Training

Assessing Training Needs

Management objectives
products, customers, relationships

Sales force observation & survey

time, problems, needs, successes, concerns, etc..
focus groups analysis

Customer observation
Company records (10-1)
Trends & relationships: sales, new customers,
turnover, calls per day, etc..

Setting objectives: skills vs. information

Training
Assessing Training Needs
What other companies do (10-2 & 3)
Steps in performing training analysis (10-4)

Training
Evaluating Sales Training

Level One:

Reactions

Are trainees satisfied? This also

provides information so that the
parts they dont like can be improved.

Level Two:

Learning

Did the training change attitudes,

increase knowledge, or improve the
skills of the trainees? This usually
requires testing before and after
the training.

Training
Evaluating Sales Training

Level Three

Behavior

Are salespeople using their knowledge

and skills on the job? This may be
measured in a variety of ways: asking
salespeople, sales manager observation of salespeople, and questioning
customers.

Level Four:

Results

What effect does the training have on

the company? The bottom line
results of training can include
increased sales, higher profits, more
new customers, and reducing costs.

Training
In-Class Exercise 10-1
1.What special problems exist in this scenario?
2.What are some of the unstated problems that may
exist in this situation?
3. If you were the sales manager, what additional
directions would you give the marketing
manager in preparation for presenting the
training plan in the second scene?
4. Does the sales manager run any risks with
respect to this training session?

Training
In-Class Exercise 10-1
5. What will salespeople want to know about the new
product?
6. What are the alternative approaches or pedagogy that
you could use in training?
7. Give a detailed outline of how you would run this
meeting. Include time segments for each part of the
meeting.

Assess
Assess
Training
Training
Needs
Needs

What
What
Topics?
Topics?

Setting
Setting
Objectives
Objectives

Where
Where
totoTrain?
Train?

Training
Training
Methods?
Methods?

Evaluating
EvaluatingTraining
Training

Follow-Up
Follow-UpTraining
Training

Setting
Setting
Budget
Budget

Trainers?
Trainers?

Training
How much to spend on training?
Averages for new salespeople
$$$$

Time

Consumer
$8,913

$5,513

4.2 months Industrial

4.1 months Service $8,014

months
Source: Dartnell Corporation: Sales Force Compensation Survey, 1996

4.1

Table 10-1 Cross-Tabulations from Company Records

Experience
Less than 2 year
2-5 years
5-10 years
Over 10 years
Regions
Northeast
Southeast
Midwest
Southwest
West

Average Order
Size per
Salesperson

New Customers
per Salesperson

Total Customers
per Salesperson

392
593
565
470

21
29
5
8

86
145
152
139

528
520
512
421
544

6
8
18
26
21

140
161
107
111
131

Table 10-5 Sales Training Evaluation Practices

Measure
Trainee feedback
Supervisory
appraisal
Self-appraisal
Bottom-line
measures
Customer appraisal

Criteria
Type

Importance
Rank

Reaction
Behavior

1
2

Behavior
Results

3
4

Behavior

Training
Evaluating Sales Training
Experimental Design
Notation:

O1 = Results before sales training

X1 = Sales training
O2 = Results after sales training
O2 -

O1 = Difference in results

Experimental Group O1

X1

Control Group O3

O4

O2

Sales Training effect (O2 - O1 ) - (O4 - O3 )

BUILDING A SALES TRAINING PROGRAM

1. Treat all employees as potential career employees.
2. Require regular re-training.
3. Spend time and money generously.
4. Salespeople and sales managers must take the lead in
what goes into the program.
5. In times of crisis, increase, rather than decrease, the
training program.

developing

STEPS IN PERFORMING A TRAINING ANALYSIS

1.
2.

3.

4.
5.
6.
7.

Interviewing key members or management to find out what changes are needed in performance
of the sales force.
Sent an anonymous questionnaire to customers and prospects asking:
What do you expect of a salesperson in this industry?
How do salespeople disappoint you?
Which company in this industry does the best selling job?
In what ways are its salespersons better?
Sent a confidential questionnaire to each salesperson asking:
What information do most of our salespersons need?
What information do you want to learn better?
What skills do most of our salespersons need to improve?
Other suggestions for ongoing training?
Did field audits (making sales calls) with 20% of the sales force?
Interviewed sales supervisors.
Analyzed the information gathered in Steps 1 through 5 to determine trainable topics and separate them.
Discussed and agreed on training priorities with management.*

*James F. Carey, Assess Your Personal Needs, Sales and Marketing Management, (November, 1977),
Special Report.

