LV thạc sỹ_Improving sales competencies of project sales executive in sain gobain vietnam

Objectives of this study are:  To assess the current competency of project salesmen in SGVN  To find out the gap between desired sales competency and current competency ofproject sales

This study would not have been completed without the guidance and the help of severalindividuals who contributed and extended their valuable assistance in the preparation andcompletion of this study

First and foremost, I would like to express my utmost gratitude to Dr…

Finally, I would like to thank all my colleagues who warmly helped and took part in surveys aswithout it I could not complete this study with sufficient information

AAC: Autoclaved aerated concrete

GIC: Gyproc Installer Club

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The project sales team of Saint Gobain Vietnam (SGVN) had been set up for two years Sincethen there is no official research about sales competencies of project salesmen This is the firstresearch for SGVN about how to improving sales competencies in highly competitiveVietnamese gypsum market today

Objectives of this study are:

 To assess the current competency of project salesmen in SGVN

 To find out the gap between desired sales competency and current competency ofproject salesmen in SGVN

 To draw a plan for improving sales competencies of the project salesmen in SGVN

To reach the objectives, the following research methods had been used:

 Data collection through questionnaire survey and in depth interviews

 Data analysis in quantity and quality, with the support of Microsoft Excel

And here is the result of this study:

A sales competency frame work for project salesmen of SGVN was built up from two concrete bases:

 Internal Focus: From Sales process, internal & external relationship of project salesmenand requirement of sales & marketing managers

 External Focus: From the World Class Sales competency and the Seven Emerging SalesCompetency

A survey was conducted to analyze the current sales competencies status of project salesmen It

is shown that the most advantage of project salesmen in SGVN is experience and product andmarket knowledge as well But they have some abilities and skills need improving:

 Pro activeness

 Building and maintaining relationships with stake holders in project

 Personal Accountability

 Consultative Problem Solving

 Understanding Financial Impact of Decision

The research also reviewed current sales performance assessment (KPI table) of SGVN and findout that it need adjusting to be more fair and suitable Because it might have leaded to lowmotivation in working and affects badly to sales competency improvements

Some recommendations are made which focus on solving the three most important issues toimprove sales competencies

 Adjusting the sales performance assessment (KPI table)

 Sales Training to improve the lack competencies

 Motivation Sales Force

It is necessary to solve the three issues together because SGVN need to have a comprehensiveplan to improve sales competencies and maintain high sales performance in future

TABLE OF CONTENT

Problems with leniency and strictness 10

Problems with central tendency 10

Problems with personal prejudice 10

Problems with halo effect 10

Problems with recent performance effect 10

1.3 Developing an externally-Focused, Market-driven Model 13

1.5.1 Sales Competency Assessment Process 17

1.5.1.1 Determinant of Sales Competency 17

1.5.1.2 Appraisal Participants 17

1.5.1.3 Assessment Process 18

1.5.2.2 360 degree competency assessment 19

1.5.2.4 Behaviorally anchored rating scales 20

CHAPTER 2 21

2.1 About Saint Gobain Vietnam 21

2.1.1 Saint Gobain Vietnam Company Chart 21

2.1.2 The Saint Gobain Vietnam Sales Chart 22

2.1.3 Distribution Channels of Saint Gobain Vietnam 23

Chart 2-5 Distribution Channel of SGVN 24

Relationship among the two departments and customers 24

2.1.4 Competition Analysis of Saint Gobain Vietnam 25

2.2Building a sales competency framework 29

2.2.2 Mapping the sales process 30

2.2.3 Building Sales Competency Framework for Project salesmen of SGVN 33

2.2.3.1 Sales Process Based 33

2.2.3.2 Internal and External Relationships Based 35

3.3Motivating the project salesmen 53

3.3.1 Motivation defined 53

3.3.2 Determinants of action and inaction 53 3.3.3 Motivational tools 55 3.3.4 Motivation, Job satisfaction and Performance 57

INTRODUCTION

1 Introduction

1.1 Introduction of the topic

In business today, salesmen become more and more important They are the ones who directlycreate revenue and make profit for any companies whether you are in service or production field.Coming back to some arguments that salesmen is not important and selling is an easy taskbecause when services or products are good enough, customers will know to choosethemselves It could be misled and totally wrong

I do not want to deny the truth that if services or products are not qualified enough or met thedemand of customers, nobody will buy it But who makes them buy, who consult and convince

them to change their awareness about products and help them understand the need that eventhey do not know it exists, that is salesman That’s why I say, salesmen is the key influentialfactor to sell services or products or in some other sayings “they not only to educate market butalso inspire the need of market”

This research helps to understand the way to build and develop competencies of projectsalesman in business with customers (users or distributor) so that Saint Gobain Vietnam(SGVN) will find it useful and feasible in highly competitive market today

1.2 Rationale of this research

Saint Gobain Corporation is a giant in global construction material, ranked 126th in 500 biggestcorporation in the world currently (in 2009)

In 2005, Saint Gobain acquired BPB and became the No1 in the world with based Gypsum products.SGVN was then established in 2007 with an European Standard factory in Nha Be district, HoChi Minh, selling its gypsum boards (brand name Gyproc) through some Vietnamese maindistributors: three in the North and three in the South

Up to present, all main distributors are doing very well as the roles of distribution channels,they account for nearly 100% total revenue of factory so the truth that “the successful business

of SGVN is mainly Abilityd by them is undeniable”

And SGVN also awares that it is depending much on domestic distribution channels What willhappen if the distributors become “unhealthy” or they do not want to cooperate with SaintGobain in future? And what is the role of leading market of SGVN as the manufacturer?

Besides, the competitors in gypsum field in Vietnamese market are increasing They come fromdeveloped countries: France, China, Japan, and America They could be equal or lower quality,comparing to SGVN but they always try to innovate their products and technology

In 2007 – 2009 period, people in construction field only know about Gyproc or Lagyp, the twobiggest gypsum French companies in Vietnam with standard boards (board with normalfunction) But at present, there are many brand names from other countries like: Daiken,Armstrong, Owa, Smart Board, with various functional boards for specified purposes (firestop, moisture resistance, strong robust, sound reduction or insulation )

Moreover, such competitors are building or already have good project salesmen Their projectsalesmen not only have good specified background about gypsum in construction filed but theyare also very sensitive with customers and the trends of market

In fact, with the same projects in certain areas, project salesmen of other gypsum companieshas quicker and better way to approach customers than SGVN They could have larger businessnetworks or relationships; they could be more sensitive in communicating with customers thatmake them always come one step faster than us Even with the first sight, they always show avery professional and customer-oriented attitude

They are also good at following, taking care of customers Creating contacts with customers isdifficult but maintaining and developing them is much more difficult Otherwise, we will lose

customers Frankly to say, SGVN project salesmen usually lose 20% of customers after somefirst contacts because we cannot manage to follow them

In term of soft skill or knowledge, our project salesmen are not good or equipped enough to winmost of business cases, comparing to other project salesmen or our strength and advantage are notreally clear

