sales management

  • What Happens When Decision Makers are Buried and Unreachable
    • June 22, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Analogies, Baseball and Sales, Understanding the Sales Force
    Before and after of a backyard waterfall pump: left side dry, buried in mud and mulch with clogged pump; right side clean with clear flowing water—visual metaphor for unburying a stalled sales pipeline

    A backyard waterfall pump buried in mud after a storm is just like why most sales pipelines stall. Surface problems hide the real issues—like unreachable decision makers and weak competencies. Here’s how to unbury your pump and get revenue flowing again.

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  • What CEOs Need to Know About Their Sales Teams
    • June 16, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Analogies, Baseball and Sales, Best Top 10 Lists, Sales Pipeline and Forecast, Sales Process, Understanding the Sales Force
    A confident mid-50s CEO in a navy suit sits at a modern executive desk in a bright corner office, leaning forward with a focused, slightly skeptical expression as he looks directly at the viewer. On the desk are a laptop displaying sales pipeline charts and a notepad with handwritten notes including “Why 72% miss quota?”, creating a professional and thought-provoking business scene.

    When it comes to sales, CEOs don’t know what they don’t know. This is the article where you can understand what to expect from your sales team.

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  • Top 20 Reasons Salespeople Miss Quota and How to Fix it
    • June 12, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Analogies, Baseball and Sales, Best Top 10 Lists, Sales Process, Understanding the Sales Force
    70% of Quota: Win for the Salesperson celebrating a good year vs Epic Fail for the CEO and company revenue goals on a baseball diamond illustrating lowered quotas versus real sales leadership

    People have been babying me since my bypass — and sales leaders are babying their teams the same way by lowering quotas. Here are the Top 20 Reasons Salespeople Miss Quota and exactly how to fix it instead of making excuses. No more false wins. Time to run the bases the right way.

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  • How Sales Management Mirrors Little League Baseball
    • May 29, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Baseball and Sales, Understanding the Sales Force
    Little League baseball dad coach passionately coaching a team of adult salespeople in business suits on a baseball field, humorously illustrating poor sales management and development

    Most sales organizations operate just like Little League Baseball — cheap, convenient, and great for the top performers while everyone else stays stuck. Here’s why promoting your best salesperson to manager is usually a costly mistake.

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  • Why Chasing Whales is Killing Your Sales Pipeline – The Bob Chronicles Part 9 (10 Brutal Truths)
    • May 15, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Analogies, Best Top 10 Lists, Bob Chronicles, Sales Pipeline and Forecast, Understanding the Sales Force
    Frustrated fisherman in a tiny rowboat holding up a comically small fishing net full of holes, completely overwhelmed as a massive whale breaches right beside him — the perfect visual for chasing whales with the wrong tools.

    Bob’s pipeline was loaded with whales again. Sound familiar? In this article I break down the 10 brutal truths about why chasing big deals is quietly killing most sales pipelines — from skewed forecasts and low margins to terrible closing rates. If you’re tired of hoping whales will save your quarter, this one’s for you.

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  • 25 Factors Indicative of a Strong Sales Culture
    • May 11, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Analogies, Music and Sales, Sales Compensation, Sales Process, Understanding the Sales Force
    Three key sales performance gauges showing rising Sales, Gross Profit, and Win Rate with upward green arrows — indicators of a strong sales culture

    Executives love the idea of a sales transformation until it’s time to actually change. Here are 25 proven factors that separate a truly strong sales culture from one that’s stuck making excuses.

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  • CEO/Sales Leadership Reality Check: Are You Investing in What Makes You Look Good… or What Actually Drives Revenue?
    • April 30, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
    Sales Leadership Reality Check: Companies eagerly approve big AI budgets but hesitate or reject investments in sales training and coaching

    Companies rubber-stamp massive AI budgets but do a complete about-face when asked to invest in sales training or coaching. Discover why this happens and a low-risk way to turn your worst salespeople into producers — including real math and a built-in pilot test.

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  • Worst to First: How Sales Teams and Salespeople Can Turn It Around
    • April 23, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Baseball and Sales, Understanding the Sales Force
    Split-image motivational graphic showing a sales team transforming from struggling and missing quota (dark left side) to celebrating record success with trophy and rising revenue (bright right side). Large "Worst to First" text in the center with the message "Leadership + Culture Change = Championship Performance" at the bottom. Ideal visual for sales leadership article.

    Discover how sales teams go from middle-of-the-pack to first place. Learn why leadership changes and culture shifts are the real keys to turning around veteran performance and hitting record revenue.

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  • 10 Questions Every CEO Must Answer to Increase Revenue Today
    • April 17, 2026
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Categories: Analogies, Best Top 10 Lists, Sales Compensation, Understanding the Sales Force
    A confident mid-50s CEO in a navy suit sits at a modern executive desk in a bright corner office, leaning forward with a focused, slightly skeptical expression as he looks directly at the viewer. On the desk are a laptop displaying sales pipeline charts and a notepad with handwritten notes including “Why 72% miss quota?”, creating a professional and thought-provoking business scene.

    Google Search Console revealed what CEOs are actually searching for. It’s not closing tricks or AI hype — it’s the foundational issues holding revenue back. Here are 10 questions every CEO must answer to drive real growth today.

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