Neil Rackham

Neil Rackham is an internationally renowned author, lecturer, and business management consultant. He is best known for his work in the field of sales and marketing, including his two best-selling works, Spin Selling and Major Account Sales Strategy.

Rackham was born in 1938 in the United Kingdom. He received a degree in engineering science from the University of Oxford in 1961 and an MBA from the Harvard Business School in 1967. After finishing his formal education, Rackham entered the business world, first as a consultant, then as a vice-president of international sales at Honeywell.

Rackham began to focus more on his consulting work after leaving Honeywell in 1980 and began to develop sales and marketing strategies that would become the foundation of his later work. He soon became one of the best-known authors in sales and marketing. His most notable book, Spin Selling, was first published in 1988 and is now considered a classic in the sales literature. The book introduced the concept of "spin selling," a method of sales negotiation that drives salespeople to focus on the customer's needs, not just the company's.

Rackham’s other best-seller, Major Account Sales Strategy, first appeared in 1992 and is aimed at sales professionals responsible for large, enterprise deals. Through this book, Rackham was able to apply his theories of spin selling to complex, multi-level sales situations. His framework for major account sales strategy consists of four stages—prospecting, qualifying, proposing and renegotiating—with each step providing specific advice on how to identify ideal customers, build relationships, understand customer needs, and shape strategies around customer goals.

In addition to his two best-sellers, Rackham has published many other books and articles, including Improving Sales Effectiveness, The Solution Selling Fieldbook, and The Choice War. Rackham has also established his own consulting firm, whose mission is to enable sales organizations to implement sales and marketing strategies that result in improved performance.

Rackham's long career as an author and consultant has earned him a reputation as one of the world's leading experts on sales and marketing. His books and articles have been instrumental in shaping the way companies approach sales, and his consulting firm has been at the forefront of business management consulting. Neil Rackham's work has helped countless organizations to create successful and sustainable sales plans, and he is still one of the most sought-after voices in the industry.