Term Paper on "Sales Management Imaginative Staffing"

Term Paper 6 pages (2152 words) Sources: 0

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Sales Management

Imaginative Staffing

The case study describes the situation for Imaginative Staffing Inc., a temporary services firm. The CEO of the firm, Angie Roberts, hears about team selling and wonders if this is something the company should be using. Roberts's interest in team selling is based on her observation that it takes the company a long time to close a sale. The case notes that it takes an average of six months to close a sale. The case also notes that one sales rep does the selling, with the sales director involved if it is needed. Roberts describes the problem in closing a sale and notes that "It seems to take too much time to gain the confidence of prospective accounts to the extent that they feel comfortable with us." Roberts also describes how the company is relatively new to the market and that this contributes to confidence issues. The case concludes with the sales director, Susan Borland, considering using a team selling system.

Considering the details of the case, it is suggests that Imaginative Staffing should use a team selling approach. There are several reasons for this decision. The first is that it is apparent that there is an issue with the current sales approach. The case notes that it takes an average of six months to close a sale. This is a significant amount of time and does not seem like an effective use of resources. The case also notes that both large and small corporations make extensive use of temporary help. This suggests that there is a large market of potential clients for Imaginative Staffing. The fact that it takes six months to close a deal suggests that the organization is not taking advantage of the market
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potential. For example, if a sales rep is taking six months to close a deal, consider how many deals could be closed if it only took a week. The length of time it takes to close a deal also suggests that potential clients have significant concerns with using Imaginative Staffing, Inc. This makes it likely that for every sale that is closed, there are many more that are not closed. This means that sales reps are wasting their time on clients without getting any results. This is not an effective use of resources. A team selling approach would solve this problem because it would allow the organization to complete their entire sales pitch in a short time. If the deal does not close, the team can then move on to other potential clients. This approach provides a quick answer and prevents sales people from wasting time. Another reason for using the team selling approach relates to the detail given that the sales reps work with clients individually, only asking for assistance from the sales director if it is needed. The length of time it takes to win a client shows that the sales reps are not closing sales effectively. This inability to perform makes it likely that the sales reps are not asking for help when they need it. In these kinds of situations, most people will be wary of admitting their problems out of fear that it will reveal that they are not doing a good job. This means that it is likely that sales reps are choosing to fail rather than admit they cannot close a sale and ask for the help the need. The end result is that clients are lost. This is clearly not in the best interests of the organization and is a major issue. The team selling approach would solve this problem because it would mean that sales reps have the support they need. The issue with the sales rep also indicates that there is a lack of control over the sales force. The case describes how the CEO has wondered why closing is so difficult. At the same time, the case shows that the CEO does not have any understanding of why. The case also shows that the CEO is concerned that the sales rate may be too low, but is not actually sure what it should be. This illustrates that the sales reps are not operating based on defined goals, with sales expectations not even known. At the same time, the CEO does not know why closing takes so long. This indicates a general lack of control, where a real problem cannot even be identified since there are no set standards, and where the reasons behind the problem are not known. The team selling approach would solve this problem because a senior salesperson would be present at the meeting and could assess how the sales reps are performing. This also means that the team selling approach is an opportunity for measuring performance, noting problems, and taking action to help sales reps improve. The final reason a team selling approach is needed relates to the problem that Imaginative Staffing has in gaining the confidence of potential clients and having credibility. A single sales rep as the contact person does not assist in this process. This is especially true considering that decisions related to staffing are normally made by senior employees. It would not help the credibility of Imaginative Staffing to have a junior sales rep speaking to a human resource manager or a general manager. Instead, there needs to be a more senior staff member to speak to potential clients of a higher level. It is also likely that the sales rep will come from a sales background and will not have an understanding of the needs of the people they are pitching to. A team selling approach could solve this problem by having an individual with a business approach that puts them on the same level as the person being pitched to. Finally, a team selling approach creates a general perception of credibility, which would help Imaginative Staffing to gain the confidence of clients.

