Case Study: Integrated Packaging
Providing measurable growth in sales revenue
SUMMARY
A large-scale manufacturer of engineered packaging products was not taking advantage of opportunities to grow sales revenue due to a lack of understanding of the correct approach, its sales pipeline, and a lack of ownership in the sales team. After working with Jason Dinan at EXCC for a year, sales increased by $300k – and an increase of $1m is budgeted for the following year.
BACKGROUND
Integrated Packaging is a manufacturer of stretch film and engineered packaging products supplying the
dairy and meat industries, including blue-chip companies such as Coca Cola and Silver Fern Farms. The company has a turnover of about $55 million per annum and employs approximately 120 staff in New Zealand. The sales division in New Zealand runs autonomously from its Australian headquarters. Garth Hedley, National Sales Manager, is responsible for 11 staff in the sales team and three in customer service.
THE PROBLEM
Mindset and accountability issues
Garth believes there was a lack of accountability in the sales team. “We didn’t know what the sales team was doing with their time, what was in the pipeline, and how they were moving those opportunities forward.” “For me, the biggest challenge was the mindset of our people and how they felt about new business and business retention. We hadn’t been forceful enough trying to win new business. “On top of that, there was a lot of uncertainty in the business due to a change of leadership structure. We needed more structure to move us forward, and improving the performance of the sales team was high on my agenda.”
Inconsistent sales pipeline
“We found we had a clot in the pipeline: it would fire really well and then we’d have nothing for
three to four months,” says Garth. “We didn’t know how well opportunities were moving through the pipeline, how big they were, and where they were coming from. This was a significant problem, and the salespeople were acting as individuals rather than as a team. There was no ownership of the new business. We missed out on some opportunities because we didn’t understand the issues
How significant were these problems?
“If we hadn’t done anything about these issues, the cost to our business would have been enormous,” says Garth. “Continuing to lose revenue would ultimately lead to
job losses.” “I tried to implement some solutions myself, but I couldn’t make them stick. I
probably didn’t have the right tools, and I needed a structure to do it every day, every week, and every month.”
THE SOLUTION
Jason Dinan provided Integrated Packaging with a wide range of services over a one-year period, tailored to the organisation’s needs:
- Sales management.
- Sales training, both one-to-one and as team sessions.
- Sales collateral development.
- Sales playbook.
- Online learning via EXCC’s PX3 technology.
- Extended DISC profiling, to help with recruitment and team
communication
“The videos in the PX3 programme are short and bite-sized, so you can watch them in the comfort of your own home, on your phone. It’s a really accessible platform and it’s very simple to use. It was great that we could record who had and hadn’t done them, so we could chase people up and make sure they were prepared for the sessions. That was really strong. It helped them prepare for the training sessions, as they went in with an expectation and understanding of what we were going to do, rather than turn up on the day unprepared and unfocused.”
OUTCOMES
$300,000 increase in sales revenue in the first year
“Jason’s work over the last 12 months has brought in about $300,000 of new business,” says Garth. “That’s the result of asking the right questions of the right customers. Those are the opportunities we may not have won without Jason around. So the value for money is huge, and the tools are going to keep on giving. To me, the value has been tremendous, and Jason’s in the budget again for next year. “With the new targeting approach, and having a great structure, we’re looking to add a million dollars a year in terms of new business. “Working with Jason has been good value for money. Previously, we’d get the team together in a hotel for a day or two, and although we got some good stuff out of it, the benefits dropped off. And often the training wasn’t a great fit for our manufacturing business. Plus it was a significant cost, by the time we got everyone together, hired the room, and got a trainer.”
Mindset and accountability
“The team responded positively and strongly to working with Jason,” says Garth. “I think that’s
because the things we were doing were practical and relevant. “One of the key pieces we’ve done with Jason is around our mission, purpose, and values. Incorporates, these things are often just on paper but we wanted to come up with our own and bring them alive. That’s what’s going to help us become a sales-led organisation. We now know how we want to behave, and how we want to be seen by the market. “After we engaged Jason, a new Country manager was appointed. He’s seen that what we’re doing is really practical and deals with real-life situations. It’s brought the team together and given us a focus and purpose. “My team and I really appreciate Jason’s passion. He is genuine in what he does. And his drive to help people improve themselves is
everywhere, in everything he does.”
A customised approach
Garth says: “Jason and I spent a lot of time together developing and customising tools and
templates for the sales team, covering account management, one-on-ones, and the sales process. He was able to customise our approach, and because of that we were able to discover the key drivers for our customers, and what’s important for them. Jason’s ability to understand a relatively technical product was really eye-opening. We probably spent between 20 and 30 hours on Zoom calls together in the first phase of the project. There were a lot of sessions, and what we needed was a little bit different to other people because we’re so interested in the ongoing consumption of our products.”
Leadership skills and development
“Before I started working with Jason, I struggled with coaching my team and giving direct feedback,” says Garth. “I would have rated myself three out of 10 as a coach. I’m now up to a six or seven, and I’d like to get to 10. “It’s been a huge benefit that I’m now able to have those tough conversations with people – and not being afraid of those conversations.”
