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S.p.a.r.k.

CASE STUDIES

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EMCOR SERVICES FAGAN

SITUATION

Leading up to March 2020, Fagan leadership implemented strategies that positioned them for success in 2020 and beyond. Operations and finances were solid, their sales team was strong. However, they knew that to expand their footprint they needed to improve their sales effectiveness. This would require two things. A consistent focus on developing new sales strategies, and coaching for their sales professionals. This proved a difficult task considering the many competing priorities inherent with running a company.

PROBLEM

Then Covid happened. Fagan's leadership team quickly recognized that 2020 was going to be an extremely difficult year. Customers were becoming more difficult to access, and customer budgets were tightening, resulting in fewer customer interactions and selling opportunities for their sales team. They knew the team was good but would need to be even better to ensure success in 2020. They knew that simply doing more of the same would not meet their goals. They needed new perspectives that challenged their approach, and a consistent cadence of engagement that helped their sales professionals build new skills and habits.

ACTION

Fagan took the proactive approach of making investments in their sales team rather than the prevalent action of applying of financial brakes. They partnered with Shrug Consulting to deliver sales training that was customized to fit the specific needs of the Fagan sales team and was delivered over a series of sessions in Q3. As part of the burn-in plan, the Fagan leadership team has opted to continue dedicating 90 minutes of their monthly sales meeting, partnering with Shrug, to review and reinforce specific components of the training.

RESULT

Fagan finished out a strong Q4 2020. In fact, they have had record-setting years ever since their initial training with Shrug. With our continued engagement, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 have all been record setting years. Their ranking among their sister companies improved dramatically. While Shrug would love to take all the credit, it would be impossible and inappropriate to attribute a specific share of Fagan’s success to Shrug sales training due to all the factors involved. Regardless, the good news is that Fagan found a way to be successful when so many others could not!

 

Subjectively, the feedback from the Fagan sales and leadership teams regarding Shrug's training and facilitation has been very positive. Here are some of examples of the feedback:

 

“Everyday, during regular sales conversations, something about this sales training comes up. Consistency is key. We are all getting better!”

Mike, CEO

 

"We needed to work with someone who is completely focused on developing strategies and plans that help us improve and grow our business. Shrug gave us exactly what we need. They also gave us the freedom to focus on our roles running the business – with the peace of mind that we are not dropping the ball with regard to sales improvement."

Bob, COO

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“I’ve been through a lot of sales training in my career - including Sandler and SPIN. Both were good but your training was probably the most relevant I have been through. It gave me some good reminders of things I used to do and also gave me some new ideas to start using. Definitely worth the time!”

RC, Sales Professional

 

“I've been through a lot of training with some great trainers. Craig was good as any trainer I have seen. The thing I enjoyed most, and was most impactful, is that everything we talked about was directly tied to our business. The discussions with my co-workers were great! I look forward to our monthly meetings.”

RR, Sales Professional

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  1. When things get tough, invest in your sales team.

  2. If you invest in sales training, make sure your leadership team is 100% supportive and engaged. Simply hiring a sales trainer won’t help.

  3. Establish a cadence where you can bring your sales team together in an environment where they can experience some healthy friction through deep discussions of relevant topics. Let them discuss real issues, challenge each other, and learn from each other.

  4. Regardless of what training partner you choose, make sure your training is both strategic and tactical --and dives into the Mission, Methodology and Messaging that your sales team needs to ensure success.

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