Al-Ain eye centre: sales force evaluation dilemma

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-22
Author(s):  
Muhammad Muzamil Sattar
Keyword(s):  
Sales Management ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Sales Manager ◽  
Team Management ◽  
Salesperson Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Distribution Management ◽  
High Performing ◽  
Sales Force Management ◽  
Al Ain

Learning outcomes This case was written to help students develop their analytical and decision-making skills with regard to sales force evaluation. It identifies a variety of issues – in the Pakistani context particularly – within the sales force environment, including union representation, sales force team conflicts and power dynamics between superiors and subordinates. The various case lessons will enhance students’ analytical, negotiation and team-management skills. This case can be used to discuss the following issues: the complexity of objective and subjective evaluations of a sales force, sales force perceptions and cultural nuances for succeeding in Pakistan. Distribution structures and management in Pakistan. Characteristic features of the Pakistani pharmaceutical market. Students will be able to explain how salesperson performance information can be used to identify problems, determine their causes and suggest sales management actions to solve them. Students will be able to differentiate between an outcome-based and a behaviour-based perspective for evaluating and controlling salesperson performance. Students will understand how to control one’s behaviour in conflict situations by identifying common interests and achieving a “win-win” situation. Case overview/synopsis The Al-Ain case describes sales force management and sales force evaluation in a situation that involves a high-performing team operating in a hostile environment. Al-Ain eye centre (Al-Ain), located in the city of Karachi in Sindh state of Southern Pakistan, is a small-scale hospital that has diversified into the pharmaceutical business. Al-Ain’s product portfolio includes analgesics, antibiotics, ophthalmology products and cardiology products. This case focusses on team management and the relationship between a sales manager and subordinate salespeople in the context of Pakistani culture. A sales representative has received a poor performance assessment, which he perceives to be an unfair evaluation of his efforts. As a result of the situation, he subsequently joins a union and creates problems for his superiors. As they explore these management issues within a sales force, students will develop an appreciation for objective methods of sales force evaluation, as well as for the complexity of handling high-performing teams, the importance of employee perceptions and the scope of subjective biases in sales force evaluation that can emerge in practice. Complexity academic level The case is suited to undergraduate or MBA courses on sales management, organizational behaviour, distribution management, marketing/strategy and pharmaceutical industries. It addresses issues of sales force management, sales territory allocations, sales target fixation, team conflict, promotion, team bonus and distribution management in the pharmaceutical industry in Pakistan. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 8: Marketing.

Examining the use of sales force management practices

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (7) ◽  
pp. 974-986 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Reid ◽  
Richard E. Plank ◽  
Robert M. Peterson ◽  
Gregory A. Rich
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Sales Management ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Sales Manager ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Sales Managers ◽  
Market Place ◽  
Sampling Frame ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand what sales management practices (SMPs) are being used by managers in the current market place, changes over time, insights that can be gained and future research needs. Design/methodology/approach Data for this paper were collected via a cross-sectional internet-based survey using a sampling frame provided by a professional sales publication. ANOVA was used to analyze 159 sales manager respondents. Findings Empirical results indicate that several differences are evident across the 68 SMPs items gathered, especially in terms of the size of the sales force and establish some data on using technology in sales management. However, in spite of significant changes in the sales environment, many SMPs have had limited change. Research limitations/implications The limitations of this paper include a sample frame drawn from a single source and via the internet and, thus, may have excluded some possible respondents from participation and somewhat limit generalizability. Practical implications The results of this paper raise a number of important issues for sales managers to consider. First, which SMPs should they be using? Managers need to give serious thought as to which practices they choose to use. Second, why are so many of them not making more extensive use of sales force technology? Third, is it wise for sales managers to be relying on executive opinion as their most extensively used forecasting method or should they be emphasizing another approach? A fourth issue is the continued heavy emphasis on generating sales volume as opposed to profits. Originality/value The data provide a rare and updated understanding of the use of SMPs by sales managers.

