“Executives owe it to the organization and to their fellow workers not to tolerate nonperforming individuals in important jobs.” — Peter Drucker
At a recent industry event, I was surprised to hear that average production for a particular market segment was one loan per originator per month! I wondered, “Have we lowered our standards to the point where it is nearly impossible to make any money?”
In any business, the 20/80 rule is at work. Essentially, it means that 20% of the sales force is responsible for 80% of the business. One current management strategy is to grow the business by hiring a greater number of average or below average producers vs. focusing on recruiting better sales talent from the start. In my opinion, the more effective way to improve sales is to cull out underperformers and replace with better quality sales people.
Next month at the MBA Annual Conference in San Diego, I will be discussing the sales force of the future and the trend toward a smaller, better sales staff. The session, “Shaping the Future Mortgage Sales Force,” is scheduled October 13, 2009, 2:45 p.m.-4:00 p.m. If you plan to attend, let me know. I look forward to seeing you there!