Chapter 14 Leading The Sales Team

CHAPTER 14
LEADING THE SALES TEAM
Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
The leader of a sales force must have a firm grasp of his
or her power and of the leadership behaviors from which
to choose. This chapter should help you understand:
That leadership is an influence process.
The many sources of a leaders power and their
differences.
The many facets involved in an integrative sales
mangers model of leadership.
That supervision, coaching, and counseling are
important leadership activities.
THE NATURE OF LEADERSHIP

Leadership is the ability to influence other
people toward the attainment of objectives.
LEADERS VERSUS MANAGERS

Management is the attainment of organizational
goals in an effective and efficient manner through:
Planning
Organizing
Staffing
Directing
Controlling organizational resources
A sales manager is a person whose job is the

management of sales resources people and
budgets.
Leading is part of the managers directing
function.
FIGURE 14.1 THE SALES MANAGERS BEHAVIOR IS AN IMPORTANT INFLUENCE

ON THE SALESPERSONS DECISION ON HOW MUCH EFFORT TO PUT INTO THE
JOB
L ea d er
B eh a v i o r *
a n d A ct i v i t i e s
M o tiva tio n
to W o rk
P er fo r m a n ce
* L ea d er b eh a v i o r i s p a r t o f t h e o r ga n i z a t i o n a l f a ct o r s s h o w n i n t h e
m o t i v a t i o n a l m o d el i n C h a p t er 1 2 , F i g u r e 1 2 . 3 .
R ew a r d
AN INTEGRATIVE SALES
MANAGERS MODEL OF
LEADERSHIP
Six factors are important for the attainment
of acceptable performance levels:
1. The sales manager.
2. The sales managers behavior and
activities.
3. The salesperson.
Six factors are important for the attainment

of acceptable performance levels:
continued
4. The sales group.

5. The situation.
6. The salespersons behavior.
FIGURE 14.2 A SITUATIONAL MODEL OF LEADERSHIP FOR SALES PERSONNEL
Salesperson
Personal Characteristics
Needs and Motives
Performance Level
Past Experience
Sales Group
Characteristics
Expectations
Norms
Sales Culture
Sales Manager
Personal Characteristics
Needs and Motives
Power
Past Experience and
Reinforcement
Sales Manager's Behavior

and Activities
Tells
Supervision
Influence
Persuades Coaching
Participates
Counseling
Delegates
Situation
The Task Being Faced
Organizational Factors
Problem Faced
Time Pressures
Salespersons
Behavior
Performance
Satisfaction
Turnover
THE SALES MANAGER

PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS
NEEDS AND MOTIVES
POWER
PAST EXPERIENCE AND REINFORCEMENT
Power is the ability to influence the

behavior of others.
Legitimate power comes from a formal

management position in an organization
and the authority granted to that position.
Reward power stems from the leaders

authority to bestow rewards on other
people.
Coercive power is the opposite of reward

power: it is the leaders authority to
punish or recommend punishment.
Expert power is the result of a leaders

special knowledge or skill regarding the
tasks followers perform.
Referent power comes from the leaders

personality characteristics that command
followers identification, respect, and
admiration, so they wish to emulate the
leader.
THE SALES MANAGERS

BEHAVIOR AND ACTIVITIES
The sales managers personality characteristics,
needs and motives, power, and past experiences
have a direct influence on the persons natural
leadership style. Natural refers to how the
person really would prefer to behave toward a
salesperson.
BEHAVIOR INFLUENCES SALESPEOPLE

A leader exhibits task behavior when describing
the duties and responsibilities of an individual or
group.
Relationship behavior is the extent to which the
leader uses two-way communication, not the oneway communication of task behavior.
FIGURE 14.3 FOUR BASIC LEADERSHIP STYLES THAT INFLUENCE

