Customer service and sales always seem to hold the top two spots of popular training workshops. And for good reason because at the end of the day, businesses ultimately only fail or succeed for one reason customers.

According to Michael Simmons, a serial entrepreneur who has built one of the biggest online learning communities:

1.If you understand your customers, you will create better marketing and products. This will then lead to more customers who stay longer, and who get better results.

2.If you dont understand your customers, you will create beautiful marketing, products, and financial models, but have no customers.

3.And, finally, if you only partially understand your customers, your whole business will be an uphill battle. You might have paying customers, but you will have to pay more to acquire them and they wont renew or buy repeatedly from you.

Whether youre an entrepreneur or employee at a startup, in a growing company, or in a mature company the number one skill you need is to continuously focus on your customer and develop systems for attracting and retaining them.

Its simple. Its obvious. Yet, very few people do not focus on the customer nor do they have a sales, marketing or hiring process in place to ensure that they are only attracting those customers best suited to their business.

Self-made billionaire Charlie Munger says, Take one simple idea and take it seriously.

This is why selling effectively alone wont increase your sales.

Its impossible to have strong revenue growth without a properly defined sales process.

It is impossible to have strong revenue growth if no one is ensuring that the process is being followed properly.

It is impossible to have strong revenue growth if you or your sales team are not being coached against that process

It is impossible to have strong revenue growth if everyone on your team has a different sales process or if youre asking new hires to come up with a sales process for you.

It's impossible to have a customer-centric culture if you haven't taken the time to develop your customer service procedures

Its impossible to have a world-class customer experience if you havent actually mapped out the entire customer experience.

Its impossible to increase revenue growth if you dont have a hiring system for determining whether those persons you interview will behave in the way you need them to behave. You know that what people say they will do during an interview process and what actually happens in real life is often far apart. Think about this: The average bad hire costs a company $60,000 yet most hiring decisions are made from an hour-long interview.

If your approach has been anything like what Ive just described then I guarantee that you will get poor results.

Efficient industrial heating systems use less fuel and energy than their inefficient counterparts. Similarly when you have an efficient sales, marketing and hiring system in place you will use a lot less energy and focus only on those important and results-getting profitable activities.

According to Chet Holmes, there are basics that you can do over and over again until every aspect of your sales organisation runs like a machine.

Wouldnt it be great if you can have:

Every person in every department know how to handle any circumstance that arises?

Your salespeople have answers and perfect follow-up letters for every possible situation?

Your customer service people know how to respond to any complaint or special order or return situation that comes their way without having to consult their manager?

Stress levels will be lower because every employee will have the information, training and tools to do their jobs confidently and effectively.

What will it take to get you there?

Pig headed discipline to design, create and follow your own customised system containing the how-to instructions to create your unique and profitable sales machine.

What will it mean if you were to finally end self-sabotage, reclaim your power and design a future that pulls you toward what you want? To get the book Become a Well-Paid Professional! send an email to possibility2profit@gmail.com

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Sales training alone won't increase sales Customer service and sales always seem to hold the - Trinidad News

HRDQ, a leading developer of experiential learning resources for soft-skills training, announces that an informative webinar titled "Building Enriched Customer Relationships: What's My Selling Style?" will take place on Thursday, November 7 at 2 p.m. EDT.

WEST CHESTER, Pa., Sept. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ --HRDQ, a leading developer of experiential learning resources for soft-skills training, announces that an informative webinar titled "Building Enriched Customer Relationships: What's My Selling Style?" will take place on Thursday, November 7 at 2 p.m. EDT.

This free webinar will teach attendees how one's personal style affects customer behavior, how style influences salesperson engagement, what salespeople should do when their buyer's style is different, and how to deploy style in a contact management system all ultimately culminating in more sales won.

"Customer relationships are extremely important to a business, and this webinar gives professionals the opportunity to expand their knowledge on both selling products/services effectively and communicating better with customers," said Bradford R. Glaser, HRDQ President and CEO.