With current situation, SGVN knows that product is not our sole advantage at all so the projectsalesmen will play the most important role to the success or failure of winning projects

There are two biggest rising problems that will affect directly Gyproc Brand name if we do nothave competent project salesmen:

- Our competitors will surpass us and take over Vietnamese market shares, Gyproc brandname will lose its position in customers’ mind

- Main distributors will always act more initiatively than SGVN and they will becomeless depend on SGVN in term of price and products

SGVN must play a truly active role as a bridge between main distributors and customers Wemust take initiative movements in market and become closer to customers

We must have competent project salesmen” otherwise “SGVN will continue to depend ondistributors and could not compete with other competitors”

2 Objectives of this study are:

- To assess the current competency of project salesmen in SGVN

- To find out the gap between desired sales competency and current competency of projectsalesmen in SGVN

- To draw a plan for improving sales competencies of the project salesmen in SGVN

3 Scope and limitation of the research

3.1 Scope of research

Because of time constraint, I propose to focus on improving competencies for the projectsalesmen, which are useful and compatible with Vietnamese market Meaning I might refer toglobal sales competencies model but only try to improve the ones which are suitable withcurrent status of SGVN

The main objects in this research are project salesmen in Marketing Department of SGVN andthe directors, managers of this department because they are the ones who involve and take themost benefit from this research.

Other reference to other project salesmen if any, only to main competitors in Vietnam market:Lagyp (Gypsum board manufacturer of Lafarge Corporation), other light brick manufacturers

Time to collect data:

- Primary data: Taking from August to September 2011, it was a busy time of MarketingDepartment with many events and meeting so salesmen who were surveyed could nottake part in fully to show their most accurate output for survey

- Secondary data: Taking from sources on internet, company database but it is not highlyaccurate because it is public or they are secret figures to SGVN

External data: Due to limitation of time and because this is first building sales competency of

SGVN This research will not do the survey from customers as usual sales competencyassessment So this may lack the aspect from customers’ opinions this time

4 Methodology of research

4.1 Data collection

• Secondary data will be collected through: company’s database, other sources on internet tostudy the sales competencies regarding to competency assessment framework

- Company database: market share, labor, revenue, competitors…

- Source on internet: world competency model, world emerging sales competencies These data help to describe more clearly the situation of project salesmen in SGVN andmake a better reference to the world standard sales competency

• Primary data will be collected through:

- Survey:

Questionares

- For creating questionnaires, I will base on the objectives of this study So theinformation or criteria in questionnaires should be sufficient and concise

- The information from survey will be collected and structured according to the salescompetency assessment frame using to assess project sales competencies.

- Questionnaires will be conducted among salesmen in Marketing Department of SGVN

- Size of doing survey by questionnaire is 15 as the whole project salesmen from fourlevels: Director, Manager, Senior and Executive

- The questionnaire was distributed online to all participants The research was conductedduring the months of August to September 2011

There are three type of question:

- The graphic scales questions: 05 questions

- The check list question: 05 questions

- Open questions for comments and proposals: 10 questions

(Detail content of questionnaire is shown in Annex 1)

There will be some problems when doing survey:

Problems with leniency and strictness

The leniency bias crops when some raters have a tendency to be liberal in their rating byassigning higher rates consistently

Equally damaging one is assigning consistently low rates

Problems with central tendency

Some raters appraise all salesmen around the middle point of the rating scale and theyavoid rating the people higher or lower level

They follow play safe policy because of answer ability to management or lack ofknowledge about the job and person he is rating or least interest in his job

Problems with personal prejudice

If the rater dislikes any salesmen, he may rate them at the lower end and this may distortthe rating purpose and affect the career of these `

Problems with halo effect

To minimizing the halo effect, we should appraise all the salesmen by one trait beforegoing to rate on the basis of another trait

A person outstanding in one area tends to receive outstanding or better than averageratings in other areas as well, even when such a rating is undeserved

Problems with recent performance effect

In general, raters remember the recent appraisal of the salesmen and they usually followappraisal results last time

- In depth interview:

Main objects of interview are the director and manager of Marketing Department in SGVNFrom interviews, we can collect the comments and requirements about project sales teamcompetencies

(Guideline of in depth interview and list of interviewee is shown in Annex 2)

4.2 Data analysis

Data collected from survey will be analyzed in quality and quantity

Quantitative data: Microsoft Excel will be used to analyze frequency, percentage and summary.Descriptive statistic could be used to describe more clearly the gap between current situationand requirements

Qualitative data: It is compared to competency criteria in assessment frame to find out the lack,weakness and the gap between required and current competency

CHAPTER 1

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND ON SALES COMPETENCY

1.1 Overview Sales Competency

1.1.1 What is Sales Competency

Sales Profession: The occupation required to effectively develop, manage, enable, and execute

a mutually beneficial, interpersonal exchange of goods, services, or solutions for equitablevalue within the full context of the buying and selling relationship

This ramification of this definition should not be underestimated This definition not only helpframe the model of sales competency but also helps the advancement of the sales profession

This definition sets forth that:

- Selling requires a system approach to be effective

- The focus of the profession in the human agents involved in the exchange between customer and seller

- The purpose of the profession is a financial exchange based on value between buyer and seller

To understand competence, we must first understand that its building blocks are person’s ability

to process and make sense of information from the environment This information is thenturned into knowledge, skills and Abilities

Competency: The skill sets or actions, sometimes called critical behaviors, which relate to that

work context

Sales competencies: It is the abilities of a person which comprises ability, skills and knowledge

considered critical for successful sales performance

- Ability: Qualities inherent in the individual’s psychological makeup, which contribute

to overall sales success

- Skills: The abilities required to perform individual elements of the sales function, whichwhen combined, contribute to overall sales success

- Knowledge: Information about products or services, market, customer, competitor andcompany approaches to doing business

1.1.2 Today’s Sales Job Requirements

The sales process is now increasingly a relationship-driven process The fact that the salesproposition is often complex, particularly in terms of its financial components, meaning that thesales cycle often takes considerable time from first meeting to final decision and implementation.This means that the job of sales is complex, and becoming more complex all the time

The outstanding salesperson must:

- Be confident in him or herself in an ever-changing sales environment

- Create new sales opportunities and leverage them for success

- Take the time to build lasting customer and industry relationships

1.2 Sales Competency Framework

1.2.1 What is Sales Competency Model

A competency model is the name given to a set of skills, knowledge and behavior which, whenapplied to the whole sales team, deliver significant performance improvement They are seen as

an essential vehicle for achieving improved business performance through focusing andreviewing an individual’s capability and potential

The framework consists of a number of different competencies that form the profile of the idealsales person Each sales person is then marked against these competencies to determine wheretheir strengths and weaknesses are The gaps identified then form the basis for that individualdevelopment path

The sales person then has a set of objectives to work towards and is clear about how they areexpected to perform their jobs

