A sales force evaluation is the process of studying a company's salespeople, alignment, strategies and performance to determine the best ways to improve performance and revenue. Sales force evaluations are usually conducted by senior level managers with input from sales managers and directors.
Sales force evaluations are important for understanding why sales are up or down, either on a regional or national basis. Pinpointing problem areas such as individual performance can help sales executives and managers develop strategies to correct problem areas.
A sales force evaluation starts with the analysis of the salespeople. A company must decide if they have the most capable people in the right roles, according to Omghub.com. If not, a realignment or additional hiring may be necessary.
Executives and managers need to identify what changes are necessary for improving sales performance. This may entail a revamping of incentive and bonus packages or changing sales quotas to make them more realistic.
Often, a company discovers that certain support systems are inadequate for achieving sales goals. For example, marketing may need to be decentralized throughout the country to better understand the needs of customers in certain regions.
In his article "Denial Over a Sales Force Evaluation" on Eyesonsales.com, Dave Kurlan explains that sales force evaluations can sometimes uncover dynamics that are hard for sales managers to accept. For example, top salespeople may actually be weak sellers who are great at managing accounts. Regardless, realignments may be necessary for the overall benefit of the company.
