Slack Channel: #enterprise-sales-apac

Natalie: Good morning team! Quick question regarding the inbound lead from Apex Logistics in Seattle. Who actually owns this account assignment according to our latest territory carve-out?
Peter: Morning Natalie. That's definitely on my list. I spoke with their procurement head last Thursday during the Denver trade show, so it belongs to the West Coast territory.
Sean: Hang on a second, Peter. You're always claiming leads that cross into the Central region! Apex Logistics is based right near my accounts in Austin, and I've been emailing their VP since early January.
Natalie: Let's not start another turf war over this, guys. We have clear decision rights set by the sales director last quarter.
Peter: Decision rights or not, Sean keeps on undercutting my pricing whenever we pitch enterprise software to logistics firms. It's driving me crazy.
Sean: I don't undercut anyone, Peter! You're always holding a grudge just because I closed three big accounts last month while you were stuck in endless internal meetings.
Natalie: Stop arguing in the general channel, both of you. This is pure passive aggression and it's creating terrible team friction.
Peter: Well, Sean would rather bottle things up than admit he's stepping on my toes. He's such a high-maintenance rep lately.
Sean: Look who's talking! You're acting like a total prima donna because you missed your growth goal for Q1.
Natalie: If you two don't stop clashing right now, I'm going to escalate this to HR and we'll have a mandatory conflict talk tomorrow morning.
Sean: Fine. Whatever. Let's just ask the client directly who he wants to work with.
Peter: Agreed. Let's loop him into this thread and clear the air once and for all.
Natalie: I've just forwarded our email thread to Mr. Henderson at Apex Logistics. Let's see what he says.
Sean: He'll definitely pick my team. My proposal was way more comprehensive than Peter's.
Peter: Keep dreaming, Sean. My discount structure was unbeatable.
Natalie: Wait... everyone quiet a second. Mr. Henderson just replied to my email.
Sean: What does he say? Did he pick Austin or Seattle?
Natalie: Neither. He says: 'Dear team, thank you for your proposals, but we actually signed a global contract with your main competitor, Oracle Dynamics, yesterday afternoon. Stop emailing us.'
Peter: ...
Sean: ...
Natalie: Well, problem solved, I suppose. Back to work, everyone.

Read again and choose the right answer

Why did Peter claim the Apex Logistics lead?

• Because he spoke to their procurement head at a trade show in Denver
• Because his territory carve-out explicitly covers Austin
• Because Sean asked him to take over the account

What accusation does Sean make against Peter?

• That Peter steals leads from international clients
• That Peter is always holding a grudge and missed his growth goal
• That Peter never attends internal meetings

How does Natalie try to stop the argument between Peter and Sean?

• She mutes both of them from the Slack channel permanently
• She threatens to escalate to HR and hold a conflict talk
• She tells them to settle it with a physical race in Seattle

What is the twist at the end of the chat thread?

• The client already bought from a competitor yesterday afternoon
• The client decides to split the contract equally between Peter and Sean
• Natalie reveals she was testing them and the lead doesn't exist

Sources: photo by Mikhail Nilov on Pexels