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Earnest Machine, Gustave A. Larson Embrace Sales Team Restructure

Days are numbered for the traditional inside-outside sales model in distribution, say executives at Earnest Machine and Gustave A. Larson. Here's how they developed a new integrated approach.

By Elizabeth Galentine

November 29, 2021

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What does your sales stack look like?

The tools your sales team needs to be successful look very different than just a few years ago. Technology is an increasingly important part of the equation to sell better in turbulent markets, but it’s part of a bigger picture.

Around a decade into trying — and getting nowhere with — different sales transformation tactics,

Earnest Machine

CEO Kirk Zehnder zeroed in on integrated sales management. The restructured sales model, centered around a team-based approach rather than inside-outside sales, could work, he thought. But was the 73-year-old, third-generation traditional fastener distributor willing to do it? It was a similar story for another third-generation business, 85-year-old HVACR distributor

Gustave A. Larson Company

. For both, the decision to move forward came down to a concept popularized by Elon Musk…

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