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“Remember the reality of self-interest. If there's nothing in it for the other person, you may get in his pockets once, but in the long term you're going to lose a customer, client or business associate and will inherit a deserved black mark in the financial community.”
—Robert J. Ringer

I embrace Ringer’s statement, and that’s the philosophy I have lived by for years.

Management Consulting

If you’re unhappy with your hiring methods, high turnover, and outdated employee compensation plans, then maybe we should have a conversation. It’s tougher and tougher to find talented people today, and a bad hire can be costly. Even if you do find the right people to hire, the competition is trying to hire them too. When you make that investment in hiring someone, you certainly need to employ him or her long enough to get a return on your investment. The cost of turnover is one of biggest disasters in business today.

(Read About The High Cost of Turnover Here and Employee Retention Here)

Does your staff understand and embrace the mission of your company? Or have you never bothered to let them in on the gameplan? Warren G. Bennis says “Good leaders make people feel that they're at the very heart of things, not at the periphery. Everyone feels that he or she makes a difference to the success of the organization. When that happens people feel centered and that gives their work meaning.”

Even worse-- does your company not have a clear mission right now because of changing circumstances?

Do you:

Have an ongoing recruiting plan to attract the top people?

Have adequate accountability systems that do not bog down the execution of the tasks at hand?

Have a formal evaluation system so that your employees always know where they stand?

If you don’t feel confident about your current employees’ loyalty and feel that you’re treading water-- always worrying about an impending disaster, you may need an outside perspective.

Marketing Consulting

Many companies spend thousands of dollars advertising their products and services, but yet the products or services are not meeting the prospect’s needs. Getting input from your customers is critical to making the product modifications necessary for success. And even if your product or service is fine tuned to your target market, are you getting out the right message to ensure the target knows your company’s unique benefits (from the target’s perspective?).

Do you understand why IBM never sold copiers very well?

Do you realize why Xerox flounders at selling computers?

Do you know why Kodak failed at instant photography and why Polaroid languished in the 35mm market?

Do you understand why Sears hasn’t effectively sold brokerage accounts, real estate and insurance?

Do you know what your customers are thinking about your company and how you compare to your competition?

Are your communications (sales collateral, web site and advertising) to your target customers credible and conveyed from the customer’s point of view? Or are your messages based solely on what you believe to be your product benefits?

If you’re not confident of your marketing efforts, you may need an outside perspective.

Sales Consulting and Training

If you have a good sales staff, but feel that they are being “out sold” by your competition primarily because of the absence of a continuous skill development system, they need help. The old methods of selling from a product-focused approach are now obsolete, especially when your competitors are selling to the client’s needs. Does your sales staff know how to identify a customer’s needs? And if they do identify the needs of the customer, do they have the marketing skills and resources necessary to meet those needs?

Do you know how to screen potential salespeople for innate sales talents?

Do you have a written orientation plan for new salespeople? Or do you just allow “Darwinism” to take its course?

Do you have a dynamic account list system to keep your salespeople focused?

Do you have a training program? And if so, how do you know it’s adequate or not?

Do you have a formal process (which includes your sellers’ involvement) in setting sales goals?

Do you have an individual action plan for managing each of your salespeople?

If you feel that your sales structure has been too informal and you feel that you need to put some systems in place, you may need outside help.

Here are some “frequently asked questions” I get when I tell people I’m a ‘consultant’:

What does a consultant do?

I think the most valuable service that a consultant can provide is to help companies eliminate superfluous activities, thus freeing up time for other activities that are more profitable. As Peter Drucker says “There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.”

“Tradition” is often cited as being a good thing, but sometimes tradition can lead to useless activities that are performed with no payoff (as illustrated by the story below):

A young woman was preparing a ham dinner. After she cut off the end of the ham, she placed it in a pan for baking. Her friend asked her, "Why did you cut off the end of the ham"? And she replied, "I really don't know but my mother always did, so I thought you were supposed to."

Later when talking to her mother she asked her why she cut off the end of the ham before baking it and her mother replied "I really don't know, but that's the way my mom always did it." A few weeks later while visiting her grandmother, the young woman asked, "Grandma, why is it that you cut off the end of a ham before you bake it?" Her grandmother replied, "Well dear, it would never fit into my baking pan."

An effective consultant can challenge traditional thinking during the quest for improvement.

Are consultants “certified?”

Some consultants are certified (and some are “certifiable” too). There are definitely certifications available for different types of consultants. In fact, there are several certifications even available for the same types of consultants. At one time I was interested in getting “certified” but I had no idea which certification(s) were more valid than others (and researching it was even more confusing). So I sent an e-mail and asked Dr. William A. Cohen, author of a book I read a few years ago titled How to Make it Big as a Consultant and here’s what he said:

“I didn't recommend a particular certification in the book because I don't feel it's necessary. People hire you or not because of what they believe you can do to help them.”

Click Here To E-Mail Me For A Request of Reference Letters or Names of References

Click Here To Read My Consulting Code of Ethics

Why are you qualified to be a consultant?

I have worked with several different companies in a consulting capacity over the years and my first assignment was in 1993 when I was still in the radio business (of course, with the permission from my employer). Working in the radio business afforded me the benefit of learning how many different businesses operated by conducting thousands of extensive needs analyses over many years.

Also (in case you weren’t aware) the radio business is one of the most ruthless and competitive businesses that exist. This makes it a great “training ground” for being a consultant. Radio is a “zero-sum game” in terms of fighting for advertising revenue. My sales management experience in the radio industry has also made me “unflappable.” There’s not much I haven’t seen.

I was also blessed to have participated in the best customer-oriented training available during the eleven years that I worked for NewCity Communications (a company consistently voted as the most respected company in the radio industry during its existence).

I have also have years of training, speaking and teaching experience and have been a corporate trainer and a marketing manager. And during my sales management career, I enjoyed a very good record of hiring very talented people (and retaining them without the use of non-compete agreements) through a positive work environment and by providing them with essential tools and training.

I would like to think that this excerpt from an e-mail from one of my previous managers explains my qualifications the best:

“You have a great sense of focus. You contribute a great deal for us in keeping us ‘on task’… having you get us back on track is invaluable. You are a valued resource of the senior management team… they go to Ben McWhorter for marketing and business insight. Your keen sense of the real world - is why we seek out and value your take on a wide variety of matters. You are an excellent problem solver and have a terrific global view and demonstrate you can sort through lots of information and data and bring it into focus where it is valuable as a whole. Your driver instincts combined with your focus and discipline have been demonstrated over and over as you have been handed important assignments.”

What kind of consulting services do you provide?

My areas of focus on are management, marketing and sales training as I have listed above.

What kind of companies do you work with?

I will work with any company when I know I can help remedy their problems.

Naturally, I have worked with a lot of media companies in the print, broadcast and cable industries (including a trade publication) mostly because these types of businesses are where I get referred to the most by those that know me. I have also done work for continuing education programs and internet companies.

The last thing I will do is take on an assignment where I have no ability to help—and yes, I have declined to take on assignments before (and will continue to decline them when I feel that I’m unqualified or cannot devote the time and attention required to successfully complete the task). I know my limitations, and making short-term money at the expense of my reputation doesn’t interest me.

E-Mail if you have any questions or comments.