Resources

Communicating a formal offering to prospective customers represents a pivotal sales process stage. This research initiative examines current proposal management practices in business-to-business sales organizations. Research objectives include assessing what high-performing sales organizations do differently from others during the proposal stage of their sales process; and prioritizing potential investment strategies...Read more

This webcast presents key trends, emerging practices, and challenges in quota management. Topics include quota setting methodology, best practices for promoting quota accuracy and fairness, goal allocation approaches, and analytics to measure quota management effectiveness. Also presented are findings from Aon Hewitt’s recent study of quota management practices among business-to-business...Read more

Sales process is widely acknowledged as an important feature of a productive sales system, sales process discipline varies widely across firms. This research examines how large business-to-business sales forces are using defined sales processes, their impact on firm performance, and factors contributing to sales process adoption and effectiveness. Specific areas...Read more

Deploying a consistent selling approach is an important priority for many sales organizations. Technology represents a potentially valuable tool for communicating, reinforcing, and driving adoption of sales methodology. This Sales Management Association Research Initiative investigates how companies are using technology to enable effective sales methodology.  Research results focus on: Identifying...Read more

Managing high performing sales forces begins with defining success. It also depends upon management’s ability to correctly diagnose performance issues, surface root causes, and introduce corrective measures. This webcast presents a framework for identifying, measuring, monitoring, and managing sales organization effectiveness. Presented by Marco Madero and Scott Barton from Aon Hewitt's...Read more

Sales teams today contend with increasingly sophisticated buyers and intense competition. They must engage with their customers in more sophisticated ways to create and prove their value. Salespeople need more than the traditional relationship-building and closing skills - business acumen, sharp analytics, effective cross-functional collaboration, and creativity are essential in...Read more

Though sales organizations have invested heavily in sales productivity, many are finding returns on "sales enablement" initiatives elusive. Mobile devices are proving to be a critical component of successful enablement programs. Effectively implemented, they provide sellers with engaging content at the right place and time to move a sale forward....Read more

This paper proposes that traditional process-based frameworks of selling may be underspecified given three realities affecting the sales role today: (1) longer sales cycles, (2) an increased customer demand for total solutions, and (3) a shift from a product- to a services-centric economy. An argument is offered that suggests that...Read more