With service on four rep councils under his belt, John Beaver is well qualified to offer his opinions on whether those bodies serve the needs of manufacturers and their agents — not to mention their mutual customers.

Beaver, president, GSA Optimum (www.gsatech.com), Oakdale, New York, works with a group of industries including aerospace, military, power supply, security, telecommunications and others. In that capacity he has been asked to serve — and serve he has — on four rep councils, including two that he presently chairs.

From the outset, he maintains, “The number-one benefit of the rep councils for me and the agency is the ability to network with fellow agents and with our mutual principals.” He continues that even if the networking opportunities are minimal, that’s still enough to make participation worthwhile

Two Types of Councils

In general terms Beaver offers that there are probably two categories of rep councils. One is where the principal and agent recognize and achieve the true benefits of the effort. The second might very well be a council where the benefits aren’t so recognizable and the principal spends a good deal of time talking about themselves without seeking much input from the agent members.

Concentrating on the first category, where both sides realize the benefits, he says that “From my experience these councils have been put together very carefully by a company’s national sales manager. In creating the councils, the successful ones aren’t made up of just their biggest and best rep firms; rather, they’re a collection from the rep network that offer some diversity. And the membership representation on the council isn’t always just the rep firm owners, it’s others in the agency. For instance, you might have ownership of a larger and smaller firm, complemented by someone from a one-man firm and then the typical ‘worker bee’ who is not an owner from another firm. On one of the councils I serve, there are only two agency owners. Everyone else fills a different position.”

When there’s such a diverse collection of agent members, Beaver maintains, “a real dynamic is created and you get past titles in a hurry and start getting things done.”

Typically, he says, such a council will get together on an introductory conference call prior to the first face-to-face meeting. “Since no one really knows the pecking order, there may be a little shyness at the beginning. It’s important to get to that first face-to-face meeting because that’s where you start building trust in each other and relationships are established.”

Once a rep council is put together and operational, Beaver offers some suggestions to both independent representatives and principals on how to optimize council operations.

For principals:

Agendas — “Always work with an agenda. In fact, principals and agents should come up with separate agendas and merge them. This is easily done via e-mail.”

Council membership — “Be careful to select from a broad spectrum of rep members. You don’t want just the biggest and best.” In addition, Beaver cautions that “If an individual is argumentative, he’s not the right person to serve on the council. You don’t want meetings that dissolve into personal disputes. You never want a member of the council to discuss specific problems he’s having with a principal. You should seek a membership where the rep members realize they are there for the entire rep network.”

Meeting locations — “Ideally, in my opinion, I’d suggest alternating council meetings between the manufacturer’s headquarters’ location and another location that’s easy to travel to (e.g., Chicago).”

Meetings — “Meetings should be well-organized and planned well ahead of time. Encourage rep members to meet on their own and always allow the council plenty of time to meet on its own prior to the formal meeting. My preference is to begin a meeting at breakfast for an hour or so.”

In addition, “Manufacturers should recognize that the rep council meeting is not a sales meeting. As a result, the manufacturer should be careful not to dictate all that goes on during the proceedings.”

Expenses — “Typically airfare, room, board and entertainment for rep council meetings are on the manufacturer.”

For representatives:

Communication — “Prior to a rep council meeting, members of the council should communicate with and solicit issues from members of the rep network. It’s important to divide up work among council members and have each member be charged with communicating with specific reps. Following the meeting, the same type of communication should be completed with all members of the rep network being informed about what went on.”

Beaver adds that in terms of communicating with other agents in the rep network, “We’ve had the council members personally meet with other agency owners. That lets them see who we are and learn what we do. In addition, I would also suggest that the rep council chairman address some part of the manufacturer’s sales meetings.”

Meetings — “A truly effective rep council is one that meets without the principal even saying you should meet.”

He continues that during the course of the meeting “All rep council members should remain respectful of the principal. The meeting is not the time or place to take up personal issues. Stick to the agenda. Also, don’t go after any of the principal’s sacred cows. Stay clear of personal issues.

“If you know of anyone on the council who has a tendency to be argumentative or take up personal issues, coach them ahead of time to avoid that practice.”

Beaver emphasizes that during the meeting and afterward, it’s important that whomever chairs the rep council “gives credit to anyone who has come up with an idea. It’s important that those who have contributed are recognized.”

Beaver stresses that with some council meetings, there’s a tendency to include golf or some other activities. “Personally, I’m a ‘worker bee.’ I like to get in for the meeting, get it done and then get out of Dodge.”

Council Benefits

As he surveyed his present and past experience with serving on rep councils, Beaver clearly sees their benefit: “I’ve been able to get some changes made with commission structure and contracts. But more important, I’ve been able to get new lines and learn how to run my own agency better. I’ve also learned a great deal about the companies I represent and how they’re run. In addition, the contacts I’ve made have resulted in lasting friendships and allowed me to bond with other reps.”

MANA welcomes your comments on this article. Write to us at [email protected].