Salesophy

To illustrate the typical challenges of today’s sales managers, we’ll introduce you to Matt G. (not his real name).

Matt G. is a newly hired District Sales Manager at Best Microchip, a medium sized semiconductor enterprise located in San Jose, California. Reporting to Sarah W., the company’s National Sales Director, Matt has been assigned to a sales team that includes Anton, Mary, Joe, and Bob. Two months into his new job and he has come up with the following list of to-dos.

• Review account alignment for Mary and Bob. It seems that Mary can take on a few more accounts, while Bob can’t service his large territory well.
• The most important account in Anton’s territory is at risk. Schedule a meeting with the client’s procurement team to work on a long term partnership program. Also, call Anton and ask him to develop a detailed plan for the account.
• Screen last month’s CVs and save those that are most interesting for our sales positions. We might need them if one of our non-performing territories gets vacant.
• Keep an eye on everyone’s expense reports going forward. The Business Unit Director has set operating cost containment goals that we have to comply with.
• I’m not sure that the current Sales Force incentive compensation plan is pushing everyone in the right direction. Schedule a meeting with the Sales Operations Manager to dig into it and brainstorm possible alternatives.
• Meet and coach Joe as he doesn’t seem to focus on the right field activities. His last two quarters’ sales performance wasn’t good, either, and there’s an obvious correlation between the two facts.
• Sarah is going to call a meeting next month to review the district’s performance. She also wants a forecast of next year’s sales.
• Look at the new training proposal from the L&D Department. Is the program effective and supportive of our sales strategy?
• Decide on the agenda and location for the next Quarterly Sales Meeting.

We’re pretty sure you’re faced with tasks and engagements similar to Matt’s. Stay tuned and learn how they can be effectively managed.