Teams with Peak, Transforms Sales Function and Achieves Double-Digit Growth
Taking your business to the next level has a literal meaning for the team at Bradford Products. That’s because creating the most beautiful pools for top resorts or dramatically transforming the backyards of homeowners – often in the most challenging above-ground or high-rise environments – are all part of the job. When it came time to execute the company’s expansion plan, the leader in the design and fabrication of stainless steel pools, spas and water features, was ready to dive in.
Based in Leland, North Carolina and a family-owned business since 1982, Vice President Mike Brodeur explains the company’s inception, “More than 30 years ago, my dad wanted a stainless steel hot tub at his house. With the lack of options in the market, he built his own. He wasn’t alone and people immediately wanted to model it. A light bulb suddenly went off and our business was born that day.”
Rarely an ordinary day at Bradford Products, the company’s 3,500 projects throughout the world feature stunning water features in commercial facilities and homes. “The hospitality and commercial building industry are looking to create the ultimate guest and client experience. And on the residential side, people are trying to create a resort atmosphere and integrate pools or hot tubs right into their existing outdoor space,” says Mike. “These are not appliances that you plug in. We bring the innovation, customization, and integration to create something very special.”
Peak Sales Recruiting delivers crystal clear waters
While Mike wears a lot of hats at Bradford Products, when it was time to execute the company’s growth plan, he knew recruiting was not something he wanted to manage directly. “With the stainless steel, high-end installations we do for commercial and residential projects, we always hire from within. But for this role, our first senior sales leader, we needed a fresh perspective, a different talent. And this, coupled with the fact that outside of filtering through resumes and running ads, we didn’t have the right resources to identify and find the best people, we chose to use a recruiter that could provide excellent guidance and great results.”
Mike began working with Peak Sales Recruiting and the process kicked off right away. He explains, “Working with the Peak team was very easy and it raised our level of awareness as to what a world class recruiting experience really looked like. Peak made us really think about what we were looking for, including things we may not have considered yet. All of this helped us shape our criteria and expand what we needed for the role.”
For Mike, Peak’s structured process really stood out. “The process was very well-organized and structured. I was impressed with the quality of candidates and how they were presented, the communication and conversations throughout the process, and the interview prep. Peak provided a strong point of contact and guidance.”
Peak’s 4-step sales recruiting methodology evaluates candidates using a process that includes behavior-based interviews and role playing, psychometric profiling, and benchmarking. Through its proprietary P95 assessment method, Peak takes the process one step deeper and evaluates candidates’ selling behaviors through three phases of advanced assessment that are critical in determining whether candidates have the sales DNA to perform in a client’s selling environment.
New sales leader improves processes, surpasses total annual sales
Just days after discussing the candidate criteria, Mike Sage was hired as the company’s new Vice President of Sales and Marketing.
Nearly one year later, Mike Sage’s impact on the company and the results are truly impressive. “Mike Sage has been a great addition to the team. We couldn’t have hoped for something more than the way this has worked out,” he shares. “The whole process was fantastic, from the level of candidates presented to the structure and communication throughout.”
Under Mike Sage’s leadership, Bradford Products has a new sales department, sales strategy, and internal systems and processes to effectively support the company’s sales goals.
Here are just a few of the results:
- Restructured sales team and the addition of three field sales personnel and one sales support team member
- Established a completely new sales strategy to optimize the focus on Bradford’s target market verticals and valued clients
- Implemented a new CRM system and sales process
The company is also establishing a new department focused on project estimating to increase the efficiencies of its new sales function and increase responsiveness to clients.
And sales? Bradford Products is on track for double-digit growth again this year. “From our bookings in the first quarter of 2019 and better sales funnel visibility, we’re projecting substantial double-digit growth year-over-year in 2019,” says Mike. “As of January 1, 2019, our company backlog of projects for the year has already surpassed total annual sales from just a year prior.”
The West coast is the company’s next priority and the team will partner with Peak again to support this plan. “With Peak’s level of recruitment expertise and specialized services, we have been able to rapidly execute our growth plan and surpass projections. More importantly, through Mike’s leadership, we have made significant improvements to our sales function that are competitively positioning us in our target markets. We will definitely partner with Peak again.”
Are you ready to take your talent acquisition to the next level? Learn more about Peak’s services or contact us today to recruit top sales talent.
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