When Do You Move On From a Deal?

When do you walk away from a deal?

Sysco#sales leader Matthew K. Berra joins Biyork Canada VP Jon Kronemeyer and Microsoft‘s Carson V. Heady to discuss.

We control many things in a deal: effort to uncover the power/budget/timelines, attempts to reach the influencers, how we leverage all resources at our disposal both in constructing and negotiating a deal, and how we efficiently manage to milestones.

We cannot control the speed or willingness of the customer, but we can influence them with the aforementioned resources and by tirelessly advocating for them based on their priorities, goals and roadmap.

But if we are diligent in managing milestones and keep our commitments and the deal continues to slip, when do we move on and invest time elsewhere?

A “yes” or a “no” is better than a maybe so; twisting in the wind is not a position of strength.

Accountability means expressing acknowledgment of our attempts to understand their priorities and timelines and our every efforts to keep things aligned to their stated goals, while expressing concern with the lack of progress.

Deals will slip, but if slipping is the only consistent element, it is time to respectfully pause. The pause will allow you to invest elsewhere and might prompt the customer to accelerate.