TOPIC 3
SALES ORGANIZATION CONCEPT
Must be Developed to help people and managers perform the activities effectively
and efficiently.
This structure provides a framework by indicating what activities are performed by
whom in the SO.
In order to decide which structure fits best, certain concepts are involved:
Specialization:
• Most sales organizations require some degree of specialization for individuals:
– Certain salespeople might sell only certain products or call on certain customers.
– Some sales managers might concentrate on training, others on planning.
• By concentrating on a limited number of activities, individuals become experts on
those tasks, leading to better performance for the entire organization
Centralization:
• The degree to which important decisions and tasks are performed at higher levels in the
hierarchy.
• Is a relative concept and organizations tend to have either centralized or decentralized
orientation.
• The trends from transactions to relationships, from individuals to teams, and from
management to leadership, result in more decentralized organizations.
• Salespeople in contact with customers must be able to respond to customer needs in a
timely manner, empowered to make decisions quickly. Task: ethical dilemma
Span of control vs. management levels:
• SpoC: nº individuals who report to each sales manager.
• MLvs: nº of different hierarchical levels of sales management within the organization.
• SpoC inversely related to MLvs
SALES ORGANIZATION STRUCTURES
Designing the sales organization requires integration of the desired degree of
specialization, centralization, span of control and management levels
Geographic sales organization:
• Emphasizes geographic specialization.
• Most generalized type of salesforce.
• Salespeople and middle managers are assigned a geographic area, and are responsible
for all activities to all accounts within that area.
Product sales organization:
• Assign salespeople for specific products or product lines, so they become experts in
such categories / lines.
• Each specialized sales team performs all selling activities for all types of accounts.
• They can later be organized geographically (hybrid types)
Market sales organization:
• Assign salespeople to specific types of customers: satisfy customer’s needs better
Functional sales organization:
• Salespeople specialize in performing certain activities: telemarketing to generate leads,
qualify prospects, etc., and the outside salesforce concentrate on sales-generating
activities
Major account management (key/strategic/global account):
• Three options to serve large / complex accounts:
a) Separate major account salesforce, either for regular salespeople, or for specific
teams selected.
b) Sales executives (managers) within formal programs: improve communication,
and coordinate all activities.
c) Salespeople as other accounts: not a major account program.
Hybrid sales organization structure:
• Combines two or more criteria:
IMPORTANT ! COMPARISON OG ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES
SALES LEADERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, AND SUPERVISION
Sales organization positions:
• Salespeople: in touch with customers. Report to field sales managers (very seldom to
senior sales leadership).
• Field sales manager: has direct responsibility for an assigned group of salespeople.
• Senior sales leadership (chief sales executive, national sales manager): have direct
responsibility for field sales managers.
Activities:
• Sales leadership: to influence others to achieve common goals for the sales
organization.
• Sales management: activities related to the planning, implementation and
control of the sales management process.
• Sales supervision: working with subordinates on a day-to-day basis (very
important in the field sales manager position)
Leadership skills for managers. Leadership: “the use of influence through
communication processes”
1. Anticipation and seeking feedback: to extend a vision to the future, by reading
customers, salespeople or other sources: field visits, salesforce audits, review
of reports...
2. Diagnostic skills: determine the specific nature of the problem or opportunity
to be addressed
3. Selection and matching: select the appropriate leadership response to match
the concrete situation
4. Communication: delivery of clear, timely information through the appropriate
media or interpersonal communications
Coaching:
• Sales manager concentrates on continuous development of salespeople through
supervisory feedback and role modeling.
• Coaching seasons may take place in the office during the sales manager’s field visits with
salespeople, immediately before or after each sales call.
Common weaknesses of sales team meetings:
1. Not having a schedule / agenda / points to discuss : then the meeting turns into a “come
and go” of topics without going deep into any of them.
2. Not writing out the agreements / points discussed /decisions taken: nobody knows very
well what has been agreed.
3. Do not set a duration or distribution of time by subject: the meeting goes on until
people just leave.
4. Phone calls during the meeting:
5. Not to assign a person responsible for the agreements made.
6. Let those who like to listen to themselves speak more, and not to let speak more to
those who should:
– People who, meeting after meeting, remain silent.
– People who speak 40 - 50% of the time
7. Failure to bring the right people together
8. Lack of leadership
9. Meeting = everyone participates. If it is information in one sense: email.
10. Bad manners between participants
11. Unnecessary periodicities not appropriate time management
