July 2nd is the mid-point of the year.  Whether business is BOOMING (see what we did there) or you're feeling the summer slump, we all need to look ahead to the rest of the year. When we're all back, relaxed and FOCUSED, we will dive into how to use your current situation to be more successful in the latter half of the year. In the meantime, enjoy your parties or picnics with family and friends. Have a safe and happy Fourth--without trips to the ER! Don't want to miss it? ...

Empowering Female Innovators Worldwide Every year on June 23rd, we celebrate International Women in Engineering Day (INWED) to recognize and applaud women's exceptional contributions to engineering. This global initiative aims to raise awareness about the achievements of women engineers, promote gender diversity in engineering, and inspire the next generation of female innovators. By highlighting the accomplishments of women in engineering, we hope to create a more inclusive and equitable industry that benefits society.   Closing the Gender Gap Historically, engineering has been a male-dominated profession. Women faced numerous challenges and barriers to entering the field. INWED serves as a platform to break barriers and foster a supportive environment for female engineers. It encourages organizations and educational institutions to address the gender gap and work toward gender equality in engineering.   Inspiring Future Generations One of the primary objectives o...

Sales managers are under pressure to increase sales calls and productivity. This leads to scrutiny of call reports, which often reveal poor results.  To improve their reports, salespeople are counting drop-by visits with no customer contact as sales calls, which is ineffective. Several factors contribute to the lack of customer visits: poor time planning, inefficient travel, failure to make appointments, getting caught up in trivial tasks, excessive focus on customer emergencies, and complex individual situations.  To address these issues, you need a coaching plan. Over a 6-8 week period, sales managers should review each seller's planned activities for the upcoming week, log data on their plans, and compare them with the actual results. This allows for the identification of: • Scheduling issues.  Are they really planning ahead? • Issues with setting appointments.  Do they need some coaching here? • Emergencies that took them out of the field.  Are they j...