Coping With the Worst of the Recession - Inspirational Stories

Imagine you had invested the past five years and significant amounts of your own personal wealth, as well as that of private investors, in the pursuit of a new technology and related market opportunity.

Everything is going well, with some customers biting, lots of market interest, and the promise of further investment to take your product to market.  Then the market collapses and your customers stall and investment funds evaporate.  You would be devastated, right?

Well, most of us would be.  But we have been meeting entrepreneurs of late who have had their business plans and more fundamentally their dreams undermined by the global recession.  But, while their metal has been tested, they have not been found wanting, either of; creativity,
resilience, or determination.  In a market in freefall and a time of gloomy news, that is a source of great encouragement.

In the above example the entrepreneur closed shop and set up a new business that is related to the previous one, but cleverer.  Ironically, being pushed to the wall, has brought about a
break-through in terms of; product, technology and market.  The new business model is slicker, leaner and less risky - the odds likely to enjoy greater business success.

To paraphrase Norman Vincent Peal there is, in every set back, disappointment, or disaster the seed of equal if not greater opportunity, or advantage.

Another entrepreneur this time in North America told us about the depression he experienced after closing his previously successful business.  With the downturn business had dramatically dried up dramatically.  The end of the business was inevitable, but the founder quickly bounced back.  There is no clear new direction, but lots of options are being optimistically explored.

To paraphrase Zig Ziglar 'failure is not a person, it is an outcome… it is temporary… it can be beneficial… it points you in a new direction'  So, in what direction will the winds of turmoil blow your business?  You may not end up where you planned, but the new economic order can create its own opportunities for those prepared to tack into the wind.

10 ways to increase the effectiveness of your sales team

Where do managers concerned with improving sales performance turn?  Here are the top 10:

1. Run a sales campaign (providing the impetus of specific sales campaigns supported by marketing initiatives)
   
   
2. Implement a sales systems (making target lists, sales planning, reporting and administration, as well as marketing much more efficient and allowing metrics regarding activity and effectiveness to be easily tracked across the sales team)
   
   
3. Revise your sales process (pre-qualification, more systematic needs analysis, relationship building, etc.)
   
   
4. Improve your sales structures (incl. incentives, meetings, reviews, etc.)
   
   
5. Providing better leadership and more coaching in the field
   
   
6. Provide sales / marketing / telesales support (including list building, generating awareness/enquiries, appointment setting, etc)
   
   
7. Provide some sales training – building confidence and skill, as well as product and industry knowledge
   
   
8. Segment your market (targeting specific niches or segments in a tailored and effective manner)
   
   
9. Revise your sales materials / collateral (updating tired sales aides, brochures, web pages, etc.)
   
   
10. Revisit your sales proposition (putting a new more compelling angle on the message for the customer)

Time to Start Blogging?

Why should you blog?

• To drive traffic to our website and improve our search engine ranking on the web

• To promote our company and its products

• To raise profile and to be seen as industry experts, or though leaders

• To tell our story and educate the marketplace in turn

• To become part of the community within our industry, market, or segment

What objectives should you have?

• Extent our reach in terms of market coverage

• Stickiness - interact with people more often and for longer

• Number of comments, subscribers, references to post and links to post (referral quality)

What tips should you follow?

• Don’t’ say anything unless you have something interesting to say… we want to feed the conversation

• Avoid profanity

• Always link to others….Create a voice and a sense of humor

• “Don’t diss” – most influential bloggers “practice an almost parliamentary civility” Paul Gillin pg. 22…. balance being timely and opinionated and being controversial

• Be transparent – don’t revise posts. unless you label update Posts Means we need to think carefully before we post

• Comment on other blogs (it invites direct interaction with that blogger)

• Before commenting make sure we have read the blogs posted over a three day period. Make sure we understand what motivates the blogger and what he/she likes to talk about…. Don’t just jump in

• Keep the blogs concise (ensure they have meaning). Length depends on topic

• Be responsive and track responses to posts and comments (comment tracking is important as posters are likely waiting a response – how this is managed later will depend on the number of comments)

• Point to other players who maybe competitors – history shows people will come back to us (need to include those with opinions on the topic)

• Tie RSS into our blogs (looking to tie separate RSS for each topic)

• Use content sharing tools: (e.g. tie in Social bookmarks to your posts)

• Register blogs with indexers

• Post tips and alerts we have set-up (acts like a FAQ and ‘How-to’. Also makes for a good blog post)

• Recognise other peoples alerts (this will be very important for us – need to acknowledge those who have put effort into their alerts)

• Write the posts so they don’t draw a conclusion…. Feed the conversation don’t kill it!

