Part IV SALES FORCE COMPETENCIES

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Part IVSALES FORCE COMPETENCIES

• Chapter 7
• Recruiting and Selecting Sales Personnel

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Chapter 7 Outline
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Figure 7-1 Sales Force Turnover Rates by Industry
Industrial
Services
Consumer
10
12
17
66
33
19
78
50
15
0-10
11-16
More than 16
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Turnover Rates in Selected Industries
Turnover Industry
Rates Construction 13.8 Office
Equipment 47.0 Retail 51.2 Wholesale
(Consumer Goods) 18.5 Electronics 14.1 Busine
ss Services 26.2 Pharmaceuticals
8.3 Banking 4.3 Real Estate 11.9
Source Dartnells 30th Sales Force Compensation
Survey (1999), p.187.
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First Year Cost of a Salesperson in the U.S.
Compensation (trainee average) 35,500 Ben
efits (approx.21.5 of compensation)
7,600 Field Expense 16,000 Direct
Expense 59,100 Training Costs
7,100 TOTAL COSTS 66,200
Source Dartnells 30th Sales Force Compensation
Survey (1999).
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Company Culture and the Hiring Process

• Develop a hiring process related to core
  culture.
• What are the core cultures of these companies?

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Aligning People to Core Job Responsibilities

• The Chally Group, a sales consulting company,
  found that matching a persons skills set with
  the skills required by the sales job led to
  higher performing salespeople and greater job
  satisfaction.
• What skill sets are needed for the
  followingsales positions?
• Missionary?
• Sales Support?
• New Business?

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Aligning People to Core Job Responsibilities

• Missionary
• Technical skills, relationship building skills
• Sales Support
• Empathy, relationship building skills
• New Business
• Assertiveness, persuasiveness, time management,
  ability to close

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What Purchasing Agents Like About Salespeople
PERCENT OF RESPONDENTS TRAITS
WHO RATED MOST VALUED
Willingness to fight for customer
Thoroughness/follow through
Market knowledge/ willingness to share
Knowledge of product line
Diplomacy in dealing with operating departments
Imagination
0 25 50 75 100
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Recruiting Sources

• Classified Ads
• Reaches wide audience (trade publications may
  narrow the reach)
• Used if high turnover
• Tend to over-produce under-qualified candidates
• Present Employees
• Familiar w/ company products procedures
• Established job histories
• Sales as a promotion
• Over-rely on previous experience

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Recruiting Sources

• Referrals/Networking
• Company executives understand needs, culture and
  potential fit for sales responsibilities
• Employment Agencies
• best if company pays
• Schools Colleges
• Poised easily trained
• Lack experience become bored
• Customers, Suppliers Competition
• Good if need w/out much training
• Legal ethical issues
• Common insurance, stock broker, office
  equipment, clothing

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Figure 7-3 A Model for Selecting Salespeople
Direct recruit to control location or phone number
Hiring criteria for sales jobs used to guide selec
tion process
Complete application blanks
Conduct screening interviews
Check credit and background
Complete psychological and achievement tests
Secondary interviews
Make offer for sales position
Physical exam
Modify hiring criteria, tests or Interview
procedures
Measure subsequent success on the job
Reject
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RESUME ANALYSIS

1. Account for all dates.
2. Examine the number of jobs and length of time
   spent on each job.
3. Reasons for leaving job.
4. Is there a pattern of growth?

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QUESTIONS ABOUT INTERVIEWERS

• What Research Shows
• Does extensive interviewing experience help an
  interviewer to make better judgments?
• Does pressure to recruit impair the judgment of
  experienced interviewers less than inexperienced
  interviewers?
• When interviewing multiple recruits, do
  interviewers tend to use previous applicants as
  the standard of comparison for subsequent
  applicants?
• Will the positive effects of good appearance
  offset an unfavorably rated personal history for
  a recruit?

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QUESTIONS ABOUT INTERVIEWERS

• What Research Shows
• How much of the factual information presented in
  an interview will the interviewer remember
  immediately after a short interview if no notes
  are taken?
• How will lack of notes and factual recall affect
  the interviewers rating of the recruits
  interviewed?
• How reliably can a group of interviewers rate a
  recruits qualifications for a job?
• How reliably can a group of interviewers rate
  future job performance by a recruit?

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COMMON INTERVIEWER MISTAKES

1. Failure to establish rapport
2. Lack of plan
3. Insufficient time
4. Not listening
5. Personal bias
6. Questions
7. First impressions

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TYPICAL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

• What is interviewer trying to determine?
• What was the most monotonous job you ever had to
  do?
• What are your values and general orientation in
  life?
• How creative were you in eliminating boredom?

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TYPICAL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

• In thinking about people you like, what is it you
  most like about them?
• Reflects what person is and desires to become
• Up to this point in your life, what do you
  consider to be your biggest disappointment?
• Have you done anything? -- more active more
  disappointments
• How willing are you to relocate? To what extent
  are you willing to travel?
• Motivation in wanting job -- involves travel

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TYPICAL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

• 5. How do you feel about the way your previous
  employer treated you?
• How you react to supervision organizational
  cultures
• 6. What are your long-term financial objectives
  and how do you intend to achieve them?
• Are you realistic mature?
• Will this company enable you to achieve these
  goals?
• 7. What was the most difficult decision you ever
  had to make as a leader?
• Were the leadership positions in your resume
  demanding or ceremonial in nature?
• What is your leadership style philosophy?