1.2.2 How to build sales competency framework

- Identify the competencies that make up the sales profile which sales team are looking for(Ideally 8-10) It is important to ensure that the competencies are measurable

- Build the competencies into a delivery mechanism that is efficient and inexpedient Whilstpreviously paper-based, an online assessment function will work far more effectively – both interms of cost and time

- Determine the most effective way of benchmarking each individual – through assessmentcenters, manager assessment or external provider

- Structure the process to ensure that on completion of the competency assessment there is adeliverable training and development programs This should be blended in its format,consisting of one-to-one training, reading, classroom sessions, online learning etc Ideally, thedelivery mechanism will also then recommend the development plan automatically rather thanneeding manual management intervention

1.3 Developing an externally-Focused, Market-driven Model

In turbulent business environment, sales professionals fill multiple roles, both formally andinformal, and are faced with making many decisions that drive the outcome of their work.Sales team members who clearly understand their roles are those who are the most successful.Conversely, a vaguely defined role can have a negative impact on a sales person’s jobsatisfaction and performance It can impair his or her ability to communicate with othersalespeople and understand what is necessary for success

A clear definition of world class competencies can help better prepare salespeople to tackle theincreasingly complex challenges of selling in a global marketplace collapsed timeframes andsophisticated solutions It is time to evolve the way organizations view that preparation and tochange to a more systematic competency mindset from the just-in-time, on the job skillacquisition that many companies have used

Developing an externally-Focused, Market-driven Model

It is critical that organization adopt a market-oriented view when designing and developingsales training, Competency models based on internal systems, processes, and tool will miss themark An externally focused model, however, based on market changes and incorporatingcustomer needs and industry trends will help organization drive more revenue

In today’s buying and selling relationships, customers expect salespeople to change along withthem They expect salespeople to be professional who can understand changes in customers’business and to identify and satisfy their needs

So the suggestion that buyers most want:

- Business understanding and savvy: Salespeople must deeply understand the customer’s

business This means knowing the customers’ systems, strategies, challenges, andorganizational culture Intimate customer knowledge is now a prerequisite to being a value-added professional

- Creativity and out-of-the box thinking: When buyers have a business problem and pursue

outside assistance, it is frequently because they perceive their problem as unique andunsuited to conventional internal solutions They want innovation and fresh ideas forsolving their problems This type of thinking is a major source of value in today’ssalesperson

- Problem solving: Customers want salespeople to think beyond technical features and

function to the actual implementation of the product or service in the customer’s uniquebusiness environment Customers want to know what the offering will do for them Thenew sales professional must be a business consultant who can visualize a solution andensure the delivers results for the customer

- Accessibility: Creating a customer expectation that sellers are available 24/7

- Personal accountability: Customers do not want a salesperson to close the deal and run;

they want to work with a business partner who is personally committed to a successfuloutcome B2B customers are usually accountable for the results inside their organizations,and they want a partner in that accountability

- Loyalty and team spirit: Buyers expect salespeople to be their internal advocates, adapting

the selling company’s processes and practices to the customer’s benefit

- A solution mindset: Buyers expect a professional salesperson to diagnose, prescribe, and

resolve their issues, not just sell them products

These seven needs are real customer expectations that have evolved in the past five to tenyears They are not secret; they are demands that salespeople encounter everyday Salesmanmust put these demands in the context of their own sales force and create an organization ofpeople who can meet these customer needs with the right skills and abilities

This is how world class sales organization set them apart Their sales forces have evolved withtheir customers, cultivating new and complementary capabilities They have identified the

organizational approach that drives success with their customers, and they provide theirsalespeople with necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities to navigate that approach that drivessuccess with their customers, and they provide their salespeople with the necessary knowledge,skills and abilities to navigate that approach.

Often, organizations strive to manage or change salesperson behavior to achieve a goal.Managers learn to measure important metrics of salesperson activity, such as the number ofcalls to make an appointment or the number of proposals to close a deal Many managersdetermine who to hire based on the past behavior of the salesperson – again, often measured bymetrics Because the sales profession is so quantifiable, it seems appropriate to use past metrics

as determinant of future success, because they seem to be reflective of a salesperson’ ability toget the job done

But because selling is really about attaining business results, competencies can better help todefine the knowledge, skills, and abilities need to produce results Competencies provide a farmore effective way to predict future results and outputs

High competent salespeople exhibit the right behavior at the right time, with the high level of skills.For many salespeople, this ability is developed naturally New salespeople are expected to learn themost effective way to accomplish a task, and often learn it by trial and error

So “Why are some salespeople more effective than others?” Hypothetically speaking, if peoplecan experience the same environmental dynamics, theirs results should be similar

Effectiveness derives from a person’s behavior Goal setting, performance management,attention to detail, and team building skills provide the foundation for effectiveness Takinginitiative, inspiring, setting an example, delegating, coaching, creating, learning, coordinating,and acting strategically are demonstrable results or outputs of effectiveness

Because of the complexity of buyer-seller relationship, highly effective salespeople have theirown internal frameworks for organizing knowledge and responding to needs In other words,their hidden competencies become observable through their actions, in the form of an output.Then, based on customers’ response, sales people reinforce their positive abilities and correct orremediate their negative ones Yet this process of reinforcement and correction is oftencompletely unconscious

A results-based competency model highlights the competencies required to produce outputs orresults The key to improving performance lies in externally defining and organizing worldclass sales competencies, which include knowledge, skills and abilities

1.4 Seven Emerging Competencies

1.4.1 The Seven Emerging Sales Competencies

The first competency, Engaging in Self-Appraisal and Continuous Learning, was most

predictive of strength in the other competencies Historically, sales candidates have beenscreened for their impervious egos, which often refuse to recognize any room for improvement.Bur self-appraisal has become more and more critical to success in today’s flatter salesorganization A higher ratio of salespeople to sales managers entails fewer joint calls and less

face to face coaching The largest gap between the top salespeople was in Listening Beyond

Product Needs Less effective salespeople stop after determining expressed client needs; the

good ones press on to identify the business issues underlying them

The most competency to develop was Orchestrating Internal Resources Successful

salespeople treat company resources with the same degree of importance and creativity as theirprospects Many of the most successful spend up to half their time building collaborative,customer-focused relationships inside their organization

Salespeople who excel at Aligning Customer/ Supplier Strategic Objectives look to further the

interests of their customers’ firms as well as their own They keep current on developments thataffect customers’ business strategies, welcome opportunities to customize products or services,and have a long term perspective on the way they do business with customer

Establishing A Vision of a Committed Customer/ Supplier Relationship requires expanding

the customer’s understanding of what a business relationship can be A sales rep must build aflexible relationship that is responsive to market-place changes, and communicate achievableobjectives for the relationship while challenging the creativity of both organizations

Sales people who are adept at Understanding the Financial Impact of Decisions use their

internal resources in ways that are appropriate to the potential profitability of serving individualcustomers They also look for ways to contribute to customers’ profitability