• Write with skimming in mind

  • Short sentences

  • Hook readers

  • Headings and bold where you want to draw in reader (Top-x headings do well. Lists make great posts)

• Use keywords so Google can get the context of blog content 

• Find the blog carnival that covers topics of interest

  
  

Big Vendor Marketing Insights

Today we had the opportunity to spend an hour with a senior executive in one of the leading global software vendors. The subject – messaging, or more precisely how sales and marketing lessons learned by the ‘big guys’ can be applied to smaller technologies companies.

So, you want to sell and market like a global software vendor? Well, here are some guidelines to consider:

Hold off on the detail – the functions, technology, etc. It can be difficult to differentiate on these elements and it is important to avoid sounding like everybody else. Take a different perspective.

Start with a clear statement of the problem that the technology is trying to solve, whether that is cost savings, security, or compliance. Tease out the implications of the problem. Relate your solution to struggles that businesses are facing. That is the business driver.

Put a bit of ‘oomp!’ in the message - focus on a hot topic, key business drivers, important trends, or key industry events. If you are not sure what they are, then check the headlines in a publication, like the; CIO magazine.

It is a crowded marketplace, so how are you going to stand out? It will require; bolder / brasher / more visionary statements /messages, not just technical product information.

Don’t try to be everything to everyone. In a sales meeting you can ask the customer what he, or she wants and then focus on that. But, on a web site or brochure you don’t really get to ask people what they want – you have to tell ‘em what you have got. You have to ‘nail your pictures to the wall’ - setting out in advance your proposition and sticking to it. That will require decisions and trade-offs.

How appealing the business is to large customers, or to potential partners, depends a lot on the message being communicated, as well as the impression created by web sites, etc. That is not necessarily fair, but it is the reality. Unless you can stand out, why should a potential client or partner chose your company, particularly when there may be existing relationships with other suppliers, or an issue of size and credibility.

Credibility that comes from stories. In a lot of cases, it is only when you are in front of the promoter(s) that you really get an idea of what a newer/smaller company can do. It is not the slides or the websites that communicate the message, but stories and examples told, often by accident, by the promoter. But if it requires a meeting with the promoter to get the message across that is not enough. Will your web, brochures, powerpoint slides, etc. sell in the absence of the promoter?

Strategy and the marketing message go hand-in-hand. Getting the message right can be liberating, it often has the effect of freeing management from nagging doubts about what the target market, or the message is, or should be.

If you want to scale sales – think big and don’t expect the promoters of the company to touch every sales cycle.

John O’ Gorman and Ray Collis – Sales planning, sales effectiveness, sales packaging, boosting sales

The Top 15 Customer Questions & How To Handle Them

You have delivered an excellent sales presentation. The prospect is impressed and has lots of questions to ask. But are you ready? The wrong answer and the sales opportunity may evaporate.

To help you prepare for the key questions you are likely to be asked here is a list of the Top 15 questions that buyers ask in respect of high value B2B solutions. It also includes ‘killer’ questions that have the potential to stop the unprepared salesperson in their tracks.

Rehearsing the answers won’t just help you to impress the customer; it will also increase your level of comfort, credibility and effectiveness during the sales process.

When the Customer is Exploring Alternatives

1. Why should we choose your company?

2. What are the advantages over other methods / approaches/ products / services?

3. Why is it better than your competitors?

4. Why should we do it now, as opposed to next year? Do it in house?

When the Customer is looking for Confidence

5. Has the product/service been bought by others in our industry?

6. Do you have an office in our market/territory/region?

7. How strong is / what financial backing has your company?

8. Has the product/service been tested, verified or certified by any independent organisation?

9. Can this be tested / piloted? Is there the possibility of a pilot/proof of concept?

The Cost-Benefit Equation

10. Our business is different… how can this work in our business?

11. I question your figures… can that really be achieved?

12. Can the benefits be substantiated?

13. What is the return on investment?

14. What is the cost? Of course the cost will be more than that, when we take into consideration other costs (total cost of ownership)?

