
2 minute read
The need to be PROGRESSIVE
from OPI APP MARCH 2023 A
by OPI
Mother-and-daughter team Kim Leazer and Beth Freeman from US independent dealer FSIoffice share their thoughts on women leadership, generational change and the recent S.P. Richards transaction

Women in leadership positions in our industry...
Kim Leazer: I think we are rather unique in our sector because most of the top-level positions within FSIoffice are held by females. It’s not the norm, but the industry would do well to look for more women to serve in high-level roles.
Generational change in the sales force...
KL: We had some very long tenures within our sales team and were faced with a lot of reps retiring in a short space of time.
We knew it was coming but, initially, we weren’t doing the best job of handling the situation. Beth came up with a plan and what we did has been very successful.
BF: In the past, we had a habit of hiring young salespeople early in their careers. They were expected to go and develop their own book of business from nothing. Often, they would last one or two years – it was ‘churn and burn’.
When the older reps retired, we therefore didn’t have a good group of people to transition business to. We needed to make some big changes quickly. The result was a mentoring programme whereby retiring salespeople have the opportunity to earn commission for an extended period of time. It means they have some skin in the game as well.
Beth Freeman: We have seen a natural shift as a result of the pandemic and work-from-home. We have all adapted to the rise in flexible work schedules as well as locations, which is certainly more conducive to women in the workforce in general.
There’s better acceptance of this flexibility being the norm now, even for a top-level position, so it can only be a good thing for women in business.
As an industry, I would say we saw a peak [of women in leadership roles] about five years ago. We’ve lost several influential women, sadly including Jennifer Smith who recently passed away and others who have retired.
I would like to see increased networking and greater opportunities for women to come together. This has obviously been difficult in the past few years, but we’re at a point now where we can do more of it again. Hopefully, this will encourage female executives to participate and be able to progress.
So they actually help us hire and onboard mentees who are then in this partnership with these experienced individuals. They work together for a period of 6-12 months to transition accounts. The recruits learn about our company – not just the how to, but also the why. This approach has been successful in getting talent on board who really buy into what we’re about, with our emphasis on the ‘customer first’ being a vital part of the picture. We’ve actually been able to grow sales and are delighted with the results so far.
The sale of S.P. Richards...
KL: I think it’s a very positive thing for the independent dealer channel. Yancey [Jones Sr] and Mike [Maggio] did a good job of selecting who to sell to because I know there were others interested.
I was privileged to be on a call to hear about the plans for the transition in the first 90 days. I’m pleased with the direction and the focus they have which seems to include taking care of the independent dealer.