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Sales management: A tactical approach
internationally, particularly by those operating in industrial markets. Of the various aspects of international marketing which are covered, the chapters dealing with product policies, marketing planning, and marketing organization are of most interest. The problems concerning how far a corporation can standardize its products for international markets are extensively discussed. Mr. Majaro also makes the very sound point that the revolution in communications is creating a situation in which both the product life cycle is becoming shorter, and the domestic and international life cycles of a given product are becoming identical. In consequence, there is a need to plan products for international markets simultaneously, and to plan not on a “home and abroad” but on a global basis. Some very useful comments are provided on planning. Most practitioners would agree with the ground rules presented for successful planning; that there must be total commitment throughout the whole corporation, that data collection and analysis must be consistent, and relevant to the decision-making process, and that the planning system itself should be both capable of reacting to change, and all embracing. The conclusion is rightly drawn that functional planning in isolation is a pointless exercise. Pertinent points are also made with respect to the determination of corporate objectives and the need for these to reflect a realistic assessment of the corporation’s internal strengths and opportunities. The observation that today an international corporation’s objectives must be specified not only in terms of growth and profits, but also in terms of its employees expectations and its social responsibilities is well made. In discussing organization, Mr. Majaro covers some of the perennial issues which plague the international corporation. Obtaining the correct balance between the centralization and decentralization of strategy and operations is always difficult. As regards the marketing organization in particular, he provides a useful review of the advantages and disadvantages of alternative structuresfunctional product group, geographic, matrix and others. In this context, he makes the telling statement that the organization exists to achieve objectives. Hence, the corporation’s goals should be established before the organizational structure is determined! If the book has weaknesses, they lie in both the lack of treatment of management style and its impact on marketing strategy, and in the failure to discuss in any real depth relationships between international corporations and governments. Under the first point it would be interesting to know how large a factor the Japanese style of man-
agement has been in achieving the high level of success the corporations of that country have enjoyed in so many diverse international markets and product fields. Certainly, Japanese management appears to have developed above average skills for global planning and in quickly harnessing technology to exploit new market needs. Government relationships are also highly important in modem international marketing. Penetration of much of today’s world markets requires a strategic commitment. In the case of the developing countries, entrance to the market often necessitates a commitment to manufacturing facilities. In the case of the Communist World, there is a need for lengthy negotiations with government agencies, and often for participation in barter arrangements. Additional coverage of these latter subjects would have greatly increased the appeal of Mr. Majaro’s book to the business community. Nevertheless, he has made a valuable contribution to the literature of International Marketing.
Manager,
John S. Crane Strategy Analysis Xerox Corporation
l
Jolson, Marvin A., Sales Management: A Tactical Approach, PetrocelliCharter, New York, pp. 304. ~~._____~_____ This remarkably comprehensive volume is a succinct overview of sales management and all its components, not only for the young sales management trainee but also for the grizzly veteran sales manager. The approach to the subject is tactical in a classic sense; it is presented in an orderly fashion which is most helpful to a reader trying to grasp both the basic and more advanced concepts on sales management. In the world of management virtually everyone has a pronounced bias either to people or to paper. Thus, while sales managers usually tend to a bias in favor of sales force management over sales administration (pp. 2%29), the author constantly reminds the reader that one must maintain a holistic perspective and be aware of one’s natural bias in order to compensate for it in daily managerial tasks. Thus, while the author is analyzing the various parts of sales managing, he constantly reverts to the synthetic overview which is the total marketing system (pp. 3fl. If the reader can assimilate not only the overview but also 285
