Q MKT 566 Sales Management Plan Requirements (70% of your course grade) Purpose: The purpose of the Sales Management Plan is to allow you to build on each part of your learning in the class and integrate the individual components into a comprehensive document that an organization would use to communicate its salesforce strategy, methods, and implementation. Note that there are THREE phases or parts of the assignment. Each has its own requirements and deadline. INSTRUCTIONS: GENERAL REQUIREMENTS: 1. All assignments must be submitted on time. Your paper will be assessed a late penalty of 20% for the first day and an additional 10% for each day thereafter. Papers more than FIVE days late will not be accepted. Extensions may be granted at the sole discretion of your instructor. 2. All documents must be submitted to the appropriate folder (dropbox) in D2L in Word format. Your file must be named in the following format: Last name_Phase X_date For example: Smith_Phase 1_1 jan 2020 3. Graduate level writing is expected and your paper should be free of grammar, spelling and punctuation errors. Deductions for poor or substandard writing are at the discretion of your instructor. 4. The use of Headers and Sub-heads is strongly recommended. 5. You may use outside sources to support your sales plan, including the textbook. Be sure you use in-text citations correctly (i.e. Smith, 2020) and include a citation list at the end of your paper. You may use direct quotes where appropriate, however be sure they are identified as such according to APA format. Third-party content and/or quotes should be no more than 10% of your paper. 6. There is no specific requirement for the length of any of the phases described below. Your grade is based on content and meeting the requirements, not length. 7. In Phase 3 (see below) you will submit your entire plan, which includes an Executive Summary. You MUST also include a Cover Page and Table of Contents. PHASE 1 (20% OF COURSE GRADE) PART A: Phase 1 requires you to select the company you will use to create the plan. In selecting the firm you will analyze you MUST follow these guidelines. Generally, it is best to pick a company with a new product that is just entering the market or a company that has existing sales but is under threat of losing sales with its current sales approach. You will also find that the project is not only easier, but far more meaningful to you professionally if you select a firm or product category in which you are interested. The requirements are: • The firm cannot be in the Fortune 1000. • It MUST be B2B. However, you may select a firm in which the final user is B2C, but the firm you are analyzing sells B2B. For example, a pharmaceutical firm’s products may ultimately be consumed by patients (aka consumers), but the firm’s salesforce is strictly B2B selling to hospitals, MDs and retail pharmacies. • No retailers • The firm must use an OUTSIDE salesforce. However, they may have an inside salesforce that provides some portion of the total sales. • Although it is not mandatory, it is strongly recommended that you select a firm that is based in your city or state. • You must have access to basic financials. Read the requirements for Phase 3 carefully to determine if you have access to enough information. You may pick a company you work for or a new company, with the following caveats: If you use a company you work for, you will need to make sure the contents of the plan are your original work and have not been used in a prior course and that you are not simply describing what already exists or is being implemented by the firm’s managers. To do so will be treated as plagiarism. To complete PART A simply post the name of the firm you have selected, a ONE paragraph description of the firm, a one paragraph explanation of why you selected the firm, the address of their main office or headquarters and their Web address. Your instructor will reply to your post with (1) an approval; (2) a request for additional information or (3) a decline and a brief explanation. PART B: Chapters 1 and 2 of your textbook should be used as a “refresher” for you in understanding some of the basics of sales. Use Chapter 3 as you consider how you will market and sell the company’s products. You should carefully review the exhibit on the evolution from mass marketing through one-to-one marketing and the implications for your salesforce. READ all three of these chapters carefully and in detail – you cannot complete Phase 1 without understanding this material. You will then describe each of the following in approximately 2-3 paragraphs each. Be clear, concise and avoid extraneous “filler” and fluff. Consider carefully not only what you have learned as a result of studying Chapters 1-3 but also your foundation in marketing basics. 1) The company’s products and services. Be sure to consider what need they fill and the relationships between feature/functionality and customer benefits. Consider the importance of the firm’s brand. 