Nearly 400 turn outfor FPDA meeting
By Staff -- Industrial Distribution, 11/1/1998
Montreal--More than 375 delegates turned out for the annual Fall Meeting of the Fluid Power Distributors Assn., held at LeCentre Sheraton Montreal, Sept. 26-29.FPDA staff and officers were especially pleased with this year's turnout. Association president Jim Ockuly characterized it as "overwhelming" during his welcome address on the second official day of the Montreal meeting. Members, likewise, welcomed the opportunity to network with a large number of their peers and business partners. Ockuly, president of Wyatt Sales Corp. in Strongsville, Ohio, said the good turnout was due in large part to FPDA's full schedule of events and lineup of key speakers.
The meeting kicked off with a presentation by Gil Cargill of California-based Cargill Consulting Group. Cargill's full-day presentation, titled "Building a World-Class Sales Force," outlined the do's and don'ts of a successful sales organization. Among his key points, Cargill explained the importance of controlling the processes, not the people, in a sales organization.
"If we can improve the process, we can get some great results," he said, adding that it's important to delegate many of a salesperson's responsibilities to others in the company. "Stop the schizophrenia we inject into our salespeople's lives by asking them to do everything."
For instance, Cargill said salespeople should not be responsible for prospecting.
"All of your companies need to prospect," he explained, "but don't ask your salespeople to do it ... salespeople should sell ... and selling is different than business development."
Cargill, whose presentation was sponsored by FPDA's Young Executives group, was one of the most well-received speakers at the conference. Other presenters included John Henderson of Frank Lynn and Associates; Tom Pryor of ICMS, Inc.; Bill McCleave of W.R. McCleave and Associates; Michael Marks of the Indian River Consulting Group; and Phillip D. Steffen of The Bottom Line Group, Inc.
FPDA will meet in Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 20-24, for its Annual Meeting. The convention will be held at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort.
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