Listen Now

This is the second of a 2-part interview with Dave Kurlan, founder and CEO of Objective Management Group and Joe DiDonato, Chief of Staff for Baker Communications. They join the show to discuss a much-needed tool that’s coming into widespread use in the hiring, onboarding, training and coaching of salespeople. It uses data science to help diagnose strengths and identify skill gaps to aid in our hiring and training decisions. And for most sales executives it’s a welcome addition that helps them solve the problem of sales turnover, which currently plagues the industry at an astronomical 34.7%. This assessment was designed by Objective Management Group and used by Baker Communications to help their clients accelerate sales performance, reduce turnover, and compress the time it takes to get sellers into the field selling.

Leadership in a fast-growth startup is very different than what the textbooks say. Darren Chait joins the show to share how collaboration is changing and what are the modern team dynamics. This includes what his organization has learned about shared consciousness, direction versus support, and when to make leader problems team problems.

What you as a leader work on minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, day-by-day matters, and either moves the needle and propels growth or constricts it. For instance, consistently and strategically choosing one “big idea” per month (or pieces of that big idea) will move a business forward faster than any one particular tactic. Working on one big idea across each pillar of your business - team, customers, capital, and strategic execution (and personal mindset) - will lead to exponential growth over time. Pete joins me today to share reasons why companies get stuck and stop growing and what leaders can do to change that.

Honesty is more than a character trait; it’s a muscle that has to be built to stay strong; honesty can be learned. Truth, justice, and purpose are “three sides of the same coin” together they mean honesty- to have one, you need all three; honesty means you have to say the right thing, do the right thing, and say and do the right thing for the right reason; even when it’s hard. Based on a 15-year longitudinal study of more than 3200 leaders – we can now prove under what conditions people will tell the truth, behave fairly, and serve a greater good, and under what conditions they will lie, cheat and serve their own interests. Ron Carrucci joins the show to discuss his book, To Be Honest. It is a book about heroes – the leaders and thinkers we should all want to emulate. Honest organizations out-perform, out-compete, and out-attract top talent by substantial multipliers.

Dave Kurlan, founder and CEO of Objective Management Group and Joe DiDonato, Chief of Staff for Baker Communications join the show to discuss a much-needed tool that’s coming into widespread use in the hiring, onboarding, training and coaching of salespeople. It uses data science to help diagnose strengths and identify skill gaps to aid in our hiring and training decisions. And for most sales executives it’s a welcome addition that helps them solve the problem of sales turnover, which currently plagues the industry at an astronomical 34.7%. This assessment was designed by Objective Management Group and used by Baker Communications to help their clients accelerate sales performance, reduce turnover, and compress the time it takes to get sellers into the field selling.

How we would approach America’s racial reckoning if we framed it as a hero or heroine journey? What it would mean to use this metaphor for developing leaders? Amiel Handelsman and Jewel Kinch-Thomas join the show to discuss their approach to this very timely topic.

We recognize the many layers of stress we are under day-to-day, but by using the very simple tools of mindfulness that Janet Fouts will share can help us to be less reactive and more responsive to what life throws at us. When we are aware of ourselves, we have better opportunities to understand others, making us better leaders, communicators, and partners.

Networking, negotiating, communicating, leading, career planning—all skills critical to your career success. But did anyone ever teach you these skills? Mark Herschberg, author and instructor at MIT, joins Maureen to discuss his book The Career Toolkit: Essential Skills for Success That No One Taught You. He will share practical ideas from his book and his thoughts on leadership that will help you master these vital skills.

BCI’s Distinguished Sales Leader Series: This is part 2 featuring Marcela Pineros and Joe DiDonato. They joined the show to focus on the shift to using data science to drive our decisions in the areas of hiring, training, coaching, and onboarding and to share how data can help pinpoint areas that need to be addressed at a more granular level, and how that shift in thinking can help you raise your sales team’s revenue and profit contributions in a drastically shorter period of time.

Customers today expect the brands they deal with to deliver outstanding and seamless digital experiences. If your brand is failing to thrive, you need to take what is core to your value proposition and adapt it, perhaps significantly, for a world filled with customers who have digital at the center of their lifestyle. Howard Tiersky joins Maureen to discuss his experiences in assisting large organizations in winning digital customers.

