Archive for February 2017

Which of the following statements regarding sales organization structure is false?

Which of the following statements regarding sales organization structure is false? 




a) The sales organization structure helps salespeople and sales manager perform required activities in an effective and efficient manner
b) Sales organizations are the vehicle through which strategic plans are translated into selling operations in the marketplace
c) Sales changes almost always necessitate adjustments in sales organization structure
d) Sales organization structure can be extremely complex with many boxes and arrows
e) Developing a sales organization structure is typically more difficult than implementing a change in sales organization structure 






Answer: E

Although questions related to age, height, and weight should not be asked on a job application, it is perfectly acceptable to request information related to a military discharge and which holidays are observed by candidates.

Although questions related to age, height, and weight should not be asked on a job application, it is perfectly acceptable to request information related to a military discharge and which holidays are observed by candidates.




Answer: False

Which of the following statements regarding the stress interview is false?

Which of the following statements regarding the stress interview is false?



a. It is designed to put job candidates under extreme, unexpected psychological duress for the purpose of seeing how they will react.
b. It may create an unfavorable image of the company.
c. It may alienate some of the better candidates.
d. It appears to be a risky and ethically questionable approach.
e. It may be a form of discrimination in some cases, in which its use would make it illegal.







Answer: E

A background investigation is generally performed

A background investigation is generally performed



a. after the initial interview.
b. before the intensive interview.
c. after the intensive interview.
d. after resume screening, but before any interviewing.
e. after the job has been accepted by the candidate.







Answer: C

Which of the following is not a recommended suggestion for improving the usefulness of tests to sales managers as selection tools?

Which of the following is not a recommended suggestion for improving the usefulness of tests to sales managers as selection tools?




a. Sales managers should construct tests for the purpose of selecting salespeople.
b. If psychological tests are used, the standards of the American Psychological Association should be met.
c. Utilize tests that have been based on a job analysis for the particular job in question.
d. Select a test that minimizes the applicant's ability to anticipate desired responses.
e. Do not base the hiring decision solely on test results.







Answer: A

Which of the following is not a recommendation when writing for an online recruitment ad?

Which of the following is not a recommendation when writing for an online recruitment ad?



a. Keep it brief.
b. Include key words and phrases.
c. Avoid using crossheadings and bullet points.
d. Use plain English and avoid long sentences.
e. Make use of a link to give additional information to keep your word count down.





Answer: C

Employees, such as salespeople, are a good source of job referrals because

Employees, such as salespeople, are a good source of job referrals because



a. if they like someone they are probably going to be able to work effectively with them.
b. they meet many other salespeople while making sales calls.
c. most salespeople have a natural talent for recruiting and selection.
d. they have a good understanding of the type of person sought for a sales position.
e. they appreciate an opportunity to help a friend get a job.







Answer: D

A job analysis is

A job analysis is



a. an investigation of the tasks, duties, and responsibilities of the job.
b. an analysis of the amount of stress inherent in the job.
c. a rating assigned to a particular job, indicating what grade and salary is appropriate.
d. an investigation into the job history of the applicant to uncover any fraud or incompetence.
e. a breakdown of the job into specific tasks, enumerating the times that each task is performed during a certain time period.






Answer: A

Salesforce socialization refers to

Salesforce socialization refers to




a. the encouragement salespeople get to socialize with their colleagues after work hours.
b. the process by which salespeople acquire the knowledge, skills, and values essential to perform in their role as salespeople.
c. the overall social values held by the firm about contemporary issues affecting the firm.
d. the salesperson's education concerning the ways other salespeople handle role conflict and role ambiguity.
e. the process by which all new members of a firm's salesforce learn to coordinate their efforts with those of other employees in an effective manner.





Answer: B

Perhaps the most significant managerial problem that can arise from improper recruiting and selection of salespeople is

Perhaps the most significant managerial problem that can arise from improper recruiting and selection of salespeople is



a. total salesforce performance is suboptimal.
b. a higher turnover rate.
c. inadequate sales coverage and lack of customer follow up.
d. increased training costs to overcome deficiencies.
e. difficulty in establishing good customer relationships.







Answer: A

Which of the following is not one of the changes expected to impact salesforces today?

Which of the following is not one of the changes expected to impact salesforces today?




a. Salesforces will contain more elderly salespeople.
b. Sales managers will face challenges associated with acquiring talent for an international salesforce.
c. Sales managers will be involved with recruiting and selecting for team selling.
d. Salesforces will be reduced or eliminated as companies continue to search for ways to cut costs.
e. Salesforces will contain a higher proportion of women.



