Planning, Staffing, and Training Successful Salespeople

1
Chapter
16

• Planning, Staffing, and Training Successful
  Salespeople

2
16
Chapter
16-2
3
Main Topics

• The Tree of Business Life Management
• Transition from Salesperson to Sales Manager
• Technology Is Needed in the Job
• Being a First-Line Sales Manager Is a Challenging
  Job
• What Is the Salary for Management?

4
Main Topics

• Overview of the Job
• Sales Management Functions
• Sales Force Planning
• Staffing Having the Right People to Sell
• Training the Sales Force

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The Tree of Business Life Management
T

• Guided by The Golden Rule
• Recognize that the characteristics needed to be a
  sales manager are the same as those needed to be
  a salesperson
• Remember that just as there is a Golden Rule of
  sales, there is also a Golden Rule of sales
  management
• As a sales manager, treat others as you would
  like to be treated

T
T
Service
Ethical
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
Builds
T r u e
Relationships
T
C
I
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Personal Characteristics Needed for Managing
Todays Salespeople
Joy in work
Care for people
Harmony in relationships
Self-control in emotions
Patience with people
Sales Leader
Fairness in relationships
Kindness to people
Morality in decisions
Faithfulness to word
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Transition From Salesperson to Sales Manager

• What changes occur?
• Perspectives change
• Goals change
• Responsibilities change
• Satisfaction changes
• Job skill requirements change
• Relationships change

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Transition From Salesperson to Sales Manager,
cont

• The experience of being promoted
• Seven phases
• Immobilization
• Minimizing or denial of change
• Depression
• Acceptance of reality
• Testing
• Searching for meanings
• Internalization

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Transition From Salesperson to Sales Manager,
cont

• Problems experienced by new managers
• Lack of preparation for the job
• Expected to function effectively immediately
• Lack of an immediate peer group
• The key to making a successful transition
• Learning attitude
• Realistic expectations
• Learning new job responsibilities
• Need to make the initial adjustments

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Technology Is Needed in the Job

• You need technology to be an effective manager in
  the 21st century
• The computer is a powerful leadership tool

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Being a First-Line Manager Is a Challenging Job

• The district sales manager is the link between
  the salespeople and the managers immediate boss
• A manager must be effective in managing
  salespeople and influencing the boss

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Exhibit 16-2 The District Sales Manager Links
Salespeople to the Company
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What Is the Salary for Management?

• Salary is usually related to
• Annual sales volume of units managed
• Number of salespeople supervised
• Length of experience in sales
• Annual sales volume of the firm
• Salary is just one part of compensation
• The higher the sales position, the greater the
  benefits offered

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Overview of the Job

• A sales managers main goal is to achieve the
  levels of sales, volume, profits, and sales
  growth desired by higher levels of management
• The factor underlying success in achieving the
  goal is the ability to influence the behavior of
  all parties involved

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Sales Management Functions

• Planning
• Staffing
• Training
• Directing
• Evaluating

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Exhibit 16-3 The Basic Sales Management Functions
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Sales Force Planning

• Sales forecasting uses of sales forecasts
• The sales managers budget methods of
  developing sales force budgets
• Organizing the sales force
• Organizational design
• Organizational structure

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Exhibit 16-5 Operating Costs for the Sales Force
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Exhibit 16-6 Multiple Factors Determine the
Design of the Sales Force
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Exhibit 16-7 Activities Involved in Managing
the Human Resources of a Sales Force
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Staffing Having the Right People to Sell

• Staffing
• First Element People Planning
• Sales force size
• Type of people
• Job analysis
• Job descriptions
• Job specifications

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Staffing Having the Right People to Sell, cont

• Job specifications for successful salespeople
• Education
• Personality
• Experience
• Physical attributes

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Exhibit 16-8 Selected Characteristics of
Successful Salespeople?Which are Most Important?
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Staffing Having the Right People to Sell, cont

• Second Element Employment planning
• Legal framework for employment
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
• Diversity of the sales force
• Diversity of buyers
• The multicultural sales organization

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Exhibit 16-9 The Sales Force is Becoming Diverse
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Staffing Having the Right People to Sell, cont

• Recruitment finding the right people
• Selection choose the best available!
• Application
• Initial interview
• In-depth interviews
• Testing
• Reference checks
• Physical examination

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Exhibit 16-10 Major Steps in Sales Personnel
Selection Process
Not all companiestake every step
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Staffing Having the Right People to Sell, cont

• A sales managers view of the recruit
• Is sales the right job for the applicant?
• What recruiters look for
• The application letter
• The resume
• The interview
• Applicant create a performance portfolio

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Staffing Having the Right People to Sell, cont

• Interview follow-up
• The second interview
• Job offers
• No job offer

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Training the Sales Force

• Sales training
• Purposes of training
• Training methods
• Discussion
• Role playing
• On-the-job training
• Where does training take place?
• Centralized training programs
• Decentralized training

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Training the Sales Force, cont

• When does training occur?
• Who is involved in training?
• Corporate staff trainers
• Sales force personnel
• Outside training specialists
• Combination of training sources

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Exhibit 16-13 Basic Sources of Sales Training
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Summary of Major Selling Issues

• A salesperson who is promoted to sales manager
  becomes involved in sales planning, staffing,
  training, directing, and evaluating sales force
  activities
• Today, firms structure their organizations to
  best serve their customers
• Sales managers are frequently involved in
  forecasting their firms sales

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Summary of Major Selling Issues, cont

• The contemporary sales manager is knowledgeable
  in personnel practices involving the recruiting
  and hiring of salespeople
• Government laws need to be considered
• Once hiring is done, the sales manager becomes
  involved in training salespeople
• The sales manager is a salesperson first but is
  also something of a jack-of-all trades