The webinar will be presented by John Dieseth, president and founder of Business Performance Group. He has 20 years of experience in the sales training, learning product development, and coaching. Dieseth consults with client organizations on inside sales, selection and hiring, sales manager, customer service, technical and salesperson training, accidental sales, leadership, coaching, mentoring, and knowledge transfer.

This webinar is based on the HRDQ product "What's My Selling Style?" This tool is a self-assessment that reveals "My Selling Style Profile" and a dominant preference for one or more four personal styles: direct, spirited, considerate, or systematic. "What's My Selling Style?" is appropriate for anyone looking to improve personal or management development. It can be used as a standalone training assessment or it can be incorporated into a more comprehensive sales or negotiating training program.

Register for the webinar here: http://bit.ly/2m2REwp

About HRDQ For more than 40 years, HRDQ has been a trusted developer of experiential learning resources that help to improve the performance of individuals, teams, and organizations. It offers a wide range of reliable, research-based training materials, including assessments, games, and customizable programs on in-demand topics such as leadership, communication, and team building.

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HRDQ to Host Webinar on 'Building Enriched Customer Relationships: What's My Selling Style?' - Yahoo Finance

P R E S S R E L E A S E

Stockholm, September 26, 2019

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN - The Board of Directors of BTS GROUP AB (publ) has today, based on the authorization from the Annual General Meeting on May 15, 2019, decided to carry out a directed new issue of 10,428 Class B shares.

The newly issued shares will be used as part payment for the two previous acquisitions of Polaris Assessment Systems (Polaris) and Swiss Virtual Business School VBS AG (VBS). Of those shares, 6,295 shares are allocated to the seller of Polaris and 4,133 shares are allocated to the sellers of VBS. For more information on these two acquisitions, please see the press releases from February 28, 2019 and July 15, 2019, respectively.

The new share issue relates to final settlements of the initial purchase price of SEK 956,840 (Polaris) and SEK 727,408 (VBS) according to the acquisition agreements, which were also mentioned when the acquisitions were announced. The reason for the deviation from the shareholders' preferential rights is to secure part-financing of the two acquisitions in a time- and cost-effective manner.

The share prices, in accordance with the acquisition agreements, have been determined through a calculated volume-weighted average price per trading day for the company's B-share on Nasdaq Stockholm during a period of 30 trading days before each acquisition, corresponding to SEK 152 per share for Polaris and SEK 176 per share for VBS.

The total number of shares issued before the issue was 19,307,864. After the issue, there are a total of 19,318,292 shares. At the same time, BTS's share capital increases from SEK 6,435,955 to SEK 6,439,431.

For more information, please contact:

Michael WallinHead of investor relationsBTS Group ABmichael.wallin@bts.com+46-8-587070 02+46-708-78 80 19

This information is such information as BTS Group AB (publ) is obliged to disclose pursuant to the Financial Instruments Trading Act. The information was provided, through the above contact person, for publication on 26 September 2019 at 16:00 CET.

About BTS Group AB

BTS is a global professional services firm headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, with approximately 780 professionals at 35 offices located on six continents.

We focus on the people side of strategy, working with leaders at all levels to help them make better decisions, convert those decisions to actions and deliver results. At our core, we believe people learnbest by doing. For 30 years, weve been designing fun, powerful experiences that have a profound and lasting impact on people and their careers. We inspire new ways of thinking, build critical capabilities and unleash business success. Its strategy made personal.

We serve a wide range of client needs, including: Assessment centers for talent selection and development, Strategy alignment and execution, Business acumen, Leadership and sales training programs, and On-the-job business simulations and application tools.

We partner with nearly 450 organizations, including over 30 of the worlds 100 largest global corporations. Our major clients include, for example, AT&T, Chevron, Coca-Cola, Ericsson, Google, GSK, HP, HSBC, Salesforce.com, and Unilever.

BTS is a public company listed on the Nasdaq Stockholm exchange and trades under the symbol BTS B.