the analyzed moving parts, then he/she will be more thoroughly prepared for sales management responsibility. The components of sales force management and of sales administration are delineated by the author as follows: sales administration and planning consists of organizational activities (sales potentials, forecasts, budgets, together with the coordination of sales resources to accomplish these) as well as of sales research; sales force management provides these sales resources through recruitment, selection, indoctrination, training, compensation, supervision, motivation and evaluation of the field sales force. The reader might take note that there is not direct mention here of selling. Management-not selling-is the keynote of this book. In fact, a major emphasis recurring throughout is the danger of the manager slipping back into the direct sales activity to the detriment of his managerial responsibilities; selling sometimes seems like a good escape from the burdens of being a manager. In brief, this work is not a “how-to” on selling; rather it is a good basic resource book on the fundamentals of sales management in total. It is not theoretical but practical (p. xiii). Each chapter on the various topics listed above is structured in the following manner: expository text; footnote references for that particular chapter; questions for discussion and review; one or two case studies in each chapter with questions on the case study. This reviewer admits a strong bias against questions after a chapter, especially in a stimulating book such as this. Ordinarily, if the pages are thought provoking, the reader will have questions. If they are not, no questions prepared by the author will make the pages thought provoking. Challenging as is the present volume, questions could have most readily been dispensed with. Case-studies, yes! Questions, no! Probably the most distinctive feature of a book of this sort is that the author, while dissecting the sales management function, still achieves a clear synthesis of the broad role of sales management. He touches deftly on the working parts of subjects as diverse as forecasting and recruiting and never gets himself and the reader so entangled in these subjects that he is unable to return to the basic marketing concept (pp. 4-8, 38). The reader can readily see how it all hangs together. There were certain sections of the book which the reviewer found refreshingly perceptive. Although the author is open to a personalized style of selling-a quality to be looked for in recruiting-he is most definitely 286
inclined towards training in selling which is more highly structured than not. Given the alternative of the more or less canned pitch versus the highly personal and spontaneous type of selling, he goes for the canned pitch (pp. 2w. Actually, he recommends a blend of personal style with comprehensive pertinent content concerning the product for sale. Another subject well handled, and more frequently found in personnel books than in books on management, is that of compensation. The author analyzes and evaluates various types of compensation utilized in a variety of sales situations (pp. 145-163). He sums up the cynicism of some in management on money as a motivator (pp. 1634) when he “concludes that while money may not make salesmen entirely happy, it certainly allows them to choose the kind of unhappiness they want” (p. 164). Similar awareness is evident in his chapter on motivating the sales force to respond ever more productively (pp. 223$f). Here he employs the hierarchy of needs of Dr. Maslow, this in the context of a need fulfilled is no longer a motivator: “when a higher priority need is satisfied, the next important need will prevail until it is fulfilled.” (p. 226) Thus, the sales manager has to have a broad understanding of the various types of needs in his personnel and where each salesman’s career stands at a given time. Finally, consistent with the author’s whole frame of reference, he places considerable emphasis on being in areas that require evaluation, that is, in “systemic” the selection of personnel (pp. 182-193) and in the evaluation of performance (pp. 269-279). Nowhere more than in the area of making judgments about human beings and their performance is it more necessary to have a systemic, holistic and synthesized overview of the facts, in order for the evaluator to make sure that, quite apart from his own subconscious personal biases, even the devil can get his just due. In summary, Sales Management: A Tactical Approach is highly commendable not only for its comprehensive and well-selected content but also for its clear style. It is a most welcome stimulus for the journeyman of the world of sales and marketing management, to assist in what must be on ongoing task: the constant realignment of perspectives, in the parts of sales management, in order to be a more whole sales manager. James F. Powers Assistant to the Vice President, Marketing The Dexter Corporation Windsor Locks, Conn.
agement has been in achieving the high level of success the corporations of that country have enjoyed in so many diverse international markets and product fields. Certainly, Japanese management appears to have developed above average skills for global planning and in quickly harnessing technology to exploit new market needs. Government relationships are also highly important in modem international marketing. Penetration of much of today’s world markets requires a strategic commitment. In the case of the developing countries, entrance to the market often necessitates a commitment to manufacturing facilities. In the case of the Communist World, there is a need for lengthy negotiations with government agencies, and often for participation in barter arrangements. Additional coverage of these latter subjects would have greatly increased the appeal of Mr. Majaro’s book to the business community. Nevertheless, he has made a valuable contribution to the literature of International Marketing.
Manager,
John S. Crane Strategy Analysis Xerox Corporation
l
Jolson, Marvin A., Sales Management: A Tactical Approach, PetrocelliCharter, New York, pp. 304. ~~._____~_____ This remarkably comprehensive volume is a succinct overview of sales management and all its components, not only for the young sales management trainee but also for the grizzly veteran sales manager. The approach to the subject is tactical in a classic sense; it is presented in an orderly fashion which is most helpful to a reader trying to grasp both the basic and more advanced concepts on sales management. In the world of management virtually everyone has a pronounced bias either to people or to paper. Thus, while sales managers usually tend to a bias in favor of sales force management over sales administration (pp. 2%29), the author constantly reminds the reader that one must maintain a holistic perspective and be aware of one’s natural bias in order to compensate for it in daily managerial tasks. Thus, while the author is analyzing the various parts of sales managing, he constantly reverts to the synthetic overview which is the total marketing system (pp. 3fl. If the reader can assimilate not only the overview but also 285
the analyzed moving parts, then he/she will be more thoroughly prepared for sales management responsibility. The components of sales force management and of sales administration are delineated by the author as follows: sales administration and planning consists of organizational activities (sales potentials, forecasts, budgets, together with the coordination of sales resources to accomplish these) as well as of sales research; sales force management provides these sales resources through recruitment, selection, indoctrination, training, compensation, supervision, motivation and evaluation of the field sales force. The reader might take note that there is not direct mention here of selling. Management-not selling-is the keynote of this book. In fact, a major emphasis recurring throughout is the danger of the manager slipping back into the direct sales activity to the detriment of his managerial responsibilities; selling sometimes seems like a good escape from the burdens of being a manager. In brief, this work is not a “how-to” on selling; rather it is a good basic resource book on the fundamentals of sales management in total. It is not theoretical but practical (p. xiii). Each chapter on the various topics listed above is structured in the following manner: expository text; footnote references for that particular chapter; questions for discussion and review; one or two case studies in each chapter with questions on the case study. This reviewer admits a strong bias against questions after a chapter, especially in a stimulating book such as this. Ordinarily, if the pages are thought provoking, the reader will have questions. If they are not, no questions prepared by the author will make the pages thought provoking. Challenging as is the present volume, questions could have most readily been dispensed with. Case-studies, yes! Questions, no! Probably the most distinctive feature of a book of this sort is that the author, while dissecting the sales management function, still achieves a clear synthesis of the broad role of sales management. He touches deftly on the working parts of subjects as diverse as forecasting and recruiting and never gets himself and the reader so entangled in these subjects that he is unable to return to the basic marketing concept (pp. 4-8, 38). The reader can readily see how it all hangs together. There were certain sections of the book which the reviewer found refreshingly perceptive. Although the author is open to a personalized style of selling-a quality to be looked for in recruiting-he is most definitely 286
inclined towards training in selling which is more highly structured than not. Given the alternative of the more or less canned pitch versus the highly personal and spontaneous type of selling, he goes for the canned pitch (pp. 2w. Actually, he recommends a blend of personal style with comprehensive pertinent content concerning the product for sale. Another subject well handled, and more frequently found in personnel books than in books on management, is that of compensation. The author analyzes and evaluates various types of compensation utilized in a variety of sales situations (pp. 145-163). He sums up the cynicism of some in management on money as a motivator (pp. 1634) when he “concludes that while money may not make salesmen entirely happy, it certainly allows them to choose the kind of unhappiness they want” (p. 164). Similar awareness is evident in his chapter on motivating the sales force to respond ever more productively (pp. 223$f). Here he employs the hierarchy of needs of Dr. Maslow, this in the context of a need fulfilled is no longer a motivator: “when a higher priority need is satisfied, the next important need will prevail until it is fulfilled.” (p. 226) Thus, the sales manager has to have a broad understanding of the various types of needs in his personnel and where each salesman’s career stands at a given time. Finally, consistent with the author’s whole frame of reference, he places considerable emphasis on being in areas that require evaluation, that is, in “systemic” the selection of personnel (pp. 182-193) and in the evaluation of performance (pp. 269-279). Nowhere more than in the area of making judgments about human beings and their performance is it more necessary to have a systemic, holistic and synthesized overview of the facts, in order for the evaluator to make sure that, quite apart from his own subconscious personal biases, even the devil can get his just due. In summary, Sales Management: A Tactical Approach is highly commendable not only for its comprehensive and well-selected content but also for its clear style. It is a most welcome stimulus for the journeyman of the world of sales and marketing management, to assist in what must be on ongoing task: the constant realignment of perspectives, in the parts of sales management, in order to be a more whole sales manager. James F. Powers Assistant to the Vice President, Marketing The Dexter Corporation Windsor Locks, Conn.