There are two types of stars:
— those who truly work the best, and we will consider the effect of the star seller in this aspect.
— We will examine the causes, symptoms, consequences, and treatment methods for those who have fallen ill with “star syndrome.” We will look at this through the example of a sales coach. However, this diagnosis can be applied to anyone. But after all, we are talking about sales, right?
So.
Star Seller.
If this is your own business and you have a salesperson in your team who makes 80% of all sales, then you should be very concerned about whether they might become a “ explanatory dictionary “If you are a director and you have managers, and one of those managers has 80% of their sales coming from a single salesperson, you should consider the following:”
- Isn’t the seller a relative of the manager through whom all of the manager’s personal sales are conducted in order to earn more commission?
- What is the role of a manager with a group if, in essence, there is no group, just one salesperson and some extra weight? Does the sole salesperson need a manager?
- Is the manager actually managing this salesperson, or is the sales channel hiding behind the guise of a salesperson?
- It’s possible that a group of sellers is working “undercover,” recording their results under one name in order to receive some bonuses.
In a linear agency, unlike in MLM, sales performance is not the decisive criterion for evaluating the quality of employees’ work. The business owner should structure sales oversight in a way that prevents system inefficiencies and guards against potential fraud by salespeople.
But still, is it really a bad thing that we have a true star seller? Of course not. They sell and bring in money. It might be worth considering additional motivation for these stars, in a way that encourages other sellers to strive for that level of sales. It’s important to note that paying these stars commissions that exceed the breakeven point for sales is justified, as this isn’t a specific commission for a particular star, but rather a general commission for the entire network, which, with 2-3 stars, won’t be unprofitable for the company.
For example, we have a product that sells for 100 hryvnias, we pay a commission of 10 hryvnias, and our costs for the product amount to 80 hryvnias. At the same time, the average seller makes 100 sales a month, and there are two top sellers who make 200 sales a month. To encourage sellers to sell more, we announce that anyone who sells 200 units a month will receive a commission of 25 hryvnias, meaning that the sale will result in a loss for us:
If the network responds flexibly to such motivation, meaning that the average seller’s sales increase by 20%, then the individual and unprofitable rewards for the best agents can nearly double the profit for the businessman.
When introducing such motivation, it’s important to consider whether to implement it on a permanent or temporary basis. If sales heavily depend on the enthusiasm and determination of the salespeople, then it makes sense to think about a permanent “carrot.” However, if increasing sales volume is only achievable through intensifying the work of the sales staff, then it should definitely be temporary. Working beyond the norm is possible, but not for long.
However, after reading the calculation above, you shouldn’t rush to your vendors to announce a new initiative. It’s worth taking the time to read the entire website.
There are two types of stars:
- those who really work the best, and we discussed this case in the first part.
- We will examine the reasons for those who have fallen ill with “star syndrome.”
symptoms, consequences, and treatment methods for such a disease. Since I specialize in sales rather than the production of polyethylene packaging, all my examples will be about salespeople, and from the perspective of “stardom” — about sales trainers. At the same time, it is clear that the issue of “stardom” is present pretty much everywhere, and my examples can easily be extrapolated to other fields of activity.
To understand the origins of the “star” problem, we will examine the evolution of an employee within an organization. I will attempt to illustrate this process as a conveyor belt. I apologize in advance for my “outstanding” artistic skills:
When we hire new people, we need to understand that a significant motivator for their work is their growth. This can be career advancement, skill development, or qualification improvement—anything that leads to an increase in earnings at this job or elsewhere. Moreover, growth not only provides the opportunity to “earn more,” but it also clearly leads to a sense of dominance, which is very important for such amusing creatures as Homo sapiens. Therefore, if we exclude unproductive “dumplings,” people need to grow in order to work productively. They work for us, and in return, we provide them with growth opportunities. This should be clear and evident so that they understand they are progressing. It is inevitable that after we pass on our knowledge and skills, they will grow and eventually leave us. They may move up the career ladder, join another organization, or even start their own ventures.
Of course, those who do not embrace new knowledge, who cannot and are not capable of growing, will also leave, but in this case, we are the ones who let them go. Thus, the entire evolution of an employee can be visualized as a conveyor belt, where we place new people at one end, exploiting them while they are on this conveyor, and then losing them at the other end. The name of this conveyor is the training system. This includes not only formal training sessions but also meetings, advice and recommendations, sharing experiences, and assigning challenging tasks that require serious effort and responsibility, among other things.
Control question: If we search for and then hire a person with relevant experience for a vacant position, what will we ultimately achieve? If you’re interested in the factors and questions that arise when hiring experienced individuals, please leave your suggestions in the post about announcements.
