Human on the Inside with The Sales Doctor’s Ingrid Maynard
Human on the Inside. We’re big believers in the power of human skills. But don’t just take our word for it - the evidence for excellence powered by human (‘soft’) skills is everywhere! In this engaging, ever-enlightening series, we speak with industry leaders, innovators and game-changers to learn a little about their personal career journeys, and how human-led strategies, philosophies and cultures are proving a force for good in their working worlds …
Maxme: Welcome Ingrid, and thanks for stepping into the #SuccessIsHuman Spotlight.
You’re the Founder and General Manager of The Sales Doctor - a consultancy supporting organisations to achieve sales success and growth. In 1 sentence (ok, we’ll give you 3), what does this role entail?
Ingrid Maynard: My role is primarily to deliver sales performance improvement for the organisations who become my clients. I do that by developing and facilitating programs that change sales behaviours that will impact better outcomes across skills, systems, tools and processes. Sales improvement is just the beginning - profitable growth however, requires sales leaders to help their teams sell commercially: minimising customer acquisition costs, cost of sales, maximising margin, and reducing cost to serve.
M: You established The Sales Dr over 11 years ago now (kudos!), but your extensive career in sales and business development is of course much deeper.
It all kicked off in 1991 with an impressive eight year tenure with The Body Shop. There you held a few roles - Colourings Trainer, Product Trainer and Market Sales Manager - Australia & Canada. In early 2004 it was time for your next challenge - a Managing Director role with Harvest Management (sales consulting), which you held for almost eight years. You followed this with a further two years in a similar role with Harvest Salesworks.
In late 2015 you joined Victorian Leaders as an Industry Expert - Client Engagement & Sales Performance - a role you held for a touch over three years. During this time, you were also a Partner for Think Beyond - a sales consultancy helping clients to fine tune the balance between people, process and technology.
In recent years you’ve also been a consulting member with Behind Closed Doors (professional development, peer coaching and mentoring for women) and a Partner with Project You Coaching.
How does all this speak to your personal purpose and what drives you as an individual?
IM: Contribution is key for me, as is collaboration. Personal purpose is about connection and working in a way that uplifts others. I’m always learning, and my mission is always to leave every relationship better as a result of my contribution.
M: Tell us a little about your personal education pathway/s - what led you to where you are now? How closely do your formal qualifications match your current career?
IM: I started doing marketing because I thought it sounded good! But they weren't my people! My sales career started at The Body Shop in retail, which coincided with my teaching degree. That skill combination has been the cornerstone for my entire career: training and sales.
M: If you could share one piece of career advice to your 21 year old self it would be ...
IM: Work hard where you are, and seek to do more than is expected, always. Your next step will be revealed when you do that. Have goals, but pay attention to the doorways that open where you are: nothing is wasted. Sometimes you won’t see how an opportunity or role will be important until down the track a bit. Nothing is accidental.
M: Maximising the potential of individuals, communities and businesses through the power of human skills is the reason Maxme exists. Can you tell us a little about the role and / or value of human skills in your workplace or industry right now?
IM: There’s a lot of talk and hype about AI in sales right now. That said, I think it will eliminate more of the “busy” work salespeople do which will enable them to focus even more on the human skills that make salespeople effective. In particular, what I’m seeing is a return to the fundamentals of connection, asking better questions with curiosity, empathetic listening, influencing, negotiation and driving outcomes. These are next level human skills that can be learnt, but require time to cultivate, and patience to practise at a deep level.
M: Self Awareness sets the critical foundation for all Maxme learning experiences. With that said … What's your strongest trait / personal superpower?
IM: I love self awareness because it’s the first step to any meaningful change and growth. I think my strongest trait/personal superpower is also my greatest weakness, and that is my work ethic. I’m able to prioritise what I give my time to and always go above and beyond. However, I don’t tend to have a stop or pause button, let alone gears! It’s great for my clients, but not always for me. I’m a work in progress.
M: And on the flip side, what’s one human / ‘soft’ skill you’ve had to really work on improving over the course of your career?
IM: Saying no. I’ve never been good at that. Perhaps it’s the salesperson in me as my reflex is to say yes and figure out how later. So what I’ve started to do is ask for time to consider, give it the thought it deserves and come back with a response that’s right for everyone.
M: If you could share one piece of career advice with recent Uni graduates or candidates keen to work in the field of sales &/or sales consulting, what would it be?
IM: Work hard. Activity will drive results, but accelerate your learning too - so long as you practise self reflection as part of that. You can get a year’s worth of experience in 6 months if you work hard enough. For example, if you have 100 conversations in 2 months instead of 6, you’re going to be WAY ahead. Sales is about building a pipeline first and we always need more opportunity than we think we do: so always be growing that pipeline value from new and existing opportunities.
M: You’ve been granted approval to add one University graduate to your business, but have 100 applicants, all with outstanding academic results. How do you find your perfect candidate - what are you looking for?
IM: I look for 3 qualities:
Proven examples of triumphing over challenge or hardship
A willingness to be coachable and apply feedback
Work ethic: someone who isn’t a clock watcher - life doesn’t work like that.
M: In the words of John Dewey, “education is not preparation for life, education is life itself.”
What’s next on your #learning agenda?
IM: I try to study something every year, but this year life was my education in that I learnt how to write my first book by doing it. I also belong to a mentor group where I’m learning so much from my mentor Bob Nordlinger. I’m updating my DISC accreditation this year too, and will think about what I want to learn next year a bit more.
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