In MYPRODUCT7, I outlined the importance of implementing a performing sales team evaluation system, which in my opinion should be transparent, open, periodically, constant, based on clear and measurable criteria, should include agent’s self-evaluation and manager’s assessment, deficiencies, decisions to reward or impose and should define a plan of actions, activities, professionalization with assumed terms and objectives.
2.Task
As a commercial manager, I consider that defining a proper target – bonus system is one of the key responsibilities of any manager in relation with his sales team.
3.Action
In my opinion, any target-bonus system implemented in the company beyond the form or the way it has to meet several critical points:
– first of all, goals must be achievable; nothing is more damaging the sales team motivation than setting unrealistic goals
– to be calibrated and adapted to short-term goals (month, quarter, year)
– to be transparent and clear to the sales team
-to be based on clear, measurable and fair criteria, adapted to the responsibilities and attributions described in the employment contract and in accord with the particularities related to the territories and client portfolios allocated to agents
-perhaps the most importantly to allow the agent at any time to calculate himself his own bonus
– individual bonus to be obviously granted when agent individually fulfilled his performance in accord with the target-bonus system implemented in the company, no matter the overall company performance at local / regional level as long as the announced target bonus system did not include any link between individual sales agent and overall company performances.
4.Results
In my commercial management activity I implemented various target-bonus systems.
Simple or complicated variants with performances and bonuses linked to standard sales indicators (volume, value, margin, earning), focus of activity on product groups, certain keys control, variable and fixed levels etc.
Below you may find two models implemented by me in Veteco.
5.Key Learnings
Achievable goals and ability of the agent to calculate himself his own bonus at any time of his activity represent in my opinion the most powerful and motivating ingredients for a sales agent.
The lack of these ingredients directly affects the degree of motivation and involvement of the agent / team and a commercial manager must avoid this kind of situation, extremely damaging for the company.
Notification: MYPRODUCT reflects my real professional experience and expertise as well as my subjectivity. I do have a profound respect for all the companies I collaborated to and for all the people I worked with. It is not my intention to approach any sensitive, confidential or offending information related to companies, projects or people. If you the reader deduct or recognise companies, projects or people in my examples, I kindly ask you to respect MYPRODUCT and my professional and ethic approach and to not share any detail, information, situation, name, company.