Practice in the sales profession and current competency research indicate salesperson competence is key to organizational competitive advantage. With models of selling evolving to respond to the marketplace, there are changes in the competency requirements and roles people must play for future success, resulting in the emergence of new kinds of sales professionals. While there has been research in the area of entry-level salesperson competency, there is a gap in the literature regarding sales manager competence. Despite potential for sales managers to influence salesperson performance in the evolving sales models, research focusing on sales manager selection, development, and performance is limited. The purpose of this research was to synthesize sales manager competency perceptions, propose an inventory of competencies for frontline sales managers (FLSMs) in for-profit organizations that can assist in improving individual, team, and organizational performance, and generate recommended uses of the competency model that could serve as a guide for human resources initiatives to increase levels of sales force effectiveness. The Delphi technique was the chosen research method for this study, with an expert panel of 35 nominated Chief Sales Officers (CSOs) and FLSMs. Through a threeround electronic questionnaire series, the panel reached consensus on 34 competencies in eight clusters in the following three categories considered essential for exemplary performance by FLSMs: team effectiveness, personal effectiveness, execution and results. All numerical data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Spearman's rank order correlation coefficient was used to determine the degree of agreement among respondents, and the constant comparative method of data analysis was used to synthesize panelist's input. The findings of this study resulted in the following conclusions: Exemplary performance in FLSMs requires competence in developing and sustaining inter- and intrapersonal skills excellence as compared to the functional selling skills required for high individual contributor performance; There was agreement in how CSOs and FLSMs perceive competency importance; There was strong disagreement in how CSOs and FLSMs perceive FLSM competence; Both groups report they would use the FLSM Competency Model as a coaching tool; FLSMs noted the primary use of the competency model would be to benchmark their skills.

The use of personality traits in the determination of an individual’s future job performance is considered to be a valid measure that offers organisations the ability to carry out career planning, pre-employment selection and promotional testing amongst other uses. The incorrect placement of an individual has negative implications on the business that manifest themselves in different forms but the most prevalent is that of the loss of productivity and increased costs. This study was carried out in the hope of producing an additional measure in the identification of the most suitable candidates for a sales management position.The study was conducted utilising a qualitative research design. A total of (n) = 218 respondents took part in this study and completed the research instrument. The statistical tests that were conducted are that of correlation and linear regression testing between the identified independent and dependent variables.The results produced from the study corroborate the use of personality traits as a predictor of an individual’s future job performance is flawed. It was determined that the dimensions of the big five personality traits were not correlated to, nor could not offer any predictive ability with the required level of significance that of the dependent variables. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:26:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Marcio Pereira da Silva.pdf: 1081774 bytes, checksum: 28c866788a038f202e9d8ddf2ba12ef9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-08-19 / This study aims to understand the process of learning the skills of sales managers in the pharmaceutical segment to the performance of their duties. The choice to study this particular segment is due to the specificity of their work since, unlike the vast majority of managers, the sales manager works in a foreign environment (extern ambient), ie, without access to the company's office or physical resources. Moreover, few studies discuss the topic in the context and specificity of the pharmaceutical industry. This is a qualitative study that used as data construction strategy semistructured interviews conducted with 12 sales managers of the national and multinational pharmaceutical industry: four primary care business managers, four managers of the hospital business and four managers of government business. To discuss formal, informal and experiential learning, the studies of Watkins and Marsick (1992) and Kolb (1984) were used, and to address skills, above all, the holistic models of Cheetham and Chivers (1998), Le Boterf (2003) and Zarifian (2001) were considered to contextualize the world of the work sales manager in the pharmaceutical industry. The results show that the process of learning the skills of the sales manager occurs more significantly in informal learning experiences in everyday life. The managers barely went through formal learning experiences that were helpful to them in the transition process in career after promotion. Considering the model of Cheetham and Chivers, the four dimensions of competency: cognitive, functional, behavioral and values/ethics were observed, the latter two with significant relevance, due to the strengthening of the political code of conduct of the pharmaceutical industry in recent years. / O presente estudo tem como objetivo compreender o processo de aprendizagem das competências dos gerentes de vendas do segmento farmacêutico para o desempenho das suas funções. A opção por estudar esse segmento se deve à especificidade da sua atividade profissional, dado que, ao contrário da grande maioria dos gestores, o gerente de vendas trabalha em um ambiente externo, ou seja, sem acesso aos recursos físicos da empresa ou escritório. Além disso, poucos estudos versam sobre o tema no contexto da indústria farmacêutica. Trata-se de um estudo qualitativo que utilizou como estratégia de construção de dados entrevistas semiestruturadas realizadas com 12 gerentes de vendas da indústria farmacêutica nacional e multinacional: quatro gerentes do negócio primary care, quatro gerentes do negócio hospitalar e quatro gerentes do negócio de governo. Para discutir aprendizagem formal, informal e experiencial recorre-se aos estudos de Watkins e Marsick (1992) e Kolb (1984), para tratar de competências considerou-se, sobretudo, o modelo holístico de Cheetham e Chivers (1998), bem como Le Boterf (2007) e Zarifian (2001) para contextualizar o universo de trabalho do gerente de vendas da indústria farmacêutica. Os resultados demonstraram que o processo de aprendizagem das competências do gerente de vendas ocorreu de forma mais significativa pela aprendizagem informal em experiências vividas no dia a dia. Os gestores pouco passaram por experiências de aprendizagem formais que os ajudassem no processo de transição na carreira quando foram promovidos. Considerando o modelo de Cheetham e Chivers, as quatro dimensões da competência: cognitiva, funcional, comportamental e valores/ética foram observadas, estas duas últimas com significativa relevância, em virtude do fortalecimento das políticas de código de conduta da indústria farmacêutica dos últimos anos.