Naturo products – sales and distribution management

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Rajeshwari Krishnamurthy
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Sales Management ◽  
Marketing Channel ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Financial Return ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Distribution Management ◽  
Academic Level ◽  
Product Launches

Learning outcomes The learning outcomes are as follows: understand the factors that go into the assessment of a distributor performance; understand the criteria that may be useful to distributors while choosing distributorship of a fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company; understand the various parameters that define a distributor performance; and understand the critical aspects that sales force consider while staying with an organization on the long term. Case overview/synopsis This case is about how a FMCG Company in India – Patanjali Products is handling its sales and distribution management strategies. The FMCG segment in India is very competitive and is dominated by big multi- national players such as Unilever and Procter & Gamble as well as other Indian players such as Marico, Dabur, Cavinkare and Himalaya herbal. This industry is characterized by frequent product launches and the trade/ distributors play a key role in providing reach and visibility to the end users. Patanjali Products is a relative new entrant but has rapidly found success in this category. Through a product range that is positioned on “naturalness”, the company has achieved a turnover of US$735m in a span of six years. The case is written from the perspective of Anil Gupta, one of the distributors of the company. He is currently faced with the challenge of evaluating whether he should continue with the distributorship or go back to his old company Himalaya herbal. With this background, the case intends to elaborate on the specific aspects of distributor management and sales management. Some key questions discussed in the case are as follows: What are the aspects that determine the performance of a distributor? What are the parameters that a distributor needs to take into account while selecting a company? How does one calculate the financial return on investment for a FMCG distributor business? What are the elements that contribute to sales force loyalty? Complexity academic level Undergraduate and Post Graduate students of management Sales workshops Corporate training on sales management Particularly it can be taught under the course “Sales and Distribution Management”. The other courses where it can be a part of are: Retail Management, FMCG Sales and Marketing, Channel Management Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code Marketing

scholarly journals The alternative “Marketing Revolution”

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 308-334 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Tadajewski
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Market Research ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Marketing Management ◽  
Close Reading ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sales Force Management ◽  
Sales And Marketing

Purpose This paper reviews the contributions of Harry Tosdal, a pioneer of sales and marketing management. It serves to puncture a variety of marketing myths and illuminate a completely neglected concept of the consumer. Design/methodology/approach This account is based on a close reading of Tosdal’s publications. Findings Tosdal articulated a highly nuanced interpretation of marketing management, market research and sales force management. Each of these elements was keyed into fostering goodwill between firm and customer. Perhaps most importantly, he provides a counterpoint to the idea that the consumer is sovereign in the marketplace. Instead, he makes a case that the ontology of the market is riven by compromise. Originality/value This paper highlights the concept of the compromising consumer. Arguably, this is a much more empirically realistic conception of the agency we possess in the marketplace than the idea that we move markets in ways absolutely consistent with our desires.

Sales force commissions in relationship marketing

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Said Echchakoui
Keyword(s):  
Relationship Marketing ◽  
Portfolio Management ◽  
Retention Rate ◽  
Real Data ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Sales Manager ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Symmetric Information ◽  
Customer Lifetime ◽  
Hypothetical Data

Purpose This paper aims to examine the roles of both aggregate and specific commission rates to control the sales force in relationship marketing with a customer portfolio. Design/methodology/approach Drawn on the concept of customer lifetime value and agency theory, the author calculated both specific and aggregate sales force commission rates in a relationship marketing perspective. Contrary to the prior researchers, the author assumes that, at any period, both the gross margins and retention rate of each customer are a stochastic function of the salesperson’s effort. Findings The results indicated that when there is symmetric information between a sales manager and salesperson, both aggregate and specific commissions can be used to monitor the sales force. Under asymmetric information, however, each type of commission rate can only be used under certain conditions. In addition, conditions in which the aggregate commission is equivalent to the specific commission for each customer were derived. Research limitations/implications Hypothetical data were used to explain the model. It would be more appropriate to use real data to see its managerial relevance. Originality/value In the author’s knowledge, this study is the first that specifically links scholastic customer’s retention and salesperson commission rate to monitor salesperson effort in relationship marketing. It is also the first that shows in which conditions aggregate and specific commission rates are equal for a salesperson’s customer portfolio management.

The Comprehensive Effects of Sales Force Management: A Dynamic Structural Analysis of Selection, Compensation, and Training

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Doug J. Chung ◽  
Byungyeon Kim ◽  
Byoung G. Park
Keyword(s):  
Sales Management ◽  
Employee Selection ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Sales Training ◽  
High Performing ◽  
Present Bias ◽  
Variable Pay ◽  
Exclusion Restrictions ◽  
Dynamic Structural Analysis ◽  
And Training

This study provides a comprehensive model of an agent’s behavior in response to multiple sales management instruments, including compensation, recruiting/termination, and training. The model takes into account many of the key elements that constitute a realistic sales force setting: allocation of effort, forward-looking behavior, present bias, training effectiveness, and employee selection and attrition. By understanding how these elements jointly affect agents’ behavior, the study provides guidance on the optimal design of sales management policies. A field validation, by comparing counterfactual and actual outcomes under a new policy, attests to the accuracy of the model. The results demonstrate a tradeoff between adjusting fixed and variable pay; how sales training serves as an alternative to compensation; a potential drawback of hiring high-performing, experienced salespeople; and how utilizing a leave package leads to sales force restructuring. In addition, the study offers a key methodological contribution by providing formal identification conditions for hyperbolic time preference. The key to identification is that under a multiperiod nonlinear incentive system, an agent’s proximity to a goal affects only future payoffs in nonpecuniary benefit periods, providing exclusion restrictions on the current payoff. This paper was accepted by Matthew Shum, marketing.