SALESPEOPLE
T a s k - O r i en t e d
L ea d er sh i p
A p p r o a ch
T ells
P er s u a d es
P a r t i ci p a t e s
D e l eg a t es
P eo p l e - O r i en t ed
L e a d er s h i p
A p p r o a ch
Style 1:
Tells
Above-average levels of task behavior and

below-average levels of relationship behavior.
Style 2:
Persuades
Above-average amounts of both task and

relationship behavior.
Style 3:
Participates
Above-average levels of relationship behavior

and below-average levels of task behavior.
Style 4:
Delegates
Below-average levels of both task behavior and

relationship behavior.
FIGURE 14.4 THE LEADERSHIP STYLES IN TERMS OF TASK AND

RELATIONSHIP BEHAVIOR
H igh
C o n ce r n fo r P e o p l e
S a les m a n a ger a n d
s a l es p e r s o n d e ci d e
to geth er
S a les m a n a ger m a k es
d eci s i o n w i t h d i s cu s s i o n
on w hy
S t y l e 3 : P a r t i ci p a t e s
S ty le 2 : P er su a d es
L o w T a sk
H i g h P eo p l e
H igh T a sk
H i g h P eo p l e
L o w T a sk
L o w P eo p le
H igh T a sk
L o w P eo p l e
S t y l e 4 : D e l eg a t e s
S ty le 1 : T ells
S a lesp er so n
m a k es d e ci s i o n
L ow
L ow
S a les m a n a ger
m a k es d e ci s i o n
C o n ce r n f o r T a s k
H igh
ACTIVITIES INFLUENCE SALESPEOPLE

The Supervision Activity
Supervision refers to the actual overseeing and
directing of the day-to-day activities of
salespeople.
The Coaching Activity
Coaching refers to intensively training someone on
the job through instruction, demonstration, and
practice.
The Counseling Activity
Counseling helps a person become a betteradjusted human being within the work
environment.
Indirect Supervisory Methods

Call reports
Expense reports
Compensation
Sales analysis reports
Direct Supervisory Methods

The telephone or e-mail
Sales meetings
Work withs
During work withs, the manager meets

with each person in his or her sales
territory for reasons such as:
Troubleshooting.
Joining the sales pro in a team effort.
Breaking in a new salesperson.
Training a seasoned sales pro to sell a new
product.
Introducing a seasoned sales pro to a new
territory.
Presession Analysis and Planning

1. Review records
Background
Objective
The session itself
Developmental action
Follow up
2. Notify salespeople
3. Schedule calls
4. Set length of coaching session
5. Prepare coaching checklist
6. Set the mood
The Joint Sales Call

Choosing an objective for the call.
Selecting the major appeal to help achieve the

objective.
Analyzing the prospects needs.
Determining the most attractive benefits.
Anticipating objections.
Deciding on closing tactics.
The manager must make two decisions:

The managers role for the sales call.
How best to observe the salesperson in

action.
Postcall Discussions
Curbstone conferences, usually held in the car, are
brief post-call discussions about what has just
occurred in the customers place of business.
Summary and Critique

Define the sales reps problems or
opportunities for development.

Outline the action you expect to be taken to
overcome the problem or to take advantage of
opportunities.
Set up a time schedule, where applicable, for
taking corrective action you suggest.
State the results you expect to be achieved.
Some Counseling Principles

The purpose of counseling is not merely to deal
with the immediate problem but also to help the
employee learn methods for coping with future
difficulties.
Three Categories of Problems

Those that fall within a managers
competence and responsibility.
Those that are beyond a managers ability to
handle, such as alcoholism, drugs, and deep,
prolonged depression.
Those in which a manager is not sure whether
he or she is going to far.
Possible Counseling Approaches

To the negative end of the continuum:
Threatening
Exhortation
Lecturing
Next on the continuum:
Reassurance
Advice giving or suggestions
Social reinforcement
Possible Counseling Approaches

To the positive end of the continuum:
Directive guidance
Problem solving
Nondirective guidance
continued
Types of Counseling:
Performance counseling
Career counseling.
Job adjustment counseling
Social adjustment counseling
Personal adjustment counseling
THE SALESPERSON
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS
NEEDS AND MOTIVES
PERFORMANCE LEVEL
Ability
Motivation
PAST EXPERIENCE
TABLE 14.2 GUIDELINES TO CONSIDER WHEN SELECTING A

