Sales Force

Management
Recruitment and
Selection
Unit 4
Sales Management
MBA-Sem 3

Recruitment & Selection

Company Objectives
Sales Objectives
Job Analysis
Development of Job Description &
Specification
Manpower Planning
Recruitment
Selection

Sales Job Analysis

A

job
analysis
is
an
objective
examination of the duties, activities,
and behaviors of people employed in a
sales position.
Job
analysis
may
involve
field
observation, interview with salespeople,
looking at sales reports and getting
feedback from customers.

Sales Job Description

A job description for a salesperson should address;
1. The title of the job
2. The nature of products and services the salesperson will sell.
3. Customer type and the frequency with which they should be
called upon.
4. The sales persons specific tasks and responsibilities
5. The relationship b/w salesperson and other people in the
sales organization.
6. Environmental factors affecting the sales position, such as
the amount of travel required.
7. The compensation method used, base salary or base
salary+commission or commission only.

Sales Job Specification

A

statement
of
sales
employee
characteristics
and
qualifications
required for satisfactory performance of
defined duties and tasks comprising a
specific job or function. Job specification
is derived from job analysis.

Manpower Planning
It consists of putting right number of
people, right kind of people at the right
place, right time, doing the right things for
which they are suited for the achievement
of goals of the organization.
Analysing the current manpower inventory
Making future manpower forecasts (expert
forecast, trend analysis, work load analysis)
Calculating the turnover rate
Arriving on the methods of recruitment and
selection

Recruitment
The

process of finding and attracting the

best-qualified candidate (from within or
outside of an organization) for a job
opening, in a timely and cost effective
manner.

Sources of Sales Force

Recruits: With in the company
Promotions
Internal

transfers

Sources Outside the Company

Direct

unsolicited applications
Employment agencies
Salespeople making calls on the company
Employees of customers
Sales executives clubs
Sales forces of non-competing companies
Sales forces of competing companies
Educational institutions
Ways of Recruiting
Internal news bulletin
Advertisement (Wanted ads)
Recruiting brochures
Direct mail

Recruiting Source Evaluation

Figure

11.2
Pg 304

Selecting Sales Personnel

Personnel

selectionis the process

used to hire applicants with the
intention of choosing candidate who will
be most successful and make most
valuable contributions to the
organization.

Stages in selection
process
Having

the candidate complete an

application form
Testing the candidate
Personally interviewing the candidate
Verifying the candidates background
information.
Conducting a physical exam (if necessary)
Employment offer

I) Application Form

AN electronic or paper form that asks the

job candidate to provide a standard list
of information about his/her background,
education, and work experiences.

Advantages;
Provide managers with consistent
information
Offers sales managers an initial
impression about the candidate
Help develop personal interview
questions

II) Testing the

Candidate
Employment

testingis the practice of

administering written, oral, or
othertestsas a means of determining
the suitability or desirability of a job
applicant.
Testing offers managers another
perspective of the candidate.

Psychological Tests
A

method
of
sampling
small
representative
sets
of
behavioral
responses gathered under uniform
conditions.

Types of Psychological
Tests
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Personality Tests
Intelligence Tests
Ability Tests
Aptitude Tests
Emotional Intelligence Tests

1. Personality Tests
Measures

personality traits for a sales

position including empathy, ability to adapt,
and desire for interpersonal relationship etc.
Egs: Gordon Personal Profile (GPP)
It takes into account variables like
assertiveness, responsibility, stress
tolerance, sociability, self confidence etc.
The GPP-I for Employment Selection measures:
Competency

High-Scorers

Assertiveness

Adopt an active role in a group.

Make independent decisions.

Are self-assured in relationships with

others.

Stress Tolerance

Are calm and easy-going.

Tend to be worry-free.

Handle change well.

Are not easily frustrated.

2. Intelligence Tests
Measures

the quality of information

acquired and used by the candidate.
Egs: Wonderlic Cognitive Ability Test
Sample question
When a rope is selling 20 Rs per 2 feet, how many feet
can you buy for 300 Rs?
You were facing towards west and you turned right and
walked 10M and then you turned right again and walked
20M which direction are you facing?

3. Ability Tests/Achievement/
Proficiency Tests
Designed

to estimate the current

strengths and weaknesses of an
applicant to effectively perform specific
tasks.
These measures the competency of a
person to do tasks that he/she will have
to perform.

4. Aptitude Tests
Measures

an applicants natural ability to

do some work, how the person interacts
with other people and whether the
person has interest and ability to
perform certain tasks.
Aptitude: A natural ability to do
something.
Egs: Refer to AT&T sales selection test

5. Emotional Intelligence
Tests
Testing an individuals ability to process
emotional information as it relates to the
perception, assimilation, understanding and
management of human emotions.
Egs:
Can you strongly protest against
mistreatment? (Five point scale Strongly
agree to strongly disagree)
Can you empathize with the needs of others
without judgment/criticism?

III. Personal Interview

A

formal conversation between a job

applicant and representative of the
employing organization to analyse the
capability, interest and expectations of
the employee.

Interviewing Techniques
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Patterned/Structured interview
Non-directive/Unstructured Interview
Stress Interview
Rating Scales
Panel Interview

1. Patterned/Structured
Interview
Uses

a prepared outline of questions

designed to elicit a basic core of
information.

2. Non-directive/Unstructured
Interview
Interviewer

asks a series of open ended

questions that applicants can address in
their own words.

3. Stress Interview
Simulates

the stresses that applicant

would meet in actual selling and
provides a way to observe the
applicants reactions to them.
For egs: Give an object and ask him/her
to sell it to me

4. Rating Scales
Information

collected in the interview

process is channeled into a limited
choice of responses.
For egs: (very empathetic, empathetic,
not at all empathetic)

5. Panel Interview
Involves

placing a single applicant

before a panel of two or more company
representatives.

IV. Collecting and Verifying

the Background Information
This

is done in order to verify that the

information provided by candidate can be
trusted.
Past performance of a candidate is a potential
indicator of the persons future performance.
Reference Checks
Checking with educational institutions, prior
employers
Credit Checks
Police Clearance Certificate

Problems in screening and

selecting the applicants
Choosing

the right test method

(reliability and validity of the test)
Choosing the right interview method
Choosing the right panel
Cost associated with screening and
selection process
Difficulty in getting authentic
information about the candidate

V. Physical Exam
Done

to ensure that the candidate

meets job related physical
requirements.
Good health is important to a
salespersons success

VI. Making the Job

Offer
The

offer is made those candidates who

have crossed all the hurdle and are
willing to take up the position.
The letter has to be accepted with in a
certain time limit and candidate to join
the date and time specified in the offer
letter.