2) Who are the firm’s target markets? Describe them in enough detail that a reader would have a clear understanding of what type(s) of firms or buyers you are selling to. If you are not familiar with the concept of “firmographics” you may wish to do some research on the topic. 3) The section on “SBU Strategy” can then be used to evaluate and propose which marketing strategy makes the most sense, the marketing mix you recommend, and how your sales force design and mechanics will support the marketing efforts. The exhibit, “Factors influencing the role of personal selling” provides a good diagram to align your chosen firm’s marketing objectives with your sales strategy. As part of these objectives provide a brief description of the ethical standards you will require of your sales force. This may be in bullet or narrative format at your option. 4) The last step of Phase 1 will benefit from your understanding and use of the material in Chapter 4. For this part, your careful review of the exhibits on geographic, product-type, or customer-type structures will help you determine the type of sales force structure you recommend. This must be illustrated in an organization chart in your plan. PART C: By this point you should have conducted enough external research on the company, its products, its customers, and its competition to conclude with your explanation of how the sales methods and structures and the type of salesforce you are recommending will succeed in reaching the targeted customers and meeting the sales objectives of the firm. Summarize this in NO more than TWO paragraphs. TURNITIN: This course utilizes an automated process (Turnitin-integrated Assignment box) for checking plagiarism including the proper citation of another’s work. Please make sure you cite your paper with any use of outside materials including summaries of another work, even if it is your own writing. Violations will follow the administrative processes identified in the Saint Leo Course Catalog including submission to an Academic Standards Committee who may assign penalties up to and including suspension from the University. You will submit Phase 1 to the Assignment folder (dropbox) no later than Sunday 11:59 PM EST/EDT of Module 3. (This Assignment box is linked to Turnitin.) GRADING: The rubric used to grade Phase 1 can be found in D2L and at the end of these instructions. Note that Phase 1 is graded as stand-alone. This means that you will receive a grade for Phase 1 ONLY, typically within 10 days of the due date. Your instructor will inform you what method s/he uses to provide feedback beyond the scores in the rubric. PHASE 2 (20% OF YOUR COURSE GRADE) Prior to beginning Phase 2 you should carefully read Chapters 5-11 and review the content in the associated modules. Be sure that the plans you describe in Phase 2 are consistent with those you employed in Phase 1. Phase 2 relies on the strategy, structure, and methods you described in Phase 1 to now describe the specific sales positions you will employ, the competencies for each role, your methods for recruiting and selecting the talent, and the compensation and incentives you will use to incent and reward the salesforce. PART A: Using the material in Chapter 5, assess and describe the market potential for your salesforce and the product they are selling. Begin by analyzing and describing the market conditions. You may select any number of methods for doing so, but you should carefully consider including some type of PEST, Porter’s Five Forces, Gap analysis, SWOT and other similar tools. You may wish to use a combination of two or more methods (this is probably the most effective). The use of charts and graphs is encouraged. Be sure to support your analysis with data, logic and your personal insights. NOTE: you are NOT required to assign a specific dollar volume to the market potential as this is beyond the scope of this course. However, you should be very specific in describing the market conditions and why you believe the firm should pursue your sales management plan. PART B: Using the information on Sales Forecasting in Chapter 5, select and describe the method you will use and justify your selection. The exhibit on “Sales Forecasting” methods provides a good description of each method’s techniques and its advantages and disadvantages. For existing products, a review of past performance should be considered. For new products, predictive models as described in the text will be needed. Your selection should be supported by external research. Note that you are NOT required to define or predict a specific sales volume for your sales force or firm as this is beyond the scope of this course. However, you MUST describe how you would forecast sales (what method) AND what data you need to make accurate forecasts. PART C: In Part C you will address three issues: Salesforce selection and recruitment: What type of people you will recruit for your salesforce, which might include education, experience, skill sets and cultural fit. This should include a job description for your salespeople. The exhibits in Chapter 9 