Worst Sales Manager Contest

•  
  Zimm0105/03/07 Report as spam
  1

  The Worst

  We had these "leadership" meetings every morning where we went through John Maxwell leadership DVD's and did the entire workshop. Every point of leadership that he hit, our manager was weak in, or did the exact opposite. The bad thing though, was we had to have a half-hour to 45 min. discussion on how "we" could apply the lessons that we learned.
  
  Having to listen to him espose these ideas and techniques was funny at first and then absolutley frustrating. It then became tourture when he started using examples of how he was using what he learned in the office.
  
  He earned the nickname John Jr. in the office, I apologize Mr. Maxwell!

•  
  addicted2speed05/07/07 Report as spam
  2

  Yes!

  We have a similar character in our office, except he prides himself on his extensive knowledge of the Franklin Covey series and how it is his purpose to teach everyone... now if he would only actually truly learn something from the series rather than just being able to recite lines.

•  
  lynn.simmons@...05/03/07 Report as spam
  3

  Worst Boss Nominee

  My company recently hired a guy as sales manager who has been with us twice before in managerial positions and quit to go to competitors. This time, he's our sales manager. Even though it's been 6+ years since he worked for us, he already knows everything! You can't ask a question or he'll tell you you're suffering from short-term memory loss. You can't ask him anything in front of a prospect that even remotely infers that he doesn't know what he's talking about or he'll just clam up or walk out! He's arrogant, he's sarcastic and he's the ultimate control freak. He fights (yes, physical slapping and kicking) with the other sales manager in the office. When one of his reps questioned him about an account that she should have gotten credit for, he began stalking her. He would drive by her house and take pictures with his camera phone as evidence that she wasn't working. The worst part? He parked outside of her 9 year old son's school (ostensibly to observe her picking him up after school during work hours). You've got to wonder about a grown man that will park outside a school watching small children and taking pictures. The rep quit 2 weeks later. He yells, he belittles people, he throws things. What a guy!

•  
  Geoffrey James, Sales Machine05/14/07 Report as spam
  4

  You win!

  This was the worst. Please email me with your snail-mail address so that I can send you the prize. You send me email through my website www.geoffreyjames.com.
  
  Thanks!
  
  Geoffrey

•  
  mcdonaldj@...05/03/07 Report as spam
  5

  Wost Sales Manager Contest

  I live and work in Chicago and at one time worked for a NY company and had a NY-based Sales Manager. At the end of each day I had to phone in, from the Chicago office, and give a detailed report on that days sales activities, . The scheduled time was 5 p.m., but most days he was busy, so I would have to call back on the half-hour until he was available to talk to me. He would not call me, I had to call him and hope that he was free. For about 3 weeks I did this, many evenings not making contact until after 7 p.m., having a 30 minute conversation and then going home. On my last day I called at 5 p.m., and per usual was told to call back in 30 minutes. I said I couldn't becuase the moving truck was here and the office was being emptied...my Sales Manager magically appeared on the phone and I promptly told him "I Quit"!

•  
  tbreitenbach@...05/03/07 Report as spam
  6

  Incentive

  I'm sure this is not unusual, but I once worked for a business owner who would demand that I change the sales rep incentive plan each month, regardless of the increased sales/profits. She would check reports monthly and identify who she felt made "too much" money.

•  
  josterhaus05/03/07 Report as spam
  7

  Mind Games

  I once supported an international sales rep who came to our company from IBM. He said their famous sales meeting involved a meal where you were served steak if you made quota, beans if you did not. In hindsight from other sales support positions, that's about as kind of a "where you are in relation to everyone else" that I've seen from some sales meetings.

•  
  tgase05/03/07 Report as spam
  8

  Worst boss

  Is there a reason for an article like this? Pointing out flaws and asking for a general review of bad bosses and people with flaws is no less a "worst boss" scenario than actually having one! What's the point here? Isn't that why BNET is actually in business to begin with? To help and provide support in situations like this as opposed to pointing out flaws and making fun of people! Shame on you for even bringing this up! Is there a solution to the "worst boss"? Do you go to his superiors about his behavior? My guess is that his/her behavior is not only condoned but rewarded because of the "sales results" it brings. It's also apparent that the human toll this kind of negative reinforcement brings is probably causing high employee turnover, especially among the sales force!
  
  At least attempt to provide a solution or at least suggestions!

•  
  Geoffrey James, Sales Machine05/03/07 Report as spam
  9

  A suggestion...

  I should think that the pedagogical value of these horror stories is rather obvious: "Don't do these things if you want to be an effective sales manager."
  
  -- Geoffrey

•  
  christopher.ree05/03/07 Report as spam
  10

  solutions

  In order to provide solutions, you need to find the specifics of the problem. Being a "bad boss" is general, so giving detail of why one is a bad boss is essential. Stories and examples here are "details" of why one is a bad boss. If that situation arises, now they know what others have done. Don't bite the hand that feeds us information.

•  
  kprizy05/03/07 Report as spam
  11

  Worst Boss Nominee

  I used to work in a fairly young outside sales organization, which means that we frequently went out for a few too many drinks after work. Once our regional manager came out with us and also had a few too many. She must be one of those friendly drunks, because she proceeded to makeout with, dance on, and hug all of the male sales people. We finally sent her home in a cab after she face-plowed in the middle of the bar.
  Throughout the weekend she got wind of her obnoxious behavior, so to redeem herself, she yelled and screamed at the entire sales force for making up stories about her at the Monday sales meeting.