Now that it has been decided to use a team selling approach, the members of the team must be decided. It is suggested that the team consist of the sales director, a sales rep, and an account manager. The sales director would take the role of the senior staff member and focus on the needs of the client. Their level within the organization would put them in a similar position to the people they are pitching to, which would help to enhance credibility. The sales director would also provide information on the benefits to the client. The sales director would be able to do this effectively because they would share a similar business perspective to the client. This could include providing charts or documents illustrating the financial benefits and the value of using the service. The sales rep would assist in the process by focusing on the details of the service. They would be responsible for providing information, rather than influencing. This is important because clients that are senior managers would be likely to consider themselves being talked down to if a junior person tries to influence them. At the same time, the sales reps takes highlights the seniority of the sales director. This allows the sales director to retain a high level of credibility. This also means that the client would be aware that a senior staff manager is taking the time to meet with them, which would help ensure they feel that they are important to Imaginative Staffing. This would assist in creating confidence. Finally, the account manager is needed because they will be the contact person for the client once the sale is closed. This would help build confidence because it means that the client knows the individual they will be dealing with. The account manager's role is largely a personal one where they will develop an effective business relationship with the client. This will help ensure that the client feels like they will be looked after, which assists in gaining their confidence in the service.

This consideration of who would be needed in the sales team highlights the different skills needed in a sales force. Firstly, there is a need for a senior individual with a business background. This person does not need to have a sales background. Instead, it would be beneficial if they had a general business management background or a human resources background. The main requirement is that they understand the needs of the client from a business perspective. A sales rep is also needed, whose background is in sales. This individual needs to have the ability to sell the service by describing its features. This individual also needs to have the ability to clearly communicate the details of the service. Finally, an individual is needed who has the personal skills to form an effective relationship with the client. This individual does not need to have a sales background. Instead, it would be better for their background to be in working with clients, rather than winning clients. This illustrates that the sales force needed for the organization do not all… READ MORE

Quoted Instructions for "Sales Management Imaginative Staffing" Assignment:

Sales Force Management Case Study

Prepare a 1, 400-1,750-word case study analysis of Imaginative Staffing, Inc. located below. Based on this analysis, explain the different aspects of sales force management. Be sure to address the following in your paper:

§ Summarize the case.

§ Formulate answers to questions 1, 2, and 3 at the conclusion of the text.

§ Analyze the key elements and processes of selecting and recruiting a sales force for the organization described in the case.

§ Select an appropriate training modality for both initial and recurrent training for the organization described in the case.

§ Describe the different methods that can be used to motivate the sales personnel of the organization described in the case.

Imaginative Staffing

“I'm not sure what's going on around me right now, but it seems as if somebody is trying to tell me something.” Angie Roberts, CEO of Imaginative Staffing, Inc., of New York City, was expressing her thoughts to her assistant, Nicole Gamin. Roberts didn't wait for an answer but continued, “I met some marketing professor at a party the other night, and he seemed to think he was holding a class about what's new in selling. He kept babbling something about team selling. I wasn't sure what he was talking about at first. Maybe he had some professional ball team he wanted to sell to someone with more dollars than sense. But then I caught the drift that he was talking about a way to make sales presentations.

“Then last night I read an article in one of the trade journals about team selling. To top it off, my daughter informed me that she was forming a team with some of her Girl Scout friends to sell their cookies this year. Is there some kind of message for us in all this?” Roberts asked Gamin.

Gamin smiled and answered innocuously, “Maybe so!” She had a long list of daily agenda items to go over with her boss and really didn't want to get involved with a discussion about the merits of team selling. “Now let's go over what must be done today.”

“You're putting me off because you don't like me to mess up your plans for the day. Well, it won't work. I want to know more about team selling, so put it on the agenda somewhere for today,” Roberts insisted.

“All right, you're having lunch with your executive committee. Let's put it on the agenda for that meeting.” Gamin evidently had said the right thing because her boss immediately got down to the business at hand, planning the day. Mondays were always busy. Not only did all departments start each Monday with a short meeting to plan the week, but the head of each department met with the CEO for lunch, during which companywide matters were discussed. Roberts felt strongly that these Monday lunches were important. They allowed her not only to learn what was going on in the company but also to foster communications between her and the other managers in the organization.

Imaginative Staffing, Inc., was a temporaryservices firm in New York City. Formed in 1990, it had grown to $17 million in revenues. Besides herself and her assistant, Nicole Gamin, the company had a chief financial officer, a sales director, four sales reps, an operations manager, 10 account managers, five administrative assistants, and a receptionist.

