Toward the end of 2023, Chris Hawkins and I were on one of many conference road trips and were trying to figure out how to make Sales easier. We needed to hire, to motivate and elevate, while figuring out how to increase revenue. Meeting with school districts and serving their needs came fairly easy to us because of our unique position and experience within the company - we listened while they talked. Most of the time we could help. Sometimes we couldn’t. It all felt “easy” because we were there to consult - listen, evaluate, and help where/if/when we could. We never had to ask for a sale. Sales came in naturally when the timing was right. What could we do to get every member of our team to the “easy” of serving districts?
Very quickly our new vision and structure was born. We would drastically reduce the concept of “sales” from our vocabulary, our titles and our mindset. We would remove metrics tied to particular products, lines and solutions and eliminate commission from compensation. Our KPIs would be reduced to a single goal, simplified and measurable. We’d transition from a Sales Team to a Solutions Team - better representing what we’ve always felt truly made us different in this industry and empowering our entire team to embrace a consultative approach to working with our K-12 District partners. We would make sure that each member of our team was not only the right fit for Secured Tech, including the multiple new individuals we were hiring, but also that they were in the right seat on the boat. We needed everyone rowing in the same direction for this concept to work.
We started with role evaluation - where did we see gaps? Where did we see untapped potential in our current team? Where did team members show strengths that were not being fully highlighted in their current responsibilities? Titles were edited, job descriptions were re-written, and, in a few select cases, roles were changed; all with input and approval from the team because we needed to ensure that they understood the vision and felt ownership over their responsibilities.
The next (and most important) step was buy-in, starting with our newly hired manager as she would be the one to coach and motivate the team throughout the year to reach the singular goal we were setting. We then spoke with our most seasoned Sales Rep, whose title would be changing to “Solutions Consultant”, to ensure that he was not only on board with the new structure, but would embrace it and not lose the drive to succeed. It meant gaining buy-in from other members of the leadership team, and, even more importantly, outlining how these changes would help us reach the lofty goal of serving our K-12 partners best interests while also reaching our revenue responsibilities.
We had to create a budget - how much would it cost to actually pull off everything we needed to accomplish? For our team, we needed to raise base salaries for previously commissioned employees, and we needed a way to reward reaching quarterly benchmarks toward achieving our annual revenue goal. It was important to us to ensure that every member of our team, regardless of their role and responsibilities, would be a part of this. We landed on a team-based bonus structure. If our team achieved our benchmarks and goal, every member of our team would receive bonuses. It supported the “all rowing in the same direction” boat analogy and empowered each member of our team to choose how, where, and why to spend their time. If we were all working toward the same goal, and we were all functioning with the mindset of best serving our school partners, then we would (theoretically) all produce our best work.
There are obvious things you’ve been screaming in your head if you’ve read this far. But that caps earning potential! You’ll lose, or not be able to hire, the best sales reps! No one works hard if their compensation isn’t tied to their output! How will you measure/know if your team is actually working?! These are all valid points that vehemently support the overwhelmingly popular, and embraced, sales structure which rewards sales reps for their output with commission - an uncapped earning potential obviously motivates. Sales are the most crucial piece of sustaining (and growing) a company; without sales your doors close, quickly and painfully. But rest assured, our doors are wide open. Our team is absolutely awesome, compensated fairly for a hard day’s work and motivated by impact not dollars. I’m in awe at what they can accomplish on a daily basis, and I don’t ever question who’s working harder or better because they all are collaborating so effectively. This philosophy may not be for everyone, but it is for us.
“It’s easy to come up with new ideas; the hard part is letting go of what worked for you two years ago but will soon be out of date.” —Roger von Oech
Spoiler alert… our team bought in and we surpassed our goals: we served our K-12 districts’ needs and we brought in the revenue needed to continue to grow our team, our vision, and our solutions. It may not always work, but it worked this year. With a little over a month left in 2024, in the midst of hiring six positions to our 2025 team, budgeting to hit an even loftier goal, and evaluating our 2024 successes and opportunities for improvement, I wanted to pause to share our experience. It’s exhilarating to consider that the pathway to Secured Tech’s success and growth is to continue to do what has always made us different - to care. Several of our team members, including Chris and myself, came from non-profits and know what it’s like to have vast needs and limited resources. We relate to the challenges our school partners are facing.
The thing about Secured Tech that I’ve always believed, and I continue to tell everyone, is that there isn’t anything unique about what we do; what’s unique is how we do it. Our success has come from our relationships, our knowledge, our care, and our time. It’s the reason I joined our company in its infancy, when folks didn’t know our company name but would adamantly tell others to “call Nate and Chris.* It’s been amazing to help grow us to the point of “call Secured Tech” because you know that no matter who picks up the phone, shows up at your school, or helps solve your problem, they will be carrying on that legacy. It's been an honor to have my own personal name attached to a brand that is known for the how and the why, not the what.
*Nate Holmes and Chris Hawkins are the founders of Secured Tech Solutions. Our business started in a Panera Bread with these two friends who felt passionately that they could do better in serving school districts than what they were currently experiencing. Our first official office was outfitted with used furniture and a few select device parts in a small storage cabinet in a 12x10 space. Nate, Chris, and some of their closest friends gave their time, energy, and expertise to help grow Secured Tech into a “real” company. They took chances - on each other, on districts, and on their employees - with the belief that if we do things right and well, we’ll end up right and well. Our core values, vision and service continue to build on what they started.
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