Another interesting aspect is the way humans perceive external stimuli. It’s amusing to know that frogs cannot see stationary objects, but we are not so different. For instance, we don’t notice smells we’ve “gotten used to,” we overlook objects that our “eyes have adjusted to,” and we don’t believe we are loved by the opposite sex unless expressions of love become more pronounced each day, and so on. By the way, a funny consequence of this “informational entropy,” or LTP in the language of neurophysiologists, is the completely unwelcoming entrances in residential buildings. We become accustomed to charred buttons, spit-covered and filthy elevators, dim light bulbs, and the smell of garbage chutes, and we don’t even realize that from the outside, all of this resembles not a home, but a ghetto.
The same thing happens in managing people. If we relax for even a second and stop fostering the growth of motivated employees, they will either dim like true stars, turning into “white dwarfs,” or explode like “supernovae.” Astrophysicists will confirm that the transformation into a white dwarf or the explosion of a supernova—both processes are caused by the same reason: the burnout of nuclear fuel in the star. If you suddenly realize that someone is looking “elsewhere” (and if you are a good manager, that person will tell you this themselves), you shouldn’t lose trust in them. On the contrary, you should assign them new work, preferably something interesting, with clear results and subsequent recognition of their contributions.
Now we are ready to take a closer look at “star syndrome.” A person starts to feel like a star when their existing skills fully enable them to perform the work they are doing. Moreover, the faster they acquire these skills, the more likely they are to “lose touch.” Slalom skiers really dislike “jumps.” On them, you lose speed and stop being able to control your direction.
What happens from a human perspective? He easily accomplishes all tasks—so he is a super-master. He receives nothing but praise, and any rare criticism is “smoothed over” by the built-in mechanism for ensuring happiness that exists in every person. If this individual also constantly interacts with an audience—viewers, listeners—who are far from possessing his specific skills (like a business coach, artist, photographer, etc.), then his self-esteem, based onfairlyThe opinions of surrounding amateurs grow like yeast. Eventually, the only criticism he receives comes from his boss, and he starts to think that his boss is envious of his success. He stops viewing his boss as an authority figure, and amid a conflict or a pre-conflict situation with management, he begins to work poorly because the existing channel for evaluation or feedback is cut off (the boss is no longer an authority). Motivation drops to a minimum, any criticism is dismissed, and we witness a “supernova explosion.” The person decides to look for a new job or confronts management openly. Against this backdrop, the star’s demands for attention begin to rise, as he is gradually being ignored. He starts to demand exceptional conditions for himself, which further irritates those around him, who, in his view, are simply envious of him.
In my experience, “supernova outbursts” mostly occurred with business coaches. Recently, I was talking to an old friend of mine, and she complained about the arrogance of a video editing specialist. It’s a common issue. What did I do when the business coaches who worked with me on the team started to show signs of star syndrome?
First of all, knowing about such a problem, after getting burned a couple of times in my life and almost thinking that it was an inevitability for people of this type (strong personality, leader, “star” by nature), I tried to monitor the mood of the coaches and find ways to prevent and combat this issue. Well, I found one 🙂
Secondly, I ensured their gradual growth in such a way that they would move up to each new level no more often than once every three months, ideally once every six months. For example: First, we let them read only product training materials, then we allow them to study sales techniques, then we send them to learn a less important group alongside a mentor, then I give them responsible tasks, then I ask them to prepare a training session independently based on my assignment, then I encourage them to take the initiative and prepare a training session on their own, proving its necessity and usefulness with a business case, then they start training new trainers, and then… After that, the trainer truly grows and becomes too valuable for the company, potentially qualifying for a position as a head trainer or national training manager. But at that point, they are no longer just a star; they have matured as a person, and if they leave the company properly (and I will eventually share how to resign correctly, or if you ask, I can do it sooner), it won’t cause any discomfort for the company.
Thirdly, as soon as the first symptoms start to appear, a simple conversation can be very helpful. In this conversation, the employee is informed about the “star syndrome,” its symptoms, causes, consequences, and real-life examples of specific individuals. For instance, sharing a story about someone who is unable to find a job they consider “worthy” after being laid off. It acknowledges the management’s mistake in not paying attention and not ensuring growth, warns that the person’s self-perception may be biased, and explains why: the internal mechanism for ensuring happiness, unqualified peers evaluating the quality of work, and the trivial tasks assigned so far. Such a conversation, of course, is only possible at the very early stage of “star syndrome,” while the employee still believes in their manager.
Fourthly, if the moment is missed, then despite accusations of envy or jealousy, the employee is quickly let go in the most severe, swift, and uncompromising manner. They are offered two options for termination (a false alternative) — either by mutual agreement with a severance package or through downsizing, with settlement within a day and a ban on appearing at work (and stewing in bitterness).
Well, that’s about all I know about shrimp. (c) “Forrest Gump”
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