For more information, please visit http://www.bts.com.

Every care has been taken in the translation of this press release. In the event of discrepancies, however, the Swedish original will supersede the English translation.

Attachment

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BTS carries out a directed new share issue of SEK 1.7 million as part payment for previous acquisitions - Yahoo Finance

Sometimes, being iconic isn't enough to keep a company relevant. Sears, for example, was once the biggest player in United States retail. In 2019, it languishes somewhere between ignored and nonexistent. Similar fates have befallen countless other brands -- sometimes due to changing technology (fare thee well, Blockbuster) and at other times because of mismanagement or unsustainable financial choices (goodbye, Payless and Toys R Us).

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) risks becoming the next American icon to descend into irrelevance. The motorcycle maker's sales have been falling steadily. They dropped by 8.4% globally in the first quarter -- down 8% in the U.S. -- and they are off 6.6% through the first six months of the year.

In its second-quarter earnings release, the company said its poor U.S. sales results were "driven largely by continued weak industry sales." That's a pretty damning comment about the market that provides about two-thirds of its sales, and it's something that Harley has to address if it hopes to turn itself around.

Harley-Davidson is embracing electric motorcycles. Image source: Harley-Davidson.

Selling more motorcycles requires either taking a bigger share of a smaller market, or creating a bigger market. Harley-Davidson has opted to take the "grow the market" approach with its "More Roads to Harley-Davidson" plan, which aims to use new types of bikes, broader access to motorcycles and motorcycle training, and a stronger dealer network to grow its potential audience.

The company plans to expand the pool of Harley riders in the U.S. from 3 million in 2017 to 4 million by 2027. It will do that by focusing on keeping its existing riders happy while exposing potential new ones to the brand, and helping them get the proper training to ride.

"We see a meaningful opportunity to leverage the power of the brand to demonstrate how riding a Harley-Davidson fills the mind, body, and soul in ways that help riders live for real," said CEO Matt Levatich in a press release. "We'll continue to fuel all aspects of the riding experience and add new solutions to fully develop, engage and retain riders through their journey, starting with the very first spark of interest."

The company has already introduced plans for a range of motorcycles designed to appeal to a broader audience. The new models, which began rolling out this year, include the LiveWire, Harley's first electric motorcycle.

It also plans to improve its website, strengthen its dealer network, and create more points of access for potential customers. All of those efforts appear to fall within the realm of the achievable, and the wider new vehicle lineup marries well with them.

These pieces add up to a potentially solid plan. The biggest challenge for Harley-Davidson, however, lies in the last pillar of its More Roads strategy -- amplifying its brand. That's will be a major hurdle for a company that has been locked into one image and one set of messaging for decades.

"Underpinning our strategy is a meaningful opportunity to amplify and leverage the power of the Harley-Davidson brand," the company explained in a presentation posted online. "We are enhancing the Harley-Davidson experience to inspire interest in riding, foster moto-culture and build an even bigger, more passionate community of Harley-Davidson riders."

That sounds nice, but the older and more storied the brand, the more baggage its name carries, for good or ill. To become something new -- or just to convince people to take a broader view of its brand -- Harley-Davidson will have to shed some part of an identity that it has been honing since 1903.

Changing how people think about the motorcycle maker may be difficult, especially when it comes to younger customers who have been turned off by its longtime image and brand positioning. But it's not impossible ifHarley marries its actions to its messaging.

Continued here:
Harley-Davidson Is Pinning Its Comeback Hopes on Putting More Riders on the Road - Motley Fool

PHOENIX, Sept. 26, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- G. Gilbert Cano marks his publishing debut with the release of "Motives: Your Key to a Successful Future" (published by Trafford Publishing), a self-help book that aims to guide readers create their own success stories.

Within this self-improvement material are proven concepts and ideas that have been of great benefit to the author and he now reveals with the optimistic hope to help others shape their own future. The book is designed to help readers live productive and successful life. It seeks to help them understand their role in determining their future and how important attitude is achieving success. Most importantly, it helps them understand how to do it.

