Any interaction between a manager and an employee provides an opportunity for mutual understanding only if the manager is the right person in the right position (this is surprisingly rare), and if the subordinate takes a professional approach. What does this mean in practice?

The new month began quite unpleasantly for David. His branch manager came up to him and, without asking anything, declared: - A new adviser is coming tomorrow. I’d like you to show him the ropes, how you serve clients and how you look for new ones. Just show him how we work, okay? The next day, a new co-worker appeared at David’s desk and immediately started talking about what he doesn’t like...

Mark is an experienced salesperson working in a car showroom. It was a really hot day. Thankfully, the air conditioning was on full blast in the showroom, allowing Mark to concentrate on work and not think about the temperature outside. However, thanks to the e-mail that Mark received up a few minutes ago, he’s now sitting in a pool of his own sweat. It turned out that a large consignment of vehicles...

What do you do when sales of a leading product start to fall? What should you look for when analysing what caused the problem? Using the example of Anna - a pharmaceutical representative - we demonstrate how to get back on the right track when the competition has launched a similar offer at a lower price.

Working on the phone might not be much fun, but it’s even harder to manage a group of telemarketers. Typically, team leaders have no prior management experience, and their first 90 days are rather ‘make or break’. So, what do you need and what can you do to stay in the saddle and build a committed and effective telesales team?