When revenue falls off the cliff, adjustments need to be made to survive. When a pandemic is the reason, companies are forced to find new ways to operate. Those new ways of operating may become permanent ways of operating.
Entercom CEO David Field spoke about several examples of changes becoming permanent on his Q2 earnings call. “For example, we have substantially reduced the staffing and scope of our in house promotions departments, and will be discontinuing some of the legacy promotional practices which have diminishing value, given the rapid evolution of our digital, social and other technological capabilities in recent years.”
Field also said the company will be significantly reducing the size of its office and studio facilities. “We have learned during recent months that we can operate at a highly effective level with modified work practices and reduced workspaces.”
Entercom spent about $70 million on office rent and occupancy costs in 2019. Field says improvements in those two areas will “significantly enhance our organizational effectiveness and financial performance going forward.”
You are not completely off base, but there are a couple things you are missing. There is a lot reps can do from home and working from home can be used effectively. However, what is lost when only working from home occurs is the spontaneous ideas and comradery. When two reps talk about a client or problem, they often get ideas from different perspectives.
Water cooler conversations have launch some of the best ideas in a lot of companies. There is also a strong sense of belonging that gets lost without this type of interaction. The lone wolf isolationist is just as much a thing of the past as the managers you mention. There is a happy middle ground here. I will also agree that any meeting without a purpose is a waste of everyone’s time. However strategic training and support are alway needed. Good managers know how to get the most out of their people, and will typically treat each rep as they need to be treated. There will always be bad managers, and they will continue to push good people out their doors. However, good managers are learning more from this time than you think. It will take some time to implement a new way of working.
Lol. Appreciate your feedback, but your thinking is still clinging to the past. “Water cooler conversation” is old school thinking. Zoom interaction is the new water cooler conversation. And just because a person doesn’t want to waste time needlessly driving to an office or a station, and they’d rather spend their time on sales calls and getting work done remotely, certainly does not at all make them a “lone wolf isolationist”, to use your thinking/term. Rather, it makes them more productive!! As for “support”– certainly that can also be done on the phone. As for training, people you have hired should already be professionals and natural salespeople. It is not brain surgery, rather it is natural selling skills — that cannot be “trained.” Either you have it or you don’t. … The bigger problem is, many if not most managers were never good salespeople — most managers are better “politicians” – so that makes it very tough for them to recognize good salespeople.
A lot of the old guard radio station (alleged) managers – even at bug market clusters and statiins- have stubbornly insisted in demanding that sales reps “show up” at the station every day, or every other day. This is because the “management” does not trust that the sales reps are working. So one “good”thing about Covid — it has forced that dinosaur “show up” thinking out the window. Reps never now need to be at the station– all paperwork can be done remotely- and more of their time can be sent selling.
And if we can cut the time-killing “sales meetings” to maybe 1 or 2 virtual meetings a month max, and NOT have them disrupt valuable 9am to 5pm selling time, that will be another major step forward. 80% of meetings are a complete waste of time, with some managers just liking to hear themselves talk.
Covid ironically, is pushing radio’s operating ways out of the 1960’s and into the modern era.