Answer: D


The concept "planning and control unit" can be defined as

The concept "planning and control unit" can be defined as




a. the division of the total market area of the firm into geographic areas with an equal number of accounts.
b. the division of the total market area of the firm into geographic areas containing the same approximate square miles.
c. the division of the total market area of the firm into geographic areas with an equal number of road miles.
d. some entity smaller than a territory into which the total market area of the firm is divided.
e. the division of the total market area of the firm into geographic areas called territories.






Answer: D

The overall objective of territory design is to

The overall objective of territory design is to




a. motivate salespeople to their fullest potential.
b. ensure that all accounts are assigned salesperson responsibility and that each salesperson can adequately cover the assigned accounts.
c. evaluate the workload for each territory.
d. group the planning and control units into territories that are as equal as possible in opportunity.
e. assess the potential sales that the firm might achieve in each planning and control unit.







Answer: B

A territory is considered to be

A territory is considered to be



a. a geographical area in which the company has not previously prospected for accounts.
b. the amount of geographical area that any one salesperson can cover effectively.
c. all of the firm's accounts that do business within a certain area.
d. the geographical area in which a salesperson resides.
e. the assignment of specific accounts to a specific salesperson.






Answer: E

Because of the existence of salesforce turnover,

Because of the existence of salesforce turnover,






a. firms should scale down their sales efforts to a level that the current salesforce can manage.
b. firms should redesign their compensation programs if they are losing substantial salespeople each year.
c. firms should have alternative sales allocation plans based on both a full strength and reduced salesforce.
d. firms should determine the desired salesforce size and then adjust this figure to reflect expected turnover.
e. firms should solicit their competitor's best salespeople to offset the opportunity costs of turnover.






Answer: D

The profit maximization point is when

The profit maximization point is when




a. the total possible sales effort has been achieved.
b. the marginal costs of adding a salesperson are equal to the marginal profits generated by that salesperson.
c. the marginal profits for a salesperson are maximized by assigning them to a certain territory.
d. the incremental profits of a salesperson provide a return over and above the cost to employ him or her.
e. the optimal account to salesperson ratio has been determined.






Answer: B

Productivity is normally defined as

Productivity is normally defined as



a. a ratio between outputs and inputs.
b. the number of salespeople in the field.
c. a ratio of selling effort employed to number of salespeople.
d. a ratio of sales generated to number of accounts.
e. a ratio of accounts to salespeople.






Answer: A

When a firm's competitive position is strong, and account opportunity is high, the selling effort strategy should be to:

When a firm's competitive position is strong, and account opportunity is high, the selling effort strategy should be to:




a. perform additional analysis to identify accounts where the sales organization's competitive position can be strengthened and invest heavy selling effort in these accounts.
b. provide minimal selling effort to accounts and replace the personal selling effort with advertising.
c. invest heavy selling effort in accounts to take advantage of opportunity and maintain/improve competitive position.
d. invest sufficient selling effort in accounts to maintain current competitive position.
e. provide minimal selling effort to accounts and use less costly forms of marketing to replace selling efforts on a selective basis.




Answer: C

When a firm's competitive position is strong, but account opportunity is low, the selling effort strategy should be to:

When a firm's competitive position is strong, but account opportunity is low, the selling effort strategy should be to:



a. perform additional analysis to identify accounts where the sales organization's competitive position can be strengthened and invest heavy selling effort in these accounts.
b. provide minimal selling effort to accounts and replace the personal selling effort with advertising.
c. invest heavy selling effort in accounts.
d. invest sufficient selling effort in accounts to maintain current competitive position.
e. provide minimal selling effort to accounts and use less costly forms of marketing to replace selling efforts on a selective basis.







Answer: D

When a firm's competitive position is weak, and account opportunity is low, the selling effort strategy should be to:

When a firm's competitive position is weak, and account opportunity is low, the selling effort strategy should be to:





a. perform additional analysis to identify accounts where the sales organization's competitive position can be strengthened and invest heavy selling effort in these accounts.
b. provide minimal selling effort to accounts and replace the personal selling effort with advertising.
c. invest heavy selling effort in accounts.
d. invest sufficient selling effort in accounts to maintain current competitive position.
e. provide minimal selling effort to accounts and use less costly forms of marketing to replace selling efforts on a selective basis.








Answer: E

When a firm's competitive position is weak, but account opportunity is high, the selling effort strategy should be to:

When a firm's competitive position is weak, but account opportunity is high, the selling effort strategy should be to:




a. perform additional analysis to identify accounts where the sales organization's competitive position can be strengthened and invest heavy selling effort in these accounts.
b. provide minimal selling effort to accounts and replace the personal selling effort with advertising.
c. invest heavy selling effort in accounts.
d. invest sufficient selling effort in accounts to maintain current competitive position.
e. provide minimal selling effort to accounts and use less costly forms of marketing to replace selling efforts on a selective basis.







