Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
Asking the Right Questions - Discussion Question 4
1. May I look at your resume?
2. Where will I get my leads?
3. May I review your sales literature?
4. When are your slow times?
5. May I go with you on a sales call?
Figure 9-1:
Sales Force Turnover Rates
53%
21%
26%
65%
18%
17%
45%
34%
21%
Consumer
Industrial
Services
0-5%
5-10%
More
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
In-Class Exercise 9-1 -- Which one to Pick?
•
As a sales manager what are you trying to
accomplish in an initial interview?
•
Based on the job description, what are some of
the qualifications you might look for in a
candidate?
•
What are the characteristics of a good interview
question?
•
Which person should be chosen for the last
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
In-Class Exercise 9-1
•
What questions will a strong candidate ask during an
interview?
•
Will you ask different questions of a person with experience
than one coming out of college with no experience?
•
What are common mistakes made by candidates on initial
interviews?
•
What are common mistakes made by companies during
initial interviews?
•
Is there a possibility of conflict between Armstrong and the
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
In-Class Exercise 9-2
•
Why is T.S. letting you know about the offer?
•
Why is this such a difficult situation for the company?
•
What are the pitfalls of reacting in this situation?
•
Should management counter the offer?
•
Why do people leave after being successful with a
company for a long period of time?
•
What can management do to minimize the risk of this
happening?
•
If a start salesperson does leave to go to a competitor,
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
Selecting Salespeople
Typical Interview Questions
-- what is interviewer trying to determine?
1.
What was the most monotonous job you ever
had to do?
What are your values & general orientation in
life?
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
2. In thinking about people you like, what is it you most
like about them?
Reflects what person is and desires to become
3. Up to this point in your life, what do you consider to
be your biggest disappointment?
Have you done anything? -- more active = more
disappointments
4. How willing are you to relocate? To what extent are
you willing to travel?
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
5. How do you feel about the way your previous employer
treated you?
How you react to supervision & organizational cultures
6. What are your long-term financial objectives and how
do you intend to achieve them?
Are you realistic & mature?
Will this company enable you to achieve these goals?
7. What was the most difficult decision you ever had to
make as a leader?
Were the leadership positions in your resume demanding
or ceremonial in nature?
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
8. Why should we hire you?
How badly do you want the job?
What do you think of yourself?
Do you believe in yourself?
9. Sell me this pen.
Do you really know how to make a sales
presentation?
Sales job
analysis
Sales job
analysis
qualifications
Sales job
Sales job
qualifications
candidates
Recruit
Recruit
candidates
prospects
Select
Select
prospects
the process
Validating
Validating
the process
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
Physical Exams
•
Selling is strenuous and stressful
•
What are the physical requirements of the job?
•
Americans with Disabilitites Act (1992)
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
Planning Cycle
•
Job Analysis
•
Job Description (9-4)
•
Job Qualifications
–
Research:
»
“Sales - ability to get other people to act”
»
“Balanced life-styles” are most successful
–
Buyers perspective (9-5)
–
Sales vs. Technical skills
» -
- which is more important?
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
Planning Cycle
•
Job Analysis
•
Job Description (9-4)
•
Job Qualifications
–
Research:
»
“Sales - ability to get other people to act”
»
“Balanced life-styles” are most successful
–
Buyers perspective (9-5)
–
Sales vs. Technical skills
» -
- which is more important?
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
Recruiting
•
Classified Ads
•
Reaches wide audience
•
Used if high turnover
•
Blind vs. open ads
•
Tend to over-produce under-qualified candidates
•
Company Sources
•
Familiar w/ company products & procedures
•
Established job histories
•
Sales as a promotion
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
Recruiting
•
Employment Agencies - best if company pays
•
Schools & Colleges - trend toward more use
•
Poised & easily trained
•
Lack experience & become bored
•
Customers, Suppliers & Competition
•
Good if need w/out much training
•
Legal & ethical issues
•
Common: insurance, stock broker, office
Recruiting & Selecting Personnel
Background and Credit Check
Previous Employer Reference Check
•
Dates of Employment?
•
What was the Job?
•
What type of selling was involved?
•
How did the applicant get along with his/her manager?
Customers? Fellow salespeople?
•
How did his/her job performance compare others?
•
Applicants strongest points? Weaknesses we should
help him/her overcome?
•
Why did s/he leave your company?
QUESTIONS ABOUT INTERVIEWERS
What Research Shows
Does extensive interviewing experience help an interviewer to make better judgments?
Does pressure to recruit impair the judgment of experienced interviewers less than inexperienced interviewers?
When interviewing multiple recruits, do interviewers tend to use previous applicants as the standard of comparison for subsequent applicants?
Will the positive effects of good appearance offset an unfavorably rated personal history for a recruit? How much of the factual information presented in an interview will the interviewer remember
immediately after a short interview if no notes are taken?
How will lack of notes and factual recall affect the interviewer’s rating of the recruits interviewed? How reliably can a group of interviewers rate a recruit’s qualifications for a job?
COMMON INTERVIEWER MISTAKES
1.Failure to establish rapport
2.Lack of plan
3.Insufficient time
4.Not listening
5.Personal bias
6.Questions
Figure 9-5:
Typical Interview Questions
Why should we hire you?
Regardless of the company and type of sales position for which you may interview, there are some interview questions that are typically asked. You may not be asked each of these questions in every interview, but you should be prepared to answer them all. After reading each question, think about what the interviewer’s purpose may be in asking the question. What is he or she trying to determine? What should your response be to each question?
• What was the most monotonous job you ever had to do?
• In thinking about the people you like, what is it you like most about them?
• Up to this point in your life, what do you consider to be your biggest disappointment? • How willing are you to relocate? To what extent are you willing to travel?
• How do you feel about the way your previous employer treated you?
• What are your long-term financial objectives, and how do you propose to achieve them? • What was the most difficult decision you ever had to make as a leader?
ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS
PREVIOUS EMPLOYER REFERENCE
CHECK -- POSSIBLE QUESTIONS
What were the dates if employment?
What was the job?
What type of selling was involved?
How did the applicant get along with his or her managers? Customers?
Fellow salespeople?
How did his or her job performance compare with others on the job?
What are the applicant’s strongest points?
Are there any weaknesses we should help him or her overcome?
Why did he or she leave your company?
Table 9-4
Validity of Predictors for Entry-Level Jobs
Predictor
Validity
Ability composite (tests)
.53
Job tryout
.44
Biographical inventory
.37
Reference check
.26
Experience
.18
Interview
.14
Training and experience ratings
.13
Academic achievement
.11
Education
.10
Interest
.10
WHAT’S IN A SIGNATURE?
Signature
Small letters such as“a,”
“e,” and “o” are more
than 1/4 inch in height
and farther to the right
side of the page.
Small signatures, less than
1/8 inch tall with an upright
slant and placed towards the
left hand of the page.
Medium-sized signatures
(about 1/4 inch).
Interpretation
These people tend to be enterprising
and are usually risk takers, take
charge leaders, and pacesetters.
They are your typical salesperson.
These people tend to be objective
observers.They keep cool, don’t get
excited under pressure, and in
general make good listeners and
negotiators. They might be better for
high-level sales to established
clients.
WHAT MAKES A SUPER SALESPERSON?
Personal Computer Photographic Equipment Manufacturer Manufacturer
Threshold Competencies Threshold Competencies Communication Decisiveness
*Information Collection *Information Collection Personal Sensitivity *Organizational Awareness
*Relationship-building *Relationship-building Technical knowledge Systematic thinking
Differentiator Competencies Differentiator Competencies Concern for personal impact *Focused achievement
*Focused achievement Interpersonal diagnosis Initiative Job commitment
*Organizational awareness Persistence Personal time-planning Presentation skills Quick thinking Stress tolerance
Targeted persuasion *Use of influence strategies *Use of influence strategies
* These traits were found in salespeople at both companies.
TURNOVER RATES IN SELECTED
INDUSTRIES
Turnover
Rate
Industry
1988-89
Construction
45.8%
Office Equipment
35.9
Instruments
34.9
Retail
28.0
Wholesale (Industrial)
25.5
Electronics
13.2
Utilities
13.0
Food Products
13.0
Machinery
12.6
FIRST YEAR COST OF A SALESPERSON
IN THE U.S.
Compensation
(trainee average)
$24,752
Benefits (24% of
compensation)
5,940
Field Expense
20,397
Direct Expense
$51,089
Training Costs
16,117
JOB DESCRIPTION FACTORS
Selling Requirements:New account vs. established account selling Selling through distributors
Entertaining customers Level of buying authority Physical activity required Weekends away from home Relocation
Nonselling Tasks: Reports to management Customer service and training Sales promotion
Degree of Responsibility and Authority: Negotiations of pricing
Career Paths: Compensation plan Promotion timing
Performance Expectations: Activity level requirements
Written proposals
Individual vs. team selling One time vs. systems selling Type of prospects and customers One-on-one selling vs. groups Travel -- how much and what kind Program or concept selling Technical knowledge Educational seminars Collecting receivables Marketing plans
Travel and entertainment
Earnings potential Promotion leaders
Table 9-1
What Purchasing Agents Like About Salespeople
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
Willingness to fight for customer Thoroughness/follow-through Market knowledge/ willinness to share Knowledge of product line
Diplomacy in dealing with operating departments Imagination
Table 9-3
Recruiting Sources for Salespeople
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
Newspaper advertising Employee referrals Employment agencies Educational institutes Career conferences Professional societies
Percent of firms using source
S
ou
rc
Figure 9-3:
A Model for Selecting Salespeople
Direct recruit to control location or phone number
Direct recruit to control location or phone number
Complete application blanks Complete application blanks Conduct screening interviews Conduct screening interviews
Check credit and background
Check credit and background
Complete psychological and achievement tests
Complete psychological and achievement tests
Secondary interviews
Secondary interviews
Make offer for sales position
Make offer for sales position
Physical exam
Physical exam
Measure subsequent success on the job
Measure subsequent success on the job
Hiring criteria for sales jobs used to guide selection process Hiring criteria for sales jobs used to guide selection process Modify hiring criteria, tests or interviewprocedures
Modify hiring criteria, tests or
RESUME ANALYSIS
1. Account for all dates.
2. Examine the number of jobs and length of
time spent on each job.
3. Reasons for leaving job.
Hiring Criteria Ranked by 100 Sales Managers
Variable
Characterisitc*
Maturity P
Personal selling/sales management skills
M
Appearance
P
Cooperativeness P
Communications/public speaking N
Disposition
P
Punctuality
P
Mannerisms
P
General marketing skills M
English/writing skills
N
Management skills
N
Extroversion
P
Marketing department reputation
S
Product development/management skills
M
Finance skills
N
Market research skills
M
Market logistics skills
M
Variable Characteristic Civic functions O
Management science skills N
Advertising/advertising management skills M Consumer/industrial buyer behavior skills M School reputation S
Pricing skills M Accounting skills N
Internship program S Social functions O
Recruiting success with school S Internship training skills N
Sports participation O
Retailing/retail management skills M Home hobbies O
Fraternal organizations O Social sciences/arts skills N
* P, personal traits; M,marketing skills; N, nonmarketing skills; S, school reputation; O, outside activities. Source: Marketing News (January 13,1978), p.5.
