Lawrence Williams
Williams has trained people in such diverse industries as information and medical technology, financial services, packaging, insurance, and industrial coatings and finishes.
At the age of 30, Williams was named top sales person in the nation by Searle Radiographics, a subsidiary of G.D. Searle & Company that manufactured imaging equipment for use in diagnostic nuclear medicine. In his 8 years with Searle Radiographics, Williams held various sales and management positions including Sales Trainer, Regional Sales Manager and Sales Administrator. He was the third member of the prestigious Million Dollar Club.
Williams then joined Kenexa - the fastest growing Human Capital Management firm in America - developing and conducting blended learning solutions for such clients as Capital One, Bank of America, Wachovia, General Electric, Siemens, Owen-Illinois, Charles Schwab, Northern Trust, Sherwin-Williams and Xerox. Larry also is a popular speaker at national meetings for organizations and corporations.
A new selling and learning environment exists, Williams maintains, and you must adapt to each buying situation. The selling process is now driven by the buying process and many people we call on today really don't know their needs. One generic selling process is not appropriate today. Skill versatility is the key to being competitive. If you are in a market place where there is product similarity then your main differentiator is going to be your sales behavior and approach - not a "tell sell" product pitch.
Williams enjoys working with highly trained specialists who have financial, scientific or technical backgrounds. He is a former high school teacher and holds a B.S. in Education and Chemistry from Fairleigh Dickinson University, Rutherford, N.J.
The most satisfying reward from a training program, according to Williams, is "seeing people who came into a sales performance improvement program unsure of themselves in a prospect or customer contact situation walk out fully confident that next week they will know exactly what to do. The key to gaining this confidence is having the participant see himself/herself make successful calls."
Larry and his wife, Ann, reside in Bethesda, Maryland and spend their leisure time on Allegretto, a sailboat berthed in Annapolis.