There is no doubt that sales are a major part of the lifeblood of any organisation. Nor is there any doubt that many people in a lot of organisations find sales difficult, even threatening. So the very thing that companies in Jamaica need in order to thrive and grow is the very thing that scares some of their team members.

There are a number of training institutions that offer sales support and guidance, but certification by the University Council of Jamaica is not usually part of the package. And so, the ThinkGrowLead (TGL) partnership of Paul Bryan and Duane Lue Fung sought to differentiate its sales training programme by partnering with the University College of the Caribbean (UCC), thereby putting the TGL team under the umbrella of a certified institution.

According to Head of UCC, Dr Winston Adams: “UCC’s partnership with TGL arose out of the need to provide professional sales certification, something that was not available locally prior to this partnership.

“Sales [constitute] such a critical part of every organisation, yet for most businesses, while the individuals they employ to sell their goods and services are most times qualified with a bachelor’s and/or master’s degree, they do not possess the skills required to effectively and efficiently convey their products’ value. The UCC-TGL School of Sales and Sales Management will provide an affordable alternative to sales professionals within Jamaica and the region who are ready to operate globally.”

Bryan, co-founder of TGL, explained: “Our partnership with UCC will fill the need that many HR managers and sales leaders face today. That is, the inability to engage, train and retain competent sales professionals who can meet and exceed targets.” Lue Fung added, “This is important, as the improvement in the ability to sell means that the company’s sales will improve. This then means that production will increase. And this will ultimately have a positive impact on Jamaica’s gross domestic product.”

At the launch of the new programmes at UCC, it was revealed that for most organisations, the complexity of the selling process is not an issue for the top 26 per cent of sales performers, who will flourish with the use of any system. However, the TGL team wants to help the 74 per cent of sales professionals in organisations that are not meeting targets.

Bryan stated, “In our experience, many sales professionals continue to struggle with the tedious and long approach. Many have simply never been exposed to formal sales training.”

TGL School of Sales Management is putting sales training back on track and back into perspective with the use of a new model that simplifies the sales process.