"Life does not allow do-overs, but it does allow do-betters," the author emphasizes. "Take advantage of this do-better opportunity and understand how to develop your personal and powerful motives."

As readers internalize the ideas and concepts presented in the book, Cano hopes to find them making the right decisions and coming up with the right solutions to their problems. To purchase a copy, visit https://www.amazon.com/Motives-Your-Key-Successful-Future/dp/149079591X.

"Motives: Your Key to a Successful Future" By G. Gilbert Cano Softcover | 8.25 x 11in | 128 pages | ISBN 9781490795911 E-Book | 128 pages | ISBN 9781490795928 Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author G. Gilbert Cano has 25 years' experience in developing sales training programs and training sales representatives as a general manager of Spanish Yellow Pages in Chicago, Denver, Colorado Springs, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Houston and in Montevideo, Uruguay. He holds a degree in psychology from the University of Houston. He wrote his debut publication, "Motives: Your Key to a Successful Future," to help readers develop an attitude for achievement.

SOURCE Trafford

More:
New self-help book aims to guide readers create their own success stories - Benzinga

Global Sales Training Market Reports presents an in-depth assessment of this report including market drivers, challenges, enabling technologies, vertical market opportunities, applications, key trends, standardization, opportunities, future roadmap, value chain, ecosystem player profiles and strategies.

Get PDF Sample Brochure @ https://decisionmarketreports.com/request-sample/1211656

With a vision to deliver in depth analysis of Global Sales Training Market, MRD has covered extensive analysis of Product Type and Application along with the regional scenario. The Global Sales Training Market not only comprises of regional competitive landscape for the key market players, but also covers the lest trends in the Global Sales Training Market, through thorough primary and secondary analysis. The list of key players includes

Action SellingAslan Training and DevelopmentThe Brooks GroupBTSCarew InternationalDoubleDigit SalesImpartaIMPAXIntegrity SolutionsJanek Performance GroupKurlan & AssociatesMercuri InternationalMiller Heiman GroupRAIN GroupRevenue StormRichardsonSales Performance InternationalSales Readiness GroupValueSelling AssociatesWilson Learning

Know More @ https://decisionmarketreports.com/market-reports/1211656/global-sales-training-market

The latest updates of the Global Sales Training Market depicts that the market is rapidly growing at a CAGR of xx% over the forecast period. In 2018, the Global Sales Training Market size was close to US$ XX Million.

Moreover the Global Sales Training Market also highlights the status of the Software, forecast till 2025, growing marketing opportunities across the globe and key market players. The important inclusions of the Global Sales Training Market are mentioned below

Global Market Splits/Segmentation by Product Type

Sales Skills TrainingCRM TrainingSales Channel Management TrainingSales Team Building TrainingOthers

Global Market Splits/Segmentation by Application

BFSIMedicalReal EstateOthers

Purchase this report @ https://decisionmarketreports.com/market-reports/1211656/global-sales-training-market/single-user/checkout

Global Market Splits/Segmentation by Region/Country North Americao U.S.o Canada Latin Americao Brazilo Argentinao Rest Europeo U.K.o Germanyo Spaino Franceo Italyo Rest of Europe Asia Pacifico Chinao Japano Indiao Australia & New Zealando ASEAN Countrieso Rest of Asia Pacific Middle East & Africao GCC Countrieso North Africao Rest of Middle East & Africa

Global Sales Training Market USPs Market Dynamics Company Wise market Share Region wise Market Share Sales Analysis Competitor Strategy Analysis Impact Factor Analysis Adoption Rate

Table of Content

1. Executive Summary

2. Global Sales Training Market Introduction2.1. Global Sales Training Market Taxonomy2.2. Global Sales Training Market Definitions2.2.1. Segment12.2.2. Segment22.2.3. Region

