Contemporary leaders like Joe often rely on books and seminars, regurgitating information without drawing from personal values or real-world experience. This approach is concerning, especially for NetApp representatives under such leadership. Comparing them to professional athletes like Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan is misleading, as athletes focus on refining skills, strength, & agility through training every day, not continuous learning. I argue that most A-type reps are like professional athletes, excelling in their field without aspirations for leadership. Promoting unqualified reps into leadership based on reading habits is problematic. Leadership requires hands-on experience, echoed by many books stating why great reps may not make great leaders. Only a small percentage of athletes become great coaches after their prime career. Experienced reps seek more than basic instruction and book recommendations; they thrive when allowed to leverage their expertise rather than conform to generic sales approaches like MEDIC or BVS, which have already proven ineffective by many successful companies. They learn their customers, their competitors, the industry climate, internal processes, partner/reseller obstacles, the value, pertinent industry acquisitions or disruptive changes, all things that are NOT book related. Great reps bring business but need skilled leaders to retain them. Leadership is about cultivating good reps rather than turning them into book leaders. Training athletes should prioritize their athletic development rather than diverting focus to books of leadership. Advocating disqualification based on reading habits, as implied by Joe, is flawed. Practical expertise and consistent field performance should be valued over extensive reading. Steve Jobs aligned with doers like Jony Ivy and Steve Wozniak, not necessarily avid readers. I challenge Joe to a debate without referencing books and believe my sales teams outperform his. A leader's effectiveness is measured by the loyalty of their team, not the number of times "leadership" appears on their bio or LinkedIn, or the number of books in the background. How warm is your bench of top managers and reps that have, or will follow you? This to me is the biggest red flag of all leaders. I bet none, and quite possibly there is a trail of dead bodies behind you in your last orgs. It's already evident, but I have to point out that Joe appears to embody the characteristics of a leader who bullies others to affirm their own worth, lacking practical understanding or the ability to genuinely assist others in succeeding. It's time to shift focus from theoretical knowledge to a people-centric, experience-driven approach in developing effective reps and leaders. Prioritize retention, provide rigorous training, instill trust, and remove obstacles for consistent top YoY growth.

I am professional digital marketer specialist. Can I suggest grow your channel?

Ofir, your people skills are excellent. This is your superpower and something that we can't teach in schools. Kudos!

The United States pays for 20% of Israel's military budget while Israel has a space program, universal health care, and still runs a budget surplus for six of the last ten years.

That guy from Shield is so professional 🥳🥳

Very creative!! Don't get left behind - Promo-SM !!

Great input!

Thanks for hosting us James!

Ruben is a teacher!

Great podcast, some great insights from Mark Colgan