provide a good example of a job description that you can model and include in your plan (however you may NOT copy it – yours should be aligned with your firm, product line and target customers). In no more than 2-3 paragraphs describe how you, as Sales Manager for the firm, will integrate with the marketing department to locate and recruit your salespeople (think of this as marketing for staff). Salesforce training: The next section of this phase of the Plan must include a detailed description of how you will train the sales force. Your training should include your stated ethical standards as well as how you will assess the effectiveness of the training. You should use Chapter 9 as a foundation for your work, supplemented by your research in the best training practices used in your industry. The exhibit on “Analyzing Training Needs” provides a good model for your work in this section of your plan. Chapter 9 has some useful material on this topic and there are LOTS of online resources (be careful – there are lots of low quality providers of sales training so be careful what you use). Salesforce compensation: Chapter 11 provides a foundation for the work you will do in developing a Sales Compensation Plan for your company and should be carefully studied along with external research on what the industry pays and uses for other rewards. Pay particular attention to Chapter 11’s exhibit on “Compensation and Objectives of Financial Compensation Plans”. It is very important you analyze and reflect on each component of compensation and align your choices with the type of salespeople you employ, their needs, the competitive expectations in the industry and any other factors related to your strategy or the type of industry and culture typical of your firm. You should be careful not to fall into the trap of standard salary plus commission although it is obvious that this is a likely approach for many industries. You should explain how your compensation plan supports the corporate and individual goals of your sales force. This part of your plan should be NO MORE than 3-4 paragraphs in length. When you complete this phase of your plan you should do two things. 1.) Review your original Phase 1 to make any improvements suggested by your instructor. You should also make sure that Phase 1 and Phase 2 are consistent and support one another. It is normal to revise and polish your work as you have learned more in the second phase. 2.) Carefully review, edit, and polish your work including making sure you have conducted enough external research to defend your ideas. Make sure you have given credit for your significant outside research and cited your sources correctly. Please Note: Phase 2 is the “heart” of your Sales Management Plan. It’s important that you provided the depth, clarity and presentation of the work to articulate the value of what you have learned. You will submit Phase 2 to the Assignment box no later than Sunday 11:59 PM EST/EDT of Module 6. (This Assignment box is linked to Turnitin.). GRADING: Your instructor will use the rubric found in D2L and at the end of these instructions to grade Phase 2. It is graded independently of Phase 1 – your grade for Phase 2 will be based ONLY on Phase 2. However, be sure to consider the note above about reviewing Phase 1 for your instructor’s comments and feedback. Make sure Phase 1 and Phase 2 are consistent. Submit Phase 2 as a standalone document in Word format to the folder (dropbox) in D2L. PHASE 3 (30% OF COURSE GRADE) IMPORTANT NOTE: Phase 3 is graded as part of your COMPLETE plan, which includes PARTS 1 and 2. You must submit ONE document which includes ALL three parts. Make sure you use appropriate Headers and Sub-Heads. PART A: Begin by carefully reading Chapters 12 and 13. Many of you may find this somewhat tedious and a bit dry. Most marketers would prefer to leave this part of the sales plan to the Accounting Department. However, it is important that you have a fundamental understanding of what it costs to run a salesforce and how those costs are measured. Using the material in Chapter 12, select and describe which accounting/cost method you will use to assess the performance of your sales force. Be sure you justify your selection in light of your firm’s products, industry and target customers. You may also want to consider how geographically distributed your customers are, the length (time) of the sales cycle and what sales practices are common or typical for the industry. For example, is the sales cycle typically long and requires a good deal of travel and entertainment? It is important that you consider the ease and value of each method as it relates to your industry, strategy, and the “granularity” you desire in assessing your costs. Many costs can be captured at an aggregate level while individual costs may be more difficult but important. Whichever method you will use, you must identify it in your plan and explain how it will be captured, reported, and used in judging the effectiveness of your sales investments. You should use the exhibits