15. Why is it so expensive? What is the total cost of ownership (including installation, maintenance, training, etc.)? What is the payback on the investment?

Of course, then there are likely to be a range of questions relating to details of your proposition, such as; How does it work… Is it compatible with…. How long does it take…. What skills are required…What about ongoing maintenance? Upgrades… Support… etc.

The Importance of Preparation

The more questions a potential customer has for you, the better - it shows he or she is interested. However, in the heat of the sales presentation even the expert can stumble if presented with a complex, or difficult question.

Relying on ad lib answers to questions is not enough. The true sales professional creates a list of all the questions, or objections, likely to be received and carefully prepares the responses.

So start with the list above. Add any other objections or questions that you, or your colleagues, have been asked and keep adding to the list over time. Then write out your response, rehearse them and put them in a folder that can be used by any new sales person.

For more tips on objection handling see ‘Handling Customer Questions & Objections’.

Tips on how to use customer questions & objections to sell

1. Remember questions and objections are welcomed by most salespeople. First they demonstrate that the customer is engaged and potentially interested. Second, they guide the salesperson to the key issues that must be addressed in meeting the customers’ needs.

2. List the questions, or objections you are likely to get and prepare your answers in advance. As in so many areas preparation is 90% of success.

3. Welcome and acknowledge any questions, or objections that arise. Remember, most people like to be told that they have asked an important, or a good question.

4. Head off key objections at the pass. Anticipate the key objections you are likely to arise and tackle them in advance in your sales presentation – don’t let them linger unaddressed.

5. Before you answer make sure you fully understand the question – if you are in any doubt confirm the question. If the question is very broad confirm what specific area you should address first.

6. Look behind the question / objection. For example, if the customer asks about price is he asking about the cost, or is he struggling to appreciate the value for money dimension. The only way to find out is to ask.

7. Need a little more time to think? Asking for the question to be repeated, or repeating the question out loud gives you a little bit more time to formulate your answer.

8. Customers are increasingly impatient so get to the point and keep it brief. Talking around the point may give the impression that you cannot, or do not want to answer.

9. Once you have answered the question shut up. If you draw out your answer you are likely to lose the interest of the customer and cast doubt on your answer.

10. Don’t directly say no. Instead use the ‘Feel, Felt and Found’ technique. That is ‘I understand how you feel… many customer have felt the same way… however they found that what actually happened when they implemented the solution was…’ Employ independent reports, customer and expert statements carefully, don’t make the customer look like he is wrong.

11. Use stories to support your answers. By relating the experiences of another customer you add both interest and authenticity to what you are saying.

12. Offer your opinion, experiences and stories with confidence, but don’t come across a ‘know it all’. Transform direct answers into discussions, by adding points of reflection (e.g. that is what most of our customer say… but I don’t know if the same would apply for your team?) and questions (e.g. ‘does that make sense from your point of view?’)

13. Maintain eye contact and smile while you are answering questions / dealing with objections. Your body language will tell the customer a lot about your confidence in both your company and your answers.

14. Give your answers slowly. Feeling under pressure to answer, many salespeople talk fast in answering. In addition to making the answers more difficult to understand, talking fast can create the impression of nervousness on the part of the salesperson.

15. Gague how your answers are ‘going down'; by observing the customers reactions, as well as by asking confirmation questions once you have finished.

16. Don’t say what you can’t do, without re-emphasising what you can. For example, ‘no it does not include a reporting suite, because it has been designed to integrate with the reporting tools that are already used in most organisations…’

17. If you don’t know then say you don’t know. Customers don’t expect you to know everything as long as somebody else in your company has the answer, or that you can find out.

18. Honesty is the best policy; however you will be faced with dilemmas. For example you may be asked if your product does A. It will do A in the future, but that feature has not been fully developed yet and you don’t necessarily want the customer to know. In cases like this it is very important in advance to have decided what the ‘official company line’ is.

19. Don’t beat yourself up if you get the answer wrong on occasion. Make a note of the question, or objection and prepare a better answer for the next time it arises.

20. Use sales aides or visuals to help in answering complex questions. For example, in answer to a question about network configuration, a diagram will paint a thousand words.

Despite the slowdown, some organisations are selling – so what are they doing differently

- A Dublin based services firm just this week closed a deal with a major mobile operator for a 12 month contract

- An Irish led architecture firm has closed three significant projects in the past month, 1 locally and 2 internationally

- A major life and pensions solutions provider announced a deal with a international provider of life and pension solutions last week

You may ask what are these companies doing? The answer from the horse mouth:

- “We have refocused our sales efforts and are making the necessary trade offs between what is urgent and what is a priority”

- “We have increased activity levels in existing accounts and have made everyone aware of the role they play in attracting new clients, sales is everyone’s responsibility now”

- “We could have hired 2 new sales people like our competition did, instead we decided to invest in up-skilling our domain experts in sales tips and techniques that they had forgotten. Selling is becoming a habit again”

- “We are investing more time earlier in the sales cycle to diagnose customer requirements as opposed to assuming requirements, which we did a lot of over the past few years when we had lots of projects on”

- “We are focusing on the solution the client wants as opposed to the solution we have out of the box. This is firstly showing the client we now the challenges they face and secondly differentiating us from the competition”.

Unique sales proposition or a compelling reason to buy

Small, medium and large sized company directors are telling me they need to review their unique selling proposition.

I ask them what they mean when they say this and I get a blank response……should they not be thinking about the compelling reasons they should give their customers to buy their solution rather than a unique selling proposition which 9 times out of ten is internally focused and product led?

I have no doubt customers will buy if you give them a compelling reason to. Your sales results can drastically improve if you focus on the compelling reason you give your customer to buy.

The black art of sales

I have been jotting down sales tips that I have noted from working with several high performing sales people over the past few weeks.

Here they are.

1. Sales is a game of confidence
2. Two ears one mouth – the best sales people use them in that proportion
3. Increase sales activity – set some goals and make the calls
4. 80% of sales will be made by 20% of sales people , those 20% will have clear priorities
5. Sales people must be confident in the value and skills they deliver to their client
6. Develop relationships of trust, telling someone you cant do something isn’t the end of the world
7. Conduct effective needs analysis – 8 out of every 10 sales people don’t!
8. Face the fear of rejection, head on, what’s the worst that can happen, a client says no
9. Have thought through the objections you will face before you meet/call a client
10. Ask the customer/prospect is there anything else on their mind before wrapping up a meeting
11. Set clear goals for meeting and gain commitment to a next step
12. Will block time in their calendar to call on new prospects
13. Apply the 80/20 rule to all sales activity
14. Be absolutely clear on the ideal customer
15. Plan visits around locations – don’t waste time
16. Listen to CD’s, read, uses travel time effectively, make the car your place of learning
17. Be consistent with your message and make sure what you say and do are aligned
18. Transfer knowledge and ideas into concepts that clients can easily understand
19. Do the sales activity you least like doing first thing in the morning
20. Present yourself as an expert, people want to talk to experts

Dump them to the side or KIT

For those of you who think selling is about just making calls and pushing your and getting someone to buy and think about the following.

You meet say Mr. x and they don’t buy from you and have no short term intention of buying from you, what do you do? Well 7 out of every ten sales people just push Mr X. to the side and forget about him.

Well I can tell you from personnel expereice recently that those 7 sales people need their heads examined. Mr X may not be in a postion to buy from you know but he may know someone who is and if you keep in touch with him and think of him he is likely to recommend you to his contacts. One of our customers did this recently and they now have a €100,000 opportunity in their pipeline that they wouldnt have had if they just forgot about Mr. X.

Lessons to be learned from this

Adopt a KIT mindset - Keep in touch

If you think of others and send them something of value from time to time they will more than likely refer you to someone who could buy your product or service.

John O’ Gorman - Director of Accelerate Sales Growth, Sales Management, Sales coaching

Closing The Performance Gap Between Your Best & Worst Performing Sales Person

Some sales people perform better than others.  In fact, the top 20% of your sales people often account for 80% of sales revenues. 

But, what does this chasm in performance really mean?  Is it something you just got to live with, or something that can be changed?

'Mind the Gap'

One of our clients has a sales team of 15 people serving a construction related industry that has enjoyed over a decade of continuous growth, but is not suffering a significant decline. 

Interested to understand how effectively the organisation was responding to the new competition for customers we asked some questions about the levels of sales activity and effectiveness across the company's sales team.

In a typical week the company's best performing salesperson closes 3 times more deals than his poorest performing colleague.  The higher performer was not only closing 45% more deals, but was meeting 7-10 more customers per week.

