Outside the window, the sun was shining, but Li Chengshuang, the newly appointed district manager in City G, felt as gloomy as fog. The city's main distributor, relying on his close relationship with a high-level manager, had just reduced the previously confirmed annual sales target by 3 million yuan and received approval from higher-ups, leaving Li Chengshuang at a loss for what to do next.
Looking through the tall glass windows revealed pleasant weather outside, yet Li Chengshuang’s mood was heavy. Li Chengshuang is the city manager of Xiangfa (a pseudonym) Company in this important southern city of G. He had been transferred here from a large northern city less than a month ago. Xiangfa Company is considered a rising star in China's small home appliance industry, especially in the secondary cities of South China where its products have a market share following closely behind top brands like Philips, enjoying considerable brand recognition among local consumers. Xiangfa Company has achieved such remarkable success in recent years not only due to excellent product quality and localized market strategies, but also because of their bold approach in hiring new talent. Li Chengshuang is an example of this. He joined Xiangfa Company in a major northern city near his hometown, serving as a regional sales supervisor. In the more than a year he was responsible for that region, not only did he resolve a long-standing issue with the local distributor, but he also increased the region's sales by nearly 300% compared to before he took over. His outstanding performance caught the attention of Xiangfa Company's management. With strong recommendations from the previous district manager, he was quickly promoted to his current position.
In the month since his appointment, Li Chengshuang had carefully visited the markets in the cities under his jurisdiction, reviewed past sales records, and had individual or group discussions with sales personnel. He now had a clear understanding of the overall market situation and the sales team. After careful preparation, he and Mr. Zhang, the main distributor in City G, had just preliminarily confirmed the sales target for the year. At the time, Mr. Zhang had not raised any significant objections and agreed to give final confirmation on Monday morning, which was today. Li Chengshuang thought that Mr. Zhang's confirmation of the annual sales target was just a matter of time, but unexpectedly, when he called Mr. Zhang according to schedule, Mr. Zhang's attitude was completely different. He casually informed Li Chengshuang that he had already discussed the annual sales target with General Manager Han from South China Region and, with Han's approval, it was set at 320 million yuan, 3 million yuan less than Li Chengshuang's original target of 350 million yuan. Upon hearing this news, Li Chengshuang was shocked, feeling that Mr. Zhang was too audacious, showing no respect for him as the newly appointed city manager. After confirming with his direct superior, General Manager Han, Li Chengshuang felt even more disheartened. In a casual tone, Han told Li Chengshuang that he was already aware of the matter, that the sales situation in City G was well understood, and that a target of 350 million yuan was too high for Mr. Zhang. According to his experience, 320 million yuan was more appropriate. Han added that Mr. Zhang was an old customer he had personally cultivated, cooperating with the company for nearly seven years, urging Li Chengshuang to fully cooperate with Mr. Zhang's work.
Analysis:
When distributors rely on their close relationships with high-level managers and ignore their direct supervisors, many specific matters bypass the direct supervisor and go directly to upper management, creating situations of overstepping communication that are headache-inducing for any salesperson. This situation becomes even more serious when the superior manager tacitly approves or explicitly allows it. What should be done in such a scenario? Many people would adopt two extreme approaches: one is to uphold principles and openly confront the superior manager, either overtly or covertly pressuring the distributor. Even if this approach is correct, it can easily offend the superior manager, making future work difficult. The other extreme approach is to endure silently, ignoring the distributor's overstepping behavior, seeking personal ease. While this might bring temporary peace, it is detrimental in the long run, as the person involved could easily become a scapegoat if market problems arise.
Li Chengshuang's mind raced. General Manager Han was a veteran with great achievements in Xiangfa Company, having struggled alongside the company's founder to build the business into what it is today. He was someone whose word carried great weight with the boss. Direct confrontation with Han would likely yield poor results and negatively impact his own future work. However, turning a blind eye and ignoring Mr. Zhang's actions wasn't Li Chengshuang's style. What should he do? For the moment, Li Chengshuang didn't have a good solution and decided to continue working as planned, adapting based on the specific circumstances.
Analysis:
When facing crises involving distributors overstepping their bounds, especially when one's superior manager is very authoritative, the person involved should not make hasty decisions but instead assess the situation based on objective facts and understand the motivations behind the distributor's and superior manager's actions. If accurate judgment cannot be made immediately, observing quietly and making judgments later is not a bad strategy.