Consultative Problem Solving requires anticipating possible problems and inviting discussion

on how overcome them It means determining the cause of a problem and identifying variousconstraints, then proposing innovative solutions that go beyond the immediate application ofthe product or service

1.4.2 Successful salespeople Often Disregard Manager’s Directive

Some traditionally oriented sales managers are not fully attuned to the need for salespeople touse these emerging competencies For example, they want reps to try to capitalize on everyopportunity and every customer’s expressed need In contrast, the top salespeople are veryselective They try to maximize strategic alignment for both customer and supplier They mayeven suggest buying from a competitor if it is in the customer’s best interest

In another example, top salespeople generally hold back on product introductions they feel arepremature, and may not introduce products until well into the sales cycle Some manager,however, may pressure them to meet sales goal, irrespective of the customers’ needs Becausesuccessful salespeople look for long term success for their customers as well as their owncompany, they require the solution they offer to undergo a more rigorous analysis

In still another example, many sales managers usually want their reps to spend as much time aspossible with customers The top people, however, spend time building relationship withinternal experts in such areas as info tech or manufacturing This enhances their knowledgebase and their ability to build cross functional solutions that they meet unique customers’challenges There are still managers who discourage, or at best fail to reinforce, the use oftechnology They see time spent on the computer as down time and believe that time should bespent only on revenue-producing activities The top salespeople, on the other hand, are adept atusing technology, in the sales process They are particularly skilled at building presentations,

facilitating pre and post call planning and qualification, and analyzing account and profitabilitypotential.

One can still find sales managers who stress standardized product sales But good sellers placemore emphasis on tailoring products in order to meet the precise needs of their customers Salesmanagers are often under pressure to compress the sales cycle, even at the expense of overallrelationship potential

1.5 Sales Competency Assessment Procedure

1.5.1 Sales Competency Assessment Process

1.5.1.1 Determinant of Sales Competency

- Ability: They are physical and psychological characteristics of an individual which

inherent in oneself since they were born or through training as time passing by Those abilities of individuals create certain advantages for people in job from the beginning For example, some people may be smarter or have stronger physic then others That make them naturally do job more quickly and effectively

- Skill: Job skills can also be called transferable skills, since they are the type of aptitudes you

acquire through work experience that can make you valuable to other employers, even

in different fields from the one you currently work Sometimes people refer to their

job skills as a skill set, and it’s important to showcase your skill sets on resumes,

especially if you are planning to seek work in a different field Even if you don’t havetremendous experience in the new field in which you’d like to work, your knowledge

and sense of what makes an employee more valuable can help you get a job.

- Knowledge: Job knowledge measures one’s mastery of the concepts needed to perform certain work.

Job knowledge is a complex concept that includes elements of both ability (capacity to learn)and seniority (opportunity to learn) It is usually measured with a paper-and-pencil test Todevelop a paper-and-pencil test to assess job knowledge, the content domain from which testquestions will be constructed must be clearly identified For example, a job knowledge testused to select sales managers from among salespeople must identify the specific knowledgenecessary for being a successful sales manager

1.5.1.2 Appraisal Participants

Depending on type and custom of company, participant in sales competency assessment may be

salesmen, supervisors, peer, subordinate, or even persons outside the company.Normally, there are 03 positions:

Employee: The people who are the main objectives of competency assessment They may be

the most important in assessment process However, they usually show positiveassessment about their own competency

Peer: Sometimes, peers have better view of colleagues than supervisor because they work

together day by day But peers usually are not strict or partial enough to give outbiased assessments

Supervisor: Sales competency assessment received from supervisors is the most common

rating source They are in the best position to give a partial and honest assessment.The danger of their assessment is the substantial amount of power and influentialpower, often by hand of a single rater

1.5.1.3 Assessment Process

- Identify sales competency requirements

- Communicating sales competency requirements

- Measuring sales competency

- Comparing requirements & actual sales competency

- Discussing results

Identify sales competency requirements

Number of sales competency requirements is from 10 – 12 competencies

The sales competencies requirements should be clear, easily understandable

The sales competencies requirements must be the authority for approval from direct managers

Communicating performance criteria

Sales assessment procedure should be informed to all level of sales management and executives.The executives should be informed and the standards should be clearly explained in order to helpthem understanding their roles and to know what exactly is expected from them Salescompetency should also be communicated to the appraisers or the evaluators and if required

Measuring performance

- Prepare

Preparing all materials, notes agreed tasks and records of performance, achievements,incidents, reports etc – anything pertaining to sales competency

- Inform the sales team

To ensure the salesmen is informed of a suitable time and place and clarify purpose and type ofassessment

Give the salesmen the time to review and assess their sales competencies

- Review and measure

Managers / supervisors, salesmen review the sales competency requirements then compare tothe actual sales competencies

- Agree an action plan

An overall plan should be agreed with the salesmen, which should take account of the salesresponsibilities and review strengths and weaknesses

Comparing with desired criteria

The actual sales competency is compared with the desired criteria

Discussing results

The result of the assessment should be communicated and discussed with the salesmen

The feedback should be given with a positive attitude as this can have an effect on thesalesmen’ future performance

The purpose of the meeting should be to solve the problems and motive salesmen to perform betterThe results, the problems and the possible solutions are discussed with the aim of the problemsolving and reaching consensus

1.5.2 Sales Competency Assessment Methods

Sales competency assessment is a very important part of every sales team in term of measuringthe progress of and developing salesmen into the type of people that the organization wants onits staff There are many different ways to measure sales competency

1.5.2.1 Graphic Rating Scale

Graphic Rating Scale method lists a set of competency factors that the supervisors use to ratesalesmen performance using an incremental scale This method provides a high degree ofstructure for assessments Each salesmen competency is rated on a bipolar rate, ranging from

“poor” to “excellent’, usually 03 point (good, average and poor)

Advantages:

Rating scale method is quick, easy to use and understand as they are structured andstandardized The concept of the rating scale makes obvious sense; both appraiser and appraiseshave an intuitive appreciation for the simple and efficient logic of bipolar scale The result iswidespread accepted and popularity this approach It takes a little time, so the supervisor can domany reviews in a relatively short period of time

Disadvantages:

- Unclear standards: The rating scale may be too open to be explained that have little

relationship to sales competency which could be chosen

- Halo Effect: The assessment of supervisor to rate all salesmen as average

- Strictness/ Leniency: This has about the same effect as central tendency The supervisor ranksall off the salesmen high, or all of them as low

- Bias: It happens when all supervisors allows individual factors such as age, gender to affectratings of certain salesman

(See Annex 3 – example of Graphic rating scale)

1.5.2.2 360 degree competency assessment

In the formatted from of 360-degree competency assessment, the competency of a salesmanwill be assessed based on ideas of many other different people, for example customers,suppliers, peers and direct reports In case of using 360-degree competency appraisal, it is vitalthat the process be implemented in secret so that the subordinate reviewers (or staff) are madesure that all their assessments on competency are kept anonymous

Advantages:

- Offer a more comprehensive view towards the competency of salesman

- Improve credibility of competency appraisal

- Such colleague’s feedback will help strengthen self-development

- Increases responsibilities of salesmen to their customers

- The mix of ideas can give a more accurate assessment

- Opinions gathered from lots of staff are sure to be more persuasive

- Not only manager should make assessments on its staff performance but other colleaguesshould do, too.