The gap between the best performing and most struggling rep was as follows:

	Number of Meetings	Conversion Rate	Average Value
Best	22-25 per week	75%	850
Worst	15 per week	30%	750

 

Quantifying the Opportunity

It is not unusual to find these disparities in performance across a sales team, either large or small.  However, that does not mean that such chasms in terms of performance cannot be leaped.

If all the sales force is struggling then attention logically turns to market conditions, the sales proposition and sales strategy.  However, when some sales reps are performing and others are not, then sales productivity and sales effectiveness immediately come into focus. 

Why are some struggling, while others are performing?

Sales people differ in terms of  their attitude, product knowledge and sales skills level.  However, although this is generally the first reason cited for gaps in performance we prefer to look other places first.

We find time and time again that the below average sales person can achieve above average results if her, or she is provided with the right systems, structures, leadership and support.  In general we find that there is too much emphasis on the sales person to the neglect of all those other factors vital to sales success.

Modest Improvements, Significant Results

Modest improvements in terms of sales activity levels and conversion rates, at different stages of the sales cycle, can have a significant overall  impact on results.  For example, if the average rep did just 3% more calls, increased win rates by just 3% and increased average order value by just 3%, the resulting increase in sales would be greater than 10%.

Of course, it would be naive to expect that most under-performing sales people can be transformed into high performers, or simply into average, or better performers.  Indeed, there is no getting away from the fact that some sales people are simply in the wrong company at the wrong time. 

This aside, however, there are few sales people that cannot be assisted in increasing their levels of sales activity and sales effectiveness.   A focus on these two areas generally results in one of two outcomes – an improvement in performance, or a decision by the sales rep to move on – both of which can be a positive step forward for both the rep and the manager.

 

Sales Pre-qualification 101

Managers want to make sure that their sales teams are chasing the right deals. But, what classifies a good lead? What criteria must be met for sales appointments to be made? When are the proposals to be written? 

An increased level of pre-qualification generally requires:

·         Screening, sorting and pre-qualifying leads

·         Nurturing leads offering longer term potential until ready

·         Confirmation of budget, authority, timing and need (BANT)

·         Purged databases and prospect lists

·         Optimised lead generation & opportunity management.

 ·        Customer relationship management

Sales Structures 101

Best practice Sales Management requires effective processes and structures in respect of:

·         Sales meetings, 'ride-a longs', reports & reviews

·         Commissions, Incentives, Targets & Responsibilities

·         Training, Coaching, Leadership & Team-building

·         Recruitment & induction

These are essential to the management of high performance sales teams.

 ·          Marketing campaign management (including newsletters and mail outs)

·         Customer relationship management

Sales Systems 101

Managers often complain about the difficulty of accurately forecasting sales and objectively rating opportunities. In addition they often lack the information to monitor and control sales team, or campaign effectiveness.

SFA (Sales Force Automation), or CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Systems solve these problems by providing:

·         A central repository for customer, prospect & marketing information

·         Real time reporting & tracking of activity and effectiveness in terms of; leads, opportunities, accounts, etc.

·         Sales productivity tools in terms of reporting, scheduling, dairying, etc.

·         Marketing campaign management (including newsletters and mail outs)

·         Customer relationship management

A Common Sales Language

What is the difference between a prospect and a lead? Is an opportunity with an 80% likelihood, twice as likely as one with a 40% rating?

When one person talks miles and another talks of kilometers it can get confusing. This is exactly what happens when discussing the sales pipeline.

Most companies lack a common language, or scoring system in respect of leads, prospects, opportunities and accounts. This reduces the level of sales visibility, predictability and control.

Treat your sales person to a…

What have you done for your sales person lately?  Independent and self-contained as most sales personalities are they may be reluctant to ask for help, but will surely appreciate it.

Here are some of the ways you can help your salesperson – you could provide him, or her with:

·         A new story to tell about the product/solution

·         Some new insights into the market

·         A new customer reference

·         A new sales letter, presenter, or brochure

·         A new sales campaign

·         New sales leads

·         New sales collateral

·         A new technical insight (industry, or product training)

·         A new target list

You don't need to wait to be asked.  The above are all useful tools in the hands of a professional salesperson, but more importantly giving them is an indication of commitment and support in what can otherwise be a pretty isolated profession.  

And if you want something from your sales person (a new approach, better reporting, etc.) then start by giving something first.