Not long after this incident, during a routine inspection of the distributor's warehouse, Li Chengshuang accidentally discovered a batch of air humidifiers from three years ago, numbering as high as 3,000 units, in Mr. Zhang's warehouse. When Li Chengshuang asked about this, Mr. Zhang helplessly admitted that these 3,000 humidifiers were a leftover issue from General Manager Han, which had remained unresolved until now. Located in subtropical South China, the climate is warm and humid, making air humidifiers essentially unnecessary. Mr. Zhang had purchased such a large quantity initially because the product was new to the market, and Xiangfa Company wanted to meet certain distribution targets while also respecting Han's face. Unexpectedly, not a single unit had been sold. Returning the goods was a consideration complicated by the pitiful return ratio and the concern of losing the year-end rebate, ultimately leading to this batch of humidifiers remaining unsold in the warehouse.
Li Chengshuang knew that in some northern cities, due to dry weather, the demand for air humidifiers had been increasing in recent years. After contacting several city managers from the northern region via phone, a buyer was quickly found for Mr. Zhang's batch of air humidifiers. Since the price Mr. Zhang paid for this batch was low, handling these goods resulted in almost no losses. This action allowed Mr. Zhang to recover at least 350,000 yuan in funds. Mr. Zhang was greatly surprised by this, and his attitude towards Li Chengshuang underwent a 180-degree turnaround. Not only did he start addressing Li Chengshuang as brother, but he also began listening to Li Chengshuang's opinions on sales matters and actively cooperating with his work. Under Mr. Zhang's active cooperation and Li Chengshuang's successful sales strategy, the first month's product sales in City G exceeded the plan by 25%. After the end of the first month's sales, Mr. Zhang invited Li Chengshuang to a dinner. During the meal, after drinking a few cups of wine, Mr. Zhang, patting Li Chengshuang on the shoulder, apologized for the earlier sales target issue and said that the target would still be set at Li Chengshuang's original 350 million yuan. He would handle the communication with General Manager Han regarding the target adjustment, and henceforth, all matters related to Xiangfa Company in his area would be entirely under Li Chengshuang's control.
Analysis:
Many people, when facing distributors who overstep their authority, consciously or unconsciously adopt overt or covert pressure tactics. This stems from natural retaliatory instincts, but resolving such crises hinges on transforming "confrontation" into "dialogue." In practical work, there are many opportunities to collaborate with distributors, and finding a platform for dialogue isn't difficult. Once such a platform is found, putting oneself in the distributor's shoes, empathizing with their needs, and helping them solve problems—especially those that even one's superior manager couldn't resolve—is key. When distributors realize that the person involved can secure reasonable or even greater benefits for them, they will voluntarily abandon overstepping behavior. Simultaneously, praise from the distributor serves as compelling evidence to the superior manager of the person's competence.
Li Chengshuang didn't stop tracking this matter. When talking to General Manager Han on the phone, he casually mentioned helping Mr. Zhang deal with the inventory of air humidifiers. He then prepared a detailed report on January's sales figures and February's sales forecast and sent it to Han. Although Han didn't make any explicit comments on this report, the subsequent February sales results closely matched Li Chengshuang's predictions, earning him special recognition from Han. Additionally, when dealing with matters concerning Mr. Zhang, Li Chengshuang generally followed Han's advice. One day, during a meeting break at the South China headquarters, Han approached Li Chengshuang alone, patted him on the shoulder approvingly, saying that Mr. Zhang frequently praised Li Chengshuang in front of him and that Li Chengshuang's work performance clearly demonstrated that he was an excellent city manager. Henceforth, he could independently handle sales matters, including managing Mr. Zhang.
Analysis:
To fundamentally resolve the crisis of distributors overstepping authority, the final step involves gaining the support of one's superior manager. Superior managers typically tolerate such overstepping for the following reasons: out of long-term close relationships with distributors, it's hard to refuse; doubting or observing the subordinate's capabilities, intervening in specific matters is a form of insurance; and a habit formed over time that they themselves may not prefer. To fundamentally resolve the crisis of distributors overstepping authority, besides first gaining the support of the distributor, it is crucial to gain the acknowledgment and support of one's superior manager. The most convincing way to achieve this is through demonstrating one's capabilities through actual market performance, which must be realized through solid sales work and the support of distributors. From the perspective of the superior manager, no one wants to be a micromanager. Facing a competent subordinate, they will gladly delegate full authority to handle relevant matters.
On the second day after returning to City G, Li Chengshuang sat at his desk gazing out the window. Although the view outside was not much different from two months ago, his mood was markedly different. He secretly congratulated himself for not rashly making decisions when faced with the crisis, leading to today's perfect outcome. Through this event, he had gained an opportunity for promotion.
Analysis:
When facing crises involving distributors overstepping authority or subordinates overstepping reporting lines, a mature sales manager observes the underlying essential causes behind the crisis and transforms "confrontation" into "dialogue," gaining understanding and support from both superiors and subordinates to resolve the crisis. In the process of resolving the crisis, communication is most needed. This is why higher-level managers require better communication skills.