Background and Challenge
L.E.K. Consulting's client, an approximately $400 million, PE-backed janitorial services provider for retail clients, sought to evolve into an integrated facilities solutions provider for retail, healthcare and education clients.
The client aimed to optimize its sales force to realize near-term profitable growth and long-term effectiveness through structural improvement.
Approach and Recommendations
- Validated client’s growth plan in the retail janitorial market, including diagnostic on client’s win rates, market penetration, deal participation and value proposition
- Identified new opportunities for growth in the ancillary services and the for-profit healthcare and education markets
- Renewed focus on organized sales process, growing the pipeline and improving win rates on new business/renewals
- Designed a new sales organization that better aligned with our client’s strategy
- Realigned sales incentives to link targeted segments with growth goals
- Set up a project management office that defined work streams, mobilized teams and prioritized the right sales across the organization
Results
The growth and sales force effectiveness yielded a number of benefits, including:
- Increased focus by senior management on the sales force and on generating growth in new areas
- Addition of several new hires for key sales roles
- Streamlined lead generation and conversion process with a new focus on improving win rates
- Generation of momentum to drive sales force transformation
Within three months of implementing our recommendations, the client experienced:
- New opportunities for core and ancillary services, leading to sales pipeline growth of over 75%
- Improved sales discipline and coordination overall for the group
- Several new contracts (some in ancillary services) awarded through improved articulation of value proposition and differentiation
- Transformation of the sales force and a changed culture overall
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