Whirlpool Corporation
The shift: Increase sales productivity by forcing focus where selling actually happens
Execution challenge
Whirlpool’s Midwest sales region faced:
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Heavy “whirlwind” of reporting, internal demands, and process noise
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Salespeople busy — but not selling enough
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Region ranked last nationally in contract business
Leaders knew productivity was the issue — but lacked a structure to change behavior consistently.
Organizational lag measure (WIG / outcome)
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Increase regional sales performance (revenue / volume)
System-level decomposition (lag → lead)
Department-level lag measure
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Contract sales results by region
Lead measures
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Time spent selling
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Weekly commitments to high-value sales behaviors
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Manager–rep cadence focused on:
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What mattered most that week
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Whether it was delivered
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Leaders stopped tracking everything — and started tracking what predicted sales.
What happened along the way:
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Focus narrowed dramatically
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Sales activity shifted from “busy work” to selling
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Accountability moved from checklists to commitments
Results
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Midwest region moved from worst to first nationally
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$5.7 million in incremental revenue identified early
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Performance gains sustained over time
Ancillary benefits
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Sales managers aligned vertically
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Reps adopted execution principles personally
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Leaders reported clarity replacing chaos
Key takeaway:
Execution improved when salespeople were protected from distraction — and measured on what truly mattered.