Marketing of Structural Steel Industries - Essay Example

Struсturаl Stееl Industriеs Introduction There is always a heavy reliance in any organization upon the operational processes to produce effective products and efficiently deliver them on time. The whole operations strategy which entails the pattern of decisions which shape an organization's capability for any operation through the market requirements and the resources at hand reconciliation is very vital for any organization. Thus, the operational department responsibility is to make sure that the organization creates a great profit margin and adds value to the client by transforming or converting the available business inputs into a presentable and appealing final product (Futrell 2009, p.44). This will significantly gain an organization a competitive advantage. Sales and sales management are especially the most important parts of any organization as they are a reflection of what the organization offers and its returns. Discussion In our case study for instance, Structural Steel Industries make a mistake of forgetting that value is the major reason as to why a customer will choose a rival product over the other. The mistake they made was so sensitive that it could have made their client Jack to forfeit a performance bond if discovered by an inspector. The sales person, Angela Davis, though imagining that the production crew should have known the consequences of introducing foreign steel on a federal job should have made the point clear about the needs, wants and the values of the customer. She basically did not give clear directions of what the customer wanted. The project manager, Mary Longren, who in the company’s structure works hand in hand with the sales person to prepare bids should have also made it clear to the chief craftsman that the steel for the federal job should have been purely domestic and nothing from foreign mills. She even at a juncture wonder why they never got it right clearly showing that it was not the first mistake. In her case, she should have worked closely with Angela Davis to know what exactly the customer wanted as the structure entails. She clearly does not even know what was delivered as she asks whether it was all from the Mexican mills. The company’s structure also clearly includes the production manager, Manuel and the shipping manager, Mark among the people who should have direct access to the customer and make sure that everything is done right (Weitz, Castleberry & Tanner 2001, p543). Therefore, the two should also have had the chance of knowing that the steel should have been purely domestic and give orders to their juniors and supervisors to make sure that it was so. Angela however, as the sales person failed to make sure that one of her biggest clients was well satisfied. The production sector main objectives are administration of orders, physical manufacture and assembly and effective delivery. It was therefore Angela Davis’ responsibility to make sure her client got the best value by following the value chain or the activities by which value is added to her client’s product. She should be there communicating with both the client and the production crew for the quality and delivery speed. Marketing main purpose is to get and keep a customer or in Peter Drucker’s words to create and keep a customer. This being her job, Angela should have made sure that the product was perfect and delivered in time. She should have been the main overall manager in the whole Laredo Construction deal. Her sales techniques and management of the Structural Steel Industry sales operations seems to be poor since they are basically the performance indicators of her docket. As a sales manager she should have been more involved in leadership and a good sales plan for the Laredo Construction deal. In her sales plan she should have indicated clearly that the targets, the resources to be used and the sales activities. She should have been the maker of the whole marketing and strategic plan and indicate clearly in the specifications that the steel should be purely domestic regardless of whether the production crew knew the job was federal or not. It takes skill for a salesperson to find out what a client or customer is looking for and how a potential product or service could add such value. There are different ways of approaching customers. These methods also known as go-to-market strategies include field sale representatives, resellers, selling through the internet, business partners, manufacturer agents, franchises, televisions and many others depending on the line of goods produced by the company. The choice should have a great impact on the organization’s sales (Ingram et al, 2009, p.49). Sales management could basically be any firm’s largest operating expense. It is the link of the firm to itself and to the outside world, that is, between the sellers and the customers and between the sellers and the management. Therefore, a salesperson must possess two sets of very vital skills. These are the selling skills and the management skills. The salespeople should however spend more time in administration than in the field so as to give a clear picture of what the customer has in mind or what has more demand in the market (Weitz, Castleberry & Tanner 2009, p.4). The salesperson therefore has a major role of satisfying both the management and the customers. As a sales manager, one should consider on how he or she treats the employees below him and the total quality management. One should always open a two way communication with the employees so as to encourage a smooth flow of ideas from both sides on how to improve the sales docket. One should also consider what effects the strategic plans made have on the personal or family lives of the employees and make clear the importance and nature of their work (Zippel 1998, p.20). On the other hand, Total Quality Management (TQM) is changing many aspects of the business and thus this has made many sales management methods contradict TQM. The TQM uses salespeople to connect the firm’s internal operations to the customers. TQM’s role of the salesperson is not only to satisfy the customers and the management but also to combine voice and visuals in management so as to save both time and money (Futrell 2009, p.52). The sales manager should be the eyes and the one giving orders to make sure that everything moves on smoothly. A sales manager should always edit information ahead of time making sure that all the responsibilities are clearly cut out and also that the end product is well