AnneMarie Hayek joins Maureen to share about her new book, Generation We. In this book, she joins forces with thousands of Zs to tell their powerful story—one that impacts all of us. From new ideas on capitalism, politics, and climate change to education, gender, race, and work, AnneMarie explains how Gen Z thinks, what they envision, and why we should be hopeful. Zs are not naïve idealists. They’re hardened realists with a bold vision for how we can transition, re-create, and progress. Generation We is your invitation to see the future they will create as it’s unfolding.

In today’s episode of BCI’s Distinguished Sales Leader Series, we’re going to focus on the shift to using data science to drive our decisions in the areas of hiring, training, coaching, and onboarding. Marcela Pineros and Joe DiDonato join the show today to share how data can help pinpoint areas that need to be addressed at a more granular level, and how that shift in thinking can help you raise your sales team’s revenue and profit contributions in a drastically shorter period of time.

You have a Yes! that aligns your purpose and unique contributions with the impact you can generate and the experience you can have, which is yours to choose. Your Yes! always generates net-positive value and your No! always generates net-negative value—your choice. Jim Ritchie-Dunham joins Maureen to explain the science behind our Yes!

In the past, to move up the corporate ladder and succeed at the top, you simply had to set goals, motivate the troops, delegate to underlings, and groom a successor. Now, if they are leading a team chances are that they are managing a kaleidoscope of people from a variety of cultures, across a range of ages, all of whom are wired together 24/7. These changing demographics and structures have led to a seismic shift in terms of the tools needed to successfully manage and grow within a company: charisma and strategic thinking abilities now matter less than qualities such as vulnerability and relatability. Jeffrey Hull joins the show to discuss the research he has done on the art and science of leadership in a changing world that is featured in his book, Flex.

The COVID pandemic crushed sales for many businesses...but not at AVI Systems. When building a world-class sales team, an organization needs to implement a formal sales process proven to improve sales performance. This formal sales process is like the back office for sales. Joe DiDonato (BCI) and Don Mastro (AVI Systems) join host Maureen Metcalf to discuss their experiences, as well as the case study they wrote about what Don did to get his AVI Systems team through the pandemic -- and then skyrocket sales. This is part 2 of a 2-part series.

Sophisticated assessments, data, and software are giving CEOs and managers within any organization or industry detailed insights into human behavior. As CEO of The Predictive Index, Mike Zani has witnessed firsthand how the application of data and science can impact, and completely change, the way we function in our professional lives. In his new book, THE SCIENCE OF DREAM TEAMS: How Talent Optimization Can Drive Engagement, Productivity, and Happiness, Zani details a data-driven approach to talent strategy that makes hiring, motivating, and managing people more efficient and effective than ever. Mike joins the show to share his research on how to build a dream team.

The COVID pandemic crushed sales for many businesses...but not at AVI Systems. When building a world-class sales team, an organization needs to implement a formal sales process proven to improve sales performance. This formal sales process is like the back office for sales. Joe DiDonato (BCI) and Don Mastro (AVI Systems) join host Maureen Metcalf to discuss their experiences, as well as the case study they wrote about what Don did to get his AVI Systems team through the pandemic -- and then skyrocket sales.

Conversations about meaning and purpose at work are very old and very new. Spirituality proves a lens for those discussions. Workplace spirituality helps us understand issues such as fulfillment, engagement, purpose, leadership, and more. However, it also increases worries about values conflicts and how well organizations handle that. Paul Gibbons joins me today to discuss the spirituality of work and leadership for leaders and organizations.

As the second part of this interview, the discussion with Allison Duquette of CampusLogic and Joe DiDonato of Baker Communication continues with Maureen, going deeper into the ways Allison integrated assessments in both her current sales team, selection of sales managers, and new hires. Assessment tools boost the efficacy of hiring the right candidate for the job...yet most managers still hire by gut feeling. That’s a mistake Allison overcame, and in so doing, learned assessments can make the difference between firing someone, and figuring out where they can thrive.

To be competitive in business over the next decade, it will not only be necessary to optimize the body for physical and mental health purposes, but it will additionally be necessary to ensure that cognitive optimization is also a major focus. The human today is simply not equipped to handle the deluge of data that is coming nor the constant upskilling requirements that are inevitable. Dr. JJ Walcutt joins Maureen to share about Accelerate, a program that gets businesses starting on the right track toward building a culture of brain health, growth, and effectiveness.