Empathy, nonverbal immediacy, and salesperson performance: the mediating role of adaptive selling behavior

2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (5) ◽  
pp. 654-667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yam B. Limbu ◽  
C. Jayachandran ◽  
Barry J. Babin ◽  
Robin T. Peterson
Keyword(s):  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Nonverbal Immediacy ◽  
Salesperson Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Adaptive Selling ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Adaptive Selling Behavior ◽  
Outcome Performance

Purpose Previous studies that examined the role of empathy and nonverbal immediacy on business-to-business (B2B) salesperson performance is limited in scope and yielded inconclusive evidence. Grounded in Plank and Greene’s (1996) framework of salesperson effectiveness, this paper aims to empirically investigate the mediating role of adaptive selling behavior through which empathy and nonverbal immediacy influence sales force performance and the form of empathy (cognitive or affective) that has the most beneficial role in improving relationship (versus outcome) salesperson performance. Design/methodology/approach Using cross-sectional data that were collected from 422 pharmaceutical sales representatives, this study used structural equation modeling to test the hypothesized relationships. Findings Adaptive selling behavior mediates the effect of perspective taking empathy and empathic concern on relationship performance. However, the impact of empathy on outcome performance is not significant through adaptive selling behavior, but perspective taking empathy has a direct influence on outcome performance. Contrary to expectations, nonverbal immediacy is not mediated by adaptive selling behavior but has a direct and positive impact on relationship performance. Research limitations/implications The results of this study have several implications for recruitment, training and assessment of salespeople in a B2B context. Based on the empirical evidence, it is highlighted that firms may use different forms of empathy and nonverbal cues to promote adaptive selling behavior that impact sales force performance (i.e. outcome or relationship). Originality/value To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study which simultaneously examines the mediating role of adaptive selling behavior in the relationship between three antecedent variables that relate to sales force empathy and nonverbal communication (i.e. perspective taking empathy, empathic concern and nonverbal immediacy) and two aspects of B2B sales performance (relationship and outcome).

Manager directives for salesperson ambidextrous selling and resulting job satisfaction: a regulatory focus perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas E. DeCarlo ◽  
Thomas Powers ◽  
Ashish Sharma
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Regulatory Focus ◽  
Fortune 500 ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Sales Manager ◽  
Customer Engagement ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Force Model ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type

Purpose To sustain firm profitability, it is critical for sales managers to direct business-to-business (B2B) salespeople to generate revenues by simultaneously acquiring new customers and selling to current customers. However, emerging research indicates territory-based B2B salespeople have a preferred customer engagement orientation that reflects a tendency for engaging in selling activities to new (i.e. hunters) and/or existing (i.e. farmers) customers, suggesting that managerial ambidexterity directives could have deleterious effects on salespeople. This paper aims to address this possibility by investigating the moderating effects of salesperson regulatory focus on the relationship between managerial directives for salesperson ambidexterity and salesperson job satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach The study uses a mixed-method approach by using a field study of 106 matched sales manager–salesperson dyads from a large Fortune 500 B2B industrial distributor sales force and an experiment involving 152 B2B salespeople from a cross-section of industries. Findings The results indicate that sales manager ambidexterity requests reduce salesperson job satisfaction. However, the findings also demonstrate that salesperson regulatory focus moderates these negative effects such that the negative effect of manager ambidexterity requests on job satisfaction is reduced for salespeople with high vs low levels of regulatory focus ambidexterity balance. The results from the cross-sectional experimental study illustrate the cognitive mechanism that helps explain why this occurs. Research limitations/implications The Fortune 500 firm used in Study 1 uses a territory-based generalist sales force model where salespeople are not incentivized to prioritize hunting over farming (and vice versa). As a result, the findings may not generalize to firms with hunting/farming incentive systems or to those that operate in particular industries requiring a focus on either hunting or farming. Practical implications The findings show why managers attempting to direct territory-based salespeople to increase their ambidexterity behaviors may undermine the job satisfaction of certain salespeople by triggering a decrease in motivation while the same directives have the opposite effect for other salespeople. The findings also demonstrate salesperson reactions to ambidexterity requests, which provide additional insights for effective salespeople hiring, training and management. Originality/value The findings have implications for better understanding the effectiveness of sales management leadership directives. The study also offers a promising direction for future research to investigate salesperson receptivity to managerial controls.