3. Global Sales Training Market Dynamics3.1. Drivers3.2. Restraints3.3. Opportunities/Unmet Needs of the Market3.4. Trends3.5. New Product Launches3.6. Collaborations, Acquisitions and Mergers3.7. Growth Rates of Sales Training Regionwise3.8. Global Sales Training Market Competition Landscape3.9. Global Sales Training Market Dynamic Factors Impact AnalysisContinued

About UsDecision Market Reports is a one-stop solution, covers market research studies of all the industries, companies and regions. DMR aims at providing quality research, and insights about every market to helps our clients in taking right decisions. Our repository consists of most trending industry reports, niche areas, and leading company profiles. A comprehensive collection of reports is updated daily to offer hassle-free access to our latest updated report databases.

Contact UsGasper James304, S Jones Blvd,Las Vegas,NV 89107, USAUS Toll Free +18666051052Email: [emailprotected]Web: http://decisionmarketreports.com/

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Global Sales Training Market 2019 Analysis By Opportunities, Competition, Key Players, Applications, Various Types, Growth & Forecast 2025 - Rapid...

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KKCO/KJCT News)-- The Grand Junction Fire Department is looking forward to some of the new safety functions, since the public safety sales tax passed in 2017.

Part of the plan was to grow the fire department and put in new fire stations around town. Station #6 is on its way to be being built at Horizon Park, which is off 27 Road. Staff is still in the stages of securing a contractor. A residential house which currently sits on the property will be demolished as part of the plan. But before it is, the fire department will be using the house for training their current recruit class.

"Right now we have our recruit academy going on and we're actively hiring for people for EMT certifications and without EMT certifications. So you have an opportunity to get a job with us right now," says Ellis Thompson-Ellis with GJFP.

The new station is supposed to be completed by the Fall of 2020.

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GJ Fire to add another station from public safety sales tax - KJCT8.com

The finance industry is banking on AI and they're creating new jobs to bridge the gap.

Traditional financial institutions and fintech start-ups alike are looking for more candidates who specialize in artificial intelligence, machine learning and data science. According to reporting by Bloomberg reporting and data from LinkedIn, job listings requiring these skills in the financial industry increased nearly 60% in the past year.

According to Glassdoor data, "some of the most common job openings in AI and finance are for machine learning engineers and data engineers, among other highly specialized software engineering roles," Glassdoor senior economist Daniel Zhao tells CNBC Make It. "We're also seeing job openings for workers who can help navigate the AI landscape, including consultants and researchers. As companies establish the foundations for their AI functions, we're seeing employers hire more senior candidates to lead these new teams."

Not all new job functions are rooted in computer science or engineering, however. For example, chatbot copywriters (those who write conversational answers to technical questions customers ask on websites' "chat" functions), product strategists and technical sales representatives are also in demand, Zhao says. Those who have a business or communications background may be better suited to these roles.

And workers who already work in finance but are willing to learn more about AI have a leg up, Zhao says. "Their domain expertise in business and finance is a great way to differentiate themselves in a hot technical field."

Here's a look at some of Glassdoor's current postings of AI jobs in financial services, along with the job site's estimated salary range for each.

Senior Experience Designer, Bank of America

Data Scientist, Morgan Stanley

Senior Product Manager of Commercial Credit, Capital One

AI Backend Engineer, J.P. Morgan

Professionals with a background in engineering will have a growing field of opportunities within the finance space. For those without a STEM education, however, the ability to adapt and learn such skills will be crucial across a wide set of job functions. "With numerous online courses and boot camps available, it's never been easier to learn AI and machine learning skills that can enhance your career," Zhao says.

LinkedIn provides online courses to learn skills like cloud computing, artificial intelligence and analytical reasoning. Hundreds of universities around the world offer online courses for free or partially free with many falling in the categories of computer science, mathematics, programming and data science. Furthermore, training academies and boot camps have cropped up in order to bridge the gap of working professionals who want to pick up technical skills that can translate to a new role or enhance their current work.