- People who undervalue themselves are often motivated by feedback from others

- If more staff takes part in the process of competency appraisal, the organizational culture ofthe company will become more honest

Disadvantages:

- Taking a lot of time, and being complex in administration

- Extension of exchange feedback can cause troubles and tensions to several staff

- There is requirement for training and important effort in order to achieve efficient working

- It will be very hard to figure out the results

- Feedback can be useless if it is not carefully and smoothly dealt

- Can impose an environment of suspicion if the information is not openly and honestly managed

360 degree appraisal has four components:

This method also is expensive and time consuming

It becomes difficult for the manager to assemble, analyze and weigh a number of statementsabout salesmen’s competencies

(See Annex 4 – Example of Weighted checklist)

1.5.2.4 Behaviorally anchored rating scales

This method used to describe a competency rating that focused on specific behaviors or sets asindicators of effective or ineffective competency

It is a combination of the rating scale and critical incident techniques of salesman competencyassessment

CHAPTER 2

ASSESMENT OF CURRENT PROJECT SALESMEN COMPETENCY IN GOBAIN VIETNAM

SAINT-2.1 About Saint Gobain Vietnam

2.1.1 Saint Gobain Vietnam Company Chart

Saint Gobain Vietnam (SGVN) was found in 2007 with a factory, manufacturing EuropeanStandard Gypsum Board and opened Hanoi representative office in 2008

Total staffs are 120 in office and factory with six functional departments in the north and the south

Chart 2-1 Organization Chart Products of SGVN:

There are four types of products which SGVN is supplying: Plaster board, Ceiling Tiles, MetalComponents and Plasterboard Adhesive & Plaster

With Plaster boards (made of Gysum) in Vietnamese market, SGVN is producing StandardBoard; the remaining functional boards: Fire Stop, Moisture Resistance, High impactResistance are manufactured in Thailand due to more advanced technology

Chart 2-2 Product range of Saint Gobain Vietnam

HR

Department

Finance Department

Logistic Department

Sales Department

Marketing Department

Manufacture Department

Since 2007, SGVN sold out average 16 millions square meters gypsum board yearly, using inconstructing ceiling and internal wall The revenue scale is 50 – 50 percents equally for theSouth and the North.

With ceiling constructions, mostly 80% of building uses gypsum board for interior design(other material could be mineral fibre board, aluminum board, PVC board…) But with internalwall constructions, only 20% of building uses gypsum board People mostly prefer brick wall(clay-brick, cement brick or light brick) or soft cements to gypsum Because comparing togypsum, they have some certain advantages like: more durable, more solid, more concrete andeasy to break and almost cheaper…

Annual Growth:

The Vietnamese Gypsum Market has developed quickly in recent three years Although cominglater than other competitors but SGVN had a very smart marketing strategy The event ofbuying back Vinh Tuong Gypsum factory in 2007 is one of strong evidence It was to settleconcrete foundation for SGVN in Vietnam because Vinh Tuong is a giant in Vietnamesegypsum market with the widest distribution channels than the remaining distributors Andfrankly to say, the success of SGVN up to present still depends much on Vinh Tuong Theyaccount for nearly 70% of gypsum board revenue of SGVN

(Unit: VND)

2008 343,398,199,051 50,284,501,006

2009 372,029,807,611 8% 57,303,221,730 14% 2010

539,741,145,64

0 45% 80,859,895,105 41%

(Source: Internal Auditing Report of SGVN) Table 2-3 Annual Growth of Saint Gobain Vietnam

2.1.2 The Saint Gobain Vietnam Sales Chart

In this part, I would like to focus on describe more details about the two departments whichdirectly and the most involve in sales activities of SGVN and the relationships among people inthis two departments:

- Sales Distribution Department (08 people) which is in charge of managing

distributing channels They mostly work with primary distributors of SGVN in term ofcommerce, logistic and whole sales prices

- Marketing & Technical Department (22 people) which is in charge of marketing

strategy, technical issues and product developments

They mostly works with Sales Distributions Department in term of marketing activities,distributing channels, technical supports, marketing strategy and with customers(distributors, buyers, installers) in term of technical support, promotional prices,training activities

And project salesmen (15 people) are in Marketing Department but we work directlywith project stake holders (investor, architects, PM…)

Project salesmen are different from normal salesmen because they do not sell directly.

Project salesmen will always try to meet, present and convince the stake holders inproject to use gypsum wall instead of other kind of materials If customers are interested

in gypsum wall and they want to have the prices The project salesmen have to askdistributors or installers to get the prices

The project salesmen do not have any rights to decide prices because SGVN does notsell directly, it sells through distributors The only impact that project salesmen willhave is “With big projects, from 20.000 square meters and above; project salesmen canconsider to propose reasonable discounts for them

So we could see that which distributors or installers win the project is not important; the

most importance is “Project salesmen are successful in convincing the projects to use products and wall systems of SGVN” Generally, project salesmen work as marketing

officer and sales supporter in same time They are the bridges connecting direct sellers(distributors, installers) and buyers (the stake holders in projects)

Chart 2 -4 Structures of the Sales Distribution and Marketing - Technical Department

2.1.3 Distribution Channels of Saint Gobain Vietnam

GM of SGVN

Marketing Department

Marketing Department

South Sales Distributions Team

Marketing

Team

Technical Team

Project Sales Team

Vinh Tuong Tong Hy

Hy An

Vinh Tuong Huy Hoang Thanh Binh

Sales Distribution Department

North Sales Distributions Team

Gyproc Installer Clubs (HN and HCM)

Primary Distributors of Saint Gobain Vietnam

Currently, SGVN has five primary distributors: Vinh Tuong (branch in Hanoi), Huy Hoang,Thanh Binh (in the north) and Vinh Tuong (head quarter), Tong Hy, Hy An (in the south)

Among five primary distributors, Vinh Tuong is the strongest They account for nearly 60%revenue of gypsum board of SGVN Because they have the unique advantage comparing toother distributors in Vietnam: “Unlike others have to import or by steel frame, Vinh Tuongmanufacture steel-frame themselves, so they have huge advantage competitiveness”

In any case, Vinh Tuong is active to sell full packages (gypsum board, frame and labor) withbetter prices than others That makes them maintain the No1 position in gypsum market share

in construction field of Vietnam

Chart 2-5 Distribution Channel of SGVN Relationship among the two departments and customers

The two departments: Sales Distribution Department and Marketing & Technical Department Customers: Primary distributors, secondary distributors, installers and GIC.