described so as to avoid mistakes like the ones in the case study. The sales manager should also interact with the parties involved. One should ask and answer questions to the employees, management and the customers. In case of a noisy industry, a sales manager is actually in charge of controlling the noise and interruptions and also having audio backups so as to have an effective communication in the production. The manager is also in charge of debugging and making employees practice so as to avoid hitches in the production process (Ingram et al, 2009, p.54). A sales manager should never have a clear and limited agenda. There should always be space for dynamism and improvement in either the product or the process. One person should also not be allowed to dominate and call all the shots since there will be a monotony of ideas and less improvement (Futrell 2009, p.53). There should also be a prohibition of body language since it is hard to read and difficult to understand. Communication should be verbal so as for everyone to get a clear idea of what is expected of them. Technology always makes work easier. The employees should use it often in order to get comfortable with the technology especially if it is newly introduced. The material should also be made clear so as not to confuse the employees and get the wrong products like in the case study. In order for any person to be promoted to sales management, it should be the top producing salesperson. Sales ability alone is not enough to get a spot in the management. One should have expertise in all aspects of selling. The social character of a sales manager should also be checked so as to make sure that he does not lead an unhappy life or will be ineffective in managing other salespeople. Sometimes effective managers are even laterally transferred from other departments like finance and advertising due to maybe their management abilities. This is a wrong move since the manager lacks basic sales abilities that everyone needs in sales. Hiring someone from outside of the organization maybe because of his sales and management abilities is also fatal since the newcomer is unfamiliar with the company policies, organizational goals and also the overall office practices expense account procedures (Weitz, Castleberry & Tanner 2009, p.7). Among the activities carried out by the sales manager working with the sales representatives and recruitment are the most important ones. The sales manager is the boss in this docket and should therefore give directions to the sales representatives on how to carry out their field work and also within the organization. Being experienced in the firm and the docket, the sales is in a good position to make good decisions that will see the firm’s management and the customers are satisfied(Futrell 2009, p.56). The sales manager should also have the eye to recruit effective junior salespersons or interns. The manager should be able to tell a good salesperson during recruitment. The sales manager is also responsible for training and developing new and old employees. They should learn from him about the company policies and its organizational goals. The manager should also be a mentor on how sales are carried out in the organization. The manager is also responsible for counselling coaching and appraisals. Managing includes encouraging your juniors and praising them when the work is well done. Administration is one of the major responsibilities of the manager and it includes self management. One should be self disciplined and lead by example. A great leader should provide employees with a sense of mission give immediate feedback and create a challenging work environment. One should also develop the careers and talents of the employees and most importantly reward and praise an employee as a person and as a part of the whole team to encourage teamwork (Weitz, Castleberry & Tanner 2009, p.14). Sales force, as stated, is therefore a main growth engine for a firm and a decisive source of market feedback. Sales force is also a vital investment which if not kept in check could grow out of control. There should therefore be a balance where costs are controlled whereas still stimulating the sales force. A good manager will get ways in which to cut costs and still keep raising the sales. This could be done through realigning territories, reallocating salesperson time, analyzing the sales calls, shifting to or from product or market emphasis and lastly by adjusting the size of the sales force (Ingram et al, 2009, p.56). Conclusion In the case study, the sales person should agree on what are the reasonable improvements in her docket. She should communicate more with the other parties and make a step by step plan on how to improve communication so as not to repeat the mistakes again. She should also be a part of the whole process as an administrator giving orders and as a salesperson receiving them from the customer. Her rudeness to Jack also shows very weak characteristics of a sales manager. Leaders should always be there to motivate those who want to improve, to participate in the whole sale, to show commitment and realism of the objectives that they give to the employees. They should be a part of the team and have a self image as the coach. They should love changes, group decision making and team work. The leaders should share all the news and information and show that they expect results and progress. As a leader one ought to have the capability of determining a recommendable sales force organisation, determine the number of salespeople needed, develop a job description, recruit and select people while providing training. One should also come up with sales operations which will assist the sales organization to run efficiently, effectively and in support of the company’s objectives and strategies. References Futrell, C. 2009, Fundamentals of selling: Customers for life through service. Boston: McGraw- Hill Irwin, pp 43-69. Ingram, T. et al, 2009. Sales management: analysis and decision making. Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe, pp 45-75. Weitz, B, Castleberry, S. & Tanner, J. 2001, Selling: building partnerships. 4th ed. Boston : McGraw-Hill Irwin, pp 540-544. Weitz, B, Castleberry, S. & Tanner, J. 2009, Selling: building partnerships. Boston: McGraw- Hill Irwin, pp 2-25. Zippel, C. 1998, Relationship selling strategies to increase cooperation from dominant retail channel partners: a conceptual framework. Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketing Science, University of South Australia. Read More