One reason Roberts had perceived the teamselling messages was that for some time she had been frustrated by the length of time it took to close a sale with a good prospect. On average, it took about six months of hard work to make a sale to a major customer. One of the sales reps would make the contact and do all of the selling, sometimes with the help of the sales director if the situation seemed to warrant it.

Large and small corporations made extensive use of temporary help for one or more of several reasons: (1) to fill in for workers who, for some reason, were unable to work; (2) to handle overload conditions; or (3) to take care of seasonal peak workloads. In the current legal environment, many organizations were reluctant to hire permanent employees until there was a clear-cut, longrun need for them. Such factors as benefit packages, insurance, unemployment claims, and termination difficulties made management think seriously about hiring people as employees.

The lunch meeting proceeded smoothly as the group ate and disposed of the agenda items in order. When the last item, team selling, came up, members of the group looked at each other with puzzlement. What was it about? Only Susan Borland, the sales director, knew what team selling was. She was not eager to take the lead in the discussion, preferring instead to sit back to find out what was on Roberts's mind. She did not have long to wait.

The CEO began, “You may wonder why I have put this item on the agenda, so I'll not keep you wondering. For some time I have not been satisfied with our selling effort. It seems to take too much time to gain the confidence of prospective accounts to the extent that they feel comfortable with us. We are relatively new in this market. They don't know us. I've heard and read about team selling as a system that might be of use to us. I want to know exactly what it is and if it is something we should be using.”

“It's interesting that you bring this up today because I just had a breakfast meeting with a sales team for Colony Cablevision,” Susan Borland said. She continued, “As you know, I'm on the board of directors of my homeowners' association. We have more than 1,000 homes in our planned development, most of whose owners individually subscribe to a cable television system at an average cost of about $45 a month. Now we have been approached by Colony to enter into a bulk billing deal in which all the homeowners will be billed by the association at an attractive price, less than $20 a month for the package. Well, they flew in one of the top managers from their home office to join with the local manager, the local technical engineer, the local marketing manager, and the person who would be our account manager. Each of them made a presentation, and I must say it was effective. I think the board bought it. Anyway, at the time I wondered if this was something we should be doing.”

The meeting was interrupted by the receptionist informing several of the managers that their 1:30 appointments were waiting. As they stood up to leave, Roberts asked Borland to prepare a plan for developing and training a sales team for the group to consider at some meeting in the near future.

Susan Borland had been with the company from its beginning. In the early days she did whatever needed to be done, but as the firm grew and was able to hire people to do specific jobs, she devoted more and more of her time to sales. At first she was the firm's only salesperson, but as the company grew she was able to hire more sales reps and she spent increasingly more time in the office, yet she still helped the sales reps whenever they needed it. She was interested in her assignment and intended to get on it that afternoon with the help of her assistant, Judy Morgan.

After briefing Morgan about the team-selling assignment, Borland told her to go to the library and research the subject. “Find out everything you can about it and who is using it.”

That evening, Borland was talking about the day with a friend and the conversation drifted into team selling. The friend, a sales rep for a leading software company, was familiar with the concept since his firm used it to sell to important accounts. He advised, “Don't put too many people on the team, or things can get confusing to the prospect. On one of our first team sales calls, we had seven people in there pitching. It was a disaster. The prospect was overwhelmed with information, much of which was useless. Our people weren't trained. We had some of the programming people in there, and you can imagine their selling skills. They just wouldn't talk about what the prospect wanted to hear; they just talked in their *****.”

Susan Borland listened. She had already decided who should be on the sales team, but now she realized that some of these people would require training.

Questions

1. Should Imaginative Staffing, Inc., adopt a team-selling system for selling to important accounts?

2. If so, who should be on the team?

3. What training would be needed by the team? To what extent should the team's presentation be planned?

How to Reference "Sales Management Imaginative Staffing" Term Paper in a Bibliography

Sales Management Imaginative Staffing.” A1-TermPaper.com, 2005, https://www.a1-termpaper.com/topics/essay/sales-management-imaginative-staffing/357688. Accessed 5 Oct 2024.

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