The question of whether workers will have to seek out these opportunities, or if they'll be encouraged and provided by employers, hangs in the balance.

"It's important for companies to continue to invest in their people so that they are up-skilling and re-skilling their people to keep up with the roles that are in demand," said Feon Ang, vice president for talent and learning solutions in Asia Pacific at LinkedIn, to CNBC's "Capital Connection." "At the same time, people need to continue to invest in themselves and have a growth mindset."

A recent report from IBM suggests employers recognize the increasing need to retrain workers an estimated 120 million worldwide within the next three years as a result of AI and automation. However, executives from the report point to soft skills such as flexibility, time management, and ability to work on teams as skills more important than technical STEM knowledge or basic computer and software/application skills.

Hiring adaptable professionals and investing in training programs in data science, engineering and AI can help businesses drive technological innovations from within, the IBM report suggests.

Like this story? Subscribe to CNBC Make It on YouTube!

Don't miss: The 10 most attractive employers for business, engineering and computer science majors

@sabrinafvholder | Twenty20

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Finance jobs requiring A.I. skills increased 60% last yearhere's what they look like - CNBC

The Business Roundtables declaration should lead to new comp committee goals

What does it mean for boards and compensation committees that 181 CEOs from the Business Roundtable amended a long-standing statement of corporate purpose last month? The CEOs declared that the purpose of companies is to serve their five key stakeholdersshareholders, customers, employees, suppliers, and the community, not shareholders alone.

In putting their signatures to that idea, these CEOs challenged the notion of shareholder primacy, a principle of business for the last fifty years. Not surprisingly, the Business Roundtables statement sparked a host of editorials in the business press, some arguing that the group had made a grievous error. Many writers seemed to suggest the choice is binary: Youre either with shareholders, or youre not. The Business Roundtable, in contrast, implies the choice isnt either/or. Its both.

Rightly or wrongly, the question will now come up in many boardrooms and on many investor calls: What is being done to address the needs of all stakeholder groups? Some commentators may even point to academic research that shows a positive correlation between companies that promote the interests of stakeholders and better financial performance.

The challenge for management and boards, of course, is to take the Roundtables broad principles statement and translate it into action. For companies that have not already traveled far along this path, we suggest three steps:

Both executives and boards will be forced to respond to the stakeholder issues, and directors on the compensation committee in particular will have to adjust their thinking to establish accountability to stakeholders in executive compensation. What new kinds of information will the board and the compensation committee need? Which measures of performance should they ask management to see? How should they set goals tied to pay? How can the company respond to stakeholders and unleash value creating strategies?

Establishing Agreement on Stakeholder Needs to Address

As a first step, boards and management teams may want to back up and be more explicit about the companys mission and vision explicit enough so the mission indicates how the company can and should create value for key stakeholders. CEOs and boards may even have to spend time refining key strategic priorities and initiatives to assure that stakeholders, as a group, eagerly provide the outside capital, employee talent, customer enthusiasm, and public support needed for company success.

The approach will require querying stakeholders and soliciting feedback on how to win their support. This feedback then serves as the basis for executives and the board to make tradeoff decisions. Which stakeholders needs represent the greatest opportunities if their needs are met? Which represent the greatest risks if their needs are not met? Should the company focus on just needs and risks or simply doing no harm? Not all stakeholders interests will get equal weight during this process, but each should get equal consideration.

Reflecting the Stakeholder Approach in Compensation

How the Annual Goals for a Retailer Might Look

Individual goals:

HRestablish new hiring protocols; training in using hiring protocols, customer service and sales training, training managers in coaching skills

ITdevelop customer analytic tools, develop inventory management tools

Store/region goals:

Net promoter score/customer satisfaction score exceeding peers

Average Sales dollars per full-time equivalent employee versus historical

Gross margin exceeding peers

Comparable trade area sales-growth (agnostic as to channel where purchase occurs)

Employee turnover rate within 180 days of hire

Corporate goals:

