Author Archives: Larry Janis

Why Feedback Can Make Work More Meaningful

 

 

 

by Rachel Pacheco

 

If you’re like most managers, you probably hate giving constructive feedback to your team. It’s awkward, it’s uncomfortable, and it often doesn’t work. You may question whether it’s worth the trouble to tell an employee that what they’re doing is wrong. Is it worth the risk of a long-drawn out conversation when there are more pressing things to do? Is it worth the risk of hurting a team member’s feelings or opening the door for potential conflict? Perhaps you answer “no” and deprive your employees of the constructive critiques that aid in their development — and that they deeply crave.

For years, I’ve taught feedback in my courses, coached executives on how to give feedback effectively, and run countless feedback workshops. What I’ve found is that managers fully understand most of the reasons why feedback matters. Managers have long been told how feedback is critical to organizational success. They attend training after training to learn how to give effective feedback in order to manage underperformers and ensure that employees are on the right track with their work. Managers also learn that feedback is a necessary ingredient for a company culture built on trust, accountability, and compassion.

But what’s often missing from the conversation about the importance of feedback is the real reason why it matters: Feedback is a critical tool for helping employees find deeper meaning in their day-to-day work.

Employees crave meaning. Once basic job needs are met (e.g., fair salary, safe working conditions), meaning is what employees most desire in their job. This desire is especially important for Gen Z. Nearly 75% of Gen Z workers say that a sense of purpose in their jobs is more important than pay, according to research by the job site, Monster.  And meaning matters: studies show that employees who have more fulfillment and meaning in their day-to-day work have higher productivity, greater retention, and overall greater job satisfaction.

The feedback that you give your team members has a direct impact on day-to-day meaning. Effective feedback can help imbue even the most mundane tasks with a deeper sense of purpose.

Here are three reasons why feedback can create more meaningful work, and how you as a manager can make sure your feedback conversations are designed for maximum meaning. (more…)

Vice Presidents of Sales in Insurance BPO Sales

 

 

We are looking for Vice Presidents of Sales in Insurance BPO Sales

The Vice President of Sales – Insurance BPO Services will lead strategic growth initiatives, driving revenue through large-scale BPaaS constructs and multi-year managed services deals across the P&C and Life Insurance sectors. This role requires a seasoned sales professional with expertise in selling complex solutions, including end-to-end insurance operations, to C-level executives.

Key Responsibilities

  • Revenue Growth: Achieve revenue and profitability targets by identifying, managing, and closing large, multi-year deals.
  • Industry Focus: Leverage deep expertise in P&C and Life Insurance to design and pitch tailored solutions addressing insurer pain points such as cost optimization, operational efficiency, and digital transformation.
  • Client Management: Build and maintain senior-level relationships with key stakeholders, demonstrating in-depth knowledge of their business models, pain points, and technology landscapes.
  • Solution Selling: Drive sales of BPaaS constructs and managed services, ensuring alignment with client imperatives.
  • Market Expansion: Develop and execute strategies for penetrating new markets and enhancing brand visibility.
  • Team Collaboration: Partner with delivery, operations, and marketing teams to design impactful lead generation programs and support solution implementation.

(more…)

Vice President, Sales

 

 

 

Vice President, Sales

 

Responsible for cultivating a presence and expanding top line growth for our client delivering a technology solution for multi-unit brands (A brand with 500-5000 locations in North America). This includes identifying new markets to enter, creating strategies to achieve growth targets, and growing the firm’s presence and revenues across specific markets – including New Logo Sales, Account Acquisition and Organic Expansion. Leadership span of control is US based and includes both top line and bottom-line financial responsibilities.

  • To be successful in this role, the candidate must bring significant experience and relationships in the multi-unit retail markets—motivated by winning financial incentives as well as career growth.
  • This person will bring a deep understanding and experience of the delivering infrastructure technology solutions specifically, network, network security/cyber, site support, connectivity, hardware and transition execution along with competitor offerings in support of growth strategy and investment initiatives.