Trends in Account & Project Management

Here are some of the Common Themes In Conversations with Managers about How the Role of Project Management is Changing:

Trend No.1:    From Projects to Profit Centres

Project budgeting and control has become increasingly sophisticated, backed up by powerful management information systems and tools.  

More effective on time and within budget tracking of projects is leading to a broader view of projects as profit centers and leveraging increasingly sophisticated activity based costing techniques.

Thus, project management and performance is being increasingly viewed in the context of corporate strategy and performance.  And as corporate performance is the aggregate of project performance, large projects are being treated as profit centres and managed like business units, with more rigorous apportioning of costs and revenues.

Trend No.2:     From Information Gaps, to Information Overload

New systems and advanced project management skills, have enabled greater project visibility, predictability and control.  However, the risk of information overload is high, with managers increasing looking for real-time KPIs in a management dashboard. 

Furthermore, users are not getting all that was expected from their new tools, often because of a deficit of skills training, or support.

Managing large projects has become increasingly complex, driven also by increased competition, tighter margins and new business models (including shared risk and reward.  These trends have eroded some of the benefits delivered by new systems. In reality, the job of the project manager has not been made any easier.

Trend No. 3:            From Account Manager to Client Advocate

Many managers will admit that their account management needs to be more proactive – that it must anticipate, as well as respond, to the changing needs of both project and clients.  

Managing accounts is no longer the objective, the focus is on not just this sale, but the next and the next.  Key to unlocking this future stream of revenue is the deepening of relationships with and within client organizations.  The test in the success of this strategy is the successful transition from supplier to strategic partner - a journey that is often not a straightforward one.

But, what is the difference between Account Manager and Client Advocate?  

     1.    It is the degree of passionate about client and project success, as well as the level of innovation, partnership, pro-activity, etc.  It is characterized by a spirit of true partnership, careful management of expectations, excellent communication and reporting, deepening personal as well as professional relationships, client development (including skills and knowledge transfer), etc. 

     2.   The Client Advocate has equal loyalty to two organisations – the clients and his/her own - and is aligned with the culture, strategy, vision and goals of both. The relationship and contact does not end with the project ends

     3.   The demarcation between sale and delivery are increasingly blurred.  For example, more upfront work is required to win the sale, while delivery is key to the next sale.  

     4.  The team selling and delivering increasingly overlap, as organisations strengthen their team-based approach to sales and delivery.

     Trend No. 3:            From project teams to networks and alliances

According to managers, project success depends on collaboration across a range of increasingly diverse actors.  That presents its own particular challenges, especially given the increasingly multi-cultural nature of project environments.

In particular, cohesion between different contractors and sub-contracts is key and requires the merging a diversity of interests into one project roadmap.  That requires excellent communication, but goes deeper to issues of; culture, esteem and trust.  One test is that people know what is happening, fell committed to it and indeed feel part of a team, even if working on a client site for a long engagement.

Access to and sharing of information in real time, has been made possible by online collaboration tools and networks.  However, managers also suggest that electronic communication cannot replace the more personal methods.

Trend No. 4:       From project manager to project champion  

It was once the highest form of praise to describe a project, or a business, as 'well managed'.  But in a more complex and fast changing environment 'well managed' can fall short.

That is why managers are now expected to be leaders.   What is the difference, between the two?  Well, vision, passion, empowerment (team work, motivation, etc.), innovation and creativity.  That means the job description has expanded, but has the skillset?

Trend No. 5:       Creativity Within A Framework

Delivering on time and within budget requires rigid project delivery in line with an agreed scope, subject to periodic review meetings and controlled change management processes.  However, larger and more complex projects are accompanied by demands for new levels of flexibility and innovation.

In software development project definition generally takes place day one and testing of developed code at a 'waterfall' date many months thereafter.  To tackle the fact that software projects have a 80% chance of slipping on quality, budget or delivery date, a alternative to this waterfall method has emerged.  Called Agile, it involves periodic and ongoing testing and review, results in progressive iterations as opposed to a single

Creativity within a framework – that is the flexibility to adapt to emerging needs and changing requirements, to creatively overcome obstacles and delays. 

An increasingly scientific approach to project management, including merging a variety of practices and processes throughout the organisation into one.  That includes; the application of management techniques such as TQM, lean thinking and continuous improvement.