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TYPICAL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

• 8. Why should we hire you?
• How badly do you want the job?
• What do you think of yourself?
• Do you believe in yourself?
• 9. Sell me this pen.
• Do you really know how to make a sales
  presentation?
• Did you mention the main product benefits?
• Did you ask for the order?

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ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS

• About two weeks after starting a new job, doubts
  creep into your mind. The gap between what you
  were told and whats actually happening gets
  wider by the day. When youre on the job for
  three weeks, you say to yourself, I think I made
  a mistake. One way to avoid making a costly
  mistake like this is to ask the right questions
  when interviewing. What questions would you ask
  when applying for a field sales position to avoid
  accepting the wrong job?

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ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS

• 1. May I look at your resume?
• 2. Where will I get my leads?
• 3. May I review your sales literature?
• 4. When are your slow times?
• 5. May I go with you on a sales call?
• 6. May I visit your marketing department?

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PREVIOUS EMPLOYER REFERENCE CHECK QUESTIONS

• Dates of Employment?
• What was the Job?
• What type of selling was involved?
• How did the applicant get along with his/her
  manager? Customers? Fellow salespeople?
• How did his/her job performance compare others?
• Applicants strongest points? Weaknesses we
  should help him/her overcome?
• Why did s/he leave your company?
• Would you rehire the applicant? Why?

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Table 7-2 Validity of Predictors for
Entry-Level Jobs
Predictor Validity Ability composite
(tests) .53 Job tryout .44 Biographical
inventory .37 Reference check .26 Experie
nce .18 Interview .14 Training and
experience ratings .13 Academic
achievement .11 Education .10 Interest .
10 Age .01
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Whats in a Signature?
Small letters such as a, e, and o are more than ¼ inch in height and farther to the right side of the page. These people tend to be enterprising and are usually risk takers, take charge leaders, and pacesetters. They are your typical salesperson.
Small signatures, less than 1/8 inch tall with an upright slant and placed towards the left hand of the page These people tend to be objective observers. They keep cool, dont get excited under pressure, and in general make good listeners and negotiators. They might be better for high-level sales to established clients.
Medium-sized signatures (about 1/4 inch). These people are your team players. Interaction is their byword and they tend to play strictly by the rules. They take calculated risks, with emphasis on the calculations. Not generally sales types.
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WHAT MAKES A SUPER SALESPERSON?
Personal Computer Manufacturer Photographic Equipment Manufacturer
Threshold Competencies Threshold Competencies
Communication Decisiveness
Information Collection Information Collection
Personal Sensitivity Organizational Awareness
Relationship-building Relationship-building
Technical knowledge Systematic thinking

Differentiator Competencies Differentiator Competencies
Concern for personal impact Focused achievement
Focused achievement Interpersonal diagnosis
Initiative Job commitment
Organizational awareness Persistence
Personal time-planning Presentation skills
Quick thinking Stress tolerance
Targeted persuasion Use of influence strategies
Use of influence strategies
These traits were found in salespeople at both
companies.
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Table 7-5 Typical Interview Questions

• Why should we hire you?
• Regardless of the company and type of sales
  position for which you may interview, there are
  some interview questions that are typically
  asked. You may not be asked each of these
  questions in every interview, but you should be
  prepared to answer them all. After reading each
  question, think about what the interviewers
  purpose may be in asking the question. What is
  he or she trying to determine? What should your
  response be to each question?

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Table 7-5 Typical Interview Questions

• Why should we hire you?
• What was the most monotonous job you ever had to
  do?
• In thinking about the people you like, what is it
  you like most about them?
• Up to this point in your life, what do you
  consider to be your biggest disappointment?
• How willing are you to relocate? To what extent
  are you willing to travel?
• How do you feel about the way your previous
  employer treated you?
• What are your long-term financial objectives, and
  how do you propose to achieve them?
• What was the most difficult decision you ever had
  to make as a leader?
• Why should we hire you?
• Sell me this pen.

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JOB DESCRIPTION FACTORS
Selling Requirements Selling Requirements
New vs. established account selling Selling through distributors Entertaining customers Level of buying authority Physical activity required Technical knowledge Relocation Written proposals Individual vs. team selling One time vs. systems selling Type of prospects/customers One-on-one vs. group selling Travel how much what kind Program or concept selling
Nonselling Tasks Nonselling Tasks
Reports to management Customer service and training Sales promotion Educational seminars Collecting receivables Marketing plans
Degree of Responsibility Degree of Responsibility
Negotiations of pricing Travel and entertainment
Career Paths Career Paths
Compensation plan Promotion timing Earnings potential Promotion leaders
Performance Expectations Performance Expectations
Activity level requirements Minimum sales volume or profits