- Primary distributors: Vinh Tuong, Huy Hoang, Thanh Binh, Tong Hy, Hy An

- Secondary distributors: They are under and managed by primary distributors They

could also be installers

- Installers: They are installers working in construction field in market and they could

buy gypsum board of SGVN through above channels

- GIC (Gyproc Installer Club) is a special installer club including qualified installers who

are chosen by Marketing Department They could be secondary distributors or not Butthey have very good skills in installing gypsum board for building (ceiling and internalwall) SGVN also organizes training course for improving theirs skills And with GIC,Marketing Department has direct promotional prices for specified projects Meaningwhen GIC has projects which reach certain level of volume set by MarketingDepartment, they would submit directly to SGVN while they do not need to submit

SGVN Distribution Channel

SGVN Distribution Channel

through primary distributors SGVN has this special policy because we want the discountmoney could flow directly to installers who have the good merit to promote Gyprocbrand name of SGVN to market

Now we could see that, the three parties: Sales Distribution Department, Marketing Departmentand “Customers” have integrated relationships… It is two-side way when talking about eachconnections among these party

Chart 2-6 Relationship among Project Sales team, Distribution Team, Distributor & GIC

2.1.4 Competition Analysis of Saint Gobain Vietnam

SGVN is a gypsum board manufacturer, using for built internal wall in high rise buildings.People like to use gypsum wall because it has some more excellent performance compared totraditional burned clay brick wall For example:

- Sound and thermal isolation, aestheticism, conformity, safety and high efficiency of using

- Average weight is only 1/10 of brick wall and 05 times quicker in installation

- Saving total 7% investment cost of building in average

But in construction material market today, there are some kinds of bricks which could havesame excellent performance comparing to traditional clay brick The most preference are kindkinds of cement brick or light-weight brick

We could see clearly that, SGVN has the two competitors in term of alternative constructionmaterials for building wall in market today:

- Direct Competitor: Other gypsum board manufacturers

Distribution Team (In Distribution Dept)

Distribution Team

(In Distribution Dept)

Project Sales Team (In Marketing Dept)

Project Sales Team (In Marketing Dept)

Distributors GIC

Distributors GIC

Commerce Channels Logistics

Whole sales prices

Distributing Channels

Technical Support

Marketing Activities

Technical Supports Discount prices

- Indirect Competitor: Cement brick or light-weight brick manufacturers

Direct competitors are other gypsum board brand names They come from many countries

From 2009 up to present, there are ten major gypsum board manufacture in the world (includedSaint Gobain) and they all presented in Vietnam

- KNAUF (trans-national, Germany base): production capacity is 1200 million squaremeter, equal to 13.11% of world production capacity Started in 1932 in Germany, todayKNAUF remains a family company with manufacturing plants in South America,Europe, Africa and Asia

- USG (USA): production capacity is 1125 million square meter, equal to 12.30% ofworld production capacity SHEETROCK is the most preferred brand name of gypsumplaster products in North America Established in 1902, USG is the oldest gypsumboard manufacturer in the world with manufacturing plants in North America (US,Canada, Mexico)

- LAFARGE (multi businesses, multinational, France base): production capacity is

1035 million square meter, equal to 11.31% of world production capacity Theirmanufacturing plants are located in North & South America, Europe, Africa, andAustralia

- NATIONAL Gypsum (USA): production capacity is 780 million square meter, equal to8.52% of world production capacity Established in 1925 with the well known brandname GOLDBOND Their manufacturing plants are located in the US

- GEORGIA-PACIFIC Gypsum (subsidiary of GEORGIA-PACIFIC group, USA):production capacity is 540 million square meter, equal to 5.90% of world productioncapacity Their manufacturing plants are located in the US

- YOSHINO Gypsum (Japan): production capacity is 520 million square meter, equal to5.68% of world production capacity Their manufacturing plants are located only inJapan Their brand name "TIGER" is very popular in Japan

- BNBM (multi businesses, Chinese state-owned corporation): production capacity is

480 million square meter, equal to 5.25% of world production capacity Their

manufacturing plants are located only in China.

- LAFARGE BORAL Gypsum in Asia (joint venture between LAFARGE group, Franceand BORAL group, Australia): production capacity is 370 million square meter, equal to4.04% of world production capacity Their manufacturing plants are located in Asia

- AMERICAN Gypsum (subsidiary of EAGLE Materials Inc., USA): production capacity

is 320 million square meter, equal to 3.50% of world production capacity Theirmanufacturing plants are located in the USA

- Other manufacturers with a combined production capacity is 1330 million square meter,equal to 14.54% of world production capacity

Source: World Drywall & Building Plasters (Industry forecasts for 2009 & 2014), published by The Freedonia Group

Chart 2-7 World Wallboard Manufactures in 2009

In Vietnam, since 2007 gypsum plaster products of world #1 and world #9 have been producedvia their subsidiaries, SAINT-GOBAIN Construction Products Vietnam (GYPROC brand) andLAFARGE BORAL Gypsum in Vietnam (LAGYP brand) Since then, the biggest competitor of

SGVN can be considered as LAGYP

Gypsum market share is divided in to 45 – 35 percents (Gyproc – Lagyp) for the twocompanies The remaining market share is divided for other smaller competitors

Lagyp entered Vietnam before Gyproc but its market share was obtained some recent years due

to some SGVN’s effective marketing strategy

Lagyp had a lot experience and business network in Vietnam and Asia as well for a long time

In term of product technology, they are the No2 in the world compared to No1 Gyproc but theirprices are 10 – 15% lower than same kind of products of Gyproc

Generally, Lafarge has the similar company sales chart as SGVN But why they are always thebiggest threat to SGVN?

Firstly, Lafarge entered Vietnam since 2001, meaning 06 years earlier than SGVN At that time,the construction material field in Vietnam was new and young Lafarge became one of the firstleaders in construction material field Moreover, Lafarge has three kinds of product: cement,concrete and gypsum which made them have wider range of customers in construction

The time of 06 years was long enough for them to build up almost relationships in Vietnamesecustomers So business network in construction material field is the most advantage of them

Secondly, Lafarge originated from France like SGVN, the best country in the world in term ofarchitect and construction Lafarge also inherits and possesses the most advance technology inmanufacturing gypsum board If SGVN has various functional boards, Lafarge has either withsimilar qualities Besides, products’ prices of Lafarge are usually cheaper because they have awider distribution networks which were built six years earlier than SGVN

Thirdly, as the earlier leader, Lafarge has experienced and better understanding than SGVN interm of Vietnam business culture This is the biggest reason making their project salesmenusually be better than SGVN Their project salesmen know how to meet customers, when tomeet and how to keep contacting

Actually, with the same number of project, project salesmen of Lafarge will come 100% earlierthan SGVN While their project salesmen can find the right decision makers in 70% of cases,SGVN project salesmen only find in 30% of cases