Total sales growth exceeding peers

Profit growth exceeding peers

ROI exceeding peers

Corporate-wide net promoter score and customer satisfaction score exceeding peers

Employee engagement scores exceeding historical

Not surprisingly, this exercise does not relieve boards and management teams of the age-old task of weighing benefits against costs. Nor does it eliminate the need for executives and the board to solicit feedback and get buy-in from major investors on its choices. Does the strategy for involving stakeholders in maximizing corporate value make sense to shareholders? In yearly conversations with investors, does the head of the compensation committee explain the stakeholder rationale and let investors voice their opinions? How does everyone feel about the tradeoffs, especially those that, in the near term, depress shareholder value in the interest of boosting it three to five or more years hence?

Linking Stakeholder Needs to Executive Compensation

Once management and the board agree on the stakeholder value propositions (and the associated payoff for the company in return), the compensation committee can begin to consider how (if at all) it should establish accountability in the companys executive compensation programs. It will have to take into account three factors in the process: the status of the companys

Two questions stand out at this point: What is the company able to do? And what does good performance look like competitively on a long-term, sustainable basis?

This conversation about stakeholder expectations and their linkage to executive compensation must be reconciled against performance levels that are both reasonable and achievable within the given timeframe. Only then can the committee tie the goals to executives annual and long-term incentive pay in a manner that appropriately supports stakeholder priorities and is driven by a rationale that will be compelling to institutional investors.

A Retail Case Study

As an illustration of how the stakeholder approach works, and how the directors of the compensation committee might go about setting goals, consider a company like Trader Joes.

The food retailer has used the stakeholder approach for years, and it ranks as a top retail success story. Any visitor to a Trader Joes store can see that the company relies on meeting the needs of both employees and customers as a means to deliver premium value to investors. In fact, Trader Joes tops Forbes list of best places to work and ranks second highest of all companies in customer satisfaction. By spending money on employeesthrough wages, training, and career opportunitiesthe company cultivates a high-quality, engaged workforce. The workforce, in turn, assures that the company creates an engaged, loyal base of customerscustomers who enjoy the fruits of the employees efforts.

Because it is private, we dont know what Trader Joes board has approved as goals in its executive pay plans, but we can assume that making good on the value proposition promised to employee and customer stakeholders is top of mind for top executives. Providing that value allows Trader Joes to differentiate itself with premium store-branded products, helpful, informed store employees who can tell customers about those products, and low prices without sales promotions in a store environment that, by constantly evolving based on employee input, invokes customer surprise and delight.

In this model, shareholders, customers, and employees win togetherand we can guess that suppliers and communities do as well.

With Trader Joes as a model of creating value throughrather than at the cost offulfilling the needs of stakeholders, lets illustrate how a compensation committee at a hypothetical retailer would take on the job of goal-setting to comply with the stakeholder approach. We dont need to assume the retailer follows Trader Joes business model, only that the model chosen depends on stakeholders winning together. The goals in a pay plan then follow the model naturally.

Stakeholder Principles for the Compensation Committee

To start, management at the retailer would ask shareholders, What are your needs and expectations? The board could then build goals from the answers. The likely result would be some conventional targets, for example, overall sales growth exceeding peers, profitability, return on investment above the companys cost of capital, and total shareholder return that outpaces peers.

Management would also ask the same question of customers: What are their expectations? The board might then choose targets related to the following: satisfying customer experience in terms of interacting, buying, and resolving customer-service issues; providing an appealing product selection in line with brand strategy; timely and convenient delivery and return options; and competitive pricing.

For the employee stakeholder, the board could affirm incentive goals such as adequate wages and benefits to meet personal and family obligations; adequate work hours and predictable or family-friendly work schedules; long-term career potential; and a satisfying or engaging work environment.

Executives could then get on with the job of making tradeoffs and accommodating realities. A variety of questions might come up at this point: Do the goals take into account the state of company systems to train and cultivate knowledgeable and engaged employees? Do they take into account the status of systems to curate the product line and manage inventories? What is the state of the fulfillment system?

