

By showing ambition, the job applicant lets the employer know they are willing to train and gain further skills. Of course, the employers also want this ambition to include staying with the company.

10. Ability to handle personal problems

Everyone at some time feels pressures and stresses in their personal life. With the possible exception of major crisis, employers are looking for people who can cope with their personal lives without letting it interfere with their work.

The candidate must have experiences in previous jobs that demonstrate their use, they must be evident in the resume, and evident during the interview.

Behaviors

There are four easily measured behaviors that relate to job performance. They are how a person deals with:

1. Problems

2. People

3. Pace (rate of change on the job)

4. Procedures or details.

Motivations

There are 6 readily measured motivations that will determine what a person will focus on daily and how their reward system needs to be structured. They are:

1. Theoretical

2. Utilitarian

3. Aesthetic

4. Social

5. Individualistic

6. Traditional

3. Find candidates

There are numerous ways to find candidates. First, start out with friends, family, your industry specific database (contacts), existing and past customers. Then Craigslist and your local newspaper are proven sources. You might consider job web sites. If you do, be prepared to be overrun with candidates who may or may not meet your job fit requirements...

4. Review Resumes and cover letters

Be specific in your request for information. Specify where to reply with what and in what form. This is an easy way to eliminate people who can not write nor follow directions.

5. Interview the subset who passed the resume screen using the Interview Questions

About three decades ago, when hired to be the assistant administrator of a 120 bed hospital in Michigan, one of my duties was to act as the Personnel guy, now called HR.

I knew nothing about human resources which included interviewing candidates for many of the jobs in the hospital. After attending a multi day HR training program I developed a set of open ended interview questions that I have used with minor modifications since that time.

They have served me well, kept me legal by treating all candidates the same and forced the candidates to provide revealing information about themselves, their success and failures.

6. Eliminate for job fit

Using the interview, hard and soft skill tests, resumes and cover letters, pick the best 2-4 candidates. Eliminate the rest. See # 10 below.

7. Run assessments on the remaining candidates

Research shows that if jobs could speak there is a profile of behaviors and motivations that leads to more success than other profiles. You should hire to job fit; a set of behaviors and motivations held by your top performers.

After you have eliminated all but two to four of your candidates, run the DISC and Personal Interview Attitude and Values (PIAV) assessments to determine how they fit your hiring profile.

8. Re-interview with assessments

It is relatively easy to mis-state the truth during an interview. For example when a candidate tells you they are motivated by money (when they are not) and they can follow procedures (when they can’t or won’t).

If you are hiring a commission-only sales person, it would be best if your new hires were motivated by money. The PIAV will let you know if they are.

Likewise, the DISC assessment will tell you if they are really hard chargers or would prefer to sit behind a desk and work on files rather than going out and interacting with the public.

These assessments are valid and reliable. They measure what they are supposed to measure and they do it time after time.

9. Make a written job offer

Create/send a letter to your candidate that confirms the offer you most likely made to them in person or on the phone. An audit trail is a good practice.

10. Send reject letters as necessary

Send a written rejection letter to everyone you do not hire. This strategy will be good for business and most likely good legally too. Check with your legal counsel about the contents that might be useful in your letter.

Further, you never know when you might reconsider or want to do business with this person in the future. Watch those burned bridges.

If you follow these simple, practical, proven steps, your hiring decisions will be better, your pain less and your profit higher.