If SGVN’ project salesmen are still being confused among function of marketing or salesbecause we do not sell directly Project salesmen of Lafarge are get used to with it, and they dotheir tasks in a professional way with full awareness of their power and responsibilities 100 %

of Lafarge project salesmen is clear about their position in sales cycle while 80% of SGVNproject salesmen is sometime unclear because they were established in nearly 02 years ago butfrankly, SGVN’ project salesmen are really in working one year recently

With those figures, we could understand how important the phrases “right people and right timeand right way” is Although Lafarge has some certain advantage of the earlier, we have to admitthat our project salesmen could not compete fairly with them at the moment Our businesssuccess is mostly contributed by primary distributors

Indirect competitors are other alternative construction material, especially for internal wall in

building such as: AAC brick, Cement brick (kind of light brick)…

Except traditional clay-brick wall, light weighted brick is the biggest threat to gypsum board inconstruction material field

Light brick and gypsum board are all alternative construction material in near future due tosome advantageous characters comparing to traditional brick

In some aspects, light brick even show more excellent performance compared to Gypsum: moredurable, quicker installation or easier to maintain, cheaper and suitable with Vietnamesetropical climate.

However, manufacturer of light brick wall are not many The technology to manufacture lightbrick is not so difficult Big Vietnamese construction corporations could implement already.Such companies has two advantages comparing to SGVN:

Firstly, Vietnamese construction corporations are almost related to government or separatedfrom state-own companies Meaning they have very good business relationships inconstruction field with authority and partners That is the most advantage of them comparing toforeign company like SGVN

Secondly, with good business networks available, they do not need to have distributingchannels Most of them set up their own trading companies or sales department to sell products

Their project sales will have full power as direct salesmen They have to right to negotiate anddecide the prices for projects They have the right to decide commission (which is veryimportant with Vietnamese people) to partners

In term of phrase “right people, right time and right way”, they are much better than SGVN.Because construction field in Vietnam is still small, most of investor knows each other verywell Project salesmen of SGVN will find it difficult to involve in their complicatedrelationships

The facts above show that SGVN’s project salesmen only could compete with their salesmenwith professionalism, sensitivity and better understanding of business

2.2 Building a sales competency framework

Sales competency framework is build for the only one ultimate reason: “Improving the salescompetency which helps to develop the business of SGVN”

Sales competency firstly comes from sales process Because sales process includes all sales proceduresneeded from the beginning point to closing point of sales cycles Basing on sales procedures, we couldindentify the required competency in each procedure as well as a whole sales cycle

But what does the sales process of a company come from? Of course, it comes from the salesstrategy of that company Because strategy is the direction and scope of an organization over the long-term: which achieves advantage for the organization through its configuration

of resources within a challenging environment, to meet the needs of markets and to fulfill stakeholder’s expectations" With the limitation of this research, strategy could not be long

term, it is a short term strategy in three years to come

So the step to build up a sales competency framework as following:

SALES COMPETENCY

SALE PROCESS SALES COMPETENCY

SALES COMPETENCY

(Source: World Class Selling – Competency-Based Sales Excellence) Chart 2-8 Steps to build sales competency framework

2.2.1 Creating a strategic sales plan

The first thing to create a competitive advantage is to have a clear strategic sales plan including

a comprehensive sales plan for SGVN in gypsum market

Competitive Advantages of Strategic Sales Planning helps us:

 Increased closing ratio by knowing clients hot buttons

 Improved client loyalty by understanding needs

 Shorten the sales cycle with outside recommendations

A strategic marketing is very comprehensive and it is combined by many 'generic' strategiesand strategies for pricing, distribution, promotion, advertising and market segmentation.Factors such as market penetration, market share, profit margins, budgets, financial analysis,capital investment, government actions, demographic changes, emerging technology andcultural trends are also addressed

In this research, with the purpose of building sales competency for project salesmen, I onlyfocus on some contents which will closely related and essential which will affect the creation ofsales competency frame work

Overall Objectives

The gypsum market in north Vietnam is very attractive and SGVN is one of the strongest brandname in the construction industry

Generally, strategy of SGVN in the North could be understood as:

- Developing the gypsum market in North Vietnam, making it be the best alternativeconstruction material in three to five years to come

- Stabilizing the position of Gyproc brand name in Vietnam because Vietnam iscurrently just a very small market while potential to use drywall is much bigger

- Adding more value (function) to gypsum board in Vietnam market and customerswill have more choices on our system (ceiling and internal wall)

- Focus on mid-end and high-end projects where condition to use gypsum wall inoperation are good enough for SGVN drywall to show all excellent performance

2.2.2 Mapping the sales process

The tasks of project salesmen begin from the first approach to project to the detail technicalsupport in executing drywall system After that, they will have to coordinate with distributors orinstallers to win the projects in final tender contracts

However, from the beginning to the end, it had never been an easy to know when we can be definitelysure that Gyproc products and proposed systems will be used Because we have to go throughprocedures; each procedure requires different competencies as well as the ways to approach

Project salesmen will work with many decision makers in a project: investors, architectures,project managers; sometimes decision maker are developers or consultants Each of peoplerequires different competencies and ways to communicate.

Here is the map of sales process which clearly describes the steps in sales cycle and the peopleinvolved in each step as well:

(Source: Present Sales Process of Project Sales Team of Saint Gobain Vietnam)

Chart 2-9 Sales process of SGVN Stage 1: Conceptual Design

The objectives of this stage are:

- To be the quickest approaching to customers comparing to other competitors

- To involve in conceptual design so the project will be designed with concept preferringusing gypsum wall and ceiling

- To explain and convince clearly about how excellent SGVN’s products and systems couldperform comparing to other alternative materials

The objective customers in this first procedure are:

- Investor or developers (sometimes they are the same) who are the owners of a project.They have the strongest impact on making decision but they only concern about theinvestment sides not the technical sides The task of salesmen is to meet, make presentation,educate and convince investors to use drywall (wall built from gypsum board)

- Architecture who will be in charge of technical issues of a project because the concept ofhow to design a project’s wall is done by them They are very important and if they propose

to investor or PM, the chance to win project will open

Stage 2

Basic Design

Stage 3

Specified Design

Stage 3

Specified Design

Stage 4

Tender Contract

Stage 4

Tender Contract

Investor Developer Architecture PM

Architecture PM

Contractor

Architecture PM

Contractor

PM Contractor PM

Contractor

- PM – Project management: They manage all related works in a project and they workclosely with investor, developer and architecture to ensure a project is done on purposeswithin the specified resources In some projects, PM even has stronger voice thanarchitecture and they present for the benefit of investor.