Sales pipeline improvements
“The biggest gain has been the visibility of our sales numbers,” says Garth. “This year I know with absolute accuracy how much business we brought in over and above budget. Last year that was a wild guess. In the coming year, I’m targeting 3% to 5% growth, and I know the team can deliver on that. To me, that’s been the single biggest benefit to the business: the ability to see the leads come through; convert them, and then really own them. That’s
significant.” “One of the strongest metrics that’s come out of this is finding out that 25% of qualified leads result in a sale. To me that’s really powerful, knowing that we have to qualify four people to get one sale. I can quickly look at the pipeline report and work out how much is in there. And it’s also got us focusing on the quality of the leads. I know from looking at The pipeline what’s going to come in, and when it’s coming in. I couldn’t do that before.”
Improved recruitment processes
Garth says: “When Jason first proposed extended DISC for recruitment and for the team I was
lukewarm about it and concerned about the costs. Now that we’ve been through the recruitment process I have no hesitation in using it. It showed what kinds of people work well in the business, and what kind of people make a good team. For me, it really showed me who was strong in certain parts of the business, who was the leader, and who was a follower. It also showed their competencies in sales; for example, how strong they were on the close. It also showed how hard some of them had worked overtime time to improve their behaviors and competencies.”
What was it like to work with Jason?
“It’s been 12 months since we started working with Jason, and I hate to think how I would have survived without some of the tools he’s given us,” says Garth. “Just simple things around account management, one-on-ones, and opportunity development. Being able to record that pipeline and really focus on it each and every week with the team has been invaluable. When we hit roadblocks in our sales, we’ve worked through them together – and ended up winning the business. So hopefully when similar issues come up again, people will know how to progress through them.
“Jason always goes above and beyond because he really wants to see people improve. He’s only ever a phone or Zoom call away. And one of the biggest things that he did was to help us with the recruitment process as well. He even read CVs, did the DISC profiles – and turned it around really fast because we’re on tight timeframes. For me, that was a really great outcome, especially as we’ve hired a great person to take the business forward.
“The best part of working with Jason was his absolute enthusiasm to drive us forward as a team. Some of the sessions were tough because you’re asking people to do things that are difficult for them personally. Jason has strong empathy and understanding for people in that situation, which was really good.
“An unexpected benefit of working with Jason is that the tools he gave us are valuable for so many other things in life. They’ve helped me with my personal development as well as my professional development.”
“I would 100% recommend Jason because he really wants to see improvements in the businesses he works with. When we’re more successful, he’s more successful. And he just believes in making people better versions of themselves. Jason’s experience across a number of countries shows that his techniques work. And when you get Jason involved, it really puts a laser focus on your sales process. And he gives you practical solutions to your issues. He asks the difficult questions and he’s not scared of the direct feedback.”
“JASON’S WORK OVER THE LAST 12 MONTHS BROUGHT IN $300K OF NEW BUSINESS”
“We didn’t know what the sales team was doing with their time, what was in the pipeline, and
how they were moving those opportunities forward. Our sales pipeline would fire really well, and then we’d have nothing for three to four months. This was a significant problem, and the salespeople were acting as individuals rather than as a team. There was no ownership.
“If we hadn’t done anything about these issues, the cost to our business would have been enormous,” says Garth. “Continuing to lose revenue would ultimately lead to job losses. I tried to implement some solutions myself, but I couldn’t make them stick
“I knew we had to do something, so I was comfortable taking the next step with Jason. However, I’ve been on sales courses elsewhere that were generic and not relevant to us as a manufacturer. So I was worried we weren’t going to get value from Jason’s programme. I was also anxious that the sales team wouldn’t buy into it.
“Fortunately, the team responded positively and strongly to working with Jason. I think that’s because the things we were doing were practical and relevant. We’ve been working with Jason for a year, using his online PX3 technology, sales training, sales playbook, coaching, and using extended DISC. It’s brought the team together and gave us a focus and purpose”
“Jason’s work over the last 12 months has brought in about $300,000 of new business.
Those are the opportunities we may not have won without Jason around. So the value for money is huge, and the tools are going to keep on giving. To me, the value has been tremendous, and he’s in the budget again for next year. With the new targeting approach, and having a great structure, we’re looking to add a million dollars a year in terms of new business next year.
– Garth Hedley, National Sales Manager, Integrated Packaging
“Previously, we’d get the team together in a hotel for a day or two, and although we got some good stuff out of it, the benefits dropped off, and the cost of doing it was significant. So working with Jason has been a good value for money.
“The best part of working with Jason is his absolute enthusiasm to drive us forward as a team. Some of the sessions were tough because you’re asking people to do things that are difficult for them personally. Jason has strong empathy and understanding for people in that situation. Jason always goes above and beyond because he really wants to see people improve”
I would 100% recommend Jason because he really wants to see improvements in the businesses he works with. When we’re more successful, he’s more successful. And he just believes in making people better versions of themselves. Jason’s experience across a number of countries shows that his techniques work. And when you get Jason involved, it really puts a laser focus on your sales process. And he gives you practical solutions to your issues. He asks the difficult questions and he’s not scared of the direct feedback.”
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