Answer: A

Competitive position is defined as

Competitive position is defined as




a. the strength of the relationship between the selling firm and an account.
b. the number of active competitors for the account.
c. the strength of the relationship between an account and each competing firm.
d. a measure of the competitive strength of the firm in an area.
e. a rank order of account desirability determining to what extent selling effort should be expended to win it.






Answer: C

One main advantage of the functional sales organization structure is

One main advantage of the functional sales organization structure is



a. no geographic duplication.
b. no customer duplication.
c. sales efforts do not have to be coordinated.
d. low cost to the firm.
e. efficiency in performing specific selling activities.





Answer: E

A hybrid sales organization structure is

A hybrid sales organization structure is




a. generally composed of a combination of the strategic account and geographic sales organization structures.
b. based on the premise that a mix of the different sales organization structures is always much better than any one.
c. easier to implement than other sales organization structures.
d. a complex structure that might include elements of geographic, product, market, function, and strategic account organizations.
e. able to reduce geographic and customer duplication by using elements of a functional sales organization.






Answer: D

An account can be considered complex under any of the following circumstances except when

An account can be considered complex under any of the following circumstances except when




a. it has multiple buying locations.
b. top management heavily influences its purchasing decisions.
c. multiple functions are involved in buying decisions.
d. it requires special services.
e. it purchases standardized products.





Answer: E

The basic objective of market specialization is

The basic objective of market specialization is



a. for salespeople to become experts in the assigned product category.
b. to guarantee that there will be no duplication of selling effort.
c. to ensure that salespeople understand how customers use and purchase their products.
d. to more cost effectively serve the different needs of the customer.
e. to make sure the needs of the large-volume customers are identified and met.







Answer: C

A company has one salesforce selling office equipment and another selling office supplies. They are organized according to geographic area and perform all selling activities to all types of accounts. They are considered to be

A company has one salesforce selling office equipment and another selling office supplies. They are organized according to geographic area and perform all selling activities to all types of accounts. They are considered to be



a. market specialized.
b. functionally specialized.
c. strategic account specialized.
d. product specialized.
e. geographically specialized.





Answer: D

With regards to designing the sales organization, which one of the following is not an emerging trend?

With regards to designing the sales organization, which one of the following is not an emerging trend?



a. Many sales organizations are moving to some type of specialization.
b. Sales organization structures are flatter.
c. Sales managers typically have larger spans of control.
d. Sales management levels have been added.
e. Some staff positions have been eliminated.








Answer: D

A staff sales management position is

A staff sales management position is



a. less specialized than a line sales management position.
b. part of the direct management hierarchy within the sales organization.
c. responsible for only certain sales management functions (e.g., recruiting and selecting, training, etc.) and are not directly involved in sales generating activities.
d. directly involved in the sales generation activities of the firm.
e. directly responsible for a certain number of subordinates.






Answer: C

Span of control refers to

Span of control refers to




a. the frequency with which subordinates are required to report to their immediate supervisor.
b. the number of different hierarchical levels of sales management within the organization.
c. the number of individuals that report to each sales manager.
d. the actual structure of the sales organization, whether it is considered flat or tall.
e. the amount of decision-making responsibility that each sales manager holds.







Answer: C

Centralization within the management structure can be best described as

Centralization within the management structure can be best described as




a. the degree to which important decisions and tasks are performed at higher levels in the management hierarchy.
b. definitive in nature, as organizations are either totally centralized or totally decentralized.
c. the extent to which lower-level managers have become responsible for important decisions and tasks.
d. the amount of task specialization that takes place within the major branches of the sales organization structure.
e. characterized by the decision to divide sales efforts on the basis of products or related lines of products.






Answer: A

The basic idea behind specialization is that

The basic idea behind specialization is that





a. certain individuals are more ideally suited for some types of jobs than others.
b. if individuals can concentrate on a limited number of activities, they can become experts on those tasks.
c. division of labor will lead to the most cost-effective selling effort possible.
d. when salespeople become experts on certain products, integrating the efforts of different salesforces becomes easier.
e. customers would rather speak with a salesperson that specializes in selling one product.






Answer: B

In the simplest type of sales organization structure, the following situation would exist:

In the simplest type of sales organization structure, the following situation would exist:




a. Each salesperson is responsible for selling one particular product.
b. Each sales manager is responsible for only a few key accounts.
c. One sales manager concentrates on training activities and another concentrates on planning activities.
d. Each salesperson is responsible for selling all the company's products to all types of accounts.
e. Each salesperson calls on only certain designated customers.







Answer: D
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