Table 10-2 Average Cost and Training Period for Sales Trainees

Consumer

$5,513
$8,913

Industrial

$8,014

Service

Consumer
Industrial
Service

4.10
Months
4.10
Months

4.20
Months

Table 10-3 Average Cost and Training Period for Veteran Salespeople

$4,887

$5,000
Median spending

$4,021

$4,000
$3,000

$3,834
$3,337

$2,498

$2,000
$1,000
$0
Under $5
Million

$5-$25 $25-$100 $100-$250 Over $250

Million Million Million Million

Company size

Training
Allocating training time
Average
Product knowledge

35%

Market/Indus Information

15

Company Orientation

10

Selling Techniques

30

Other topics
\
Total

10
100%

INDUSTRY JARGON
What does HCFA say?
DRGs are killing us.
Is this level II in the POL regs?
The LTC markets future looks good.
The HME industry is changing rapidly.
How about:

Reflotrons
Spirometry
Holters
Oxygen Concentrators
Thoracic Catheter

INDUSTRY JARGON
What does HCFA say?
DRGs are killing us.
Is this level II in the POL regs?
The LTC markets future looks good.
The HME industry is changing rapidly.
How about:

Reflotrons
Spirometry
Holters
Oxygen Concentrators
Thoracic Catheter

OJT SALES TRAINING

Eighty percent of a new field salespersons training should be focused on
developing customer profiles, digging out account survey data, and building
working relationships in the field. Fifteen percent of his time can then be
invested in learning about how your product or service is used by existing
customers. The field is the place to gain product knowledge, not from an
engineer or home office instructor.
Only 5% of a new field salespersons time, then, should be spent on
developing selling skills. Again, the place to do this is face-to-face with real
customers: setting and testing real precall objectives and asking for real
opportunities to do business. Understanding what has to be done to build selling
skills can be mastered in 15 minutes. Doing it takes years of actual, not simulated
practice.
Jack Falvey
Contributing Editor
Sales and marketing Management
Source:
To Develop The Best Salespeople, Let Them Do It Themselves, Sales and Marketing Management,
(November 1988), p. 87.

Table 10-2 Average Cost and Training Period for Sales Trainees

Consumer

$5,513
$8,913

Industrial

$8,014

Service

Consumer
Industrial
Service

4.10
Months
4.10
Months

4.20
Months

Table 10-3 Average Cost and Training Period for Veteran Salespeople

$4,887

$5,000
Median spending

$4,021

$4,000
$3,000

$3,834
$3,337

$2,498

$2,000
$1,000
$0
Under $5
Million

$5-$25 $25-$100 $100-$250 Over $250

Million Million Million Million

Company size

Training
Why train salespeople?
Reduce turnover - high among new staff
Improve customer relations
Better morale & confidence
Control - consistence message
Increased sales

Determining Training Needs*

Judgement of:
Top Management

68%
73%

Sales Management
Training Department

60%

Interview With:
Salespeople
Customers

59%
25%

*Percent of firms indicating they often use these assessments to determine training needs.
Source: Robert Erffmeyer, K. Russ, and Joseph Hair, Needs Assessment and Evaluation in Sales Training
Programs, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, 11,1 (Winter, 1991), p. 21.

Determining Training Needs

Continued*
Performance Measures:
Sales Volume
Customer Service
Other Measures:
Observation of
Salespeople
Attitude Surveys

56%
51%

38%
28%

*Percent of firms indicating they often use these assessments to determine training needs.
Source: Robert Erffmeyer, K. Russ, and Joseph Hair, Needs Assessment and Evaluation in Sales Training
Programs, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, 11,1 (Winter, 1991), p. 21.

Evaluating Training Effectiveness*

Reactions:
Trainees

86%
68%

Supervisors
Learning:
Performance
Pre-vs. Post Training
Behaviors:
Supervisors Appraisal
Customer Appraisal
Results:
Bottom Line

63%
31%
64%
41%
40%

*Percent of firms indicating they often use these evaluations to measure training results.
Source: Robert Erffmeyer, K. Russ, and Joseph Hair, Needs Assessment and Evaluation in Sales Training
Programs, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, 11,1 (Winter, 1991), p. 21.