Is complexity killing your sales model? New study by Bain & Co

Bain & Co. recently looked at nine years of income statements from 200 large companies and found that more than half have increasing sales and marketing expenses, and aren't getting scale benefits from their growing size. According to the study, customers increasingly demand a tailored solution anchored in expertise about their industry or a specific function; expect providers to solve their business problems; measure value based on outcomes, not the lowest price; and have more competitive, disciplined bid processes that trump ‘relationships’.

This is consistent with what I see in my practice and the detailed report makes interesting reading.

Spitball, NEW business radio podcast series: The Changing Face of the Workforce

I've teamed up with Hamish Riddell from Kumbayah Consulting  and Bri Williams from People Patterns  to deliver a monthly business radio show, Spitball: http://spitballbiz.wordpress.com/2013/02/18/the-changing-face-of-the-workforce/

In each broadcast we'll be spitting out some ideas about what's happening in business and seeing what sticks. We do this when we get together anyway, so we figured we would let you eavesdrop.

This month Spitball focuses on the changing face of the workforce, specifically the rise of free agency; the decline of hierarchy; and the rise of informal learning.  Coming in April and June are programs about the changing face of consumption and competition. Tune in and tell us what you think about these issues.