Planning, Staffing, and Training Successful Salespeople Chapter 16 Planning, Staffing, and Training Successful Salespeople McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2004 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Chapter 16

Transition From Salesperson to Sales Manager What changes occur? Perspectives change Goals change Responsibilities change Satisfaction changes Job skill requirements change Relationships change

Transition From Salesperson to Sales Manager cont… Problems experienced by new managers Lack of preparation for the job The key to making a successful transition Learning attitude Realistic expectations Learning new job responsibilities Need to make the initial adjustments

Exhibit 16-2: The District Sales Manager Links Salespeople to the Company

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

Overview of the Job A sales manager’s 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

Sales Management Functions Planning Staffing Training Directing Evaluating

Sales Force Planning Sales forecasting The sales manager’s budget Uses of sales forecasts The sales manager’s budget Methods of developing sales force budgets Organizing the sales force Organizational design Organizational structure

Staffing: Having the Right People to Sell Two elements People planning - first staffing element Sales force size Type of people Job analysis Job descriptions Job specifications

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

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