on “Steps in Conducting Profitability Analysis,” “Functional Accounts in Sales,” and “Functional Cost Groups” to define how you will use your cost management tools for determining effectiveness at a product, group or individual level. PART B: Using Chapter 13 as a foundation for the next part of your plan, you should clearly describe the specific performance measurements you will apply for each sales position. This will include more than just the sales dollars achieved and you should use the exhibits on “Common Output and Input Measures” and “Common Ratios,” concluding with a Performance Evaluation Template (see the “Sample Subject Performance Evaluation Form” example in Chapter 13. The form you use for this part of the plan must include a section for assessing the ethics standards you established earlier in your plan. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The last task for your plan is to write an Executive Summary that will be inserted prior to Phase 1. (This will be the first page after a cover sheet and the table of contents.) The Executive Summary should be one, single-spaced page that provides a concise overview of the company, its product(s), the market environment, its target customers, your sales force strategy, organization, revenue goals and how you will build, motivate, and assess salesforce success. SUBMITTING YOUR COMPLETE PLAN: The final plan will integrate all sections, correct any work in prior phases, add the components developed in the last phase, and have a final and comprehensive review for grammar, citing, flow, continuity within the plan, graphical illustrations, and clear alignment of your strategy with each of the implementation components. Your plan should be submitted as ONE Word document to the appropriate folder in D2L. Label your file as follows: Last name_your firm name_date_final plan For example: Smith_ABC Electronics_1 Jan 2020_final plan You will submit your final plan to the Assignment box no later than Sunday 11:59 PM EST/EDT of Module 8. (This Assignment box is linked to Turnitin.) Please see above regarding the late policy. Scoring Rubric: Students will complete each phase of the assignment with attention to the following criteria: Rating Scale Exemplary: Corresponds to an A- to A (90-100%) Proficient: Corresponds to B- to B+ (80-89%) Basic: Corresponds to C- to C+ (75-79%) Not Attempted: Corresponds to an F (0-74%) Criteria Elements Not Attempted Basic Proficient Exemplary Score (Criterion is missing or not (works towards meeting (meets expectations; (exceeds expectations; (pts) in evidence) expectations; performance performance is satisfactory) performance is needs improvement) outstanding) ? Little to no evidence ? More personal ? Content shows ? Content clearly of assessment, assessment, personal assessment, shows personal synthesis/integration, synthesis/integration, synthesis/integration, assessment, critical analysis, and critical analysis, and critical analysis, and synthesis/integration, Content logical development logical development is logical development critical analysis, and ? Writer addressed none needed ? Writer adequately logical development 70% ____/70 to some of the ? Writer addressed most addressed all ? Writer expertly requirements of the of the requirements of requirements of the addressed all assignment the assignment assignment requirements of the assignment 0-52 pts 53-55 pts 56-62 pts 63-70 pts APA Formatting 10% ? Little to no evidence of appropriate APA formatting 0-7.4 pts ? Appropriate APA formatting throughout most of the paper, including title page, paper layout, references, and citations with several minor and/or some major discrepancies 7.5-7.9 pts ? Appropriate APA formatting throughout the entire paper, including title page, paper layout, references, and citations with only a few minor discrepancies 8-8.9 pts ? Appropriate APA formatting throughout the entire paper, including title page, paper layout, references, and citations 9-10 pts ____/10 Mechanics 20% ? Scholarly format, syntax, and persuasiveness substantially lacking or absent. ? Little to no evidence of language skills, substantial spelling or grammatical errors. ? Little to no evidence of flow. ? Length requirement missed substantially 0 – 14.9 pts ? Scholarly format, syntax, and persuasiveness used somewhat. ? Improvement needed on language, significant spelling or grammatical errors. ? Transitions are weak, flow of the paper needs improvement. ? Paper fell just short of length requirement. 15-15.9 pts ? Scholarly format, syntax, and persuasiveness used most of the time. ? Language is professional, clear, and concise, with some spelling or grammatical errors. ? Transitions maintain the flow of the paper most of the time. ? Paper is appropriate length. 16-17.9 pts ? Scholarly format, syntax, and persuasiveness used. ? Language is professional, clear, and concise, with little to no spelling or grammatical errors. ? Transitions maintain the flow of the paper. ? Paper is appropriate length. 18-20 pts ____/20 Total: _____/100 Comments: