(This article should not only be read by those in sales, but senior management, particularly human resource. Part 1 of a three part series. editor)

“A Crisis in Sales Management”

by Steve Chriest

When I first became a sales consultant, and began working with clients, I was surprised at the lack of basic sales skills and business knowledge of most of the sales groups we encountered. Whether we consulted with multi-billion dollar corporations or middle market businesses, the story was always the same - The salespeople lacked basic skills and knowledge, and the overall skill level and knowledge of sales management was worse.

As I thought about why this appeared to be the case, I encountered a woman who recruited senior sales managers during the last twenty-five years. I told her what I had observed, and asked her two questions: First, were my observations valid? And second, if they were valid, how did this happen?

Without hesitation she told me that during most of the 1990's business was generally good and getting better each month. Salespeople in a great many industries had only to make sure they answered the telephone to take orders from customers anxious to buy. Selling skills and business knowledge weren't needed to meet and exceed sales quotas. And sales managers, again in many industries, had little managing to do as their teams met and exceeded expectations.

That all changed, of course, as the economy began to slow in 2000. All of a sudden things changed for salespeople and for sales managers. The phone stopped ringing off the hook, and salespeople and managers found themselves competing in a cruel world against increasingly more desperate competitors.

According to the sales recruiter, many experienced salespeople lost their selling skills, and those new to selling never acquired even basic sales skills. The same things happened to experienced sales managers and those new to management during this good economy.

When times get tough, and companies begin to lose customers and market share, senior managers want quick fixes. They often ask, “How can we gain more of our customer's mindshare? How can we differentiate ourselves from our competitors? How can we sell value and avoid caving into customer demands for more service and lower prices? How can we upgrade our selling skills? How can we motivate our sales teams?”

As they turn to sales managers for answers, many senior managers discover that the sales managers cannot deliver comprehensive solutions, let alone quick fixes. The executives come face to face with the crisis in sales management.

Next week we'll take a look and what I think senior managers and sales managers must do to end the crisis in sales management.

Copyright © 2006 Selling Up TM . All Rights Reserved.

About the author: Steve Chriest is the founder of Selling Up TM (www.selling-up.com), a sales consulting firm specializing in sales improvement for organizations of all types and sizes in a variety of industries. He is also the author of Selling Up , The Proven System for Reaching and Selling Senior Executives. You can reach Steve at schriest@selling-up.com.