The Vice President Sales will have oversight of the following:

  • Developing named account strategies, building consensus on targeted logos and pursuing delivery of high value and high growth new logos.
  • Building a predictable pipeline of new business to generate repeatable and profitable revenues across
  • Developing and executing a Go-to-Market Strategy that will hit or exceed revenue targets.
  • Executing go-to-market plans through targeted campaigns and other sales channels including advisors, influencers, conference attendance, industry events, etc.
  • Collaborating and developing 3rd party and advisor relationships to build credible brand voice globally to generate new opportunity channels. Generate & close opportunities from this channel.
  • Submitting and handling proposals with full ownership and accountability for the opportunity – working closely with the Sales Enablement teams to ensure high quality of proposals.
  • Building relationships is key to this role and possessing established and current relationships with COO’s, CFO’s, CEO’s, CDO’s, CIO’s/CTO’s and Customer Service Directors is critical to this role.
  • Big-deal experience –should have proven experience in closing infrastructure deals with ACV > $5M and TCV > $20M.
  • Maintain relationships with current clients and be main point of contact, to ensure targets and profitability are achieved while warming new prospects for long cycle sales.

 

Ideal location is Atlanta

Larry Janis

Managing Partner I Integrated Search Solutions Group

janis@issg.net 

 

What Makes a Good Leader? Here’s What I’ve Learned After 20-Plus Years as a CEO

 

 

 

 

Story by Jason Hennessey

What makes a good leader?

Ask any entrepreneur, and you’re likely to get different (albeit, pretty similar) answers. You might have heard that a good leader is strong, decisive, confident and honest. Or perhaps a “good” leader to you is optimistic, creative and forward-thinking.

After over 20 years as a CEO, I can tell you, my definition of “leader” has evolved over time. Facing challenges, resolving personnel conflicts, making mistakes and overcoming burnout will do that to you. So, while I don’t claim to have the textbook definition of leadership, I can share what I consider to be the essentials when it comes to being a positive, compassionate leader. And I’ve learned that entrepreneurial leadership crosses every sector of business.

1. Set intentional habits

A leader is someone who is intentional with their habits. Whether you’re part of the “rise and grind” crowd or prefer a more leisurely pace, you’ve given thought to how you manage your day, your health and your business.

As an entrepreneur, my routine is everything — not because I require regimented time blocks, but because, if I didn’t set priorities, what’s important to me would go by the wayside. By setting intentional habits, I know I’ve created time for my physical health, mental health, family and leisure, in addition to the responsibilities of my business.

Without intention, we are at risk of falling victim to bad habits. Distraction and avoidance become our downfall. A great leader knows their priorities, directs energy to the activities likely to have the greatest impact and manages their time, not the other way around. (more…)

The Art of Delegation

 

 

 

 

by Eliot Gattegno , Athena, and Nadav Klein, INSEAD

 

A framework for developing this critical leadership skill.

Consider this man. He takes daily post-lunch naps and frequently dozes off in a lounge chair after dinner. He spends his afternoons at home rather than at the office, tending to his garden and golfing. He spends months away from work on vacation. He prides himself on avoiding “hustling”. “I’m here because I shirked: [I] did less work,” he reflects.

Many people may look askance at such a guy, but in fact this was how John D. Rockefeller, arguably the wealthiest man in modern history, spent his days. Rockefeller attributed his productivity not to his own hard work, but rather to his ability to delegate; He was able to assign responsibility to people in his organisation so that the work could be scaled as effectively as possible. 

The challenges of delegation

Delegation skills are just as important today, albeit in short supply. A Gallup study found that superior delegation skills of a company’s management corresponded with greater revenue and business growth. However, according to a 2007 survey by the Institute for Corporate Productivity, about half of the companies that responded had concerns about employees’ delegation skills. Yet, only 28 percent offered delegation training. More recently, a 2021 survey found that delegation was rated as the second most important skill behind empathy in mitigating employee burnout, but only 28 percent of participants said they were receiving training in this area.

Among the reasonswhy leaders under-delegate, perhaps the most important one is that there is currently no clear framework for delegation. This lack of structure leads to a superficial view of the practice, where it is merely seen as something that leaders must do more of, somewhat similar to visiting the gym more regularly. While we generally agree that delegation should be practised more frequently in many organisations, the key is in understanding how to delegate, and how much. Just as a workout routine is necessary for gym sessions to be useful, a basic framework is needed for delegation to be effective.  (more…)