Professional sales coaching: an integrative review and research agenda

2015 ◽  
Vol 49 (7/8) ◽  
pp. 1087-1113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vishag Badrinarayanan ◽  
Andrea Dixon ◽  
Vicki L West ◽  
Gail M Zank
Keyword(s):  
Research Agenda ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Integrative Review ◽  
Sales Manager ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Coaching Process ◽  
Professional Sales

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an integrative review of coaching research from different contexts (e.g. athletics, executive coaching, project management and sales), delineate professional sales coaching from other developmental activities and develop a research agenda for stimulating research on professional sales coaching. Professional sales coaching is considered an important sales force developmental program by both sales practitioners and researchers. Yet, research on sales coaching remains fragmented in the extant literature. Design/methodology/approach – An extensive literature review of extant research and theoretical perspectives on coaching as well as insights gathered from exploratory, in-depth interviews of ten sales managers were used to develop the research agenda. Findings – The review and research agenda identify a number of sales coaching-related topics that warrant further research. Specifically, the research agenda addresses salesperson characteristics, sales manager and coach characteristics, selling organization characteristics, sales coaching approaches, nature and effectiveness of the sales coaching process and, finally, outcomes of sales coaching. For each topic, extant research, relevant insights from exploratory interviews and directions for future research are discussed. Originality/value – This paper is the first integrative review of coaching-related research in the sales literature. It offers an updated conceptualization of sales coaching and identifies opportunities for future research.

Salesperson performance: role of perceived overqualification and organization type

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Basant Purohit
Keyword(s):  
Control System ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Job Fit ◽  
Salesperson Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sales Personnel ◽  
Perceived Overqualification ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of perceived overqualification (POQ) on salesperson performance. Design/methodology/approach In total, 120 usable samples were collected from surveying sales representatives and their sales supervisors from 48 different Indian pharmaceutical firms. Findings The results indicated that sales personnel with POQ perform well: in prospector and analyzer type organizations as compared to in defender and reactor type organizations, and when controlled by the outcome-based control system than when controlled by the behavior-based control system. Practical implications This study suggests that “person-job” fit criteria used in personnel selection should also consider environmental variables (organization type and control mechanisms) for better job outcomes. The results of the study would enable an organization to assess whether its reward systems and levels are getting the desired impact from sales personnel with different levels of POQ in terms of salesperson performance. Originality/value Using “person-job” fit theory, this study examined the role of organization type and sales force control system as moderators of “POQ – Salesperson Performance” relationships and explains how organizations can benefit from enhancing sales performance of salespersons with POQ.

San Antonio: assessing the key account management system

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Javier Jorge O. Silva ◽  
Fernando Zerboni ◽  
Maricruz Prado ◽  
Natalia Moscardi
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Management System ◽  
San Antonio ◽  
Sales Management ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Key Account Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Account Management ◽  
Latin American Region ◽  
Key Account

Subject area This case illustrates the differences between customers and the occasions when conditions change and buyer-seller relationships fail. The key issue is to find ways to anticipate this problem with other clients. Study level/applicability It may be used in second-year courses of MBA marketing programs as well as in specific executive education programs dealing with key account management (KAM) systems, business strategy, industrial marketing and/or sales management courses. This case can also be used at undergraduate programs and courses dealing with sales, sales management, international business, and organizational behavior. Case overview In 2003, after Carlos Etcheverry joined San Antonio (SA) as Latin American Region Vice President, the company implanted a KAM System. SA's relationships with its two key clients, Vintage and Chevron, seemed to progress nicely until mid 2004, when Chevron's newly hired Purchasing Manager decided to change the company's commercial structure, rendering its purchasing process more bureaucratic and extremely competitive. In March 2005, Etcheverry was to meet Chevron's purchasing manager, since Chevron had decided to reassign a service contract through a new invitation to bid, leaving San Antonio out. The case puts forth the questions faced by Etcheverry at the time of the meeting: How had San Antonio come to jeopardize a key account? Would SA's organization need a change? Was this the only solution available? What other factors should be considered? Expected learning outcomes This case may help students to: understand the complexity of key account management (KAM) system implementation, sales force concepts and business-to-business relationships; and analyze the difficulties faced by companies upon implementing a change in their sales strategies and the effects of this change on the sales force, corporate culture and the organization as a whole management system. Supplementary materials Teaching notes and a Technical note are available; also access to audio visual support with an interview to Carlos Etcheverry.

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