Everyone is in Sales

In class this past week, we discussed the role that sales persons play in an organization and also how every one actually in sales whether we know it or not.  I never thought about everyone being in sales, but thinking about it some more its interesting to notice.  To get most jobs, applicants have to sell the employer on the fact that he or she can carry out the tasks necessary required of the position.  To get into grad school, my peers and I had to sell ourselves either through our test scores or our interview that we were capable of handling the workload in grad school.  Furthermore, in the dating world - where I seem to be a pro - you have to sell yourself either through looks, humor, or an intriguing personality to get the other person to spend a significant amount of time with you.

I come from a long line of sales people.  My father is a sales manager in the wealth management department of a bank in ohio, my mom used to sell medical supplies equipment, and my grandmother was in sales for 30+ years selling insurance and deferred compensation products to city of Pittsburgh employees.  One of the reasons I came to Katz was to do some research into what it takes to be a good marketer, specifically as it relates to selling.  One of the industries I aim to work in post graduation is a sales capacity at a money management firm.

After reading the white paper article online, titled - "The Sales Manager's Precarious Perch" I agree with many of the statements regarding what it takes to be successful as a sales manager.  However, one of the areas of the article that I agree with the most is that not all sales people are successful sales managers.  The roles are entirely different and often require completely different skill sets.  But who most often is selected to be a sales manager?  The best performing sales person.  The transition to sales manager from sales person does seem like a paradox.  I think that companies that are looking for success in their sales department should not turn to excellent sales people, but rather excellent managers.  Excellent managers have the ability to encourage to negotiate at high levels as well as manage different personalities for the greater good of the organization.  For companies that are looking to hire people that can drive their organization, managers with successful backgrounds dealing with a variety of people are the way to go.