Al Simon, President of Simon Inc., an authorized licensee of Sandler Training, reminds us that the focus in sales should always be on the prospect and not the salesperson. Once you create a genuine connection with the prospect, getting the sale comes easily.

Al Simon is President of Simon Inc., a sales performance training and coaching firm with training facilities in Norcross and Marietta, and is an authorized licensee of Sandler Training. Mr. Simon specializes in training and coaching business professionals to be effective and consistent with their selling strategies and tactics. He is the author of the “Simon Says” weekly sales tip and numerous articles for various publications, websites and blogs.

A 1977 graduate of Georgia Tech, Mr. Simon has 34 years of direct sales experience using many different sales strategies and approaches. Consistently the top performer in sales volume in his corporate career before starting Simon Inc., he has mastered the art of selling in both simple and complex sales cycles. Mr. Simon has also successfully managed salespeople in highly competitive, high-risk situations.

Sandler Training is the world leader in sales performance training and coaching, sales management training and coaching, and customer service training, with over 280 locations in 29 countries. Sandler-trained professionals have developed their skills and acumen in the world of person-to-person deal-making. They are productive and effective is keeping control of the sales deal while keeping and growing the trust level with their prospects and clients.

Join Al Simon & the Inside the Winner’s Circle team as they discuss Sandler Training, Simon Inc. and the unconventional yet effective concepts and approaches  they bring to sales.

Dr. Marsha Firestone, Founder and President of the Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO), encourages us to be patient in starting a business. Take it one day at a time and keep going amidst tough times. Believe that you are strong enough to make the venture a success.

Dr. Marsha Firestone is a recognized expert in entrepreneurship and the Founder and President of the Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO), which began in 1997. WPO is a peer advisory organization for women who own multimillion dollar businesses and has 95 Chapters on four continents. She is also the Founder and President of the Women Presidents’ Educational Organization, dedicated to increasing access to business opportunities for women’s business enterprises (WBEs).

Dr. Firestone is also the author of The Busy Woman’s Guide to Successful Self-Employment and has published research in business and educational journals on adult learning theory, nonverbal communication, and managerial competency.  She also serves the worldwide women’s business community as a frequent guest speaker.

Dr. Firestone shares her professional knowledge by serving on numerous boards and advisory councils including: the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), Enterprising Women Advisory Board, Forbes Executive Women’s Board, Newcomb College Institute Director’s Advisory Council, the International Women’s Forum, and The Key Bank Women’s Advisory Council.  She also serves as a special advisor to the Chair of the National Women’s Business Council Board. Dr. Firestone earned a Master’s degree in Communication from Teacher’s College of New York and a Ph.D. in Communication from Columbia University, where Margaret Mead sat on her dissertation committee.

In this episode, Dr. Firestone joins Inside the Winner’s Circle to tell us more about the Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO), from its early conception to what it is now, the premier global peer advisory organization connecting top women entrepreneurs who own multi-million dollar companies. She also discusses the model on which the organization was based upon as well as the dynamics within the group itself.

What’s your “X” factor?

Women owned businesses are a vibrant, rapidly growing area of the economy. Gorby Peters & Associates, LLC is an Atlanta-based law firm with a national practice that focuses on serving family and women-owned businesses. The law firm is owned and managed by women.  Founder, Mary Donne Peters will discuss the legal challenges unique to women and family owned businesses.

Mary Donne holds Bachelors of Arts Degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Juris Doctorate Degree, cum laude,from the University of South Carolina. She is an author of a popular legal treatise published by the Thomson-West Company. She also chairs legal education programs for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education—an affiliate of the University of Georgia.  Mary Donne is frequently called upon by state and national legal, judicial and business groups to speak on legal topics affecting business owners. Before entering the private practice of law more than twenty years ago, she was selected as an Honors Attorney for the U.S. Justice Department in Washington, DC, and served as a law clerk to the Honorable Emory Sneeden a federal appeals court judge who was chief counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.

Mary Donne Peters is a member of the Women President’s Organization, a business organization for successful, second-tier companies.

Monique A. Honaman, founder & CEO of the ISHR Group, encourages us to always play to our strengths and not focus too much on our weaknesses. Understand who you truly are and leverage that.

Monique A. Honaman is the founding partner of ISHR Group. Her expertise includes global executive assessment, leadership development, organization design, and performance management.

She was selected as a “2011 WBE Star” by the Greater Women’s Business Council. Sher serves as the Chapter Chair for the Women President’s Organization (WPO) in Atlanta. 

Listen in as she shares her wealth of experience on coaching corporate clients top talent and how you grow in your business leadership too!

Al Yougel, Executive Director of  Keep Peachtree City Beautiful talks about living in Peachtree City- a community known for commuting by golf cart. As a twenty year resident he is invested in keeping it a great place to be and shares their  environmental strategies and outlook.