•  
  hsteck-yeaton@...05/03/07 Report as spam
  12

  WORST SALES MANAGER

  Our sales manager left A month before I left on maternity leave. While I was out they hired a "new guy" whom I never met. When I went back to work I went into his office to introduce myself. He stood up, extended his hand and said, "Well, let's see if this works out." His idea of selling included providing a daily log that detailed who we talked to or visited, the length of the visit, what was said. . .you get the idea. He would ask us to execute to a plan, and then send emails with conflicting directions. If you questioned him in any way he considered it "insubordinate." Talking to anyone above him on the corporate food chain was the equivalent of mutiny. At one point he issued a written instruction that we were to no longer speak to anyone who ranked above him, "I am where the buck stops here." He actually sat in his office with the door closed and sent emails to staff who were literally no more than 15 feet outside his door.

•  
  hsteck-yeaton@...05/03/07 Report as spam
  13

  ONE MORE GOODIE

  I went on a sales call with a previous sales manager to visit our largest customer. We were struggling with deliveries and putting his monthly, quarterly, and eventually annual revenues at risk due to our inability to do what we said we would do. So, here I am looking at Mr. Slick and expecting him to back me up in my explanation of the changes we were implementing to make things right. Instead, he literally stood up, put both hands on the table, leaned over, and said, "Where else are you gonna go? Who else can you get to build this?" I believe that my chin may have actually hit the floor. It took the customer less than a month to find someone else to build his product.

•  
  ninagilmour05/03/07 Report as spam
  14

  Message has been deleted.

•  
  ninagilmour05/03/07 Reported as spam
  15

  Message has been deleted.

•  
  ninagilmour05/03/07 Reported as spam
  16

  Worst Sales Manager Contest

  Every month, sales reps competed for Sales Rep of the Mo. 1 person won this title almost every month who just happened to be the daughter of the owner of the co. and wife of the sales mgr. It never failed that 1 day before the end of the month, she suddenly made the highest sales. The sales mgr. made a big deal about congratulating her, passing out her prize money $20's at a time at sales meetings and company meetings with her name on a plague etc. The rep with the lowest rev was awarded a plastic chicken that he had to carry to every meeting. He also had his other favorites, 1 or 2 out of 50, and everyone knew it. When he and his wife bought the co. from her father with no profit to the father, they demoted him from Pres. to Sr. Sales Rep, shuned him and excluded him from special benefits given only to his favs. He talked bad about people openly with one other rep (his fav), called them mean names and blamed others for his mistakes. During meetings, he bragged about how much money HIS company was making, and was very unfair about awarding earned commissions, except to his wife, of course.

•  
  belitch@...05/03/07 Report as spam
  17

  worst sales manager

  My boss, who managed the cash management operation for a large San Francisco bank, would wait until one of the guys in the group would head to the bathroom. Then, while the poor unsuspecting guy was standing in front of the urinal, he would run in, wave his arms, and shout at the top of his lungs, "Bill, why aren't you out on calls?"
  This experience was so terrifying that many of the men in the group took to taking the elevator to other floors when they had to use the bathroom.

•  
  jay.james@...05/03/07 Report as spam
  18

  Worst Sales Manager ever

  I was a 26-year-old kid, in a district with 12 other 26-year-old kids, selling office equipment for a national "sales-driven" organization. Our district manager was in the early stages of Turrets Syndrome, and - when under stress - prone to sudden, emotional outburts...in front of his direct reports and clients. Once, while on a sales call with me that turned out poorly, he challenged the prospect to a fist-fight. He regularly coined negative nicknames for sales people who were struggling ("No Sale Jones"), and used them openly in front of the group; He also cointed vulgar phrases for selling strategies and tactics, and expected the group to use them during training meetings.

•  
  Geoffrey James, Sales Machine05/09/07 Report as spam
  19

  Contest...

  ...I'm going to leave the contest open until next Monday and then pick a winner. If you think that one of the stories about deserves the crown, don't hesitate to let everyone know.

•  
  EO_classifieds03/11/09 Report as spam
  20

  RE: Worst Sales Manager Contest

  I have worked for a local newspaper for the past 4 years. First we get a new general manager who, under her guidance--our papers has just tanked and then she in turns takes the laziest, biggest time wasting employee, who has already left the compnay once for another job, and makes her our sales manager. She spends the majority of every work day selling her candles for her home business (her mommy biz!) or on the phone with her mom or husband. She is outside sales, but is in the office as much as inside sale or even the receptionist for that matter. Here's her idea of "helping us make sales"--she CUTS an AD out of another PAPER and tells us to call them & sell it into our paper. MMMMMMM--what a great plan--why didn't I think of that? Now her & the GM come up with big ideas--like starting a western magazine to compete with our own 2 local papers--which we own both! factor that magazine ad sales into our goals then the magazine never even starts let alone have ads sold! and we miss our goal & bonuses month after month. Let's color those cut out ads with crayon and THEN call the advertising & sell THAT to them... So much for the newspapers...