Stage 2: Basic Design

The objectives of this stage are:

- To keep contact closely with stake holders in projects

- To support any information about products and systems

- To avoid any doubt about the benefit of using SGVN’ products and systems

All investor, developer, architecture, PM still have the same importance and highly impact tothe decision whether to use drywall or other kind of wall Because it is just a basic design stage

so it is easy to change the concept of designing project’s wall If there is any conflict amonginvestor, architecture, PM, we will be not assure about they will use drywall So we have tokeep contact closely with them, to convince, support and keep them closed to each other,otherwise, all efforts from the first step will meaningless

Stage 3: Specified Design

The objectives of this stage are:

- To keep contact closely with stake holders in projects

- To support any information about products and systems

- To cooperate with contractors to win the projects

This is the stage after basic design which means we are nearly sure that they want to usedrywall for project’s wall design In this stage, we have to cooperate with architecture to giveout the proposal for drywall systems for project And we will work with PM for all technicaland preliminary investment issues That’s why in this stage, early we see the role of contractorbecause while working to give out the best drywall systems for project, we still need to concernabout the investment issues of investor The contractor will have an initial tender proposal to

PM and investor If they fail, even the specified wall design could be changed

Contractors here are our distributors or installers or GIC We can see that in this stage, the role ofinvestors is smaller but it is still a sensitive process

Stage 4: Tender Contract

The objectives of this stage are:

- To keep contact closely with stake holders in projects

- To cooperate with distributors, contractors to win the projects

This is the last stage but it is the most important, deciding whether our products and systemswill be used or not

The task of this stage mainly depends on the negotiation process among investor, PM andcontractors If our contractors fail in this stage, the project will use other brand of gypsum orthey will have alternative solutions for project’s wall

In this stage, we have to work closely with distribution team and contractors to ensure all thingsrelated to prices and logistic so that we could make them assure to use our products and systems

All mentions above are the most important points of project salesmen tasks in the sales process.Generally, the tasks of project salesmen are:

- Get connected with all stake holders in projects (investor, architectures,

PM)

- Educating, convincing all stake holders to use drywall instead of brick

wall

- Keep close relationship with investors, architectures

- Support all issues related to products information or technique

- Support to company’s brand name building

2.2.3 Building Sales Competency Framework for Project salesmen of SGVN

2.2.3.1 Sales Process Based

I just presented about the stages in sales process and the role of each partners (we can call themthe stake holders of project) in each stages With certain stages project salesmen need some

competencies to work effectively with stake holders in projects I would like to group the

competencies into 03 groups as following: knowledge, ability and skill

Salesmen who has sufficient knowledge about this usually find it easier

to clarify problems of customers, to take more experienced actions and toknow keeping contact longer

2 Having good business

networks with stake

4 Ability to work under

high pressure

Pressure is certain in any job but with salesmen, it is more frequent.Because customers can complain or require many things which salesmenhave to serve in best way

With pressure, people are pushed logically and it enhance theperformance of salesmen

5 Ability to manage time It is essential if a salesman know how to manage time to serve customers

without affecting quality of works

Salesmen need to manage time to work with many customers and tasks atthe same time If they could not manage time, they will never completetasks or they will lose customers due to lack of “in time service”

This skill is usually rooted from “orchestrating the internal resource”skill Because time is one of the resource of salesmen individually andcompany as a whole”

Skill

1 Good consultative and

negotiate skill Sales activity is an exchange benefits between sellers and buyer That’s why project salesmen not only have to consult customers well but also

know how to negotiate in order to get biggest benefit for the two parties

2

3 Good presentation skill Surely, if they cannot present clearly to people, how can they sell Making customers understand is the must requirement for salesmen when

they try to promote Gyproc brand into market

2.2.3.2 Internal and External Relationships Based

Sales Distribution Team belongs to Sales Distribution Department, they manage and work

with primary distributors in commerce and logistic term In the north SGVN have threedistributors: Vinh Tuong, Huy Hoang and Thanh Binh Under primary distributors, there aresecondary distributors or contractors but it is the business of the primary distributors Projectsales do not have any power to impact secondary distributors or contractors

GIC – Gyproc Installer Club is found by Marketing Dept, they are installers or contractors whowere chosen under SGVN qualifications

Their benefits to become member of GIC are:

- To be trained knowledge and skill about products and system installation

- To have discount in project as specified policy

- To be prioritized when we choose installers or contractors for projects

Project Sales Team belongs to Marketing Department GIC or other contractors in market will

buy products directly from primary distributors or they are secondary distributors underprimary distributors

Project Sales Team’s mission is to promote and build Gyproc brand in market through indirectselling When project salesmen convince successfully stake holders of projects to use SGVN’sproducts; and SGVN’s ceiling and wall system are put into specification drawing (stage 3) ofproject We then call our distributors or GIC into tender procedures because we do not selldirectly, we sell through distributors It is the strategy of SGVN like many others foreign

corporation in Vietnam (IBM sells computers through FPT, Kohler – a best American hygieneceramic products sold by Sai Gon Rita or Lagyp sold by some primary distributors)

During working with stake holders in projects from stage 1 -3 , we have to cooperate withdistributors or GIC in all related issues about prices, logistic, man power, technical support And by supporting sales activities, project salesmen can do their mission of marketing

department:” Promoting and building Gyproc brand in market”

There are two major conflicts when setting up project sales team

Firstly, sales distribution team represents for benefit of primary distributors Project salesmenare in marketing department; of course they do not sell directly but we try to build and promoteGyproc brand name and they need to support directly GIC who have the good intention topromote Gyproc brand into market Conflicts will happen among sales distribution team,project sales team and distributors because of power of deciding discount of project sales team.Normally, GIC buys products from primary distributors If there is a discount for a project,distributors will have the right to decide But now, GIC still by from primary distributors butreceive direct discounts from SGVN And project salesmen will be in charge of consideringdiscount for GIC That makes distributors feel unhappy because now they do not have themonopoly power of discount any more Sales distribution team also feel un-pleasure whenproject sales team protects the benefit of GIC, customers and SGVN but affects benefit ofprimary distributors

Besides, in some cases, distributors do not support enough discounts for installers or they donot try to sell our products with a reasonable prices They may explain many additional costsneed to cover and ask for cheaper whole sales prices from SGVN With such projects, SGVNhad set a clear levels of discount depending on volume of projects but distributors always askbigger discounts for their own reasons When project salesmen and primary distributors cannotreach at one point, this conflict will happen more often

Secondly, projects salesmen in marketing department do not have the right to sell directly soproject salesmen do not have the prices in hand or some supportive tools to work with stakeholders of projects in negotiation (such as price discount or commission) However, for thepurpose of promoting Gyproc brand name, they have to get the first approach to projects Andduring the four stage of sales process:

When they should go with whom to have most efficiency is the always a hard question.

- If they go so often with a certain primary distributor, the others will raise commentsabout the fair treatments from SGVN to distributors

- If they go so often with GIC, the primary distributors will question about how werespect their roles if we do not go together them in projects

Those are the two common conflicts are arising while SGVN try to build and promote moreeffectively Gyproc brand name And in daily working, project salesmen have to be very sensitive inrelationships; they should harmonize the benefits of the three sides: SGVN – Distributor – GIC Theyalso have to be good at building relationship and persuasive skill to reduce the disadvantages whilethey do not have full function to sell directly as ordinary salesmen