After making adjustments for such factors, the compensation committee could set annual bonus-plan goals to support near- and intermediate-term strategies. It would link pay, for example, to management hitting significant, game-changing strategic milestones, often related to meeting stakeholder expectations that serve company interests. See the box for one possible formulation of goals for annual bonus plans for a retailer. Of course, the board would need narrow down the list of goals to a precious few, although using different goals at different levels does provide more flexibility.

The long-term incentive plan might then include both a conventional financial goal and some nonfinancial goals related to stakeholder outcomes, assuring that the company isnt leaving behind a constituency fundamental to long-term value creation. Because the long-term plan again has limited room for measurestwo to three at mostdirectors might consider goals for key stakeholder outcomes such as total shareholder return exceeding peers, customer retention levels continuously improving, growth in average customer spending, and average employee tenure versus best-in-class for the industry.

Conclusion

Goals based on stakeholder expectations, as with any corporate goals, will remain in flux. They vary with the strategy and how the stakeholders needs evolve over time. This doesnt suggest that a company accountable to many stakeholders is accountable to none. When executives choose to focus on stakeholders goalsand the compensation committee sets performance levels and links those goals to paythe risk isnt that management will choose pet projects at the expense of shareholders, but that management and the board havent aligned their views on strategic priorities (and the right goals) to win for shareholders through stakeholder interdependence.

Compensation committees sit at the nexus of solving an equation far more complex than in earlier decades. More variables go into how to motivate and reward executives for running a company to successfully compete for talent, customers, suppliers, and public support.

Committees have the responsibility to choose the right incentives to encourage value-creating decisions and behaviors. When they get it right, executives will do the bidding of shareholders increase profits and returnsbut also increase the wealth and satisfaction of the stakeholders that those profits depend on.

Mark Emanuel, managing director,and Seymour Burchman, managing director atSemlerBrossy Consulting. They can be reach atbjones@semlerbrossy.comandsburchman@semlerbrossy.com

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What a Stakeholder Approach Means for Executive Compensation - Directors and Boards

Visceral fat is a type of body fat deemed harmful because of where its stored in the body - the abdominal cavity next to many vital organs. When visceral fat builds up here, it increases a persons risk of health complications, including cardiovascular disease. So what can you do to reduce it? A poor diet can lead to high levels of visceral fat, so making changes to what you eat is key. One diet proven effective at getting rid of visceral fat is the keto diet.

Also known as the ketogenic diet, the keto diet is a popular low-carb diet which has been shown in many studies to reduce visceral fat - more so than low-fat diets.

The ketosis diet drastically reduces carb intake and replaces it with fat.

This puts the body into a natural metabolic state called ketosis, whereby the body begins to burn fat for energy because it doesnt have enough carbohydrates to burn.

One study involving 28 overweight and obese adults found those who followed a ketogenic diet lost more fat, especially visceral fat, than people following a low-fat diet.

The participants did this while eating roughly 300 more calories per day.

So what should you eat while on the keto diet plan?

Foods you may want to consider as part of the keto diet are:

Working in hand with the keto diet, eating plenty of protein can also help with visceral fat loss.

Studies have demonstrated how protein can help fend off hunger by increasing levels of fullness hormones, and also boost metabolism.

One study in 23,876 adults showed a higher protein intake was linked to a lower body mass index, higher good HDL cholesterol and a smaller waist circumference, which is a marker of visceral fat.

Alongside making changes to what you eat, its also important to regularly exercise if you want to lose visceral fat.

The most effective exercise for getting rid of visceral fat has been shown to be aerobic exercise.

An analysis of 15 studies involving 852 people compared how well different types of exercise reduced visceral fat without dieting.

The researchers found moderate and high-intensity aerobic exercises were most effect at reducing visceral fat without dieting.

Some experts believe supplements can help reduce visceral fat.

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How to get rid of visceral fat: Best diet plan to reduce the harmful belly fat - Express