LEADERSHIP STYLE BASED ON PERFORMANCE LEVEL
SALES MANAGER'S
LEADERSHIP STYLE
Tells
Persuades
Participates
Delegates
SALESPERSON'S PERFORMANCE LEVEL

ABILITY
MOTIVATION
LOW
HIGH
LOW
HIGH
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Common needs of experienced salespeople:

To be treated equally.
Help with performance problems.
Help overcoming the greener grass
syndrome.
THE SALES GROUP

CHARACTERISTICS
They have the ability to deal with the sales
situation.
They are interested in the situation.
They have a relatively high need for
independence.
CHARACTERISTICS
continued
They have a relatively high tolerance for

ambiguity in the job.
Past experience indicates they can do a good
job.
They expect to participate in decision making.
EXPECTATIONS
Help them be successful.
Hire competent coworkers.
Provide adequate training, including
conducting effective sales meetings.
Set responsible performance standards.
Provide feedback on how they are doing.
Give rewards based on performance.
NORMS
Norms are the standards the group
establishes.
SALES CULTURE
Descriptions for a leader:
Enthusiastic
Cheerleader
Creator of champions
Coach
A professional
TABLE 14.3 THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR BUILDING A SALES

CULTURE
1. Hire people who possess the fundamental personal characteristics

needed for top performance.
2. Eliminate roadblocks and chuckholes
to each person's success.
3. Provide a good sales training

program.
4. Provide performance standards.
5. Provide performance feedback.
6. Provide appropriate rewards for outstanding performance.
THE SITUATION
The situation itself can influence the sales
managers behavior and effectiveness. Four
factors that influence the leaders
effectiveness are:
The task faced.
The organizational factors
The problem faced.
The time pressures.
THE BOTTOM LINE

As one of the most important elements affecting sales force
performance, leadership is defined as a process by which
one individual attempts to influence the activities of others
on matters of importance in a given situation.
Power is a tool sales managers use to influence the sales
force.
The choice of leadership behaviors to use depends on the
relationships involved in the integrative leadership model.
The sales managers behavior is based on that individuals
personality, needs and motives, power, and past experience.
THE BOTTOM LINE

The appropriate leadership style depends a great deal on
the individual salesperson.
The sales group is the third factor in the integrative
leadership model.
Circumstances surrounding an individual situation, such as
the task faced and the amount of time allotted to complete
the task, also can affect a leaders management style.
Organizational factors also have a bearing on a leaders
effectiveness.
The final factor in the integrative leadership model is the
salespersons behavior.

Chapter 14 Leading The Sales Team

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CHAPTER 14

LEADING THE SALES TEAM

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

THE NATURE OF LEADERSHIP

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

LEADERS VERSUS MANAGERS

A sales manager is a person whose job is the

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

FIGURE 14.1 THE SALES MANAGERS BEHAVIOR IS AN IMPORTANT INFLUENCE

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Six factors are important for the attainment

4. The sales group.

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

FIGURE 14.2 A SITUATIONAL MODEL OF LEADERSHIP FOR SALES PERSONNEL

Sales Manager's Behavior

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

THE SALES MANAGER

Power is the ability to influence the

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Legitimate power comes from a formal

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Reward power stems from the leaders

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Coercive power is the opposite of reward

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Expert power is the result of a leaders

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Referent power comes from the leaders

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

THE SALES MANAGERS

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

BEHAVIOR INFLUENCES SALESPEOPLE

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

FIGURE 14.3 FOUR BASIC LEADERSHIP STYLES THAT INFLUENCE

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Above-average levels of task behavior and

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Above-average amounts of both task and

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Above-average levels of relationship behavior

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Below-average levels of both task behavior and

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

FIGURE 14.4 THE LEADERSHIP STYLES IN TERMS OF TASK AND

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

ACTIVITIES INFLUENCE SALESPEOPLE

Indirect Supervisory Methods

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Direct Supervisory Methods

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

During work withs, the manager meets

Presession Analysis and Planning

The Joint Sales Call

Selecting the major appeal to help achieve the

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

The manager must make two decisions:

How best to observe the salesperson in

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved.

Summary and Critique

opportunities for development.

Some Counseling Principles