One of the biggest concerns executives have when considering a coach-led transformational initiative, such as the They Ask, You Answer (TAYA) Mastery Program, is what is required regarding a time commitment from them and their team. In other words, how many hours will they have to squeeze into their already overloaded schedule to make this successful?
As with most good things worth doing, the answer is "It depends." In the article below, I will go through the time commitment required from each of the team members involved in the They Ask, You Answer Mastery journey and look at how much time you, as an executive, and your sales team will gain back by implementing the TAYA methodologies and practices. By the end of the article, you will have a solid understanding of what to expect.
Specifically, I will provide time commitment requirements for small to medium-sized B2B technology companies with 20-100 employees, including three to four people in marketing and five to fifteen salespeople, because that is what I primarily focus on. Here are the team members we will be looking at in particular:
Please note:
Every certified They Ask, You Answer coach will ask for slightly different time commitments. Also, how much time you spend from week to week might vary based on where you are in the program. For example, I spend more time with the sales team in the first 100-120 days and then dip out to let them implement what they have learned. Another factor that could impact this is how big your organization is.
The They Ask, You Answer Leader is one of the most critical members of your TAYA team as they will implement the cultural change across the organization, will ensure all team members know exactly what their roles and responsibilities are within the They Ask, You Answer initiative, and will lead the charge independently upon graduating the program.
Must-commit-to hours for meetings with the TAYA coach:
>1 hour a week/7.25 hours per quarter
Other TAYA coaching/training sessions:
Depending on their preference, TAYA Leaders often participate in other group meetings and training sessions.
Time outside of coaching and training:
As the one spearheading this initiative, you will be spending time outside of coaching and training sessions working on implementing the things you learn and working through with your coach. Occasionally, TAYA Leaders will need to complete video-based courses.
Although the CEO may be the TAYA leader (if this is the case, then ignore this section and see above), most medium-sized B2B technology companies tend to have someone else head up the initiative. I strongly encourage the CEO to be part of the Quarterly Planning Sessions (at least the first three) to have a solid understanding of how the program is progressing and what success looks like. In addition, I prefer a quick 20-minute check-in twice a quarter (every 5-6 weeks). These are critical, hand-to-heart conversations about the work we do.
Must-commit-to hours for meetings with the TAYA coach:
About 4 hours per quarter
The role, responsibilities, and, therefore, the required time commitments regarding They Ask, You Answer vary greatly for the Marketing Director. Depending on the size of their marketing team, they might manage the Content Manager, Videographer, HubSpot Admin, and other marketing resources. In smaller teams, they might take on the role of the HubSpot Admin until they grow enough to dedicate an additional resource to that. At a minimum, they should participate in the Quarterly Planning Sessions and the 1:1 scorecard reviews for the team members they manage to be aware of and involved in setting the right priorities for the next 90 days.
Must-commit-to hours for meetings with the TAYA coach:
About 5-8 hours per quarter
Because They Ask, You Answer aligns sales and marketing teams, Sales Leaders will need to participate regularly in group meetings such as the Quarterly Planning Sessions and the biweekly Revenue Team Meetings. Also, there will be a self-learning portion and larger sales-training sessions, especially at the beginning and toward the end of the program.
Regular time commitments: (8.25 hours per quarter)
One-time training:
Time savings:
According to SalesGig, sales reps spend only 36% of their time selling or interacting with prospects and customers. A lot of time is wasted repeatedly answering the same old questions, following up with bad-fit leads, and chasing prospects that went dark. By implementing They Ask, You Answer, you will minimize these unproductive (and highly frustrating) tasks, giving you more time to build relationships with your ideal-fit prospects.
This role is a crucial key to the success of your They Ask, You Answer program because the Content Manager is a full-time resource dedicated to creating TAYA content. In the first six months, they only write Big 5 articles and slowly transition to adding other pieces of content, such as buyer's guides. Therefore, the times listed below specify only the time spent in meetings with the coach, trainers, or others as recommended by the TAYA program. The times below do not include Subject Matter Expert interviews, etc.
Quarterly:
Weekly:
Like the Content Manager role, the Videographer is a full-time role dedicated to creating TAYA video content. The time commitment is almost the same.
Quarterly:
Weekly:
The HubSpot Admin is the odd one out here as there isn't a set curriculum for this role. Your HubSpot trainer will work with your HubSpot Admin to help them facilitate HubSpot support needed in working through the priorities set in the Quarterly Planning Sessions. Therefore, the HubSpot training will be on a by-need basis. However, they should participate in the planning sessions and will need to review their individual scorecards every quarter.
Quarterly:
Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) are any people in your organization who can answer a buyer's question confidently — either while being interviewed by the Content Manager or recorded on camera by the Videographer. For example, for written content, the goal is to publish two to three in-depth Big 5 articles weekly, and each article requires a 20-30 minute interview and 15-30 minutes to provide feedback on the article. The overall time commitment will depend on the size of your organization and the number of available Subject Matter Experts.
In other words, in an ambitious smaller company that publishes 12 articles and 10 videos a month, SMEs might need to dedicate 2-3 hours a month to being available to the Content Manager and Videographer, while in larger organizations with more SMEs, the time commitment can dwindle to an hour a month.
Because They Ask, You Answer is a company-wide transformative initiative, everyone within your organization needs to:
While this might now seem tedious or like many hours spent in meetings and trainings, the teams I work with see immediate benefits because their organizations don't usually carve out the time to get together on a quarterly basis to discuss cross-functional priorities for the next 90 days, nor do they dedicate time for self-development and training.