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The End of My Beyond Journey

March 16, 2020 by Carrington 2 Comments

For the first time in 3 years, my whiteboard is clear.

My journey at Beyond ended today. I am so appreciative of the many wonderful people I worked with and knowledge I gained during my nearly 3 years at the company. It’s funny (in a sad way)… six months ago I was told that if my region’s numbers didn’t hit a certain level, that I would be removed from my role. That was the first time I ever considered the idea that Beyond wouldn’t be the final destination in my career.

My team rallied and we emerged setting two sales records back-to-back. These incredible people did amazing things… Despite that, I was rattled.

I immediately considered what I would do next if I was removed and I settled on the idea of starting my own ISO (payments company). I came up with a name, and even spent a ton of my off-work time building a website – so sure was I that my path had reached its end.

I apologize now to all those incredible sales professionals on my team for not having faith in them. This was a time when every day I felt in jeopardy of being removed from my role.

I needed to provide for my family and couldn’t endure the thought of having a long gap of being the provider I’ve been during the nearly 13 years of my marriage.

Despite all this, I was re-energized by my team, especially my veterans and division leaders, and re-committed to making Beyond the future I envisioned it being. I rolled out trainings to help them – returning the work that they completed to keep me where I felt I belonged. I started researching different lead generation activities and tried leveraging niche marketing strategies via websites I created. I put my name on these to test the strategy thinking that, if successful, what a great opportunity for this company I had invested so much into.

I tested capabilities that no one was actively testing, and tried pouring into those who had demonstrated that they were willing to pour themselves into their job.

In December I was given a new role, one that was loosely defined that I approached as an internal consultant. I worked with several different departments to help streamline internal operations and with the marketing team to revisit how the company’s messaging was received.

I felt like I was making big strides in advancing different programs that would eventually make a giant impact on the sales force of nearly 400 commission-only sales representatives.

Sadly, my lack of faith in my team (encouraging my exploration of what’s next) and my experiments in lead generation (advanced B2B payments and niche vertical payment processing) were taken as me selling for another company or several other companies and misappropriating leads that should have been meant for another.

It’s crazy. As challenges continued and solutions were slow to arrive, I re-sold myself on staying at Beyond on a regular basis. I talked others out of quitting and became a resource for those who were struggling but weren’t comfortable talking to their direct leader. I turned down job offers and ignored the itch to start my own thing – after all I was in this thing and had invested so much time and effort.

I had become an extension of Beyond and Beyond became an extension of me.

I cannot encapsulate my disappointment in no one having a conversation with me or exploring my perspective. I still feel twisted up inside about this journey ending via an email from my HR department this morning and not having a chance to be heard. It baffles me that three years of embodying a brand can be ended without a conversation, but here we are.

So what’s next for me?

I’m going to take some time to spend with my family and explore the options I honestly never thought I would. My whiteboard is, for the first time in 3 years, clear.

If you or your company is in need of a sales professional and sales leader that has extensive experience in SaaS and financial technology products, let’s have a chat.

Filed Under: Company Culture, Life, Personal Growth Tagged With: beyond

The Annual Review Needs to Die

March 6, 2019 by Carrington 1 Comment

I have had the dubious honor of delivering an Annual Review, you probably dread it each year. Those who receive your reviews awkwardly and meekly walk into your office, sit down across your desk from you, and squirm their way through yet another pointless conversation.

What is it you say you do here?

Pointless? Isn’t it important for employees to be reviewed? What about coaching? Isn’t that important?

Let me tell you a story of two coaching environments. Two different companies, two extremely different sales leaders.

I was consistently #1 in measurable objectives related to sales – month after month after month. I was the go-to person on my team for product questions. My supplier representatives knew that if they needed something to be sold, placed, and anchored I was their guy.

Then I got my review. The review I got told me that I was basically garbage sauce.

Garbage sauce is a term I might have coined (not entirely sure). You could put garbage sauce on the most perfectly seasoned, aged, and cooked steak and guess what? It’s going to taste like garbage.

Me (maybe)

This single, front and back piece of paper was handed to me in the back room of a convenience store.

“Do you have any questions?” my manager asked.

I scanned through my “grades” in several categories. I could feel the heat of anger spreading and knew that it was probably best to make this a short meeting.

“Nope.” I replied, and went back to my task.

“Okay I need you to sign it.”

Sign it I did. After handing his copy back to him, I turned and walked out of the room.

There was no coaching here. It was clearly an obligatory delivery and an obligatory receipt. It was delivered from a person who had not been involved in my performance – good or bad – since the last time I got one of those pieces of paper.

What did it accomplish? You might think it didn’t accomplish anything but it did. That was the day I decided that I was done at that company.

That review was the representation of a toxic culture of finger pointing, complaining, and worthless KPIs.

Compare that scenario to another one. A different company and different sales leader.

There are no documented performance reviews. Two to three times per week I get coached, pushed, and held accountable. I have an opportunity to shape the conversation, ask for help, and soak up years of experience I haven’t had time to obtain.

Take it a step further.

This leader doesn’t just answer questions. I get pushed to talk to other people at the company, to collect experience not just from one place or point of view.

It’s a culture thing.

I am not a recipient of a performance review, I am not required to deliver performance reviews. That does NOT mean I don’t coach my direct reports. That does NOT mean that they aren’t reviewed.

Our culture is a meritocracy where the reviews happen automatically and frequently. Our performance is our review.

It’s time to put these annual reviews to rest. Take the opportunity to get involved on a regular basis with your team members.

More importantly, be a person from whom your team wants coaching.

How can you influence someone on your team, if they question your intent?

If you truly and honestly coach from a place of making your team members better, you will immediately find that your conversations become richer, deeper, and more powerful.

Filed Under: Company Culture, Management Tagged With: annual review, coaching, garbage sauce

If You Want a Job I Don’t Want You

June 7, 2017 by Carrington Leave a Comment

My good friend Russ would always say “You can’t soar with eagles if you’re hanging with turkeys.” I’m sure I misquoted it and I think he might have gotten it somewhere. Russ had a stable of one-liners and the confidence to deliver them without remorse.

He’s right. If you desire to change your circumstance, to rewrite your story, to become more, then you absolutely must surround yourself with the right people.

I started a job four years ago. It was just until I figured out my next step. Four years I spent and I developed great relationships with my customers, learned a lot, and developed new skills. It was supposed to be temporary… It wasn’t.

Four years I spent slowly shifting my gaze from up to down. I looked down and watched as I wore the soles off my shoes on my treadmill of a job. I became the grind… I started to commiserate with anyone who would listen. I started to settle. That’s just not me.

I was the kid who “played business” in elementary school. I’m the kid whose favorite encyclopedia was “M” because there in the middle in full grayscale glory, was a spread of all the US currency ever printed. Even at a young age I dreamed of success… a success that isn’t going to come from a job.

I need to feel a passion for what I’m doing. I need to feel my impact. I want to grow, achieve… I want to win. I want to be the best provider for my family. I want to enjoy and believe in what I do.

These are my expectations for my team at Beyond.

If you need a job, you’re not the right fit.

If you need more… if you want a true opportunity… if you are tired of being a cog in a wheel… then this might be the team for you.

Onward and upward my friends. Let’s go Beyond.

 

Filed Under: Company Culture, Personal Growth

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